Training Week in Review: Week 15

Less than 100 days to go...

As the "100 days till race day" passed this week I reflected on my progress so far. By this point I honestly expected to feel nervous or overwhelmed when thinking about where I was and where I needed to be. I'm pleased to say that I truly feel like I'm right where I should be in the process that is Ironman training. My long runs are only a challenge to slow down and stay within the right heart rate zone. My swims are not especially draining, just boring when in the pool.  And my bike is surpassing new distance milestones each week with no drop in average speed and no increase in heart rate.

Longest Ride Yet

Once again, the only workout to report on was my long bike on Saturday. The goal this time 69 miles from the Bud Plant in Cartersville. I was riding with a group of mostly new people, but it seems that the more new people I meet the more knowledge I gain. This ride was no different.

We headed out of the parking lot at 8:20am with a group of 7. I only knew one of them, Reiko, from previous rides, but I was eager to use the new crowd to help push me past my previous limits. We took off at a little faster pace than the previous week. This ride was going to be a little faster as I realized from the start. The ride was fairly uneventful as we kept pedaling down the road. Once we reached the turn off for the 48mi route and kept going straight I got a little excited. This was new territory for me both in the route and knowing the final distance we would cover. We stopped off at the gas station about 2 miles up the road to refill on water, take in a small snack (salt & vinegar chips to replenish sodium) and wait for the rest of our group to catch up.

We headed back out and I found that the scenery for this stretch was really beautiful. We passed creeks, farms, and horses over the next 20 miles. The terrain was largely rolling hills, but still contained a lot of flat, fast stretches to help keep the speed up. We stopped once again when we joined back up with the 48mi route at a Dollar General. We had gone 47mi by the time we stopped there, and I refilled my water bottles as it was getting very hot and I knew I would need to drink more over the remainder of the ride to stay hydrated. My legs were feeling a little tired as we had really pushed the pace in a few sections to that point. I was determined to keep up with the group and was prepared to ignore my legs feelings until we reached the parking lot at the end of the ride.

I was familiar with the route for the rest of the ride as I have covered those roads multiple times over the past 3 years. We kept pushing on until we reached the split for the 100mi route where we parted ways with 3 riders of our group who were going longer than my plan called for that day. I was happy that I was only 8 miles from the parking lot as I was definitely feeling the effects of being on my bike saddle for almost 4 hours. That's the only main upgrade left to do to my bike, and I need to take care of it soon because it won't get any better as the miles keep growing. We cruised past Sosbee Cycling Park and while I was tempted to tell Reiko that I wanted to stop, I knew that I was a mere 5 miles from the end so I decided to push through and toughen up.

I pulled back in the parking lot realizing that it was definitely hotter than the forecast has called for (91 degrees at the finish). When I stopped I knew I needed to continue to hydrate as I had a brief chill come over me and I realized I was soaked in sweat from head to toe. As I loaded my bike up, opened my protein recovery drink, and headed back home I thought back on the ride, how I felt, and what I learned from the new folks I got the privilege of sharing the road with that day. The resume of a couple of these riders (who were 60+ years old) included multiple trips to race in and finish Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. The others, with the exception of myself and Reiko, were all multiple Ironman finishers and were much stronger on the bike than me. I've always heard that if you want to be a better cyclist, ride with cyclists who are stronger, faster, and more experienced than yourself, and that was my plan for the day.

All in all, I was pleased to see another distance milestone fall. I know that I won't be pushing a 17mph on race day, but it can help make me stronger for the pace I will hold that day. Here's my Garmin track from the ride: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/525438433 • 68.48 miles - 16.9 mph average.

Weekly Totals: Swim - 4000m • Bike - 107.48mi • Run - 18.28mi

Training Week In Review: Week 14

This week was my first week back to full workout schedule and vigorous effort since racing a 70.3 in Macon on May 31st. I used last week to recover and slowly work back into training, which proved to be a good thing at least mentally as I was eager to hit the ground running.

New bars and new bottle!

For the most part my workouts were uneventful leading into the weekend. I managed a brick on Thursday morning spending an hour indoors on the bike followed by an outdoor 3mi run. The legs felt well rested so I pushed the pace a bit on the run as I want to start doing on my shorter runs to help offset the longer, slow paced runs on the weekends. It felt great to be back at it, and I was ready for my main training set over the weekend which included my first ride on the IM Chattanooga bike course. I was also excited to try out my new AP Pro bottle mounted to my new T1+ Viper aero bars filled with my new Infinite Nutrition drink. (lots of "new" things for this ride)

IM Chattanooga Bike Course Preview Ride

I will admit that while driving up to Chattanooga Saturday morning, mu mind went back and forth on the 2 possibilities that this ride would bring. Option A: What have I gotten myself into? I'll never be able to run after this hilly bike course - OR - Option B: I'm where I should be at this point in my training. The result? You'll have to read further to find out...

There was a group of us that met at the Bi-Lo on Tennessee Ave. to start the ride (about 5 mi from transition) because the Riverfront Festival was going on and access to Riverfront parkway wasn't possible. It was great to finally meet some people I've messaged with on the IM Choo Facebook pages. There were about 35-40 of us at the start and we headed out of the parking lot onto the course. My test on a new course with a new aero bottle was about to begin. We quickly split into 3 groups over the first 3-4 miles. I remained with Reiko, whom I had met and ridden with before in Cartersville, and 4-5 others who were looking to hold a 16-17mph pace for the 60mi course. The faster group quickly disappeared in front, and we lost sight of the slower group behind us not long after that. There wasn't a ton of traffic on the roads, but there was enough to force you to ride single-file to be smart.

We rolled through the first 10-15 miles and I was waiting to encounter the first hills that everyone had been worrying, analyzing, and complaining about on Facebook. Mile 20: waiting. Mile 25: still waiting. As we approached the hill leading into the turn onto Hog Jowl Rd., Reiko mentioned that this was the first big climb and it got steeper at the top, but to just take it slow and it wouldn't be difficult. She was right. It was a semi-steep hill that spanned 1 mile, but I geared down and kept the pedals steady. I reached the top feeling not much different than I had the 30 miles leading up to the climb. We got to enjoy a brief downhill stretch before applying the brakes enough to make the 180° turn at the base of the descent. It was after this turn that I realized we were over halfway through the loop and my legs were feeling really good. By this time our group had dwindled down to 3 as others had either gone ahead or took an extra stop along the way.

A quick stop to replenish water

The next several miles passed with more downhill than up allowing for momentum to carry me through most of the hills without much change in gears. We rolled past Old Bethel Rd. and I had to pause and smile for a moment as I knew that I had family that lived just 1 mile down that road. I refocused on the course as we peddled to the stretch into downtown Chickamauga. The road here is definitely what I would call a false flat, but still nothing too strenuous. There was much more traffic here, but for the most part motorists were considerate and left plenty of space when passing. This stretched seemed longer than I thought it should have because I'm used to driving it in a car and not propelling myself on a bike. I imagine that this stretch through downtown Chickamauga will be a great cheering section on race day and very inspirational as we pass through twice during the loops of the course. We breezed by and reentered the countryside with sparse houses and open fields. After a quick stop at a gas station for cold water and bathroom break, we turned onto Lee Ave. I knew that we would soon be approaching the second hill that I had noticed on the elevation charts. This hill was longer than the first but not nearly as steep. It lasted a little over 2 miles, but was manageable with gears and steady pacing. This hill was different from the other climb we encountered as you do enjoy a 1.25 mi downhill stretch that is straight, on good roads, and lets you fly with no effort. I coasted the downhill and still reached 35 mph. It felt good to feel some speed, and better when I noticed that I was at mile 52 and not far from the starting point on this recon ride. The legs still felt pretty strong all the way back to the parking lot. The only stretch I felt any effort was after the turn back onto Highway 193. This is also the only section of the course where I felt any wind. It wasn't strong, just steady. This is an open highway with a wide shoulder, but there are grooves in the pavement on the shoulder that prevents riding on them. We kept close the white line, but the cars that were passing us were flying. Again, most of them were courteous, but a couple should have left some more space between us and their side mirrors. We took a leisurely pace the final 2 miles through the St. Elmo area which is full of older houses that give the area a certain kind of charm.

Reiko, my riding buddy for the day

We peddled back into the parking lot and a rush of confidence came over me. I had just tied my ride for the longest distance on my bike, and felt great the whole time. What's more is I expected to average right at 16 mph and I looked at my Garmin and saw 16.7 mph. I know that I have to ride a second loop in September, but I honestly expected to have tired legs after this ride and that simply wasn't the case. I will take this confidence and throw it back into training to get that much stronger on the bike. Earlier this year I think I would have taken the results of this ride and used them as an excuse to pull back on training a bit, but my mindset has shifted over the past 2 months and I'm not going to let confidence now be my downfall in September. The aero bottle worked pretty well. I'm glad I secured it with a zip tie as the first few miles were rough and I don't want to chance losing another aero bottle (they aren't cheap!). I need to secure the straw where it inserts into the guide leading into the bottle as the bumps cause the straw to come out a bit along the way and that's something I definitely don't want to lose either. The recommended amount of liquid for the bottle is 20-24oz but I would stay closer to the 20oz. mark as I experienced a little splashing at the beginning.

Here is the link to my Garmin track for the ride: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/520648713
Mileage: 59.58 • Avg. Speed: 16.7 mph • Elevation Gain: 2080 ft.


First Impressions:

• This course is either up or down. There are very little truly flat areas.
• Pay attention to the roads because there are some stretches that are rough.
• Pace yourself on the 2 major hills and they won't see that bad.
• Take the time to look around. You'll see ponds, streams, farms, fields, and mountains. Truly spectacular scenery to enjoy if you look up from the road once in a while.
• There are lots of railroad tracks (6 if I remember correctly) that aren't bad, but take caution.
• Pace yourself on this course as it could wear you down if you go too hard, but it's not as bad as everyone else had hyped it up to be (in my opinion)

Weekly Totals - Swim: 3500m • Bike: 97mi • Run: 11.6mi

Recovery Week is a Wonderful Thing

My training calendar had room this week to function as a recovery week, and I'll admit it was much needed. Even though I felt good coming off my 70.3 in Macon on May 31st, taking the week to do some less structured/lower volume training was the best decision I could have made.

I followed the advice of posts I read about getting back on the bike and swimming early in the week
and save any running for the end of the week to allow the body to recover via low impact sessions. I'm also pumped to travel back to my hometown over the weekend and cheer on one of my good friends in his first Xterra race and longest triathlon to date. It will be a new experience for me to be on the spectator side of a race but I hope to offer encouragement to any who need it on race day. I know how important those cheers and encouraging words can be (or the ability to be crazy and bring a smile to a racer's face).

Next week starts the plan again with a planned first preview ride of the IM Chattanooga course next Saturday (6/14) where I'm meeting up with a group to ride 1 loop of the bike course. I think this will be an important training session as it will fill in the blank on a lot of questions swimming in my mind about the course elevation that has been greatly debated in almost every Facebook page, Slowtwitch forum, and blog I've read. Once I have actual experience on the course then I can formulate my bike workouts to be ready for that course in September.

Weekly totals: Not important this week since it was recovery, but I saw this somewhere else and thought it would cool to take a glimpse at my total training around the halfway point in this journey.

Totals year-to-date: Swim - 36.42mi • Bike - 916.92mi • Run - 227.81mi

Race Report: Rock N' Rollman 70.3

Race Report: Rock N' Rollman 70.3

This is my race report from Macon, GA. This was my second 70.3 race and first time racing this distance without any course recon. The course would prove to be tougher than I had imagined, but it was the heat that really caught me by surprise on this one.

24 Hours from Race Start

I woke up feeling excited about the race ahead and some time focused on putting all the training I've been logging to work. I decided to grab breakfast with my beautiful (and understanding) wife at IHOP to start the carb-loading off on the right foot. I've recently been reading more about the importance of this meal over the typical pasta dinner the night before the race. I decided to stay conservative while maintaing my goal of consuming protein and carbs while avoiding fats and fiber. I chose pancakes, eggs, and turkey bacon with the essential coffee to top it off. It was delicious and a great way to start the day. Just relaxing and talking about the weekend's goals.

We headed home and I finished up the last of my packing. Now it was time to kick back until meeting my race buddy to head out of town and down to Macon. We loaded up and left around 10:30am. Traffic was light for a Friday and we made it down to the hotel easily. We checked in, dropped off our gear, and headed out to grab some lunch. My nutrition was a bit different for this race (which lead to problems, but we'll get to that later) and we got lunch at Chili's. I had the grilled salmon, rice, and broccoli which was very tasty. We went back to the hotel to relax until it was time to head to the race site for check-in. I was a little tired and almost went to sleep while watching some TV during our down time. I got a knock a the door and it was my buddy saying that our other friend was at the race site so we loaded the bikes on the car and headed out.

 Check-in was pretty quick, but standing in line in the afternoon sun was brutal. We dropped our bikes off in transition, took a quick picture of our little racing group, and then headed down to the lake for a quick, easy swim. The water was warmer than I had expected and I overheard someone say that it was 85 degrees. The water was clear for a lake and felt lighter than in the lake I do my open water swim training. I stroked through about 200 meters and then headed back to shore. It was good to see the layout of the swim course so I'd know the direction I would be sighting on race day. We left in search of dinner and ended up at Carabba's for some pasta. It was crowded with lots of athletes getting in their last minutes carbs but it wasn't long till I was chowing down on some spaghetti with meat sauce, bread, and a caesar salad. We went back to the hotel and it was time to wind down and start thinking about tomorrow's game plan before getting some sleep.

Race Day

I had set the alarm for 4:30am since the race start was a little earlier than normal (7am). I double checked my transition bag and then fixed my breakfast of a waffle with peanut butter. This was a new plan for me on race day, though I had used this in a couple of half marathons and long training days so I was confident it was a good choice. We hopped in the car and arrived at the race site at 5:30. I got my transition area set, hit the restroom, and then met up with our group for one more photo before we headed down to the lake.

Swim

View from the top of the hill we had to run to T1

The 1900 meter swim was a single loop, clockwise path. 1900 meters looks a lot longer in a lake than back and forth in a pool. I decided to start in the middle of the group standing on the beach awaiting the starting gun to sound. The start wave was not overly large with about 60 racers going in at the start. The water was still, the sun was bright, and I was ready to go. The gun sounded (actually it was a noise on a megaphone that sounded like a beached whale dying) and we were off. It was crowded at first, but I quickly made my way to outside lane to the left and got into a rhythm. I didn't want to push hard on the swim as pacing was the goal of this race, not speed. I didn't get touched by hardly anyone the entire swim and the buoys were placed in an arced formation which made sighting a breeze. I can confidently say that this was my best open water swim in a lake when it comes to sighting and staying on course. I arrive back at the beach feeling great, not winded at all. It was only when I began the trek across the beach towards transition that I realized I hit the wrong button and never started my Garmin at the swim start. Oh well, no big deal as time wasn't on my radar for the day. I quickly got the Garmin up to track T1, reached the end of the beach, and then turned to run up a gigantic hill to reach transition. My swim pace was a bit slower than I'd like, but I was without a wetsuit or river current that I will have at IM Chattanooga. Swim total time: 36:33 (1:55 pace)

Bike

I breezed through T1 and then it was off on the bike. I was excited to test my pacing on the bike (where I've had the urge to push more than I should) and see what the hills everyone was talking about on this course were all about. It didn't take long until I found out just what those hills were made of, and what I was made of too. Every race throws something new at you and this one was no different. I was not even 1 mile into the ride and hit 2 big bumps in a row on either side of a bridge. The first bump loosened my aero bottle from it's bracket. The second sent it flying off to the right and took with it 1 bottle's worth of nutrition for the bike. I was irritated, but I shook it off pretty quick and returned my focus to the course and taking it slow. The hills on this course were more than I ever could have imagined. It wasn't the number of hills that was most difficult, but the type of hills. They were at least .5 miles long each, some of them stretching on for more than 2 miles. There were always downhills after the climbs, but they were short by comparison. The first 20 miles passed relatively quickly and the legs felt great. That's when the trouble arrived. I started to feel my stomach churning a little around mile 25, and I started switching my drink plan, alternating between my Accelerade and water. This helped a little bit, but there was still a lingering feeling of unhappiness in my stomach. I tried to push it out my mind and just focus on my pedal stroke and heart rate. That worked for most of the remainder of the bike. The only other part of the bike that I want to mention was a stretch of road that lasted for 6-7 miles. This section was straight and all you could see as you looked ahead was rolling hill after rolling hill. It began to wear me down a little bit mentally, but my legs still felt good from pacing so I eventually did some positive "self-talking" and pushed through it until I turned off that road. (the happiest I've ever been to turn off a particular road) I cruised through the remained of the bike, having to push a little more on some poor quality roads in the final 10 miles. I arrived back at transition right on target with my planned pace, but could feel the heat starting to get intense. I racked my bike, poured my remaining water over my head, and the headed out on the run. Bike total time: 3:24:53 (16.4 mph average) Link to Garmin Track: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/511339763#

Run

This was the leg of the race where I typically take off fast cause I'm feeling good and it comes back to bite me a few miles later. I was determined to avoid that mistake this time, and I did. I ran the first mile with little effort and felt the heat almost immediately. I kept an eye on my heart rate to stay in my target zone and rolled past the 1 mile marker to the first of many aid stations. I heeded my racing buddy's advice and followed the same process at each aid station. I took in one cup of water, dumped one over my head, grabbed an ice water soaked towel and placed it over my head (under my visor), then finished by grabbing a couple of handfuls of ice to drop in my trisuit in both the front and back. This process took a lot of the effects of the heat out of the equation for the run and I was grateful for that advice as it no doubt saved me from an even longer run split. Around mile 1.5 I found another racer running at almost my exact pace and I decided to see if he minded if I ran beside him for some motivation. He was glad for some company and introduced himself as Nortberto. We chatted for the next half mile and then walked through the mile 2 aid station to cool off and hydrate. We repeated this pattern for the next 6 miles though there were more walks in between each aid station as the miles added up. This was due to my stomach churning with displeasure more with each passing mile marker. I opted for mostly water for remainder of the race as alternating Gatorade at aid stations proved to have adverse effects on my stomach. Once we reached mile 9 I felt the need to walk a bit longer so Norberto and I parted ways as he pushed forward. I continued to fight the stomach feelings, but it continued to fight back almost cramping at mile 10. I took a small sip of flat Coke at the aid station and it seemed to help more than water or Gatorade. I kept plodding along, now feeling the full force of the heat bearing down. It was more evident the longer I was out there as there was no shade on the entire run course (with the exception of 10 ft. every other mile that was on the edge of the road). I really struggled on mile 11, walking about half of that mile with another racer who was dealing with IT band issues and cramps. Once I saw the mile 12 marker, I decided it was time to see if I could push through the stomach discomfort and finish up this run. I was about 1/4 mile into this new, determined frame of mind and I heard a voice call out from behind me. It was a girl that I had seen earlier who called me her "twin" since we were both wearing the same brand, and color trisuit. She cheered me on and I asked if she could lend me some energy since she was my "twin". She laughed and told me if I wanted energy I'd have to keep up so I picked up the pace ever so slightly. It was nice to have company again and I committed to staying with my new friend till the finish line arrived. We chatted about our race experiences and how we'd handled the day so far. It made the final mile fly by. Before I knew it I was climbing the last little hill back into the park and soon saw the road forking off to the left where the finish line was waiting. I told her great job on her first 70.3 race and that I was going to try and pick up the pace for the final stretch. Her husband and little girl were just ahead to the left cheering her on and I saw my buddy ringing his cowbell just ahead of them. I forgot my stomach feelings and quickened the pace with each step towards the finish. I flew through the chute and across the finish line feeling accomplished, and with the exception of my stomach, relatively good. The finish line was a little deflating as I'm used to seeing people packed in, cheering on any runner that approaches. This was the opposite. No finish line photographer. No spectators at all. No announcer congratulating racers as they finished. Just silence and solitude like the rest of the run. No matter the atmosphere I was glad to be done and anxious to get into the shade. I reunited with Norberto as he had finished about a minute ahead of me. I stood in the misting tent for about 3-4 minutes to cool off, grabbed a water and Gatorade and then took a seat to rehydrate. Run total time: 2:50:29 (13:01/mi pace) Link to Garmin Track: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/511339779

Lessons Learned

Finished and enjoying air conditioning!

As always I want to take my race day experiences and learn from them, here is my take-away from the 6 hours 56 minutes I was swimming, biking, and running. Total race time: 6:56:37 (4,171 calories burned)

• Lesson #1: Test nutrition more - experiment with race day nutrition every weekend for long training and perfect it to avoid stomach issues.

• Lesson #2: Listen to people's advice and be willing to put it into practice - This was one thing I did right, listening to my buddy about hydrating and staying cool.

• Lesson #3: When you focus on a steady pace and not time goals for an endurance race, you'll be surprised how relaxed you will feel on race day, and sometimes surprise yourself with how good you'll feel afterwards.