Surf Nipple Vs. Runners Nipple/EPIC training

WOW....A whole week in the 50th state of our union...HAWAII. (they love that fact btw.) IT WAS EPIC. What a great time. I met some family of dear friends, saw some breathtaking sights, and got some EXTREME mental imagery as far as training goes. Since this is a training blog I will concentrate on the training. Here is how it went down:
Thursday (7/23/09)-travel day
Friday (7/24/09)-Long swim not timed or measured but it is approximately 2000 meters. It was done at Waimea Bay beach park. It is where they have the big wave contests in the winter. Today it is a virtual pond. Breathtaking. Easy to train there.
Saturday (7/25/09)-Long day at the beach. Surfed for the first time and even got up. GO ME. Ive got the nipple carnage to prove it. I also got a surf board burn and even a sun burn on top of that. I have had runners nipple and its got nothin on surfers nipple. Sorry no pics of that. I kayaked, body boarded, and swam. Surfing is one awesome shoulder and core activity.
Sunday (7/26/09)-Long run. OK this is the type of run that sets it all off. 9 miles from turtle bay past sunset beach all on the Northshore. Here is a picture of the sunset @ sunset beach where I ran. It was slow and I stopped a bunch to take it all in and because of the humidity. Here in Vegas it is hot but dry there, not so much.




Monday (7/27/09)-Travel day. Went to Kailau-Kona on the big island. This is the holy grail among triathletes. I rented a bike. I rented a much nicer bike then I would ever buy for tuesdays long ride along queen K.
Tuesday (7/28/09)-Long Bike. I was hoping for 40 miles. What I got was way more than that. As absolutely gorgeous as it was it was difficult. May be that why they do it there. Its hot, hilly, muggy, desolate, rainy, windy, and cold. Huh? Here is the map:
The red is what I rode. The pink is the rest. The bottom-most or southern tip of the pink is where the swim start is, where the transition area is(T1 and T2), and where the finish is. I didnt ride that part. I rode 30 miles at the northern tip (the red) from Hapuna Bay to the city of Hawi where the turnaround is. As you go north you gain over 700 feet and the climate is remarkably different. Hot/muggy to cold and windy. The terrain changes from hot volcanic rock to grass land. Boy my legs felt it. Up and up and up. Then when I turned around it felt still up. And yes the wind DOES go in your face in both directions (I thought that was overdramatic by ABC's part but its true). Here are some other pics:

While in Kona there was also a bunch of IRONMAN gear. I couldnt help myself. Here is a pic of all the gear I got:
from the number on a clock here is what everything is: 1 o'clock=cycling jersey of LONO the Hawaiian god of war. Plumerias all around...very cool cycling jersey. 5 o'clock new cylcing sunglasses. Super cool. 7 o'clock cheapy IM t shirt to train in. 9 o'clock official ironman program. 10 o'clock a hat to run in IM-style. Middle middle is a post card I will use as a reminder of this weekend at work.

Right outside the swim start on illi'i drive there is a shop. The owner of the shop is a finisher of multiple IM. His name is also Ron and a really cool guy. His buddy made this statue. It is a huge replica of the original IM trophy. It sits outside the shop. Here is me with it.

I usually end with a quote but today I am not going to. Rather I am going to end with a definition. Although I have made life long memories this last week, what I take away most is an idea of what living with aloha is about. (sorry I cant figure out how to remove the underline)

“These are traits of character that express the charm, warmth and sincerity of Hawaii's people. It was the working philosophy of native Hawaiians and was presented as a gift to the people of Hawaii. Aloha is more than a word of greeting or farewell or a salutation. Aloha means mutual regard and affection and extends warmth in caring with no obligation in return. Aloha is the essence of relationships in which each person is important to every other person for collective existence. Aloha means to hear what is not said, to see what cannot be seen and to know the unknowable. “

http://www.volcanogallery.com/alohaspirit.htm

Heading out...

I just wanted to do a quick post before I head out. This week has gone by very quickly. Both at work and on the training schedule. Here is how my training week went:

Monday-Long swim. 1500 meters (30 laps) and I wondered how many 250 meter chunks can I do in under 6 min? the answer is 3 here are my splits: 5:49, 5:54, 5:50, 6:01, 6:06, and 6:03. For a total of 35:46, ave pace 5:57. WOW. Some 3 min faster than the last time I went this distance. My speed work is helping. Not tired, no cramping (used to get toe and calf cramps with long swims), and faster. Nice.
Tuesday-Easy recovery run in 28:00, 3 miles. Here in Vegas a gorgeous morning. Rained the previous night and was about 75 degrees. The kind of run that makes you say...."oh yeah thats why I do this..."
Wednesday-Recovery swim. 750 meters slow and easy. 19:25. Pushed my bike to this am since I thought I would have more time. Got to bed waaaay to late and changed today to a rest day with travel.

Intervals (run) tomorrow Hawaiian style, and the rest of the week we will see where the islands take us!


In other news I am going to do the push-up challenge that Charleston mentioned. Ok off to the airport and fun had by all! Oh here is a quote:

E noho iho i ke opu weuweu, mai ho`oki`eki`e.

Remain among the clumps of grass and do not elevate yourself.

Don't show off.
Don't get puffed up and big-headed.
Be ha`aha`a (humble),
which does not mean
timid, submissive, and spineless.
An inner self-confidence
which gives rise to quiet strength
is far more admirable than
self-importance, arrogance,
and egotism.

46 miles since last post and block review

Better rest, better nutrition, and better training. This block is going to be a lot better than the last training block. Just to reiterate: I am training for this 1/2 iron distance triathlon using a 10 day work week instead of the traditional 7. I left my schedule at work and I wasnt able to review my first block. So here it goes.

Block 1:
Swim-1750 meters
Bike-15 miles plus trainer
Ran-13 miles
Missed 1 run and a swim/bike brick so it was 1000 meters short on the swim and 25 mile short on the bike...Id grade that brick a C...good thing its only the first one.

Since the last post:
Friday-Intervals...it had been a few weeks with no speed work, which is probably why run had been the lesser of the 3 disciplines lately. Planned for 1 mile warm-up, 4 X 3 min on/off, 1 mile cool down and actually had 0.9 mile warm-up, 2 X 3 min on/off (on times were 7:42 pace and 8:36), and finished em up with 1.77 mile cool down. Total of 4 miles. Its amazing how much you lose if you dont do them.
Saturday-Long bike. I did the middle half of the Silverman course. Total of 33.66 miles in 2:21:29. Ave pace of 14.3 miles/hr. I think with more training I will be able to do reach over 15 mph. My legs got pooped on a mile and a 1/2 upgrade and speed was out after that. I did not include the 3 sisters which are going to be gnarly. Overall good ride. Beautiful ride out by the lake on Northshore.
Today (Sunday)-My first brick in a while. 30 min on the trainer in a moderate high gear with a high cadence. Slow transition to run and then 8 miles. It was slow but faster than last weeks on the same route. I walked some as I feel the soreness from yesterdays ride. Overall decent workout today.

The rest of this week is going to be a challenge to get my training done. I am going to be out of town for my first vacation in almost 5 years. I will be in Hawaii. I am hoping to have some swims in the ocean, runs near the beach, and there is a chance I make take a long bike ride on a long stretch of road. This long stretch of road is Queen K highway where they do this race every year. Yes it is the bike course for the IronMan. I may do about 30 or 40 miles of it for my dreams. Something to think about on boring rides, on the trainer, or in my dreams. I should be able to mobile blog so I am excited for new places to train. Quote:

Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do. -John Wooden

What can you do?