Friday, November 29, 2013

Iroquois Hill Runners Thanksgiving Day Run Report

A couple of items to get to before you see the new content.  The first is my continued plugging of my charity for the 2014 season:

I wanted to bring some attention to the charity I'm supporting as I ramp up to Ironman Coeur d'Alene in June 2014.  Yes, I'm going to keep asking until I reach my goal of $2500 :)

I’m competing in 2014 as a “Blazeman Warrior.” In 2005, Jon "The Blazeman" Blais raced the big Ironman, in Hawaii, and completed it even while suffering from ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease. His family started the Blazeman Foundation for ALS. I’m raising money for them and in honor of Jon, I plan on rolling across the finish line in Coeur d’Alene just as Jon did when he finished. A famous quote from Jon is, "Even if I have to be rolled across the finish line, I'm finishing," so you often see Blazeman Warriors rolling across Ironman finish lines.

I also lost an Aunt to ALS so this charity is very personal to me. Any help would be appreciated.

An Ironman is 140.6 miles so even if you donated just 10 cents per mile, that would be $14.06. You can donate at the following link:

http://www.active.com/donate/teamblazeman/blazemanJJohnso

Also, a friend of mine from England has started a blog to document his big 2014 including 2 marathons, a half-Ironman, and a full Ironman.  His blog can be found here.

Yesterday, for my international friends, was Thanksgiving Day in the United States so several friends and I got together for what has become a turkey day tradition: a five mile run at Iroquois Park in Louisville. 

The run takes you up to the top of Iroquois Park, a short loop, then back down.  My best ever time at this event, and my best ever five mile run, was 41:42, which I did last year.  So I set a goal of 41 minutes or 8:12/mile and programmed my GPS watch to let me know how I was doing relative to that goal.  It tells me how far ahead or behind I am in terms of both distance and time. 

It was a 9 am start but still cold as heck, especially compared to last year.  I think the temperature at the start was right about 22 F so I bundled up in long running tights, a long sleeve tech shirt, a running jacket, a beanie and gloves.   My friend Scott, a college buddy, was running with me and we decided to stay together for the entire five miles.  It certainly made the run easier and the distance seemed to fly by. 

Since the first part of the run, probably two miles or so is uphill, getting worse as you approach the two mile mark, I was expecting to be behind a bit and then make it up but it was going very well.  The first mile was 8:12, exactly on pace, while the second was 8:15.  Again, wasn't worried, as I knew I was going to be coming back down the hill on the way back.  The third mile is relatively flat, and that was 8:09, making up for the 8:15.  Now all I had to do was hold an 8:12 or better pace on the way back down.  Mile four was 7:42, while the last one was 7:37.

Total time was 40:01, which is the most frustrating part.  Since I just had my pacer screen up, I didn't know I was that close to breaking 40 and would certainly have pushed a bit at the end to go sub-40 if I knew I was so close.  But I guess that's why we do it, right? There's always a new limit, a new goal, and now I know my goal for the 2014 version!

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

More Training Info

Before I begin, I wanted to bring some attention to the charity I'm supporting as I ramp up to Ironman Coeur d'Alene in June 2014.  Yes, I'm going to keep asking until I reach my goal of $2500 :)

I’m competing in 2014 as a “Blazeman Warrior.” In 2005, Jon "The Blazeman" Blais raced the big Ironman, in Hawaii, and completed it even while suffering from ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease. His family started the Blazeman Foundation for ALS. I’m raising money for them and in honor of Jon, I plan on rolling across the finish line in Coeur d’Alene just as Jon did when he finished. A famous quote from Jon is, "Even if I have to be rolled across the finish line, I'm finishing," so you often see Blazeman Warriors rolling across Ironman finish lines.

I also lost an Aunt to ALS so this charity is very personal to me. Any help would be appreciated.

An Ironman is 140.6 miles so even if you donated just 10 cents per mile, that would be $14.06. You can donate at the following link:

http://www.active.com/donate/teamblazeman/blazemanJJohnso

A couple posts ago, I talked about the last big weekend before I taper.  For those unfamiliar with the term, a taper is when you decrease your training over a two or three week period leading up to a big event like an Ironman or marathon.  So how do you lead up to that big weekend?  What does a typical week look like?

Here is what I normally do in a given week during Ironman training.  I vary it as necessary but for someone like me who typically tries to just finish in a decent time with a smile and has no shot at winning anything, I think there are 3 key workouts a week.

The first is a long swim.  "Long" is a fuzzy term I know but as I'm ramping up toward Ironman, I usually work my way up from about 2000 meters in early part of the plan up to 3500-4000 meters as I hit peak volume.  This is sometimes accomplished during a swim group.

The second key workout is a long run.  Since tri training plans typically use time instead of distance, the first part of the training would be maybe a one hour run leading up to what I posted as my final big run, of perhaps 16-18 miles or about 3 hours at the most.

The last key workout is a long bike, which usually begins with a couple hour ride and finishing with a full 112 mile 6-6.5 hour ride at the end.  During these key workouts you must be practicing your race day items such as nutrition.  I usually do my long bike on Saturday, long run on Sunday and my long swim in the middle of the week.

Now I understand that my personal training plan is a bit light on swimming but it works for me.  Here is what a typical week looks like:

Monday:  Rest or some sort of active recovery.  Perhaps yoga or a short spin on my bike with very little effort.
Tuesday:  Swim set with some drills or harder efforts sprinkled throughout.  Short run.
Wednesday:  Bike/run brick.  Perhaps 30-40 minutes on the bike, 15-20 minute run.
Thursday:  Longer swim.  This is more of a straight XX meters for me.
Friday:  Another "fun" day for me usually.  Swim if I'm feeling like it, perhaps an easy ride with the local bike club.
Saturday:  Long bike, short brick run.
Sunday:  Long run.

Also, as I've learned, missing a workout here and there or feeling the need to take a mental health day isn't a big deal.  If you miss a couple weeks in a row, that's a problem but missing something for work or you're just not feeling it isn't going to ruin your big day.  Also, being flexible within a week is A-OK.  Don't worry if you have to moving things around a bit. For example, every so often, I have to work on Saturday and will move my long bike to Thursday or Friday as needed. 

Finally, you have to have recovery weeks.  Perhaps every 4th week, should be a serious cut back on volume to give your body a chance to recover.  You might try to work these around major work events and such.

Until next time...

Friday, November 22, 2013

Ironman Louisville Event Report

I'll continue with my training advice next week but a few people have asked about my Ironman Louisville experience so here it goes...

Ironman Louisville 2013 would be my 3rd go at the full iron distance.  I'd previously done IMLou in 2011, finishing in 15:55 and feeling like I could have gone all day so perhaps leaving something on the course, and Rev 3 Cedar Point full in 2012, finishing in 14:38 but with the pain of about 45 minutes lost due to a bike mechanical. 

With those results in mind and with a good feel for the course and conditions under my belt, I was really thinking I might be able to pull off a sub-14 hour finish this time.  Without boring you with the details, I was thinking in these general terms:

  • 90 minute swim
  • 6:40 hour bike
  • 5:30 marathon
  • 20 minutes in transitions
  • Grand total:  14 hours
The day started as usual, staying downtown at the Galt the night before the event.  I was with Ken, who was attempting his first full Ironman and of course, at something like 3:00-3:15 am, he was up and blowing off nervous energy by doing things like juggling.  I found myself much more calm than in 2011.  We headed to the transition area, got our bikes set up then made the long walk over to body marking then the swim start.  Somewhere between the transition area and body marking, I lost Ken, as my nerves quickly ramped up and I was walking at a break neck pace.  For those that have never walked with me, I can walk as fast as many people run, which is nice when you're forced to walk in say an Ironman :)

I see my first familiar faces, Kim, Jessie, Megan, Carlos and others who are body marking and doing a great job pepping up the 50+ tri club members we had doing the event.  It was a welcome sight and then I was on my way over to the swim line.  (Remember that Louisville is a time trial start instead of a mass swim like most events.) The rules are set up to prevent you from saving places, having family members hold spots, etc. but a spot in the line is important for a lot of people as the time in line counts against the 17 hour time limit.  So as I started walking from the front of the line toward the end, I bump into several Landsharks and just happened to slide into line with them undetected.  So instead of waiting until 7:10-7:15 to be in the water, I was swimming at 7:01 or something like that.  It was nice to be in the water so quick.

Didn't have a great swim, partially because I have never been able to get a strong kick sorted, but I've really focused on that as I've worked with my swim coach over the last few months.  I've also started doing some strength training, which I rather ignored during the last few years, so perhaps that's helping.  Final time for the swim: 1:33:52.  Not too terrible relative to my goal and faster than the 1:41 I had in 2011.  I was a bit faster at Rev3, but I was wearing a wetsuit there.

Into T-1 I go, where I've decided to change into a tri-kit.  I had worn my normal swim jammers on the swim.  First crisis occurs when I can't find one of my socks.  After me and the helpful volunteer searched frantically, we find it...in one of my cycling shoes. In my bike gear bag, it had somehow wound up in my shoe.  So it was on with some anti-chafing cream, socks, shoes, helmet, sunglasses, and gloves and I was on my way.  Most of the time I don't wear gloves, but the "pads" of my hands have been sore recently on long rides so decided to wear gloves.  Quick stop for some sunscreen and I was on the course. T1:  10:50, so a bit longer than goal.

With a goal of about 6:40, I was hoping to average about 17 mph.  I don't know if it was a nice cool start to the day or perhaps going out a little fast but I was having the Ironman bike of my life.  I did see a gnarly crash on the out and back, which we all know is dangerous on a normal day, let alone with 2500 riders, but beyond that the bike was rather uneventful.  Saw many friends, my wife twice, while I was on the course.  I felt like I kept my hydration good, my calories consistent, but probably went a bit fast.  Grand total:  6:20:16.  That compares to a 7:32 in 2011.  I knew I was in better shape but wasn't expecting that.

Into T2 where things started to go a bit sideways. I don't know if it was the early morning cool weather and it was now heating up but I could tell I was a bit dehydrated.  I was starting to get that "tunnel vision" and knew I was in a bit of trouble.  It manifested itself when I was convinced in the changing tent that I had lost the GPS tracker I was using so my friends and family could track me.  I probably wasted 4-5 minutes trying to find it.  I finally gave up and heading out to the run after another complete change into running gear(more on the tracker later).  T2: 13:04.  Faster than 2011 but not what I wanted.

The first couple miles of the run were great but then the dehydration really got to me. On the advice of a pro, Chris McDonald, who spoke to our tri club a few days before the race, I started taking Coke as part of my regular hydration/calories from the start.  But even with that, I was forced to walk.  It probably took me nearly the entire first lap, or half marathon, to get enough hydration in me to feel better.  Luckily, as you've read earlier, my walking pace is quite fast so I was able to keep up a good pace, even while walking.  Somewhere in the middle of the marathon, I was trying to find something in my running shorts pocket and what do I discover? The lost tracker. It was on an elastic belt but had slipped down into my shorts.  The dehydration I was suffering as I left the bike definitely had me losing my mind.  The run was fun because I got to run with so many of my tri club buddies, many of them first timers, and experience the joy with them.  The second lap was definitely more running than the first.  Run total:  5:53:58 compared to 6:12 in 2011.  The best part was that I got faster over the course of the marathon with my fastest segment coming as I finished.  So even though I wasn't pleased with the total, overcoming my hydration issues and having negative splits made up for it.

Final total for the day: 14:12:00.  Not quite my sub-14 goal, but still beat my prior IM Louisville by 1 hour 43 minutes and my Rev3 time by 26 minutes.  I think a sub-14 is in my grasp if I keep at it!

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Blog Refresh and Some Info on My Training

Yes, I've not written much on here in quite a long while. No, I didn't even write an Ironman Louisville re-cap.  I promise to get to that, but I wanted to re-start this blog with something I often get asked about.  How do you do it? I want to try an Ironman (and trust me, anyone can do it if I can do it), but where do I start? Trust me, this advice isn't for someone who is out to qualify for Kona.  But it has worked for someone who's initial goal was to finish with a smile.

Before I begin, I wanted to bring some attention to the charity I'm supporting as I ramp up to Ironman Coeur d'Alene in June 2014.

I’m competing in 2014 as a “Blazeman Warrior.” In 2005, Jon "The Blazeman" Blais raced the big Ironman, in Hawaii, and completed it even while suffering from ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease. His family started the Blazeman Foundation for ALS. I’m raising money for them and in honor of Jon, I plan on rolling across the finish line in Coeur d’Alene just as Jon did when he finished. A famous quote from Jon is, "Even if I have to be rolled across the finish line, I'm finishing," so you often see Blazeman Warriors rolling across Ironman finish lines.

I also lost an Aunt to ALS so this charity is very personal to me. Any help would be appreciated.

An Ironman is 140.6 miles so even if you donated just 10 cents per mile, that would be $14.06. You can donate at the following link:

http://www.active.com/donate/teamblazeman/blazemanJJohnso

I'll start with what NOT to do.  You don't need a $10,000 tri bike.  You don't need to spend hundreds of dollars on other gear.  You do need a bike, running shoes, a helmet, etc. but that's it.  I've seen people on basic roads bikes finish iron distance events and in some cases, in hilly terrain, a road bike might even be better suited for the task.

So where do you start?  What does a typical week look like?  I think it's best to start from the end.  I can't remember the source, but when I first signed up for Ironman, I scoured training books and websites for information and something that really stuck with me was that at first you are doing the entire distance over say a month or six weeks, then over two weeks, then over a week, then over a weekend, finally doing it all in a single day. 

I try to schedule a big weekend about three weeks before the event.  Over this weekend, I like to swim the full 2.4 miles on Friday, ride a full 112 miles on Saturday (with a short brick run after), and then my longest run on Sunday.  The Sunday run for me is usually 16-18 miles.

The big Saturday ride gives me a chance to give a final test to my nutrition plan and pacing.  Now you might be thinking, what nutrition do you use?  Each person is different, with a different palette and a different stomach sensitivity, so I hate to say that it depends, but it does.

For me personally, I shoot for about 300-325 calories per hour on the bike, along with about 20-24 ounces of hydration per hour.  Don't forget to include the calories in your liquid as part of the total.  I am one of the few that has no problem with a drink called Ironman Perform, which the official Ironman race serves on race day.  That has about 160 calories per bottle so I try to get another 150-175 calories per hour from another source.   I use Bonk Breaker bars, Clif Shot Blocks, Honey Stinger Waffles, etc.  depending on what sounds good.  I also set my watch to yell at me about every fifteen minutes to remind me to eat and drink.  At the top of each hour, I also pop any supplements I'll be using such as additional electrolyte tablets.  As you might expect, it's hard to keep track of all this so I keep my extra supplements in these little bags.  They fit perfectly in a jersey pocket or in your bike's top tube bag.

The Sunday run has many of the same goals. I test nutrition, hydration, pacing etc.  I usually carry a hand bottle and take a good long drink of sports drink after each mile. I also try to get some nutrition about every two miles.  Nothing huge, but start eating a little bit each time. I'll talk more about my actual race day nutrition in a later post.

So that covers the last pre-taper weekend.  You'll still be doing some training in the last 3 weeks but it really lessens in volume as you want to reach the big day refreshed.

In my next post, I'll cover what I do leading up to that last big weekend and what a typical week looks like for me.