Good stuff / Not so good stuff

I had a great training week last week. We had temps in the 60's and even 70. I was able to get out on my bike and get in two 35 mile rides and even sandwiched in a run between the two. By the end of the week, my legs were spent. Obviously one of the most important aspects of long distance triathlon is conserving energy through being as aero as possible. I decided to check out how aero I look while on my trainer. Although I am no expert, it looks like I could gain a little from a proper fitting on the bike. Therefore, I have a bike fitting set up for Monday at Carolina Triathlon. I am really looking forward to what we find.

Unfortunately with the good comes the bad. My goal for this week was to focus on my run. I had plans to do four or five runs, with the longest being around 8 miles. My first run on Monday was great- 5.1 miles at a 9:10/mile pace. The second run felt real good until the end. I had just finished 5.2 miles and had 1/2 mile to go. At this point, my right achilles begins to act up and just flat out hurt. This time, it was not at the insertion point, but about 1/3 of the way from my heel. That is what happened last spring when I decided to go to therapy. I really don't want to go again and frankly can't afford to go again. For now, I am spending my time in the pool, on the bike and stretching like crazy. I am going to take off for the rest of the week and schedule an appointment with a friend who is a sports doc at Steadman Hawkins. Hopefully, he will give me some good news.

Good workout

Over the past few days, I have had some pretty good workouts. On Monday, my swim was an easy 2200 meters. I started out with freestyle, then switched to some backstroke for my warm up. The main set consisted of 1900 free. It is getting a little boring right now and it is hard to keep focused. I might try to find a training plan to help me until my IM training begins.

My workout yesterday was a pretty good 45 minutes inside on the trainer. The weather is cold and windy, especially for South Carolina. Today's workout was another trainer session. I sat my butt in one spot for 1 1/2 hours will pedaling away. Actually I did stand up twice to stretch my legs and back. Overall, it was a pretty good workout. My heart rate stayed in the mid 140s, which is pretty low for me.

Tomorrow, I am going back to the run. I am going to SportsClub to mix things up a little and do some work on the treadmill. After my 7.5 mile run on Sunday, I'm going to take down an notch to about 4.5 miles for a couple days, but maybe throw in some speed work.

I am really excited about one thing - I can feel my appetite beginning the take the turn. I seem to be less hungry now and it couldn't have come any sooner! Since my race, I have gained 8 lbs! I am now at 189! Just a couple weeks ago, I was eating everything in sight. Now, I can feel my cravings subside and hopefully my weight will begin to drop too.

Back to Training (and posting)

It has been two months since my last post and boy have things changed. During this time, Christmas and New Year's have come and gone, Sara and I have had to deal with some pretty overwhelming family issues, I have regulated my training schedule, I have become a Certified PGA Professional, and can now say that I am doing an Ironman this year. Since this is mostly about training and triathlon, I will stick with that.

Over the past six weeks, I have been able to get in my base workouts on a more regular basis. Just as with my half ironman training, they are always before or after work.

My swim has been great. I have worked on my stroke mechanics and have really been able to pick up some speed and strength without using anymore effort. My distances have ranged from 1500 meters up to 3000 meters in the pool. The Ironman swim distance is around 3800 meters, so I am almost there. I don't plan on going too much higher than the 3000 until I begin my plan in April.

The bike has been okay. The weather in the upstate has been unseasonably cold and wet. This means, not very good riding conditions. I have spent a good amount of time on the trainer watching movies and Ironman videos from Coeur D'alene, China, and World Championships from 2008 and 2009. This occupies my time pretty well. My longest trainer ride is still only 1.5 hours. I need to get this up into the 2 hour range soon. I truly believe riding on a trainer is much more difficult than riding on the road. I can only seem to average around 16.4 mph on the trainer whereas on the road, my lowest is typically around 17.0, and even getting up to 20 mph. The trainer doesn't allow for any rest. There is virtually no coasting and obviously no downhills sections to catch your breath or let your legs recover. Instead, it's just nonstop pedaling.

My running has been pretty good. I am trying to follow the 10% rule and not increase my mileage too quickly. My current runs right now are averaging around 6 miles. I am getting them in around 3 days per week. All have been outside. This coming week will be around 6.5-7 miles. I have just been trying to keep a very slow pace, not pushing anything. I have thrown in a few hills for good measure and mix it up a bit.

2010 should be a very exciting year. It is the year I will become an Ironman. It's about the journey, not the destination.

Update.........

Things have been a little slow lately as far as training goes. I have been taking this down time to catch up on a few things around the house - mainly tiling the kitchen floor. What a pain! Never again.

I did learn a valuable lesson - don't do anything you can pay someone else to do. If you can't afford it, it wasn't meant to be.

My training has resorted to running and spending some time on the bike on the trainer. Unfortunately the weather and time change has forced me on to the trainer. I don't feel comfortable riding at night and will never do it. I have made it for about an hour but most of my rides have been between 40-45 minutes. Today's ride lasted me 45 minutes and it went by really fast. I watched the 2008 Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Clearwater. Those guys and gals can move! It's fun to dream.

Sara and I received some bad news today regarding her stepfather Bill. After a period of time of not feeling well, he is now in the hospital. Apparently he has had a few episodes but this one was much worse. Jeanne was there but could not do anything so she called 911. He has been passing blood and is very weak with very low pulse. The doctors cannot do any tests until he gains some strength back. We are keeping him our prayers and ask that everyone else does the same.

Motivational Quotes

When my motivation is lacking, I need a little nudge. My motivational quotes page from different sources (mostly BT):

• The only easy day was yesterday.

• We are judged by what we finish, not by what we start

• Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. - TS Eliott

• Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!!

• Ironman is journey, first and foremost, inside myself. I wanted to find out what was deep inside me at mile 20 when 134 miles had stripped away all shields of adrenaline, caffeine, and glycogen and I was just left with my inner core, my spirit."- Dgillen- 2008 IMLP RR

• “Live. More than your neighbors. Unleash yourself upon the world and go places. Go now. Giggle. No. Laugh. And bark at the moon like the wild dog that you are. Understand that this is not a dress rehearsal. This is it. Your life. Face your fears and live your dreams and take it all in. Yes, every chance you get. Come close. And by all means, whatever you do, get it on film.” John Blais - 2005 Ironman with ALS (Time: 16:28:58)

• You can quit and they won't care...but you will always remember

• "Ironically enough the difference between possible and impossible is two letters IM" - NBC broadcast refering to Scott Rigsby -2007 Kona finish and double above the knee amputee
• “Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.” - Lance Armstrong
  
  

Figuring things out

It has now been three weeks since Augusta and things are back to normal. I am back to my normal weight and training schedule has been very, very light. My desire has been very low lately. I can't seem to get going. I think it comes down to structure. For the past eight months, I have lived by a training plan. Now, I have no plan to follow. I'm just kind of winging it, but it is almost time to crank it up again.

I found a winter maintenance plan to follow for biking and plan to start it in November. It should carry me for about three months. This plan is a three day per week plan, so it should give me some time in between for running. I am still trying to figure it all out, but will soon enough.

As for swimming, I am considering moving all swims to a morning routine. Morning, as in before work - like 6am. There is a real good chance I am going to have to do this once I begin my Ironman training plan anyway, so why not get used to it right now. Besides, it's only two to three days per week anyway.

I decided to take a couple days off this weekend for a much needed break. We were able to make a quick trip to the beach to see family. Sara's family (Brett, Susan, Jesse, Erica, and Aiden) came in from Montana and New York, so it real nice seeing them as well as Grandma and Grandpa Trimble. They are all such nice people. Since Myrtle Beach is only an hour away from Wilmington, we usually try to see everyone in that area at once. I was able to make a day trip up to see my mom and check out her new place. It's perfect for her and is only a short walk from Wrightsville Beach. Although it was a short trip, it was good to see everyone. I'll take what opportunities I can get!

Yesterday, I went out with my brother to ride the trails of Paris Mountain on our mountain bikes. That was a good change of pace. I was hoping the leaves would have begun their transformation, but they were not quite ready yet. Maybe in a couple weeks. I will probably head back once a week or so.

Now, I get to head out and go for a run to see if I can find where I left my motivation. I hope it is somewhere on Gibbs Shoals Road so I can reach down and pick it up.

What's next?

The question everyone has been asking me since the finish of Augusta has been "what's next?" I have tossed around a few different ideas in my head - would it be an upcoming 1/2 marathon, full marathon, another half iron, or possibly a full Ironman. I answered this question today. From the very beginning, I had the dream of doing an Ironman race, not just a half, but a full Ironman - 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run. Today, I took the next step. I am officially registered for Ironman Louisville.

http://www.ironmanlouisville.com/

The anticipation is already killing me. I have a plan to follow and am really looking forward to the challenge. I have learned so much from my training for Augusta 70.3. The things I found to be most important are: #1- be strong on the bike. In order to have a good race, a strong bike is crucial. For me, this is where I will focus the majority of my time this winter. My plan is to do a bunch of cross training including road riding, mountain biking, trainer rides, and leg strengthening at the gym to name a few. #2 remain consistent. This is the area that is difficult with work and family commitments. Obviously I would not be able to do this without the support of Sara and the rest of my family. I will not let my training affect my work performance and will not sacrifice it for any training. I don't live to work. I work to live and pay the bills.

After completion of this race, my question to myself will be: What's next? My dream was to attempt and complete an Ironman. I don't have the desire or time to be a true competitor in my age group. Marking it off my "list of things to do" will be good enough. I plan on competing in other tri's (sprint, olympic, and possibly half iron distances), but don't have the desire to do another Ironman. Once you become an Ironman, nobody can take that away from you.

Unlike Augusta, I don't have a definitive goal except to finish. I keep tossing around the idea of finishing in the daylight (which means around a 13 hour finish.)