Beginning the build up

I looked forward to this weeks workouts.  I was excited to get started for pumkinman.  I have noticed a few things while resting/recovering.  I am starting to feel the lack of strength workouts in the last 3 weeks.  I wanted to get the strength workouts back in.  I spent the beginning of the week with a slight to moderate sore throat.  I made a decision to scale back the plans and be smart. I was able to get the triathlon training in, including a swimming time trial, I just didnt load it up.   I also, wanted to move closer to a decision on what I should be doing with my bike situation.  Here is the situation:  ok road bike, decent tri bike.  I am comfortable on the road bike but seems like I am missing some speed if I dont use the tri bike.  I wasnt sure what to make of the tri bike.  It is wobbly, there may be a brake issue, and occasionally has a misfire on the gearing.  I wanted to have a bad ride with it to make the decision easy.  That did not happen.  Here is how the week went.

Monday-Originally scheduled to have a TT swim workout scratched for sore throat.

Tuesday-Originally scheduled to have a 5 mile easy run, changed it to 3 miles on wed.  

Wednesday-I had to get sully out anyway....rough day with snot but got some work in.

Thursday-I felt very good today.  I actually wanted to get to the pool.  I did a 1000 m time trial in 11:36:52.  Then a few easy laps and then 100 m TT in 1:53:98.  These figures will be used to help with workouts and future fitness tests.  Speed cues: quality strokes on each side with fluid reach and pull through, facedown, and high elbows.   

Friday-By this time I feel great.  I decided to run some intervals.  1 mile warm up in 9:33, 3 min on/3 min off X 4 then 1 mile cool down. Goal was to be under 7:20 for the on and around 9:30 for the off.   Here are splits: 7:17/8:44, 7:31/9:30, 7:55/9:54, 8:29/12:04, and cool down in 9:24.  I felt strong except for the last interval.  Ran out of gas.  I think that is the idea.  Next week I will repeat this.  I am learning the fight at the end of the workout.  That is definitely an issue for me.  My legs felt strong but cardio isnt there yet.  I feel it getting stronger and stronger.  I feel like my miss on the end of the workout is an aerobic strength issue.  

Saturday-Long bike.  This was going to be a test.  We picked a route with some climbing.  I wanted to descend and climb with this bike and see what I think.  20 miles total, 10 miles out and back.  1,500 foot climb.  Looking at the numbers and comparing those number to what I felt I definitely need to spend more time on this bike.  I was a chicken on the very fast decent.  Not pedaling, not contributing to making the bike go faster and I went 38 mph.  WOW.  I wasnt even aero.  On the climb, I climbed easier and faster then my road bike.  I actually passed 2 riders on the climb.  That never happens.   K2 has earned one more week.  I do have a few mechanical issues that may be contributing to the lack of confidence.  Learning this bikes gearing and feel wasnt so bad.

Sunday (today)-Long run.  I am feeling very good and I thought a medium distance long run with some speed work would be a good idea.  So lets make it a progressive run.  7 miles.  Actual split (goal).  9:22 (9:30), 9:08 (9:15), 9:19 (9:00), 8:43 (8:45), 8:43 (8:30), and 10:22 (8:30).  LOL...zapped again.  No excuses.  The aerobic/mental strength not there yet.  I battled a lot more than I have in the past though.  The grade did turn back to up for the last 2 miles but I have ran faster there.  I just couldnt hold it.  Something to work on.  Long slow grades continue to get to me.  Just simply have to get stronger.  I did try out some new shoes today.  The assics nimbus 13.  A neutral shoe.  They felt amazing.  I had some muscle soreness but It was good to focus on mechanics.  Sore gluts, sore quads, and no foot or skin issues.  I felt really good just not fast enough on the end.  Quote:

   Fitness - if it came in a bottle, everybody would have a great body.  ~Cher

I am progressing very well.  Special shout out to Khadevis Robinson who was second in the 800 m at the USA championships.  Good luck at worlds my man!

Pumkinman On the Clock and 10K PR

First things first.  My classes are open!  To check out my running classes click here!

The 1/2 Iron at pumkinman will be a different animal.  The swim is the same swim I swim all the time, the bike will be a different set of hills at the lake ending in a good climb to Boulder City.  The run will be through the streets of BC and will be a collection of long slow climb type hills.  It will be mid October so the weather should be awesome.  I will have some buddies to train with so the company will be welcomed.       This weekend marked the first training weekend leading up to this race.  This 1/2 will be a different focus.  I want to do a few things different:  swim faster, ride faster, and run faster.  LOL.  I am going to tweak the swim training.  If the bike split was the same but on the tri bike, and the run was competitive with what I am capable of, I would be ecstatic.  Thats the goal.  More on that as time goes by.  Speaking of tri bike I had 2 rides this week.  One horrible, the other not so good.  Its wobbly and hard.  I dont know if I want to continue the bike on this bike but we will see.

The Ambulance Chaser 10K/5K/1 mile walk was a race at the Las Vegas Motor Speed way.  Pretty cool.  The 5K 2 laps around the track and the 10K 1 lap speedway and up and down the drag strip.  Here are some pics:

  Here is how the week went:

Monday-Core
Tuesday-Easy run 4 miles with sully
Wednesday-Strength training
Thursday-Training run 5 miles with sully
Friday-off
Saturday-Ambulance Chaser 10K.  My previous 10 PR was 55:16 or so.  I thought I had the juice for a sub 52 min race since Karl predicted 52 I wanted to be faster than that.  My Vdot says 48 min is possible.  I have had some good training runs so I thought it was going to be in play.  Here are my splits: 8:17, 8:17, 8:40, 10:05, 8:54, 7:35, and 1:59 for the 0.2.  The super slow mile came on the steep drag strip when the heat was pounding from the sun, the asphalt was radiating heat, the grade went up, and the rubber from the race car tires was making the ground sticky.  I got zapped there.  I think 3 min should have been shaved off.  My official time was 53:42.  My new 10K PR by 1:24.  Overall, a good race.  Minor soreness and fatique.
Sunday-Bike/run brick.  16 mile bike and 3 mile run.  My longest ride with the tri bike.  I am not sure what the think of that thing.  Aero is uncomfortable and unsteady.  It was hard and not as much fun.  The big gear isnt as fast and the little gears are easier to climb with.  Hmmmm.....just so different.  I dont know if I like it.  Too early to tell.  The run was ordinary.  Just getting some reps in.  1 hour ride and 30 min run.  QUOTE:

Learn to run when feeling the pain: then push harder. William Sigei

I am learning how do this, I need to that better.

2011 Ironman 70.3 Honu: One week later...

I started this blog a few years ago to document this journey.  Every once in a while I go back and read old posts and think about the highs and lows presented in race reports.  But my most favorite posts are the one week laters.  Once the hoopla and emotion of race day wears off what does it all mean.  I am so proud of what this body can do.  I am most important proud of what this mind/brain is capable of.  Sure 169/226 in my age group isnt a great ranking.  So I am not going to wow anyone with the time.  I am not close to a Kona slot, some 3 hours slower than those guys.  Can I shave 3 hours off this time?  Lets be real, not in the next foreseeable future.  I am sure going to bust my ass to get there.  What I did do show up to a 70.3 with a rented bike and put up a 53 min PR in this distance.  What is funny is the only thing that was faster was my bike.  The swim and run splits were nearly identical to silverman.  Undertrained on the swim and swimming off course didn't help.  Very hot and burning feet was the only limiting factor on the run.  Fitter, faster, and still only one discipline was faster.  The bike course at Honu is not considered easy, the World Championship is on that highway for petes sake.  Just goes to show what the Silverman bike is like, ridiculous.  I will keep training the course at the lake and see what my bike fitness will be like.  It is a gift to be able to train these hills.  Some of my questions are becoming clear.  I realize this is process and a long one at that.  I am amazed at how I recovered.  The recovery gets easier each race this distance.   I had about a 2/10 soreness.  My skin was the only thing that was significant.

For the first time, in my heart I know this journey is progressing.   The way I wanted it to go and the way it has gone has been different.   Initially its confusing but eventually it works out.  My goals are working themselves out.  IRONMAN is beginning to look like a doable challenge.  My body is responding.  Leaner, fitter, stronger, more efficient, and the nutrition piece is coming into focus.  The half at PUMKINMAN is now the goal.  Secondary to that is Las Vegas Marathon.  Use the running program for Vegas to dovetail train for pumkinman.  For pumkinman I want to do some specific things.  For the swim I want to get into the low 40 min.  I realized that when I open water swim, I havent done any speed work.  DUH, no speed work out there =no better time.  I also hate the pool.  So I need to find a way to get faster in the water.  I think the TRIATHLETE magazine swim program for a 70.3 looks good.  I am going to try that.  For the bike I realized several things while at Honu.   Number one, I was one of a very low percentage of road bikes.  Tri bikes abound.  I am guessing 5,000 ave per bike.  That means 90 million dollars in transition.  I passed a bunch of them too.  How much faster will I be in aero position?  The tri bike is now in effect.  My back has been a lot better and I feel better physically making that change.  For the run, keep running.  My run is coming up.  I want to do a new VDOT.  I want to run a few 5/10Ks and I want to keep progressing that way.  Also, I want to do a few sprints for some speed work.  Funny how my run is the best its ever been but did not show up at the race.  I am not happy about that.  I want the Pumkinman run to be competitive  with my other 1/2 marathon racing times.  If I can do those things another PR is on the way.  

I had 3 runs this week.  3-5 miles per.  My legs are not back to form yet but they are close. Quote:


“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”
 George Bernard Shaw