Last year I signed up for 4 trail runs: a 10K, a 10 mile, a half-marathon, and a 3.5 obstacle course run. This past Saturday I finished the third of the four runs, the Seabrook Lucky Trails Half Marathon. This was by far my favorite race of the three. Not only did I not get injured, I never came close to injuring myself. They call it a trail run, but it was nothing like the other two I’ve raced. This was a crushed gravel trail with volunteers along the way to ensure you didn’t get lost, and mile markers all along the route. When I think back on the other two trail runs, they really aren’t even the same sort of race.
So, yes I enjoyed the race! I beat my target time by 3+ minutes. That is odd to me, especially considering that I hadn’t run any further than 10 miles in 25+ years. I could have done better with another month of training to get in more long distance runs, but isn’t that always the case? I’m not complaining though, I’m very pleased with the results. It also did me wonders as I start to mentally prepare for the next big race, my half Ironman in Galveston next month.
10 days ago I rode the equivalent of the bike leg, and last weekend I ran the run leg. Saturday I hope to swim the swim in a lake in Austin. With all of that under my belt I will approach this race armed with the knowledge that I can complete each individual leg of the race. All I need to do race day is stay calm, pace myself, and keep a positive frame of mind.
I have a new slogan for race day, but I’m not ready to reveal it yet. Stay tuned…
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Another brick in the wall
My music friends would assume that this title refers to the classic Pink Floyd song, while my triathlete friends would assume I refer to the training practice of training on two events back to back. In reality it is a bit of both.
Saturday was a big brick for me: a 60 mile bike ride on rolling hills, followed by a 2 mile run. It wasn’t a very balanced brick, as far as bricks go, but the length of the bike ride made it pretty tough. At the time I was very pleased with the bike leg, but disappointed in my run in that I didn’t have much left. Looking back today I know it was a great training day. I didn’t have much left for the run, but since I only needed to run 2 miles, what did I expect? If I’d had a lot left in my tank it would mean that I hadn’t ridden hard enough. I should have had just enough left in my tank to finish the run, which is about what I had. The following day, my legs were very tired and felt heavy, but I was able to get out and run 10 miles in a record pace for me.
It takes a bit of time to ride 60 miles, no matter how fast you are. Heck in most places it takes you an hour to drive that. When I’m out there on my bike or running all by myself, I use my internal music library to keep myself entertained. Often a song I heard recently on the radio goes through my head, but last week it was “Another Brick in the Wall”. The lyrics don’t have much to do with my training or what I was feeling at the time, and this is where it all comes together. It was a brick, one of many I have done and will do in preparation for various triathlons. By itself the brick was just that, a brick. But stacked together with other bricks, cemented together with proper nutrition, speed work and other training exercises; it makes a wall. It’s taking a long time to build my wall, but when I’m done it will be fabulous. Tall to protect me against the wind, sturdy to withstand the pounding of the waves, and providing shade from the sun. I know it sounds corny, but when I’m 6 hours into the race; hot and tired and my mind starting to go fuzzy, I’m going to remember this song. I’m going to remember all the bricks and mortar that went into the wall and hopefully that will be enough for me to keep going.
I’m working on my wall, what about you?
Saturday was a big brick for me: a 60 mile bike ride on rolling hills, followed by a 2 mile run. It wasn’t a very balanced brick, as far as bricks go, but the length of the bike ride made it pretty tough. At the time I was very pleased with the bike leg, but disappointed in my run in that I didn’t have much left. Looking back today I know it was a great training day. I didn’t have much left for the run, but since I only needed to run 2 miles, what did I expect? If I’d had a lot left in my tank it would mean that I hadn’t ridden hard enough. I should have had just enough left in my tank to finish the run, which is about what I had. The following day, my legs were very tired and felt heavy, but I was able to get out and run 10 miles in a record pace for me.
It takes a bit of time to ride 60 miles, no matter how fast you are. Heck in most places it takes you an hour to drive that. When I’m out there on my bike or running all by myself, I use my internal music library to keep myself entertained. Often a song I heard recently on the radio goes through my head, but last week it was “Another Brick in the Wall”. The lyrics don’t have much to do with my training or what I was feeling at the time, and this is where it all comes together. It was a brick, one of many I have done and will do in preparation for various triathlons. By itself the brick was just that, a brick. But stacked together with other bricks, cemented together with proper nutrition, speed work and other training exercises; it makes a wall. It’s taking a long time to build my wall, but when I’m done it will be fabulous. Tall to protect me against the wind, sturdy to withstand the pounding of the waves, and providing shade from the sun. I know it sounds corny, but when I’m 6 hours into the race; hot and tired and my mind starting to go fuzzy, I’m going to remember this song. I’m going to remember all the bricks and mortar that went into the wall and hopefully that will be enough for me to keep going.
I’m working on my wall, what about you?
Monday, March 8, 2010
Two becomes three...
I just finished a week of good hard training and a much needed day off. It was my second in a row. I can tell it was a hard week not by looking at my training schedule, but by how deeply I look forward to my one day off. I remember several times during my journey where I felt the same way; thinking how tired I was, how leaden my legs felt, how I wanted to sleep in, and how I really wanted to take an extra day off.
As I sit here today writing this, I realize it has been too long since I’ve felt like this. Two unfortunate injuries nearly back to back messed up my training. This is the first time since before Christmas that I feel like I can go after all three events pretty hard. Those weeks since weren’t wasted, they just weren’t as productive as I would have liked. I wish I was doing 15 mile runs every weekend, and long rides of 60 to 70 miles. The truth is it doesn’t matter. I’ve finally grown up enough that I can accept my lot in life. My races are when they are, my training is where it is, and the two will very soon meet. It is time to focus on the positive!
Ah yes, the positive! Saturday I got to go for a spin with my Dad, something we used to do regularly 20 years ago, but not so much since. I’ve also had two really solid weeks of training in a row. This past week I rode further in a single session than I have in years, and it was faster than the week before. I compared my run from Sunday to 5 weeks ago, and I had run the same distance in less time. As crazy as it sounds, I somehow feel like I am about to peak at just the right time. My only question is; am I peaking for the right distance?
When does two become three: This week, when I finish my third consecutive hard week of training.
As I sit here today writing this, I realize it has been too long since I’ve felt like this. Two unfortunate injuries nearly back to back messed up my training. This is the first time since before Christmas that I feel like I can go after all three events pretty hard. Those weeks since weren’t wasted, they just weren’t as productive as I would have liked. I wish I was doing 15 mile runs every weekend, and long rides of 60 to 70 miles. The truth is it doesn’t matter. I’ve finally grown up enough that I can accept my lot in life. My races are when they are, my training is where it is, and the two will very soon meet. It is time to focus on the positive!
Ah yes, the positive! Saturday I got to go for a spin with my Dad, something we used to do regularly 20 years ago, but not so much since. I’ve also had two really solid weeks of training in a row. This past week I rode further in a single session than I have in years, and it was faster than the week before. I compared my run from Sunday to 5 weeks ago, and I had run the same distance in less time. As crazy as it sounds, I somehow feel like I am about to peak at just the right time. My only question is; am I peaking for the right distance?
When does two become three: This week, when I finish my third consecutive hard week of training.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
What a crock!
After my last entry, I thought it might be interesting to see how much I have really changed. I took some personal training sessions last year at the local 24 Hour Fitness. Included in those sessions were a couple of measurements (before and after) to gauge my improvement, especially my body fat. There is a trainer at my new gym that could give me my current measurements, but I needed my old ones to verify what my eyes told me.
I spoke to the 24 Hour Fitness (of which I am still a member), and was told that yes they would still have my old measurements, but that I could only get them if I purchased new training sessions! A little irritated, I explained to the personal training manager that I was training for an Ironman, and that their training wasn’t of any interest to me unless they had someone who could give me swim lessons. They did, he said, they have a trainer who used to coach a swim team. As a bonus, if I got some sessions with her she would be able to access my measurements making it a double win. An hour later, Lisa from the gym called to invite me to the gym for a consult. I explained that I was looking for someone who could make me either swim faster with less effort, and was assured that she could help.
Thursday evening, after a 3 hour bike ride and 3.5 mile run, I went to the gym ready for a consult and to determine if she was going to be able to help me! As I completed some questionnaire, she reviewed the details from my last two swim sessions. She didn’t understand my shorthand, and as how I made it up myself that made sense. It also made sense when she asked me what drills I was doing. What didn’t make sense was when she asked me what purpose a certain drill served. Now I don’t know why one would swim with a closed fist, but I know it is common enough as they sell mitts that keep your hand in a fist. I wasn’t sure why I was explaining the purpose of a drill to my potential trainer, but I did.
Next she launched into a sales pitch for their nutrition supplements. I cut her off before she got too far, explaining that I am already working with a registered and licensed dietician. Later in the evening she told me she wanted to know what the dietician told me. I should have offered to sell her the information! Her next pitch was for me to purchase a Body Bug. For those of you not familiar with this product, it is something that you wear on your bicep, and it measures how many calories you burn. I hadn’t thought about using that, and it makes sense. She wasn’t too thrilled when I told her I already had access to one, but offered to register it to me so I could enter my food and calories on their web site (a fee based service). That’s too much work, but I would like to know how many calories I’m burning daily, and that is done for free by the Body Bug.
Her third sales pitch was for weight training. I agree that might be helpful, but I’m already doing 10-12 hours of exercise a week, and don’t have the time or energy to add more. I explained to her for the third time that all I was interested in were swim lessons. I’m still not sure that she heard me.
Finally we got up to check my current measurements, and I was pretty excited! When I’d last done training at this gym my body fat had measured in the high teens. Since then I’d lost almost 10 pounds, several inches, and looked much better. I was secretly thinking to myself that I might be hitting 14-15, and was checking the chart to see how I would stack up. Then she hit me with 24%, 2% away from being obese! A lot of thoughts went through my head at that point, as I started to shut down, but the recurring theme was that she was full of crap! I murmured something and walked with her to the pool for a swim evaluation.
The pool evaluation consisted of a 100M swim. When I was done, she told me that I was breathing hard, and not kicking very much which was making it harder for me to stay level, resulting in slower swim times. Duh! Thinking back on our initial conversation I’m pretty sure I told her that myself! Her solution: buy some training sessions and we will work with weights on upper body strength. We could, if I wanted, spend some time working in the pool with weights.
To be fair to Lisa, strengthening my upper and core body would help my swim, and nutrition is a key part of endurance racing. To be fair to me, she offered nothing that I didn’t already have covered with someone more infinitely qualified. My workouts are set by a professional and internationally ranked triathlete, my diet and nutrition is set by a registered and licensed dietician, and I can get core body workouts by someone who looks like Adonis, not the Michelin Man!
For anyone listening, this is what I gleamed from my consultation at 24 Hour Fitness:
1. They will tell a member anything to get them in the door to meet with a personal trainer.
2. The trainer’s job is to sell their nutrition products (even though similar products can be found much cheaper elsewhere), to sell the Body Bug and web site subscription, and finally to sell training sessions.
3. The trainer’s motto: sell them above regardless of what they want, ask for, or need. If they don’t use it or it doesn’t work, we still made the sale.
I was told they had a qualified swim coach to get me to come to the table. I was told I was almost obese so I would want training. I was told to buy their supplements when it might not coincide with my existing plan, and finally they tried to sell me weight room training when I wanted swim lessons.
24 Hour Fitness, I hope you are listening! I’ve got my membership, and I plan to use your pool as long as it is cold. As far as your supplements and training sessions, come and talk to me when you are interested in helping me and not your bottom line! Until then, you know what you can do with them!!
I spoke to the 24 Hour Fitness (of which I am still a member), and was told that yes they would still have my old measurements, but that I could only get them if I purchased new training sessions! A little irritated, I explained to the personal training manager that I was training for an Ironman, and that their training wasn’t of any interest to me unless they had someone who could give me swim lessons. They did, he said, they have a trainer who used to coach a swim team. As a bonus, if I got some sessions with her she would be able to access my measurements making it a double win. An hour later, Lisa from the gym called to invite me to the gym for a consult. I explained that I was looking for someone who could make me either swim faster with less effort, and was assured that she could help.
Thursday evening, after a 3 hour bike ride and 3.5 mile run, I went to the gym ready for a consult and to determine if she was going to be able to help me! As I completed some questionnaire, she reviewed the details from my last two swim sessions. She didn’t understand my shorthand, and as how I made it up myself that made sense. It also made sense when she asked me what drills I was doing. What didn’t make sense was when she asked me what purpose a certain drill served. Now I don’t know why one would swim with a closed fist, but I know it is common enough as they sell mitts that keep your hand in a fist. I wasn’t sure why I was explaining the purpose of a drill to my potential trainer, but I did.
Next she launched into a sales pitch for their nutrition supplements. I cut her off before she got too far, explaining that I am already working with a registered and licensed dietician. Later in the evening she told me she wanted to know what the dietician told me. I should have offered to sell her the information! Her next pitch was for me to purchase a Body Bug. For those of you not familiar with this product, it is something that you wear on your bicep, and it measures how many calories you burn. I hadn’t thought about using that, and it makes sense. She wasn’t too thrilled when I told her I already had access to one, but offered to register it to me so I could enter my food and calories on their web site (a fee based service). That’s too much work, but I would like to know how many calories I’m burning daily, and that is done for free by the Body Bug.
Her third sales pitch was for weight training. I agree that might be helpful, but I’m already doing 10-12 hours of exercise a week, and don’t have the time or energy to add more. I explained to her for the third time that all I was interested in were swim lessons. I’m still not sure that she heard me.
Finally we got up to check my current measurements, and I was pretty excited! When I’d last done training at this gym my body fat had measured in the high teens. Since then I’d lost almost 10 pounds, several inches, and looked much better. I was secretly thinking to myself that I might be hitting 14-15, and was checking the chart to see how I would stack up. Then she hit me with 24%, 2% away from being obese! A lot of thoughts went through my head at that point, as I started to shut down, but the recurring theme was that she was full of crap! I murmured something and walked with her to the pool for a swim evaluation.
The pool evaluation consisted of a 100M swim. When I was done, she told me that I was breathing hard, and not kicking very much which was making it harder for me to stay level, resulting in slower swim times. Duh! Thinking back on our initial conversation I’m pretty sure I told her that myself! Her solution: buy some training sessions and we will work with weights on upper body strength. We could, if I wanted, spend some time working in the pool with weights.
To be fair to Lisa, strengthening my upper and core body would help my swim, and nutrition is a key part of endurance racing. To be fair to me, she offered nothing that I didn’t already have covered with someone more infinitely qualified. My workouts are set by a professional and internationally ranked triathlete, my diet and nutrition is set by a registered and licensed dietician, and I can get core body workouts by someone who looks like Adonis, not the Michelin Man!
For anyone listening, this is what I gleamed from my consultation at 24 Hour Fitness:
1. They will tell a member anything to get them in the door to meet with a personal trainer.
2. The trainer’s job is to sell their nutrition products (even though similar products can be found much cheaper elsewhere), to sell the Body Bug and web site subscription, and finally to sell training sessions.
3. The trainer’s motto: sell them above regardless of what they want, ask for, or need. If they don’t use it or it doesn’t work, we still made the sale.
I was told they had a qualified swim coach to get me to come to the table. I was told I was almost obese so I would want training. I was told to buy their supplements when it might not coincide with my existing plan, and finally they tried to sell me weight room training when I wanted swim lessons.
24 Hour Fitness, I hope you are listening! I’ve got my membership, and I plan to use your pool as long as it is cold. As far as your supplements and training sessions, come and talk to me when you are interested in helping me and not your bottom line! Until then, you know what you can do with them!!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Who is that guy?
Last night, on my way home from my swim workout, I walked past the bathroom and caught a fleeting glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye. I backed up to get a second and better look. There was a guy in my bathroom. It took a second for me to realize it was a double reflection of me, or at least someone who kind of looked like me. If I covered up the face in the reflection I wasn’t certain any more it was me.
The thing is; I’m not the kind of guy that spends a lot of time looking at his self in the mirror. Sure, I look in the mirror when I’m brushing my teeth, but I’m just staring, not looking. Combing my hair, if I do it at all, takes 10 seconds. I shave every few days (and I use that term loosely), but my focus is on reducing the whiskers so I’m not so hot when I train. In my opinion there isn’t a need to spend a bunch of time looking at myself. If I was a bit vainer, I might have noticed the change earlier, or maybe I wouldn’t have noticed it all because the change was gradual.
Here I am today, and the physical changes are more noticeable. Sure I noticed I need a belt for most of my pants. I also noticed that shirts that didn’t fit a year ago fit again; some of them are even a bit large. I bought a new swimsuit last weekend, a small, made for someone with a 30 inch waist! The crazy thing is that while they fit great in the waist, they were tight in the thighs. As someone plagued with bird legs, the notion of thighs that are big for my waist is incomprehensible!
Don’t worry, I spent a total of 10 seconds looking in the mirror before I felt weird and moved on. While I appreciate all the good things this new regimen is doing for me, I’m much more interested in my weight, and the times on my watch at the end of the workout.
The thing is; I’m not the kind of guy that spends a lot of time looking at his self in the mirror. Sure, I look in the mirror when I’m brushing my teeth, but I’m just staring, not looking. Combing my hair, if I do it at all, takes 10 seconds. I shave every few days (and I use that term loosely), but my focus is on reducing the whiskers so I’m not so hot when I train. In my opinion there isn’t a need to spend a bunch of time looking at myself. If I was a bit vainer, I might have noticed the change earlier, or maybe I wouldn’t have noticed it all because the change was gradual.
Here I am today, and the physical changes are more noticeable. Sure I noticed I need a belt for most of my pants. I also noticed that shirts that didn’t fit a year ago fit again; some of them are even a bit large. I bought a new swimsuit last weekend, a small, made for someone with a 30 inch waist! The crazy thing is that while they fit great in the waist, they were tight in the thighs. As someone plagued with bird legs, the notion of thighs that are big for my waist is incomprehensible!
Don’t worry, I spent a total of 10 seconds looking in the mirror before I felt weird and moved on. While I appreciate all the good things this new regimen is doing for me, I’m much more interested in my weight, and the times on my watch at the end of the workout.
Monday, March 1, 2010
The bike ride that wasn’t meant to be
Have you ever had one of those training days that just wasn’t destined to be? I had one of those Saturday, and it drove me crazy. It didn’t start out that way though. I checked the weather on my iPhone Friday night, and it said sunny, clear and about 45 degrees. That was a little colder than I would have liked, but I can always put on some extra clothes to stay warm.
My first mistake was in not getting my car all packed Friday night. Heck, I didn’t even get my gear out of the bedroom. When I woke up Saturday morning, I realized my mistake, and had to wait for my wife to wake up before I started gathering up my clothes and such. This was actually fortunate as it seemed overcast or foggy outside. I made myself a cup of coffee, and hoped that it would clear up in the next hour or so while I waited. 10 minutes later the bedroom door opened and my wife emerged. So much for having time for the weather to clear!
I grabbed my stuff, ate a quick breakfast, finished my coffee, loaded my bike on the back of my car and headed out. If you’ve never been here, Houston is very flat. In an attempt to get in some hill work I drive to Magnolia, about 30 minutes away. It isn’t super hilly there, but compared to Houston it is mountainous. So I’m driving along, watching the outside temperature at 46, the flags flapping in the strong wind, and realized the sun had broken through and the sky was clearing. Reaching for my sunglasses, I realized I’d left them at home. I continued driving while I pondered my options. Turn around and get them (which got less appealing as I continued driving further from home), go without today, or ride with my prescription glasses. Given the windy and sunny conditions I decided the only real option was to go back home to get my glasses. I fussed at myself the entire drive home for wasting time. Unfortunately it had been too long since I’d ridden on the road and I just forgot my sunglasses.
Half an hour later I was back on the road, again headed to Magnolia. I got a little bit further this time, when I realized I didn’t have my helmet! I know it’s crazy, but I actually considered going without it for a split second. Having recently bounced my head/helmet on the road, that idea didn’t persist very long and I turned around yet again. At this point I was very irritated with myself, and thought seriously about abandoning the ride. If I’d had something else to do it would have been over at this point. After one hour of driving, I was still at home waiting to start the ride.
The third time was the charm. I made it to my starting location just fine. I put on all my clothes, loaded up my bike, jumped on and headed down the road. I didn’t make it one block before I realized that the wind was pretty darn cold, and I probably wasn’t dressed warmly enough. I’ll be the first to admit it, I don’t like being cold on the bike. I’d seen some other riders go by while I was getting ready, and they were in shorts and short sleeves. I had on pants, a long sleeve shirt and a wind breaker vest and was still cold! I turned around, again, went back to my car and re-attached my sleeves to my wind breaker. I headed off, for good this time.
Aside from being a little shaky on the road at first, the bike ride went great. I rode made it 40 miles in just under 2.5 hours. Not a particularly quick pace, but a nice distance considering the wind and how long it had been since I’d been on the road. When I was done my butt was sore, my legs were tired, I was starving, but I’d finished the ride that didn’t want to start.
Sunday I finished a 7 mile run at a quicker pace than I’d been running before my injury, almost race pace. A few hours later I swam 1.3 miles. All in all a very productive training weekend, the second in a row. Considering how I almost abandoned the bike ride before it started, didn’t want to run Sunday because my legs were tired, and really didn’t want to swim far Sunday evening because I was really tired, I start the week very excited. The moral of the story is: If you quit before you start you cannot succeed. Just take the first step and see what happens!
My first mistake was in not getting my car all packed Friday night. Heck, I didn’t even get my gear out of the bedroom. When I woke up Saturday morning, I realized my mistake, and had to wait for my wife to wake up before I started gathering up my clothes and such. This was actually fortunate as it seemed overcast or foggy outside. I made myself a cup of coffee, and hoped that it would clear up in the next hour or so while I waited. 10 minutes later the bedroom door opened and my wife emerged. So much for having time for the weather to clear!
I grabbed my stuff, ate a quick breakfast, finished my coffee, loaded my bike on the back of my car and headed out. If you’ve never been here, Houston is very flat. In an attempt to get in some hill work I drive to Magnolia, about 30 minutes away. It isn’t super hilly there, but compared to Houston it is mountainous. So I’m driving along, watching the outside temperature at 46, the flags flapping in the strong wind, and realized the sun had broken through and the sky was clearing. Reaching for my sunglasses, I realized I’d left them at home. I continued driving while I pondered my options. Turn around and get them (which got less appealing as I continued driving further from home), go without today, or ride with my prescription glasses. Given the windy and sunny conditions I decided the only real option was to go back home to get my glasses. I fussed at myself the entire drive home for wasting time. Unfortunately it had been too long since I’d ridden on the road and I just forgot my sunglasses.
Half an hour later I was back on the road, again headed to Magnolia. I got a little bit further this time, when I realized I didn’t have my helmet! I know it’s crazy, but I actually considered going without it for a split second. Having recently bounced my head/helmet on the road, that idea didn’t persist very long and I turned around yet again. At this point I was very irritated with myself, and thought seriously about abandoning the ride. If I’d had something else to do it would have been over at this point. After one hour of driving, I was still at home waiting to start the ride.
The third time was the charm. I made it to my starting location just fine. I put on all my clothes, loaded up my bike, jumped on and headed down the road. I didn’t make it one block before I realized that the wind was pretty darn cold, and I probably wasn’t dressed warmly enough. I’ll be the first to admit it, I don’t like being cold on the bike. I’d seen some other riders go by while I was getting ready, and they were in shorts and short sleeves. I had on pants, a long sleeve shirt and a wind breaker vest and was still cold! I turned around, again, went back to my car and re-attached my sleeves to my wind breaker. I headed off, for good this time.
Aside from being a little shaky on the road at first, the bike ride went great. I rode made it 40 miles in just under 2.5 hours. Not a particularly quick pace, but a nice distance considering the wind and how long it had been since I’d been on the road. When I was done my butt was sore, my legs were tired, I was starving, but I’d finished the ride that didn’t want to start.
Sunday I finished a 7 mile run at a quicker pace than I’d been running before my injury, almost race pace. A few hours later I swam 1.3 miles. All in all a very productive training weekend, the second in a row. Considering how I almost abandoned the bike ride before it started, didn’t want to run Sunday because my legs were tired, and really didn’t want to swim far Sunday evening because I was really tired, I start the week very excited. The moral of the story is: If you quit before you start you cannot succeed. Just take the first step and see what happens!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
