Let the last build begin!
Swim: Late night swims are pretty nice!
Bike: Nothing exciting, but going good.
Run: 15 miler, and I felt good...that's a first.
Well, the tough weeks have begun. I remember when I started this journey and I bought the Ironfit book. I looked through the schedule and saw what we had to do in these last couple weeks. I thought there was no way I was going to be handle that, but here we are! I feel like I'm in a good spot. Looking over the schedule now, it doesn't even scare me. What an improvement, only took 8 months of training to feel that way. :P I've gotten to that very strange point where you see you ONLY have to do a 10 mile run, or ONLY do a 3 hour bike ride, or ONLY 1.5 miles in the pool, and your brain thinks, phew, easy day.
That's messed up.
I remember back just a couple years ago, before I got sucked into the triathlon cult, I wanted to get back in shape. I was so excited when I could run a single mile. My bike ride to work was 3 miles and I was excited if I wasn't dying by the time I got there. What a long way I have come. I'll save all the sappy sentimental crap for my last post before my race. (= But it's truly amazing to me that I've pushed myself this far. I'm proud of what I accomplished, but it doesn't end for me until I cross that finish line. Then...I'll probably sign up for another crazy race! I don't know if I'll ever end up doing a full Iron again, but who knows what life has in store for me.
Training was good this week, standard fare during the week. Though I have changed up my swimming to the evenings now. They we just too long to try and fit in during lunch. Fortunately the 24 hour fitness up in Santa Monica opened back up after renovation. Its really nice! The locker rooms are brand new, with towel service and private showers. The best part, they refurbished their whole pool area! It's also really nice. The nice thing is, no 20 min limit in the pool! Once I'm in, I'm in. I can finish my workout in peace. I have found the sweet spot I think for time. I try to get there around 8:30ish. I find its a good time because the after work crowd is finished up and the late night nuts haven't arrived yet. The lanes are usually pretty empty, I've even had the pool to myself a couple times. It has also been pretty low stress cause I don't have to get back to work, I can relax and take my time.
Saturday I did my long run, went well. 15 miler. I felt really good the whole run, which is a first. I usually crash around mile 1o, but all the way through I felt good. I wasn't blazing fast or anything, but I'm more worried about getting through it. I hope this trend continues. Sunday finished up the week with a nice ride out in Thousand Oaks. Which was followed by the best part of the ride...huge Burger and Milkshake at the Counter. Can't ask for a better way to end the week!
Monday, August 1, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Week 23 Report:
Fine, I'll keep training...
Swim: Back to 24 hour fitness...but a better one.
Bike: Longest ride yet! 91 miles!
Run: Feeling good, no one can match my tortoise speed!
Well, I'm slowly getting back in the groove. It's still been a bit of a low motivation week. Not that I'm not excited about the Ironman, but my body is just telling me it would like to sleep in and maybe go out of a Friday night for once! I keep telling it that I can do that September 12th, but it's being stubborn. (= My life has very much become about routine. To the point that everyday is very structured. There is very little room for adjusting, if I want to fit everything in. I don't mind the structure, but it does get a little stressful, especially if something surprising pops up. I've gotten to the point where I hate it when I miss a workout, throws my whole week off. It's my obsessive brain freaking out.
Anyhoo, the week went pretty well, just doing the standard workout. Fortunately this week was still basically a recovery week for me. Saturday, me and a couple of my teammates did a nice ride along PCH from Santa Monica to Camarillo. We were doing a 5 hour ride, in the end it was 91 miles. My furthest so far. I felt good. Starting to feel like that 112 is in reach. I followed the bike with a 3 mile run. Sunday I did my long run, 13 miles. Starting next week is really the start of my last build up to week 27, then it will taper till race day. I can't believe how close things are getting. Its starting to get pretty damn real. I just hope I remain healthy and the drama of life stays at bay...just till after my Iron, then I can get sick and be over dramatic....but not yet!
Swim: Back to 24 hour fitness...but a better one.
Bike: Longest ride yet! 91 miles!
Run: Feeling good, no one can match my tortoise speed!
Well, I'm slowly getting back in the groove. It's still been a bit of a low motivation week. Not that I'm not excited about the Ironman, but my body is just telling me it would like to sleep in and maybe go out of a Friday night for once! I keep telling it that I can do that September 12th, but it's being stubborn. (= My life has very much become about routine. To the point that everyday is very structured. There is very little room for adjusting, if I want to fit everything in. I don't mind the structure, but it does get a little stressful, especially if something surprising pops up. I've gotten to the point where I hate it when I miss a workout, throws my whole week off. It's my obsessive brain freaking out.
Anyhoo, the week went pretty well, just doing the standard workout. Fortunately this week was still basically a recovery week for me. Saturday, me and a couple of my teammates did a nice ride along PCH from Santa Monica to Camarillo. We were doing a 5 hour ride, in the end it was 91 miles. My furthest so far. I felt good. Starting to feel like that 112 is in reach. I followed the bike with a 3 mile run. Sunday I did my long run, 13 miles. Starting next week is really the start of my last build up to week 27, then it will taper till race day. I can't believe how close things are getting. Its starting to get pretty damn real. I just hope I remain healthy and the drama of life stays at bay...just till after my Iron, then I can get sick and be over dramatic....but not yet!
Week 22 Report:
Swim: LACK
Bike: OF
Run: MOTIVATION!
Well, it's been a week of dealing with post-race de-motivation. I've been through this before. The bigger the race, the bigger the decompression afterward. Last year after Vineman I didn't want to do anything for about 2 months, I signed up for a half marathon just to get me off my butt!
Muncie was really fun. The race was hard and I really pushed it. I got to spend a week with my family and girlfriend. Relaxed at the lake, visited Chicago. All in all, a pretty awesome way to spend a week...then...I come home. No more relaxing. Back to work, back to training. It can be hard to get your head back into it. I haven't missed any of my workouts, but its been a struggle in my head to get back into it. Fortunately, this is a bit of a recovery week. So there isn't a lot of pushing to be had, but just doing the basics has been a bit hard this week. I know I will get out of my funk, but I'm really gonna have to push myself out of it.
To help me with it, I searched youtube for motivational videos. This one still seems to be the best one. I watch it a lot to remind myself of what I'm trying to do.
I just need to watch this 100 times, then I'll be ready to get back into it!
Bike: OF
Run: MOTIVATION!
Well, it's been a week of dealing with post-race de-motivation. I've been through this before. The bigger the race, the bigger the decompression afterward. Last year after Vineman I didn't want to do anything for about 2 months, I signed up for a half marathon just to get me off my butt!
Muncie was really fun. The race was hard and I really pushed it. I got to spend a week with my family and girlfriend. Relaxed at the lake, visited Chicago. All in all, a pretty awesome way to spend a week...then...I come home. No more relaxing. Back to work, back to training. It can be hard to get your head back into it. I haven't missed any of my workouts, but its been a struggle in my head to get back into it. Fortunately, this is a bit of a recovery week. So there isn't a lot of pushing to be had, but just doing the basics has been a bit hard this week. I know I will get out of my funk, but I'm really gonna have to push myself out of it.
To help me with it, I searched youtube for motivational videos. This one still seems to be the best one. I watch it a lot to remind myself of what I'm trying to do.
I just need to watch this 100 times, then I'll be ready to get back into it!
Monday, July 11, 2011
Week 21 Report:
Muncie Ironman 70.3!!!
Well, I did it! Got my second half Iron under my belt. Overall, I'm pretty damn happy with how it went. I made a few mistakes, but at the same time, did a lot of things better. So I'll take the good with the bad, and learn and take them to Wisconsin! I was a little worried how this race would go. It was the first year this race was being run under Ironman, Last year they had some troubles with new races so that left me a bit concerned. I'm really happy to report that this race was fantastically run. So organized, and the volunteers were the best I've every had at a race. Really great. Kudos to the whole team in Muncie! I want to thank my Amazing family and Amy for there great support throughout the day. It was so amazing to have you there cheering me on. It really pushed me and made a tough day of exercise one I could do with a smile on my face! Love you guys!
Alight here's the breakdown.....
Swim: 41:37 2:10 pace
Well crap, made a few mistakes here. But it wasn't a total screw up. First, my biggest mistake. I decided to wear my tri top. This was for 2 reasons. One, I didn't want to get horribly burned like I did at Vineman last year. It took months to go away. 2nd, I always mess up putting on my shirt in transition. Both logical in my head, But what I forgot was that this shirt was a bit big on me, thus creating a bunch of drag in the water. Unfortunately I didn't realize this until I did my warm up swim. Sigh, too late to go back. So I just tucked it into my shorts as tight as I could and went for it. I could feel it, but I just pulled a little harder with my arms to make up for it. But I have no doubt it cost me a couple minutes in the water. I thought to myself, that's OK, I'll just push a little harder on the bike to make up for it.
The water was also way too warm. 83 degrees. It felt like I was swimming in a hot tub. Didn't really like that. Lastly, and most annoyingly...I've never been kicked so many times in a race. Usually its just crazy at the start then everyone kind of finds their groove. Unfortunately this never really happened the whole time. Always someone running into me, or me running into them. I actually had one guy shove me with his hand...he was the one going the wrong way. But I can understand his frustration, I wanted to punch a few people too. Then to top it off, the last quarter mile my foot cramped up and I did something I've never had to do in a race. I stopped. Just for a bit to stretch out my foot. After that, finished up the swim and then ran up the hill to transition. Nothing like having to run up hill after a 1.2 mile swim! One thing I was really happy about my swim was that I didn't feel exhausted afterward. Though my time wasn't what I wanted (was hoping for a 37ish time) I am happy to say I felt like I could have done another loop, which is good for sign for Wisconsin. I was happy to be done with the rather crappy swim and ready to jump on my bike which has always been my favorite sport of the three.
Bike 2:39:44 21.0 pace
Now this went way better! Probably my best ride in a race...minus losing one water bottle and one C02. I felt really good right out of transition. I let my legs warm up a bit, then it was down in aero and stayed there most of the ride. This wasn't a hilly course, though it has a few areas that required a bit more umph. What I wasn't expecting on this ride were the tough headwinds. It certainly made the ride a bit more challenging. It always adds the wonderful joy of a tail wind on the return. Of course, this was only for a little part of the course, for the majority of the course it was more of a crosswind, but it was always nice to get a little push once on awhile, of course it was always canceled out by another headwind. Oh, and the worst thing I've ever dealt with in a race...winds plus cow manure...wooo! Stinky!!! That's what you get when you race in Indiana! Home sweet home!! Aside from the winds, I felt really good on my bike. Though my poor little bike could use a tune up. I couldn't get my gears to stop clicking. As soon as it gets back to LA, its going to the shop! My legs felt really good through out the ride. I had plenty of moments where I got down and pushed really hard. As I was getting towards the end, I wanted to see if I could break 2:30....obviously I didn't quite make it. But it was a fun way to push myself. I really enjoyed the bike on this course. It was definitely a personal record for me, over 20 minutes faster than Vineman, of course, Vineman was a bit more hilly. But if all things were equal, I know I would have been faster this year. So good! I'm also happy I made up those lost minutes in the swim!
Run 2:12:53 10:09 pace
I'm most happy with this! For most runners they would probably shoot themselves if they ran a 10 min mile. I on the other hand could not be happier. This was my biggest problem at Vineman last year. I had to run/walk last year. I was dead after the bike. This is something I've really been working hard at. I'm not worried about being the fastest runner, I just want to be able to run a long distance without stopping. That's exactly what I achieved in this race. I ran the whole damn thing. I just kept my nice even pace. Passed many people walking. It was a great feeling. This course was harder than Vineman, way more hills. So the fact that I was able to knock over 20 mins off of my run from last year on a harder course made me very happy. The aid stations were fantastic. This is the first race I've done were they've had sponges, Ice cold sponges. At this point in the race, it was the hottest part of the day. Getting close to 90. But I would always take 3 sponges, 2 tucked in my shirt along my shoulders, and one tucked into the front of my visor. I'm sure it looked really silly, but boy did it work. I can run so much better if I can stay cool. They were great. Don't think I would have had a successful run without them. Everyone on the course was so great, the volunteers, spectators, and athletes. They made a really tough run enjoyable. I still have a lot of training to do on my run before Wisconsin. It was the only one where I didn't feel I could go do a second loop. It is still my weakest of the three, but I'm so thrilled with my run at this race. Still lots to work on, but I'll take it!
Finish 5:41:17 591 out of 1531
Then it was time to finish, I saw my family and Amy waving and cheering for me, it was fantastic!! I crossed the finished line and felt the huge feeling of relief that the day was over. I was so ready to sit down. I really left it all out on the course. I was pretty dead. But seeing everyone at the finish line really lifted me up and I was excited to tell everyone about my day.
So all in all, a pretty successful race. I made a few mistakes that I plan to correct in Wisconsin. But I'm really happy with the outcome. I'm scared to death about doubling the distances, but I still have 9 weeks to build. So lets do this! Its the homestretch! 3 races down, 1 to go!
BRING ON WISCONSIN!!!
Well, I did it! Got my second half Iron under my belt. Overall, I'm pretty damn happy with how it went. I made a few mistakes, but at the same time, did a lot of things better. So I'll take the good with the bad, and learn and take them to Wisconsin! I was a little worried how this race would go. It was the first year this race was being run under Ironman, Last year they had some troubles with new races so that left me a bit concerned. I'm really happy to report that this race was fantastically run. So organized, and the volunteers were the best I've every had at a race. Really great. Kudos to the whole team in Muncie! I want to thank my Amazing family and Amy for there great support throughout the day. It was so amazing to have you there cheering me on. It really pushed me and made a tough day of exercise one I could do with a smile on my face! Love you guys!
Alight here's the breakdown.....
Swim: 41:37 2:10 pace
Well crap, made a few mistakes here. But it wasn't a total screw up. First, my biggest mistake. I decided to wear my tri top. This was for 2 reasons. One, I didn't want to get horribly burned like I did at Vineman last year. It took months to go away. 2nd, I always mess up putting on my shirt in transition. Both logical in my head, But what I forgot was that this shirt was a bit big on me, thus creating a bunch of drag in the water. Unfortunately I didn't realize this until I did my warm up swim. Sigh, too late to go back. So I just tucked it into my shorts as tight as I could and went for it. I could feel it, but I just pulled a little harder with my arms to make up for it. But I have no doubt it cost me a couple minutes in the water. I thought to myself, that's OK, I'll just push a little harder on the bike to make up for it.
The water was also way too warm. 83 degrees. It felt like I was swimming in a hot tub. Didn't really like that. Lastly, and most annoyingly...I've never been kicked so many times in a race. Usually its just crazy at the start then everyone kind of finds their groove. Unfortunately this never really happened the whole time. Always someone running into me, or me running into them. I actually had one guy shove me with his hand...he was the one going the wrong way. But I can understand his frustration, I wanted to punch a few people too. Then to top it off, the last quarter mile my foot cramped up and I did something I've never had to do in a race. I stopped. Just for a bit to stretch out my foot. After that, finished up the swim and then ran up the hill to transition. Nothing like having to run up hill after a 1.2 mile swim! One thing I was really happy about my swim was that I didn't feel exhausted afterward. Though my time wasn't what I wanted (was hoping for a 37ish time) I am happy to say I felt like I could have done another loop, which is good for sign for Wisconsin. I was happy to be done with the rather crappy swim and ready to jump on my bike which has always been my favorite sport of the three.
Bike 2:39:44 21.0 pace
Now this went way better! Probably my best ride in a race...minus losing one water bottle and one C02. I felt really good right out of transition. I let my legs warm up a bit, then it was down in aero and stayed there most of the ride. This wasn't a hilly course, though it has a few areas that required a bit more umph. What I wasn't expecting on this ride were the tough headwinds. It certainly made the ride a bit more challenging. It always adds the wonderful joy of a tail wind on the return. Of course, this was only for a little part of the course, for the majority of the course it was more of a crosswind, but it was always nice to get a little push once on awhile, of course it was always canceled out by another headwind. Oh, and the worst thing I've ever dealt with in a race...winds plus cow manure...wooo! Stinky!!! That's what you get when you race in Indiana! Home sweet home!! Aside from the winds, I felt really good on my bike. Though my poor little bike could use a tune up. I couldn't get my gears to stop clicking. As soon as it gets back to LA, its going to the shop! My legs felt really good through out the ride. I had plenty of moments where I got down and pushed really hard. As I was getting towards the end, I wanted to see if I could break 2:30....obviously I didn't quite make it. But it was a fun way to push myself. I really enjoyed the bike on this course. It was definitely a personal record for me, over 20 minutes faster than Vineman, of course, Vineman was a bit more hilly. But if all things were equal, I know I would have been faster this year. So good! I'm also happy I made up those lost minutes in the swim!
Run 2:12:53 10:09 pace
I'm most happy with this! For most runners they would probably shoot themselves if they ran a 10 min mile. I on the other hand could not be happier. This was my biggest problem at Vineman last year. I had to run/walk last year. I was dead after the bike. This is something I've really been working hard at. I'm not worried about being the fastest runner, I just want to be able to run a long distance without stopping. That's exactly what I achieved in this race. I ran the whole damn thing. I just kept my nice even pace. Passed many people walking. It was a great feeling. This course was harder than Vineman, way more hills. So the fact that I was able to knock over 20 mins off of my run from last year on a harder course made me very happy. The aid stations were fantastic. This is the first race I've done were they've had sponges, Ice cold sponges. At this point in the race, it was the hottest part of the day. Getting close to 90. But I would always take 3 sponges, 2 tucked in my shirt along my shoulders, and one tucked into the front of my visor. I'm sure it looked really silly, but boy did it work. I can run so much better if I can stay cool. They were great. Don't think I would have had a successful run without them. Everyone on the course was so great, the volunteers, spectators, and athletes. They made a really tough run enjoyable. I still have a lot of training to do on my run before Wisconsin. It was the only one where I didn't feel I could go do a second loop. It is still my weakest of the three, but I'm so thrilled with my run at this race. Still lots to work on, but I'll take it!
Finish 5:41:17 591 out of 1531
Then it was time to finish, I saw my family and Amy waving and cheering for me, it was fantastic!! I crossed the finished line and felt the huge feeling of relief that the day was over. I was so ready to sit down. I really left it all out on the course. I was pretty dead. But seeing everyone at the finish line really lifted me up and I was excited to tell everyone about my day.
So all in all, a pretty successful race. I made a few mistakes that I plan to correct in Wisconsin. But I'm really happy with the outcome. I'm scared to death about doubling the distances, but I still have 9 weeks to build. So lets do this! Its the homestretch! 3 races down, 1 to go!
BRING ON WISCONSIN!!!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Week 20 Report:
Last Week before Muncie!
Swim: Good, saying good bye to 24 hour fitness...hopefully
Bike: Trainerrrrr
Run: Feeling good, ready for the race
This was my last week before Muncie. Everything is feeling pretty good. I'm feeling a lot more prepared for this race than I was last year for Vineman. I trained hard for Vineman, but I pretty much just focused on making the distance for a half Iron. This year, its been all about Wisconsin, so I'm going into my half with a lot more training and distance under my belt. I'm hoping that all goes well for the race. I'm still pretty worried about the heat. There is also a possibility that its going to rain. It would be just my luck. Get there and its 100 degrees with thunderstorms. Sigh, well, at least it will be a good story if I survive. But having grown up in the Midwest, I know that the weather can change on a dime, So I'm pretty much gonna have to wait til race morning to find out what the weather is going to be. That's OK, all part of the adventure!
No long bikes this week, as my bike is now in Indiana waiting for me. I leave tomorrow morning for Indy and gonna go straight from the airport to my parents lake house. Its gonna be a crazy week. My girlfriend is flying in from London for the week. So I'm gonna have to split play time with training time. Fortunately, Amy is an awesome runner so we can train together. I just have to get her on a bike and then I can convince her to try this crazy sport! Also, my sister and her husband are gonna join us on a trip to Chicago for a couple days. I'm looking forward to that. Hoping to do a nice training run along lake Michigan. Should be fun!
Well, have to make this a short post...I'm off to finish packing! Next post will be my race report for Muncie! Wish me luck!!
Swim: Good, saying good bye to 24 hour fitness...hopefully
Bike: Trainerrrrr
Run: Feeling good, ready for the race
This was my last week before Muncie. Everything is feeling pretty good. I'm feeling a lot more prepared for this race than I was last year for Vineman. I trained hard for Vineman, but I pretty much just focused on making the distance for a half Iron. This year, its been all about Wisconsin, so I'm going into my half with a lot more training and distance under my belt. I'm hoping that all goes well for the race. I'm still pretty worried about the heat. There is also a possibility that its going to rain. It would be just my luck. Get there and its 100 degrees with thunderstorms. Sigh, well, at least it will be a good story if I survive. But having grown up in the Midwest, I know that the weather can change on a dime, So I'm pretty much gonna have to wait til race morning to find out what the weather is going to be. That's OK, all part of the adventure!
No long bikes this week, as my bike is now in Indiana waiting for me. I leave tomorrow morning for Indy and gonna go straight from the airport to my parents lake house. Its gonna be a crazy week. My girlfriend is flying in from London for the week. So I'm gonna have to split play time with training time. Fortunately, Amy is an awesome runner so we can train together. I just have to get her on a bike and then I can convince her to try this crazy sport! Also, my sister and her husband are gonna join us on a trip to Chicago for a couple days. I'm looking forward to that. Hoping to do a nice training run along lake Michigan. Should be fun!
Well, have to make this a short post...I'm off to finish packing! Next post will be my race report for Muncie! Wish me luck!!
Monday, June 27, 2011
Week 19 Report:
Swim Bike Run Swim Bike Run Swim Bike Run.....
Swim: Broke in the ocean this week.
Bike: Last big ride before Muncie!
Run: Longest run so far! 15.3 miles!
I can't believe it, I'm out of teen numbers...week 20 starts tomorrow. It's really getting serious! I think everyone is starting to feel it too. There's lots of serious discussions going on about air travel, schedule, what to bring..etc..etc.. It's all very exciting, but totally nerve racking all at the same time. I'd say I'm more excited at the moment. I suppose nervousness will take over in about 5 weeks.
This week has been a pretty fun week actually, did some things to help break up the monotony of the same type of work out. I broke out my wetsuit this week and did my first ocean swim of the season. Now, I normally hate swimming in the ocean. I don't like dealing with the waves, the water tastes really really horrible near the Marina, and I just don't like getting up that early. But it was really great this week. I normally swim on my own, so it was a nice change to meet up with my teammates. I also enjoyed just being outside swimming. I spend so much time in that crappy 24 hour fitness pool that I almost forgot what its like to be outside in the cool air with endless water in front of you. Pretty nice. I still hate dealing with the waves, and hate the taste of the water. But, It was a refreshing change this week. People are gonna start meeting every Friday morning for ocean swims, I think I may go a bit more. Even the stinky ocean is better than 24 hour fitness! haha.
The rest of the week was pretty normal with my workouts, just kinda did what Ironfit told me to do. They went well, but nothing to really write about. The weekend was a bit of a switch up for me however. My TNT coach, and fellow Wisconsin teammate hosted an amazing BBQ at his house on Sunday which included a 62 mile bike ride. So instead of my normal Saturday bike ride, I pushed it to Sunday and switched my long run to Saturday. Doesn't really seem like a big deal, but I was pretty surprised how different it was. See, normally I hit Saturday with really fresh legs for the bike, then run on tired legs on Sunday. With them being flipped, so was the leg situation. I knew I wanted to run a half marathon this weekend in preparation for Muncie. Make it clear in my mind that I can still get through that. But since I had fresh legs, I decided to add a couple miles. I ended up doing 15.3 miles. This is the furthest I've ever run. I'm happy to report I felt pretty good through most of it. Towards the end I had some pretty tired legs and sore feet. But I made it through. I think I may have found the limit to my Vibrams...I think I'll wear shoes on my longer runs from now on. But good run. Now, on Sunday, I started the day with pretty beat up legs. I'm not use to that. But it was good practice I think. Just caused me to push through the pain. By the end of the bike ride, my legs actually felt pretty good. Less tired than when I started. So all in all, it was a really fun training weekend.
The ride was followed by an amazing lunch prepared by coach Pete, and we had a discussion about what to expect for Iron Wisconsin...Lots of scary and wonderful things ahead!
Today I shipped my bike of to Indiana, and I leave for Indy on Sat Morning...right around the time my bike arrives! (I hope it makes it there safely in one piece!) I hope the heat goes down a bit in Muncie....I do hate the heat. (=
Alright, bring on week 20....I can't believe it's week 20...
Swim: Broke in the ocean this week.
Bike: Last big ride before Muncie!
Run: Longest run so far! 15.3 miles!
I can't believe it, I'm out of teen numbers...week 20 starts tomorrow. It's really getting serious! I think everyone is starting to feel it too. There's lots of serious discussions going on about air travel, schedule, what to bring..etc..etc.. It's all very exciting, but totally nerve racking all at the same time. I'd say I'm more excited at the moment. I suppose nervousness will take over in about 5 weeks.
This week has been a pretty fun week actually, did some things to help break up the monotony of the same type of work out. I broke out my wetsuit this week and did my first ocean swim of the season. Now, I normally hate swimming in the ocean. I don't like dealing with the waves, the water tastes really really horrible near the Marina, and I just don't like getting up that early. But it was really great this week. I normally swim on my own, so it was a nice change to meet up with my teammates. I also enjoyed just being outside swimming. I spend so much time in that crappy 24 hour fitness pool that I almost forgot what its like to be outside in the cool air with endless water in front of you. Pretty nice. I still hate dealing with the waves, and hate the taste of the water. But, It was a refreshing change this week. People are gonna start meeting every Friday morning for ocean swims, I think I may go a bit more. Even the stinky ocean is better than 24 hour fitness! haha.
The rest of the week was pretty normal with my workouts, just kinda did what Ironfit told me to do. They went well, but nothing to really write about. The weekend was a bit of a switch up for me however. My TNT coach, and fellow Wisconsin teammate hosted an amazing BBQ at his house on Sunday which included a 62 mile bike ride. So instead of my normal Saturday bike ride, I pushed it to Sunday and switched my long run to Saturday. Doesn't really seem like a big deal, but I was pretty surprised how different it was. See, normally I hit Saturday with really fresh legs for the bike, then run on tired legs on Sunday. With them being flipped, so was the leg situation. I knew I wanted to run a half marathon this weekend in preparation for Muncie. Make it clear in my mind that I can still get through that. But since I had fresh legs, I decided to add a couple miles. I ended up doing 15.3 miles. This is the furthest I've ever run. I'm happy to report I felt pretty good through most of it. Towards the end I had some pretty tired legs and sore feet. But I made it through. I think I may have found the limit to my Vibrams...I think I'll wear shoes on my longer runs from now on. But good run. Now, on Sunday, I started the day with pretty beat up legs. I'm not use to that. But it was good practice I think. Just caused me to push through the pain. By the end of the bike ride, my legs actually felt pretty good. Less tired than when I started. So all in all, it was a really fun training weekend.
The ride was followed by an amazing lunch prepared by coach Pete, and we had a discussion about what to expect for Iron Wisconsin...Lots of scary and wonderful things ahead!
Today I shipped my bike of to Indiana, and I leave for Indy on Sat Morning...right around the time my bike arrives! (I hope it makes it there safely in one piece!) I hope the heat goes down a bit in Muncie....I do hate the heat. (=
Alright, bring on week 20....I can't believe it's week 20...
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Week 18 Report:
Hell week!...I mean...Hill week..
Swim: Good good, nothing to report here, just dodging bad swimmers
Bike: Did I mention hills?
Run: Solid, not fast...but felt good.
Another exciting week of training, can't believe week 18 has already come and gone. It truly is just flying by now. I'm only 3 weeks away from my next race, and only 12 weeks away from the big one!
Training has really taken over my life. I knew it would at this point. I'm happy to feel that I'm on pace for Wisconsin, but at the same time, it has become a bit isolating spending so much time exercising. I committed to this idea almost a year ago, and I'll be damned if I don't see it through. But I do look forward to the days when I can go out on a Friday night again, and not have to go to bed at 9pm. At the same time, I know after all this is over, I am going to miss it. I feel like its become apart of me. It's my time away from the world. When I'm out running, biking, or swimming, all I have is me and my thoughts. Often they are huff huff huff...I can't breathe!...but when its not that, its a wonderful time to get into your own head and dust around a bit. So I know when this is all over and I've recovered, I'm gonna look back and cherish this time, in fact, it will probably propel me to sign up for another race. I doubt it will be another Ironman...but I won't say no, because 3 years ago I would have said there was no way I'd ever do one...but here we are.
This week's training went well. My schedule was a lot better now that I'm done on Hop. I actually get to go home at 6. It feels like I'm on vacation. I come home...and the sun is still out! Amazing! Swimming is good. I think I found the sweet spot at the gym. I take a late lunch so when I get there the lunch crowd is just leaving and its about an hour until the old people show up for their swim/walks. Running is going well too, I feel really comfortable at my pace now. It's not fast, but I'm not really looking to be fast, I'm looking for endurance. So I'm feeling really good about the fact I can go for long runs and not feel horribly winded at the end. I will work on my speed the last 10 weeks. But I know its not going to be my strong event, my bike will be. So I'm content with that. I just want to finish anyway....well, finish feeling strong, not dying.
The long bike this week was a killer. 2 of my teammates, Noel and Ivan De La Torre organized a trip from Sylmar to Lake Castaic. It was a really beautiful ride, but it involved some pretty nasty climbs. It ended up being 7339 ft of elevation gain over 74 miles. At the end, the De La Torre brothers cooked some amazing tacos. So damn good! It was definitely one of the more difficult rides I've been on. However, I felt pretty good through it. My biking has very much improved over this season. I still have yet to bike over 100 miles, definitely something I'm gonna tackle after my Half Iron, but it doesn't scare me like it use to. I feel like I could go do it right now without much problem. I think these difficult bikes have been good for me mentally. Which is half of the game when it comes to triathlon anyway. I still have a lot of improving I want to do in the next 12 weeks. But I'm pretty happy with how things are going. I feel healthy and ready for the challenge.
Only 2 more weeks until I head back to Indy for my race in Muncie. I'm feeling ready for the Half....almost.. The only thing I haven't been able to train for...and something I'm gonna face in Muncie is.....THE HEAT. Its been pretty cool here in LA...while in Indiana its been hot and humid. Sadly, I'll just have to deal with it. For now I'm looking for wishing stars to hope that it cools down in 3 weeks. Oh well...I'll take whatever is thrown at me....but I'd prefer a cloudy, soft breezy 70 degrees with low humidity if anyone can make that happen...Thanks!
Swim: Good good, nothing to report here, just dodging bad swimmers
Bike: Did I mention hills?
Run: Solid, not fast...but felt good.
Another exciting week of training, can't believe week 18 has already come and gone. It truly is just flying by now. I'm only 3 weeks away from my next race, and only 12 weeks away from the big one!
Training has really taken over my life. I knew it would at this point. I'm happy to feel that I'm on pace for Wisconsin, but at the same time, it has become a bit isolating spending so much time exercising. I committed to this idea almost a year ago, and I'll be damned if I don't see it through. But I do look forward to the days when I can go out on a Friday night again, and not have to go to bed at 9pm. At the same time, I know after all this is over, I am going to miss it. I feel like its become apart of me. It's my time away from the world. When I'm out running, biking, or swimming, all I have is me and my thoughts. Often they are huff huff huff...I can't breathe!...but when its not that, its a wonderful time to get into your own head and dust around a bit. So I know when this is all over and I've recovered, I'm gonna look back and cherish this time, in fact, it will probably propel me to sign up for another race. I doubt it will be another Ironman...but I won't say no, because 3 years ago I would have said there was no way I'd ever do one...but here we are.
This week's training went well. My schedule was a lot better now that I'm done on Hop. I actually get to go home at 6. It feels like I'm on vacation. I come home...and the sun is still out! Amazing! Swimming is good. I think I found the sweet spot at the gym. I take a late lunch so when I get there the lunch crowd is just leaving and its about an hour until the old people show up for their swim/walks. Running is going well too, I feel really comfortable at my pace now. It's not fast, but I'm not really looking to be fast, I'm looking for endurance. So I'm feeling really good about the fact I can go for long runs and not feel horribly winded at the end. I will work on my speed the last 10 weeks. But I know its not going to be my strong event, my bike will be. So I'm content with that. I just want to finish anyway....well, finish feeling strong, not dying.
The long bike this week was a killer. 2 of my teammates, Noel and Ivan De La Torre organized a trip from Sylmar to Lake Castaic. It was a really beautiful ride, but it involved some pretty nasty climbs. It ended up being 7339 ft of elevation gain over 74 miles. At the end, the De La Torre brothers cooked some amazing tacos. So damn good! It was definitely one of the more difficult rides I've been on. However, I felt pretty good through it. My biking has very much improved over this season. I still have yet to bike over 100 miles, definitely something I'm gonna tackle after my Half Iron, but it doesn't scare me like it use to. I feel like I could go do it right now without much problem. I think these difficult bikes have been good for me mentally. Which is half of the game when it comes to triathlon anyway. I still have a lot of improving I want to do in the next 12 weeks. But I'm pretty happy with how things are going. I feel healthy and ready for the challenge.
Only 2 more weeks until I head back to Indy for my race in Muncie. I'm feeling ready for the Half....almost.. The only thing I haven't been able to train for...and something I'm gonna face in Muncie is.....THE HEAT. Its been pretty cool here in LA...while in Indiana its been hot and humid. Sadly, I'll just have to deal with it. For now I'm looking for wishing stars to hope that it cools down in 3 weeks. Oh well...I'll take whatever is thrown at me....but I'd prefer a cloudy, soft breezy 70 degrees with low humidity if anyone can make that happen...Thanks!
Monday, June 13, 2011
Week 17 Report:
Swim: Need to find a way to entertain myself on the long swims.
Bike: good, nothing exotic this week
Run: Good...at my slow ass pace.
This week was a big struggle for me. Not anything to do with training, it was more just finding the time to train! I had to do a lot of (unpaid) overtime at work this week. I've been working on a short for the dvd of the movie "Hop". I'm really happy with my animation in it, but they just didn't budget enough time for us. So because I wanted my shot to look good, I had to put in a few...actually a lot of extra hours into it. I still have a couple more days on it, but the hard part is over, now I'm just in clean up mode. I'm happy that bit of stress is out of my life and I can actually go home at a descent time this week. That should help considerably with my training.
Training this week was a bit of a let down. Nothing bad really, but I had so much fun on my ride to San Diego that it almost felt like a race. By that I mean the excitement of it. After every race there's always a period of the bubble bursting. I'm sure there's a proper term that is eluding me at the moment, but it is past midnight, so my brain isn't firing on all cylinders. But anyhoo, I think you get the idea. Aside from Hop getting in the way, the week was fine, just nothing too exciting.
My bike ride on Saturday was just heading north on PCH. My typical training ground. It was a 60 mile ride at race pace. There was a little excitement in the first half of the day when one of my teammates couldn't get on his breaks in time for a red light and took out another one of my teammates. Everyone was ok, but a little beat up and bleeding. Thankfully everyone was ok.
There was a cool event going on while we were riding, and I'm a little pissed I didn't take some pictures...but its was the San Fransisco to Los Angeles Aids ride. The riders had been going all week, its about a 600 mile ride, and this was their last leg. So on the way back we just blended in with them. We totally felt like posers having everyone cheer for us, but really, they were on our turf anyway! haha! The plus side of having so many riders on the road was that it actually gave you race like conditions. It was great, cause we could latch on to some of the speedy groups and ride pace with them. Two groups stood out to me..."Team Popular" which was all in Hot Pink...and "The Easter Bunnys"...somehow appropriate considering Hop has absorbed my life this week. The bunnys were going about 24-25mph, which is a pretty good pace. It was a nice way to end the ride. That was followed up by a 6 mile run. Today, I did an hour on my trainer, then followed that up with a 9 mile run. Legs are a bit tired and looking forward to my rest day tomorrow.
Its getting close to my Half Iron, only 3 weeks til I head home to Indy! I feel ready for it...much better that I did when I did Vineman last year, I was scared to death...currently I'm just scared to death of Wisconsin...so that's improvement...I guess!
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Week 16 Report:
Swim: Good, nothing to report, just need to go faster.
Bike: Longest ride yet, 90 miles!
Run: Feeling a little sore, makes me run slow.
These weeks seem to fly by now. A little scary to think that I only have 13 weeks til the big day. It's exciting too. I'm feeling pretty ok with my training. I'm not gonna create any records, but my hope is that I will have a strong day and feel like I didn't have to crawl to the finish line...even if in fact I have to crawl at the finish line...but hey, that's still 13 weeks away. As for this week, it really was time management hell. I'm a bit stressed at work these days, working on 2 shows, and being a mentor for an apprentice animator. So I'm extra tired each night, thus making it pretty damn hard to wake up in the morning. I've been able to get my workouts in, but just barely. I was late to dailies everyday. Only by 10 mins or so, but still, I could not get there on time. I don't want that to be a trend. Also, I really like to swim at lunch. Just gets it out of the way, and I don't have to fight the crowds in the evening. I was only able to do lunch once this week. It was pretty stressful fitting everything in, but I really hope to improve on that in the coming week. Unfortunately the stress level is going to be a bit high this week because one of the shows I'm working on delivers on Friday. Sigh, I hope it goes well.
The weekend however was much much better. Its funny, when you don't have to go to work, you suddenly have a lot of time. Maybe I shouldn't work anymore....now, how to a get someone to give me a whole bunch of money to make that happen? Saturday, several of us did a trip from Irvine (just south of LA) to San Diego! I've always wanted to do this trip, I've seen several of my friends do it and I was always jealous. We drove to the Irvine Amtrak station. We park there, ride down to San Diego and take the train back. It was a really beautiful day, aside from several cross winds and head winds. It was a really interesting route, went through heavy traffic areas, to campsites along the ocean, through an active marine corp base, and into downtown San Diego. At mile 82 we stopped at a place called "Pizza Port". I was so hungry at this point. I brought enough food on my bike, but it just was not the same as a nice greasy slice of pizza! I'm also not a very big beer drinker, but since we were stopping for Pizza and Beer, I had to join in. I must say, best damn beer ever. Its funny how good everything is when you just biked for 5 1/2 hours!
After the excellent pit stop, we split up. Some people were staying down in San Diego to race the Rock and Roll Marathon on Sunday, but me and Marty wanted to get back up to LA since we weren't running, so we took off and headed to the train station in downtown. It was about 8 miles to the station, which made it a nice 90 mile ride. Legs were pretty tired after sitting at the pizza place for a couple hours. But it was a really pretty ride along the Harbor. We jumped on the train and about 1 1/2 later were back in Irvine. Really nice and challenging day. It was everything I hoped for.
Sunday finished up the week with 45 mins on the bike to loosen the legs and a 9 mile run. I took it really easy today, but felt good during the run. I once again am really looking forward to my rest day tomorrow. I seem to look more and more forward to those each week!
Bring on week 17...after my day of rest of course!!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Week 15 Report:
HALFWAY DONE!!!
Swim: Feeling steady, would like to push my speed a little.
Bike: Feeling strong, love my bike!
Run: Feeling good at my slow pace, need to add more hills and speed.
Well its official, I am at the halfway point of my journey. It's time to reflect, think back, learn from the past...blah blah blah...man that went quick!! When I first started I saw that it was well over 200 days til the race, workouts were light, legs weren't sore all the time...fast forward, and I do mean fast, here we are! It's good and scary all at the same time. I'm really happy I've made it this far and am still in good health and outlook. But now that we are in the back half of this adventure it's really starting to set in what I'm attempting to do.
I think back just a few years ago, and if you would have told me that I was going to be doing an Ironman in September 2011 I would have had you checked into your local hospital, had your drivers license revoked, and made sure you weren't allowed to be near children. Cause you would have some very serious issues and you are not fit to be apart of society. Yet....
I've always enjoyed challenges in my life, well maybe not always enjoy, but taken them on at least. Whether it be school, work, filmmaking etc, I've always welcomed challenges and thrived on people telling me what I can't do. I very distinctly remember one of my friends parents telling me I'd never be an animator cause it was too difficult. Suck it friend's parent, my IMDB says otherwise. No one really told me I can't do this, however, I did get a few raised eyebrows and I could see it in there faces that they don't fully believe I can do this. Because I'm a stubborn little bitch, I use that, and thrive on it. I don't know if it's really a good and healthy thing to focus on, but it is there all the same. When I am out really struggling on a run, or legs exhausted on the bike, I think about those raised eyebrows and they push me.
On the flip side, I have an amazing group of athletes I train with that are so supportive that they make you forget how big of a challenge this thing really is. It becomes so common place when you are training together that it really takes the edge off of the nerves. My girl, family and friends are also in my corner. So often I feel very alone in this journey, but it is far from the truth. I am so thankful for everyone that has helped me along the way. I'm gonna really need to lean on everyone for the second half. Thanks everyone for helping me through this.
Training was hard this week. Good, but I feel extra exhausted this weekend. I had to push one of my weekly swims to the weekend because of a work conflict, so my weekend was extra workout heavy. The weekend alone was 70 mile bike, 3 mile run on Sat, and a 45 min bike, 3000 yard swim, and a 9 mile run on Sun. I cut the swim in half because the gym was so crowded, but I pushed hard through it and felt I got a fairly good workout anyway. The run was a little brutal, big winds at the beach actually kind of hurt as I was getting pelted with sand. I also picked a route that had a few nice hills in it. So my calves are a bit sore. All in all, it was a nice endurance building week. Though, I have never looked so forward to Monday off as I am tonight. Fortunately its Memorial Day and I get to do nothing but grill up some burgers and relax tomorrow. Nice little reward for making it halfway.
All down hill from here....ha! I wish....
Swim: Feeling steady, would like to push my speed a little.
Bike: Feeling strong, love my bike!
Run: Feeling good at my slow pace, need to add more hills and speed.
Well its official, I am at the halfway point of my journey. It's time to reflect, think back, learn from the past...blah blah blah...man that went quick!! When I first started I saw that it was well over 200 days til the race, workouts were light, legs weren't sore all the time...fast forward, and I do mean fast, here we are! It's good and scary all at the same time. I'm really happy I've made it this far and am still in good health and outlook. But now that we are in the back half of this adventure it's really starting to set in what I'm attempting to do.
I think back just a few years ago, and if you would have told me that I was going to be doing an Ironman in September 2011 I would have had you checked into your local hospital, had your drivers license revoked, and made sure you weren't allowed to be near children. Cause you would have some very serious issues and you are not fit to be apart of society. Yet....
I've always enjoyed challenges in my life, well maybe not always enjoy, but taken them on at least. Whether it be school, work, filmmaking etc, I've always welcomed challenges and thrived on people telling me what I can't do. I very distinctly remember one of my friends parents telling me I'd never be an animator cause it was too difficult. Suck it friend's parent, my IMDB says otherwise. No one really told me I can't do this, however, I did get a few raised eyebrows and I could see it in there faces that they don't fully believe I can do this. Because I'm a stubborn little bitch, I use that, and thrive on it. I don't know if it's really a good and healthy thing to focus on, but it is there all the same. When I am out really struggling on a run, or legs exhausted on the bike, I think about those raised eyebrows and they push me.
On the flip side, I have an amazing group of athletes I train with that are so supportive that they make you forget how big of a challenge this thing really is. It becomes so common place when you are training together that it really takes the edge off of the nerves. My girl, family and friends are also in my corner. So often I feel very alone in this journey, but it is far from the truth. I am so thankful for everyone that has helped me along the way. I'm gonna really need to lean on everyone for the second half. Thanks everyone for helping me through this.
Training was hard this week. Good, but I feel extra exhausted this weekend. I had to push one of my weekly swims to the weekend because of a work conflict, so my weekend was extra workout heavy. The weekend alone was 70 mile bike, 3 mile run on Sat, and a 45 min bike, 3000 yard swim, and a 9 mile run on Sun. I cut the swim in half because the gym was so crowded, but I pushed hard through it and felt I got a fairly good workout anyway. The run was a little brutal, big winds at the beach actually kind of hurt as I was getting pelted with sand. I also picked a route that had a few nice hills in it. So my calves are a bit sore. All in all, it was a nice endurance building week. Though, I have never looked so forward to Monday off as I am tonight. Fortunately its Memorial Day and I get to do nothing but grill up some burgers and relax tomorrow. Nice little reward for making it halfway.
All down hill from here....ha! I wish....
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Week 14 Report:
Good Week...Gym people annoy me...
Swim: Did I say how much I hate 24 hour fitness?
Bike: Another tough sat bike, 80 miles...furthest and fastest this season.
Run: Still my weakest, but its going ok.
Another week of training has come to a close. It's definitely been challenging to fit in all the workouts. Though, I have gotten into a routine. Swimming is still the hardest to fit in due to the amount of time prepping vs. actual doing. I say this every week, but the gym sucks. I'm starting to get more and more annoyed. Mainly with the people. I know patience can be a struggle for me sometimes, but seriously, I don't get some of these gym people. One guy is there every single time I'm there. Doesn't matter when I show up, It could be at 7 in the morning, 1 in the afternoon, or 10 at night. He's there. I don't think he actually works out. Just so you can picture him, he's probably in his late 40s, he's quite over weight and has really long gray and black hair. I always find him in one of 2 areas. Either sitting butt ass naked in the locker room, or sitting in his swim shorts in the coed water area. Last time I was there he was playing angry birds on his Iphone...naked of course. There is a guy like this at every gym I've been too. I've never really understood it. When I go to the gym, I just want to get in and get out. I wonder if the women have to deal with this kind of person too. I don't know. But I suspect it is more rare. Most women I see do the same as me, get in, get out. Work out, go home. But I see so many guys spend more time in the locker room checking out there muscles after lifting one weight, or doing one situp than I'd care to see. If I see one more guy with a giant beer gut thinking he's all hot shit, I'm gonna puke....
Sigh, sorry for the rant. I'm in an annoyed by people mood. The macho thing has always annoyed me and boy does it come out in the locker room. Maybe it's cause I was always that little guy that got picked on instead of drooled over by the girls. I'm sure there's some deep issues I have to look into one day. But for now, I'd like to use that aggression towards my 140.6 miles thank you very much. (=
So as for training this week. All went well. Running and swimming continue to improve. Had another tough and long bike ride. It was great though, ended up riding with two of my friends, both of which are accomplished Ironman's? Ironmen? anyhoo, yeah, they are both pretty talented athletes. The ride left no room for slacking, we did just under 80 miles in 4 hours, around a 19mph average. That was with hills and headwinds. I was pretty wasted afterward, but felt good being able to push through it. We'll see what next week brings, unfortunately with this training schedule...it just keep getting harder!
Til next week!
Swim: Did I say how much I hate 24 hour fitness?
Bike: Another tough sat bike, 80 miles...furthest and fastest this season.
Run: Still my weakest, but its going ok.
Another week of training has come to a close. It's definitely been challenging to fit in all the workouts. Though, I have gotten into a routine. Swimming is still the hardest to fit in due to the amount of time prepping vs. actual doing. I say this every week, but the gym sucks. I'm starting to get more and more annoyed. Mainly with the people. I know patience can be a struggle for me sometimes, but seriously, I don't get some of these gym people. One guy is there every single time I'm there. Doesn't matter when I show up, It could be at 7 in the morning, 1 in the afternoon, or 10 at night. He's there. I don't think he actually works out. Just so you can picture him, he's probably in his late 40s, he's quite over weight and has really long gray and black hair. I always find him in one of 2 areas. Either sitting butt ass naked in the locker room, or sitting in his swim shorts in the coed water area. Last time I was there he was playing angry birds on his Iphone...naked of course. There is a guy like this at every gym I've been too. I've never really understood it. When I go to the gym, I just want to get in and get out. I wonder if the women have to deal with this kind of person too. I don't know. But I suspect it is more rare. Most women I see do the same as me, get in, get out. Work out, go home. But I see so many guys spend more time in the locker room checking out there muscles after lifting one weight, or doing one situp than I'd care to see. If I see one more guy with a giant beer gut thinking he's all hot shit, I'm gonna puke....
Sigh, sorry for the rant. I'm in an annoyed by people mood. The macho thing has always annoyed me and boy does it come out in the locker room. Maybe it's cause I was always that little guy that got picked on instead of drooled over by the girls. I'm sure there's some deep issues I have to look into one day. But for now, I'd like to use that aggression towards my 140.6 miles thank you very much. (=
So as for training this week. All went well. Running and swimming continue to improve. Had another tough and long bike ride. It was great though, ended up riding with two of my friends, both of which are accomplished Ironman's? Ironmen? anyhoo, yeah, they are both pretty talented athletes. The ride left no room for slacking, we did just under 80 miles in 4 hours, around a 19mph average. That was with hills and headwinds. I was pretty wasted afterward, but felt good being able to push through it. We'll see what next week brings, unfortunately with this training schedule...it just keep getting harder!
Til next week!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Week 13 Report:
Bring on the pain....oh so much pain...
Swim: No 24 hour fitness, I will not be done in 20 mins...
Bike: First real hard ride of the season, good..saw a whale. (=
Run: Zone training has made the run more fun and challenging
Good week of training. I know I say that every week. But I've been lucky not to run into any major issues yet. Aside from being nervous and scared about Sept. But that's still 116 days away...not that I'm counting...refer to the upper right corner of this blog. (=
Swimming was good. But I really really need to find a better place to swim. I think I've out grown 24 fitness a bit. They have a 20 min time limit which can be stressful when you have to put in an hour work out. Most of the people that swim there really have no business being in the pool. I'm tired of getting kicked by people who swim like a frog cause they don't know how to swim properly. I ask them kindly to stay in their lane, but they always say they are....their head is...but their damn feet are kick into my lane, and often my kidneys. I'm talking to you rich house wife with way too much makeup on in the pool! Aside from that, the workouts are good, but still by far my biggest time sponge throughout the week. I'm trying to figure out some ways to be more efficient. I'll see what I can come up with. I have to figure something out before week 20, cause the workout bumps up to 3500 yards each time...sigh...
Running was good. Zone training is kind of fun. Hard, but fun. Basically by having parts of your run be at a full sprint, elevating your heart rate, you are teaching you body that when you are back at your steady pace that is a comfortable resting level. Thus giving you more endurance at your comfortable pace. Its like tricking your body to think its resting because its not having to pump like crazy to keep up with your sprint. Simple concept, but seems to be pretty effective. Hopefully this will help with my speed a bit. Always have been a bit of a slow runner.
Biking was intense this week. The mid week rides were just on my trainer. Its nice though, gives me a chance to catch up with the news and episodes of Star Trek The Next Generation...don't laugh, that show was awesome! :P The long bike this week was suppose to be 3 hours, but I had friends going on a 3 1/2 hour ride, so I just decided to join them because it is way more fun to ride in a group. This is the first time I rode with this group and damn are they good and fast. It was great. Pushed me the whole way. In the end we are all really similar in our bike fitness level. Which was great. I think its going to be a really good training group. No more lazy rides, gotta keep up now! We did 65 miles, and followed it up with a 3 mile run. Needless to say I was pretty exhausted afterward. The best part of the ride was when we spotted whales very close to shore. The lame picture I have doesn't do it justice, but it was an exciting break around mile 40. This is why PCH is still my favorite place to ride. It always has surprises!
On to week 14...almost half way!
Swim: No 24 hour fitness, I will not be done in 20 mins...
Bike: First real hard ride of the season, good..saw a whale. (=
Run: Zone training has made the run more fun and challenging
Good week of training. I know I say that every week. But I've been lucky not to run into any major issues yet. Aside from being nervous and scared about Sept. But that's still 116 days away...not that I'm counting...refer to the upper right corner of this blog. (=
Swimming was good. But I really really need to find a better place to swim. I think I've out grown 24 fitness a bit. They have a 20 min time limit which can be stressful when you have to put in an hour work out. Most of the people that swim there really have no business being in the pool. I'm tired of getting kicked by people who swim like a frog cause they don't know how to swim properly. I ask them kindly to stay in their lane, but they always say they are....their head is...but their damn feet are kick into my lane, and often my kidneys. I'm talking to you rich house wife with way too much makeup on in the pool! Aside from that, the workouts are good, but still by far my biggest time sponge throughout the week. I'm trying to figure out some ways to be more efficient. I'll see what I can come up with. I have to figure something out before week 20, cause the workout bumps up to 3500 yards each time...sigh...
Running was good. Zone training is kind of fun. Hard, but fun. Basically by having parts of your run be at a full sprint, elevating your heart rate, you are teaching you body that when you are back at your steady pace that is a comfortable resting level. Thus giving you more endurance at your comfortable pace. Its like tricking your body to think its resting because its not having to pump like crazy to keep up with your sprint. Simple concept, but seems to be pretty effective. Hopefully this will help with my speed a bit. Always have been a bit of a slow runner.
Biking was intense this week. The mid week rides were just on my trainer. Its nice though, gives me a chance to catch up with the news and episodes of Star Trek The Next Generation...don't laugh, that show was awesome! :P The long bike this week was suppose to be 3 hours, but I had friends going on a 3 1/2 hour ride, so I just decided to join them because it is way more fun to ride in a group. This is the first time I rode with this group and damn are they good and fast. It was great. Pushed me the whole way. In the end we are all really similar in our bike fitness level. Which was great. I think its going to be a really good training group. No more lazy rides, gotta keep up now! We did 65 miles, and followed it up with a 3 mile run. Needless to say I was pretty exhausted afterward. The best part of the ride was when we spotted whales very close to shore. The lame picture I have doesn't do it justice, but it was an exciting break around mile 40. This is why PCH is still my favorite place to ride. It always has surprises!
On to week 14...almost half way!
Monday, May 9, 2011
Week 12 Report:
Recovery week...sort of.
Swim: New distance! 3000 yards, 3 times a week...phew.
Bike: Good but boring, long ride by myself this weekend.
Run: Started zone training...painful, but its good for me!
This week was really the first full week of my build phase. It was suppose to start last week, but that was Wildflower, so I had to taper towards the end of the week to make sure I was fresh for race day. Which went well. This week was suppose to be a recovery week. But I was feeling pretty good after my Monday Rest day, so I decided just to put myself right back on schedule. I can definitely see that things are starting to get serious. No more Mr. Nice Coach/Book. I feel like the base phase went really well. Cause I truly feel like I'm starting to build now, instead of trying to catch up. So that good. I've never really been this stringent in my training for other triathlons. But seeing as Wisconsin scares the crap out of me I feel like I really need to take things to heart. I definitely feel stronger in all events than I did last year at this time when I was training for Vineman 70.3. It may be more mental, but since half of this sport is mental, that's a good thing. Swimming is going good, but its by far the hardest to fit in the schedule. It's now 3 times a week and a full hour to swim. So factor in travel time to the pool and waiting on idiot bad swimmers in line at 24 hour fitness (no bitterness there!), it takes minimum 2 hours. So add that to an 1-2 hour morning work out. The day fills up fast. I think that is going to be a big challenge as I get closer to the second half of this Iron training. Just fitting it all in. Fortunately I have some wonderful supportive people in my life, and I know I'm gonna have to lean on them more as I get closer to the big day.
12 down, 18 to go!
Swim: New distance! 3000 yards, 3 times a week...phew.
Bike: Good but boring, long ride by myself this weekend.
Run: Started zone training...painful, but its good for me!
This week was really the first full week of my build phase. It was suppose to start last week, but that was Wildflower, so I had to taper towards the end of the week to make sure I was fresh for race day. Which went well. This week was suppose to be a recovery week. But I was feeling pretty good after my Monday Rest day, so I decided just to put myself right back on schedule. I can definitely see that things are starting to get serious. No more Mr. Nice Coach/Book. I feel like the base phase went really well. Cause I truly feel like I'm starting to build now, instead of trying to catch up. So that good. I've never really been this stringent in my training for other triathlons. But seeing as Wisconsin scares the crap out of me I feel like I really need to take things to heart. I definitely feel stronger in all events than I did last year at this time when I was training for Vineman 70.3. It may be more mental, but since half of this sport is mental, that's a good thing. Swimming is going good, but its by far the hardest to fit in the schedule. It's now 3 times a week and a full hour to swim. So factor in travel time to the pool and waiting on idiot bad swimmers in line at 24 hour fitness (no bitterness there!), it takes minimum 2 hours. So add that to an 1-2 hour morning work out. The day fills up fast. I think that is going to be a big challenge as I get closer to the second half of this Iron training. Just fitting it all in. Fortunately I have some wonderful supportive people in my life, and I know I'm gonna have to lean on them more as I get closer to the big day.
12 down, 18 to go!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Week 11 Report:
Wildflower!!
So I just completed my second race of the season. 2 down, 2 to go!
There are two courses at the Wildflower Triathlon, The Long Course, and The Olympic Course. I chose the latter. The long course is a Half-Ironman. Not only that, but one of the toughest in the country. Many of my brave friends did that course. I felt it was too early in my training to attempt. My end goal is Wisconsin this year, but maybe one year I will return and do the long course. Sounded pretty brutal from all accounts.
Anyhoo..I did the Olympic course, it in its own right is a pretty difficult course. Much more difficult that any other Olympic I've done. I'm happy how it went, glad its over, and pumped to continue my training.
Here's how it all went down.
Swim: 00:28:14 ( about 1 mile)
The swim started out in one of the craziest starts I've ever been apart of. It was just a really small area for a hundred swimmers to all jump in. It took a good 500 yards for us to really find our groove. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing. I decided to try something I read in an article about improving your swim times and saving energy. It was to draft. Not legal in biking, but perfectly OK in swimming. Basically get right behind the feet of another swimming. So I picked my prey...good swimmer, about my speed. Perfect I thought. It was perfect, I could feel how much easier it was to swim. "Brilliant" I thought in my head! Not thinking too much about it, I just followed and followed..and followed. Followed the little shit way off course! Yup, I chose the guy with the bad direction skills! Crap, truly my own fault. But any energy I saved by drafting, cost me in trying to get back on course. Oh well, live and learn. After that, it was pretty smooth back to the finish. I felt really good with this swim. Probably one of my better swims energy wise. Felt great getting out and ready to roll on the bike!
Bike 01:27:39 (25 miles)
This is where the course is just evil. Right out of transition you have to bike straight up hill for a mile. Doing this on warmed up legs is hard enough, but to come right of swimming into this is just plain crazy. It was. By the time you got to the top and realized you've only gone a mile you just want to bike right over to your car, pack it up, and go home. Conveniently enough, the top of this hill is where infact your car is parked. Fortunately, I had my wonderful teammates who did the Long Course the day before cheering me on. If they can make it through that horrible course, I can make it through this. So you get over the hill and get your ass going. From there it actually wasn't too bad. It was was a lot off rolling hills. I ride hills similar to these all the time in Malibu, so I felt pretty strong riding them. It's an out and back course. I saw a few friends along the way, cheered them on and kept on biking. Sadly, I knew I had a tough run ahead of me, so I wasn't looking forward to getting off of the bike.
Run 00:56:09 (6.2 miles)
This is where you really find out if you trained hard enough. The whole run is up hill, except for the last mile, where its all down hill. It was pretty brutal. I knew I really didn't do enough hill training for this run, and my calves were on fire for most of it. I did ok though. I've never been a really strong runner, so I was just happy I was continuing to move forward. The hill just would not stop. At each aid station, I would grab 3 cups of water. One to drink, one to splash on my head, and one to splash on my calves! It worked pretty well actually. Mile 5 could not come soon enough. I could see that last hill and was so excited knowing that is was all down hill from there. So I got to the top, and there were my teammates! They were cheering me on and handed me what I thought was water...nope...it was a beer! I took one sip to celebrate, and tossed the rest....I had a tough run to the finish, couldn't be getting all drunk...and yes, it only takes one beer cause I'm a pathetic light weight! I appreciate my teammates gesture though. So as I made the turn down the hill, I looked at my watch. I saw that I might actually break 3 hours if I really hustle. So I grabbed whatever energy I had left and ran as fast as I could. I was cruising down the hill. I was just praying that my legs didn't give out cause that would have been a spectacular crash and burn. Fortunately they held up and I crossed the finish line with 2 mins to spare! However,as soon as I stopped my legs got really mad at me and my right leg cramped up pretty bad. I tried to walk it off, but ended up falling to the ground trying to let it loosen up. After a few minutes I was able to stumble over to the medical tent and they iced me right up. After that, went to the free massage table and had them work on that leg. All was good after that. A dramatic finish to my little race!
Final Time 02:58:16!! Woohoo, broke 3 hours! Happy and ready to move on in my training.
Wildflower was fun! Up next, Muncie Ironman 70.3....bring it on!
So I just completed my second race of the season. 2 down, 2 to go!
There are two courses at the Wildflower Triathlon, The Long Course, and The Olympic Course. I chose the latter. The long course is a Half-Ironman. Not only that, but one of the toughest in the country. Many of my brave friends did that course. I felt it was too early in my training to attempt. My end goal is Wisconsin this year, but maybe one year I will return and do the long course. Sounded pretty brutal from all accounts.
Anyhoo..I did the Olympic course, it in its own right is a pretty difficult course. Much more difficult that any other Olympic I've done. I'm happy how it went, glad its over, and pumped to continue my training.
Here's how it all went down.
Swim: 00:28:14 ( about 1 mile)
The swim started out in one of the craziest starts I've ever been apart of. It was just a really small area for a hundred swimmers to all jump in. It took a good 500 yards for us to really find our groove. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing. I decided to try something I read in an article about improving your swim times and saving energy. It was to draft. Not legal in biking, but perfectly OK in swimming. Basically get right behind the feet of another swimming. So I picked my prey...good swimmer, about my speed. Perfect I thought. It was perfect, I could feel how much easier it was to swim. "Brilliant" I thought in my head! Not thinking too much about it, I just followed and followed..and followed. Followed the little shit way off course! Yup, I chose the guy with the bad direction skills! Crap, truly my own fault. But any energy I saved by drafting, cost me in trying to get back on course. Oh well, live and learn. After that, it was pretty smooth back to the finish. I felt really good with this swim. Probably one of my better swims energy wise. Felt great getting out and ready to roll on the bike!
Bike 01:27:39 (25 miles)
This is where the course is just evil. Right out of transition you have to bike straight up hill for a mile. Doing this on warmed up legs is hard enough, but to come right of swimming into this is just plain crazy. It was. By the time you got to the top and realized you've only gone a mile you just want to bike right over to your car, pack it up, and go home. Conveniently enough, the top of this hill is where infact your car is parked. Fortunately, I had my wonderful teammates who did the Long Course the day before cheering me on. If they can make it through that horrible course, I can make it through this. So you get over the hill and get your ass going. From there it actually wasn't too bad. It was was a lot off rolling hills. I ride hills similar to these all the time in Malibu, so I felt pretty strong riding them. It's an out and back course. I saw a few friends along the way, cheered them on and kept on biking. Sadly, I knew I had a tough run ahead of me, so I wasn't looking forward to getting off of the bike.
Run 00:56:09 (6.2 miles)
This is where you really find out if you trained hard enough. The whole run is up hill, except for the last mile, where its all down hill. It was pretty brutal. I knew I really didn't do enough hill training for this run, and my calves were on fire for most of it. I did ok though. I've never been a really strong runner, so I was just happy I was continuing to move forward. The hill just would not stop. At each aid station, I would grab 3 cups of water. One to drink, one to splash on my head, and one to splash on my calves! It worked pretty well actually. Mile 5 could not come soon enough. I could see that last hill and was so excited knowing that is was all down hill from there. So I got to the top, and there were my teammates! They were cheering me on and handed me what I thought was water...nope...it was a beer! I took one sip to celebrate, and tossed the rest....I had a tough run to the finish, couldn't be getting all drunk...and yes, it only takes one beer cause I'm a pathetic light weight! I appreciate my teammates gesture though. So as I made the turn down the hill, I looked at my watch. I saw that I might actually break 3 hours if I really hustle. So I grabbed whatever energy I had left and ran as fast as I could. I was cruising down the hill. I was just praying that my legs didn't give out cause that would have been a spectacular crash and burn. Fortunately they held up and I crossed the finish line with 2 mins to spare! However,as soon as I stopped my legs got really mad at me and my right leg cramped up pretty bad. I tried to walk it off, but ended up falling to the ground trying to let it loosen up. After a few minutes I was able to stumble over to the medical tent and they iced me right up. After that, went to the free massage table and had them work on that leg. All was good after that. A dramatic finish to my little race!
Final Time 02:58:16!! Woohoo, broke 3 hours! Happy and ready to move on in my training.
Wildflower was fun! Up next, Muncie Ironman 70.3....bring it on!
Monday, April 25, 2011
Week 10 Report:
Final week of Base Training!
Swim: Sadly this is the last week of 2 a week swims...3 a week from now on!
Bike: Trainer during the week, PV on the weeked! Though it was rainy.
Run: Runs feel solid, ready to started pushing it.
This is the last week of my Base Training. Basically all that means is the training is about to get a lot harder and longer. Its also good, because I'm starting to get pretty comfortable in my training routine. So it seems its time to start pushing myself again. I feel like the base period went really well. It was pretty overwhelming at first and now here I am 10 weeks later saying I'm comfortable. I hope at the end of week 20 I can say the same thing.
Next week is a big week. I'm going to stray from the training schedule a bit since its a race week. I will taper my work outs so I'm rested and ready to conquer Wildflower. I hear its a pretty difficult and hilly course. I fear I may not have done enough hill training, especially with my runs. But no matter what happens, its just a part of my training for Wisconsin, so I'm not stressing too much about it. I'm actually looking forward to it. Its out in the middle nowhere, so you have to camp. I'm going with a lot of my teammates so it should be a good time. I haven't camped in awhile, it will be fun to break out the tent again. I'm not sure what to expect. I feel pretty strong, but if this course is as difficult as they say it should make for an interesting weekend!
Race Report next week!
Swim: Sadly this is the last week of 2 a week swims...3 a week from now on!
Bike: Trainer during the week, PV on the weeked! Though it was rainy.
Run: Runs feel solid, ready to started pushing it.
This is the last week of my Base Training. Basically all that means is the training is about to get a lot harder and longer. Its also good, because I'm starting to get pretty comfortable in my training routine. So it seems its time to start pushing myself again. I feel like the base period went really well. It was pretty overwhelming at first and now here I am 10 weeks later saying I'm comfortable. I hope at the end of week 20 I can say the same thing.Next week is a big week. I'm going to stray from the training schedule a bit since its a race week. I will taper my work outs so I'm rested and ready to conquer Wildflower. I hear its a pretty difficult and hilly course. I fear I may not have done enough hill training, especially with my runs. But no matter what happens, its just a part of my training for Wisconsin, so I'm not stressing too much about it. I'm actually looking forward to it. Its out in the middle nowhere, so you have to camp. I'm going with a lot of my teammates so it should be a good time. I haven't camped in awhile, it will be fun to break out the tent again. I'm not sure what to expect. I feel pretty strong, but if this course is as difficult as they say it should make for an interesting weekend!
Race Report next week!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Week 9 Report:
2 weeks till Wildflower!
Report:
Swim: Nothing to report, just annoyed with 24 hour fitness people.
Bike: Discovered the joy of the Palos Verdes Loop!
Run: Felt strong on my runs, not pushing it too hard though.
Things went well this week. Nothing really special to report. The best part of the training this week was a ride around Palos Verdes. It is a really beautiful ride....for most of it. You start in Redondo Beach, then up the hill to Palos Verdes Estates...its basically just a whole lot of rich people in beautiful houses with amazing views of the ocean. I think its funny that my favorite two rides are Malibu and PV...2 of the most wealthy areas of Los Angeles. I think they just offer the most amazing views...but it does make you wish one of those house were yours. Not that I need that, just must be nice to live the good life. Though I'm pretty happy with mine. (=
2 more weeks until Wildflower. I feel pretty ready for it, and for once not really stressing about a race. My race this year is Wisconsin...everything else is really just a training day. If things go good, wonderful. But if they go bad, no big deal....Ofcourse I say that now...we'll see how things go.
Next week is the last week of the Base Period of training...then it gets painful.
Report:
Swim: Nothing to report, just annoyed with 24 hour fitness people.
Bike: Discovered the joy of the Palos Verdes Loop!
Run: Felt strong on my runs, not pushing it too hard though.
Things went well this week. Nothing really special to report. The best part of the training this week was a ride around Palos Verdes. It is a really beautiful ride....for most of it. You start in Redondo Beach, then up the hill to Palos Verdes Estates...its basically just a whole lot of rich people in beautiful houses with amazing views of the ocean. I think its funny that my favorite two rides are Malibu and PV...2 of the most wealthy areas of Los Angeles. I think they just offer the most amazing views...but it does make you wish one of those house were yours. Not that I need that, just must be nice to live the good life. Though I'm pretty happy with mine. (=
2 more weeks until Wildflower. I feel pretty ready for it, and for once not really stressing about a race. My race this year is Wisconsin...everything else is really just a training day. If things go good, wonderful. But if they go bad, no big deal....Ofcourse I say that now...we'll see how things go.
Next week is the last week of the Base Period of training...then it gets painful.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Week 8 Report:
Eight is grea....um...yeah.
Report:
Swim: Getting a little boring actually, but feeling good.
Bike: Nothing to report, doing ok.
Run: Felt a little tired on my runs, hopefully that will get better.
This is the first week were I have felt a little loss of motivation. No one particular thing really. I think I've just come off of my High of my Europe trip, and I'm back at work. Life seems to be going back to normal which can be a little depressing I guess. I think it has effected my training a bit this week. Nothing really went bad, had good runs and swims. I mostly did my trainer for my bike this week, except Sat had a nice ride through Malibu.
I sat down and watched some Ironman videos on youtube to give myself some inspiration. That did help a bit, but i'm still looking for a bit of motivation to help get my ass out of bed in the morning. Hopefully next week will go better. I suppose its gonna be a bit like this through the end of training. 30 weeks is a long time, can't expect it to be exciting the whole time.
I do have Wildflower in a couple weeks, I'm sure that will help a bit. I'm still really excited about Wisconsin, but with 22 weeks left, that feels like a long way away. Gotta figure out how to keep myself excited. I'll keep my eye out for some inspiration....
On to week 9!
Report:
Swim: Getting a little boring actually, but feeling good.
Bike: Nothing to report, doing ok.
Run: Felt a little tired on my runs, hopefully that will get better.
This is the first week were I have felt a little loss of motivation. No one particular thing really. I think I've just come off of my High of my Europe trip, and I'm back at work. Life seems to be going back to normal which can be a little depressing I guess. I think it has effected my training a bit this week. Nothing really went bad, had good runs and swims. I mostly did my trainer for my bike this week, except Sat had a nice ride through Malibu.
I sat down and watched some Ironman videos on youtube to give myself some inspiration. That did help a bit, but i'm still looking for a bit of motivation to help get my ass out of bed in the morning. Hopefully next week will go better. I suppose its gonna be a bit like this through the end of training. 30 weeks is a long time, can't expect it to be exciting the whole time.
I do have Wildflower in a couple weeks, I'm sure that will help a bit. I'm still really excited about Wisconsin, but with 22 weeks left, that feels like a long way away. Gotta figure out how to keep myself excited. I'll keep my eye out for some inspiration....
On to week 9!
Monday, April 4, 2011
Week 7 Report:
Back in the saddle!
Report:
Swim: Nice to be back in a "yard" pool (=
Bike: Happy to be back outside again!
Run: Feeling good, happy I didn't lose much on my trip
Well, I'm back on schedule this week! I spent much of the beginning of the week still getting over the jetlag, but it didn't effect my training much cause I would just get tired at 4 o'clock in the after noon and wake up at 1am...so it actually fit my training schedule just fine.
I did hit one big accomplishment this week, My first trip up Latigo Canyon in Malibu. Its a painful hour climb and seems to be a check point for the training season. You always remember your first Latigo of the season. I did really well. I felt strong and I did much better than I did the first time I did it last year, so that's good. Unfortunately, I ended up doing it all by myself cause my teammates had to bail at the last minute. Its really my fault, I should have gone with the earlier group, but I was out too late the night before to go see "Hop". Anyhoo, it ended up being quite peaceful. I snapped a picture towards the top. It was like biking in a cloud!
I'm pretty happy with my first full week back. Hope it continues to go well.
Til next post!
Report:
Swim: Nice to be back in a "yard" pool (=
Bike: Happy to be back outside again!
Run: Feeling good, happy I didn't lose much on my trip
Well, I'm back on schedule this week! I spent much of the beginning of the week still getting over the jetlag, but it didn't effect my training much cause I would just get tired at 4 o'clock in the after noon and wake up at 1am...so it actually fit my training schedule just fine.
I did hit one big accomplishment this week, My first trip up Latigo Canyon in Malibu. Its a painful hour climb and seems to be a check point for the training season. You always remember your first Latigo of the season. I did really well. I felt strong and I did much better than I did the first time I did it last year, so that's good. Unfortunately, I ended up doing it all by myself cause my teammates had to bail at the last minute. Its really my fault, I should have gone with the earlier group, but I was out too late the night before to go see "Hop". Anyhoo, it ended up being quite peaceful. I snapped a picture towards the top. It was like biking in a cloud!
I'm pretty happy with my first full week back. Hope it continues to go well.
Til next post!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Training in Europe!
Weeks 4-6 training in London/Prague/Madrid
For the past couple weeks I have been in Europe visiting my girlfriend. She is over the working on a film called "John Carter of Mars". Long distance hasn't been fun, but it has given us the opportunity to travel around Europe, which has been exciting!
"Hop" is finally finished, it was a pretty rough production and I'm glad its done. The nice part of the end of production is the time off afterward! I decided to take 3 weeks and go to London to see Amy. Unfortunately, she could only take the weekends off from work, so that left me with time during the day to keep myself busy...which is fortunate for this training! I did my training at the YMCA in soho. Their Pool is soooo much better than the crappy 24 hour fitness pool I train in. Also, it is in meters and not yards, so it was a little longer. Which of course through me off cause I kept expecting a wall, and still had 10 feet to go. At Lunch, Amy would come by the gym and we would do a spinning class together. It was really fun, though spinning could never replace being on my nice bike riding down PCH, but it was good for the time being. London also has wonderful parks, I ran mostly through Regent's Park, which is near Amy's place, as well as Primrose Hill. It has the most amazing view of London from the top. Sadly, my pictures don't do it justice.
While I was there we did two weekend trips. First to Prague, and second to Madrid. Both cities offered lots of walking and climbing. Each morning Amy and I went for runs. In Prague we ran along the Vltava River which runs through the center of the city. It was amazing. In Madrid, we went through a beautiful park called The Parque del Buen Retiro. It was also amazing!
I kept up my training the best I could. Wasn't able to follow it to the letter, But was really happy to fit in what I could. I was on vacation after all!
It was a really nice trip, and was sad to leave Amy. But I'm back in LA now and back on my Ironfit Schedule. Only about a month till Wildflower!
For the past couple weeks I have been in Europe visiting my girlfriend. She is over the working on a film called "John Carter of Mars". Long distance hasn't been fun, but it has given us the opportunity to travel around Europe, which has been exciting!
"Hop" is finally finished, it was a pretty rough production and I'm glad its done. The nice part of the end of production is the time off afterward! I decided to take 3 weeks and go to London to see Amy. Unfortunately, she could only take the weekends off from work, so that left me with time during the day to keep myself busy...which is fortunate for this training! I did my training at the YMCA in soho. Their Pool is soooo much better than the crappy 24 hour fitness pool I train in. Also, it is in meters and not yards, so it was a little longer. Which of course through me off cause I kept expecting a wall, and still had 10 feet to go. At Lunch, Amy would come by the gym and we would do a spinning class together. It was really fun, though spinning could never replace being on my nice bike riding down PCH, but it was good for the time being. London also has wonderful parks, I ran mostly through Regent's Park, which is near Amy's place, as well as Primrose Hill. It has the most amazing view of London from the top. Sadly, my pictures don't do it justice.
While I was there we did two weekend trips. First to Prague, and second to Madrid. Both cities offered lots of walking and climbing. Each morning Amy and I went for runs. In Prague we ran along the Vltava River which runs through the center of the city. It was amazing. In Madrid, we went through a beautiful park called The Parque del Buen Retiro. It was also amazing!
I kept up my training the best I could. Wasn't able to follow it to the letter, But was really happy to fit in what I could. I was on vacation after all!It was a really nice trip, and was sad to leave Amy. But I'm back in LA now and back on my Ironfit Schedule. Only about a month till Wildflower!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Week 3 Report:
First Tri of the season!
Race Report:
This week's training went well. I Feel like I'm really getting into a good groove with the training, but also starting to see that I'm only 1/10 the way through my training and still have a long way to go. Hopefully I can hang in there.
The bigger news this week is that I completed my first Tri this year!
Desert Triathlon was the first triathlon I ever did back in 2009. It has been a tradition every year and this is now my 3rd run at it. It went well. I beat my time from last year, but was 20 secs off of my PR (personal record). Looking at the splits it looked like I was a little slower on my bike, but PR'd my run. Though that irritates the crap out of me, I think because I've done a few now, I tend to not push my bike as hard so I save a little for the run. That's really the only lame excuse I've got. I should have been faster on the bike. But oh well. On to the next one! My next tri will be Wildflower Olympic Triathlon on May 1st.
I'm gonna be in London the next couple weeks visiting my girlfriend. Looking forward to running in the nice parks over there!
Next post from London!
Race Report:
This week's training went well. I Feel like I'm really getting into a good groove with the training, but also starting to see that I'm only 1/10 the way through my training and still have a long way to go. Hopefully I can hang in there.
The bigger news this week is that I completed my first Tri this year!
Desert Triathlon was the first triathlon I ever did back in 2009. It has been a tradition every year and this is now my 3rd run at it. It went well. I beat my time from last year, but was 20 secs off of my PR (personal record). Looking at the splits it looked like I was a little slower on my bike, but PR'd my run. Though that irritates the crap out of me, I think because I've done a few now, I tend to not push my bike as hard so I save a little for the run. That's really the only lame excuse I've got. I should have been faster on the bike. But oh well. On to the next one! My next tri will be Wildflower Olympic Triathlon on May 1st.
I'm gonna be in London the next couple weeks visiting my girlfriend. Looking forward to running in the nice parks over there!
Next post from London!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Week 2 Report:
28 to go!
Report:
Swim: Good, but need to swim with others..can get boring.
Bike: I love my bike...that is all (=
Run: Good Good, enjoy my Vibrams
This week went well. It wasn't a big difference from the first week, just slightly longer runs. The swim remained the same. Its going to be 2500 meters twice a week for the first 10 weeks, then its upped from there. I was all over the place with my bike this week, did a work out on my trainer, did some in the south bay, and a long bike in Malibu on Sunday. For the most part I have been training on my own, which has been fine. But its always nice to be with other people that are going through the same fun (pain) that you are. Sunday got together with a few of my teammates. One of which is doing the same program as me, so we ended up doing a nice 2 hour bike along PCH, it was a little cold to start out with but I made sure i had plenty of layers on. It was a pretty relaxing ride, nothing too intense yet. But it was certainly nice to ride with my teammates, Jacqui, Emily, and Chris! Yay, thanks guys!
Have my first race next weekend! The Desert Sprint! Nothing too crazy, 500 meter swim, 14 mile bike ride, 3 mile run. I really just want to relax and have a fun race...but secretly i'd like to beat my time from 2 years ago of 1:20:36! Was over by a minute last year...grrrr...It will be mine this year!
wish me luck!
Report:
Swim: Good, but need to swim with others..can get boring.
Bike: I love my bike...that is all (=
Run: Good Good, enjoy my Vibrams
This week went well. It wasn't a big difference from the first week, just slightly longer runs. The swim remained the same. Its going to be 2500 meters twice a week for the first 10 weeks, then its upped from there. I was all over the place with my bike this week, did a work out on my trainer, did some in the south bay, and a long bike in Malibu on Sunday. For the most part I have been training on my own, which has been fine. But its always nice to be with other people that are going through the same fun (pain) that you are. Sunday got together with a few of my teammates. One of which is doing the same program as me, so we ended up doing a nice 2 hour bike along PCH, it was a little cold to start out with but I made sure i had plenty of layers on. It was a pretty relaxing ride, nothing too intense yet. But it was certainly nice to ride with my teammates, Jacqui, Emily, and Chris! Yay, thanks guys!
Have my first race next weekend! The Desert Sprint! Nothing too crazy, 500 meter swim, 14 mile bike ride, 3 mile run. I really just want to relax and have a fun race...but secretly i'd like to beat my time from 2 years ago of 1:20:36! Was over by a minute last year...grrrr...It will be mine this year!
wish me luck!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Week 1 Report: The Start!
Week 1 is in the books!
Report:
Swim: Good, liking the Ironfit workouts
Bike: Nothing too exciting, but good
Run: Feeling healthy, no knee or calf problems.
First off...I love running around the Marina...Sea lions just chillin... (=
As for the week...
It seemed to go pretty well. At least I don't feel like I'm struggling through the easy days. One thing about the Iron Fit training I didn't really realize was that he starts you out pretty easy on the running and biking, but pushes you on the swim pretty fast. Its good I suppose, cause since swimming is the first event, you should probably be pretty damn good at it so your aren't wasted for the rest of the day. Biking will always be my favorite event, but swimming feels by far the best after a work out. I think its cause you are using your whole body, and you have the same kind of feeling after you get out of a long bath. I always feel very relaxed and happy after a long swim. Seems to be a very therapeutic thing for me. Works away stress from work and life.
1 down, 29 to go!
Report:
Swim: Good, liking the Ironfit workouts
Bike: Nothing too exciting, but good
Run: Feeling healthy, no knee or calf problems.
First off...I love running around the Marina...Sea lions just chillin... (=
As for the week...
It seemed to go pretty well. At least I don't feel like I'm struggling through the easy days. One thing about the Iron Fit training I didn't really realize was that he starts you out pretty easy on the running and biking, but pushes you on the swim pretty fast. Its good I suppose, cause since swimming is the first event, you should probably be pretty damn good at it so your aren't wasted for the rest of the day. Biking will always be my favorite event, but swimming feels by far the best after a work out. I think its cause you are using your whole body, and you have the same kind of feeling after you get out of a long bath. I always feel very relaxed and happy after a long swim. Seems to be a very therapeutic thing for me. Works away stress from work and life.
1 down, 29 to go!
Monday, February 14, 2011
It Begins!
The 30 week training has officially begun. I am following a book called "Be Iron Fit". Many triathletes use this book for an alternative to hiring a private coach. I've have friends that have been very successful following this book so it seemed like a good idea. Also, looking at the breakdown of weeks, its very similar to how I've trained for my other tris, So this seemed like a good fit.
I'm excited and nervous to finally be starting. The timing worked out well cause my crazy work schedule is finally calming down. Go see "Hop" April 1st!
Let the fun begin. 30 weeks from now I hope I can say i'm an Ironm....nope can't say it yet. (=
I'm excited and nervous to finally be starting. The timing worked out well cause my crazy work schedule is finally calming down. Go see "Hop" April 1st!
Let the fun begin. 30 weeks from now I hope I can say i'm an Ironm....nope can't say it yet. (=
Sunday, January 23, 2011
The art of dodging tourists
Training this week was a bit spotty with the crazy hours at work, but I was able to take a nice ride down through the south bay today. It was an absolute beautiful day, which is great...unless you wait till after lunch to go riding. All the people of LA flock to the beaches which make for a very crowded bike path. Also, the roads get congested with stupid people trying to find places to park. But that all aside, it was a pretty enjoyable ride.
I bought some compression guards for my calves. They are suppose to keep your muscles in place and help prevent strain. I get really bad cramps in my calves, so I'm hoping these will help. Its quite the fashion statement as well.
I still have a couple more weeks of long hours at work and plan to fit my training in the best I can. The real training begins in February. Its gonna be exciting! We have our first get together pot luck dinner this Thursday for the Socal Collective. Should be fun!
I bought some compression guards for my calves. They are suppose to keep your muscles in place and help prevent strain. I get really bad cramps in my calves, so I'm hoping these will help. Its quite the fashion statement as well.
I still have a couple more weeks of long hours at work and plan to fit my training in the best I can. The real training begins in February. Its gonna be exciting! We have our first get together pot luck dinner this Thursday for the Socal Collective. Should be fun!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Race Schedule Set!
My official training begins in a few weeks. I'm using the book "IronFit". Its a 30 week training schedule that will start on Feb 14th...awe valentines. Its been a trusted book by many triathletes for their first Ironman. Just started reading it, seems to be inline pretty well with the way I like to train. The book has you do a major race each 10 weeks. Each escalating in difficulty. So I think I have it pretty planned out.
Desert Triathlon: Sprint Distance March 5th
Wildflower Triathlon: Olympic Distance May 1st
Ironman Muncie 70.3: Half-Iron Distance July 9th
IRONMAN WISCONSIN! : Full Distance September 11th
So there it is. I was gonna do the Wildflower long distance. But my work schedule doesn't permit me to be ready for it. Plus after reading the book, It made more sense to do the Olympic. Muncie was a last minute addition. I was looking for a half Ironman during that time, and most of my teammates are doing Vineman 70.3...but I did that last year and wanted to try a new race. I found out that Muncie was just added to the 70.3 list, which is cool because most of my family is still in Indiana, so I get to drag them all out. So other than finding the best way to get my bike half way across the country, should be a lot of fun. It will be good practice for some Midwest racing before Wisconsin! I might even be able to convince my dad to run the sprint course! (hopefully dad you are reading this!)
Monday, January 17, 2011
First PCH ride of the year!
Had my first long bike of my training this year. The group I'm training with is called the "SOCAL COLLECTIVE". Its a group of friends from various Team in Training seasons, A few were apart of my season back in 2008-9. Anyhoo, most everyone is signed up for Ironman Wisconsin. It has been awhile since I've been able to be on a long bike ride. It felt great. It is also clear to me that biking is still my favorite event. As for the day, it was perfect. Sun was out, soft breeze...not too windy. We biked for 3 hours which ended up being about 50 miles. Nice easy enjoyable day. Afterword, went out to lunch with my fellow triathletes and scarfed down a bacon egg sandwich...after 50 miles...it tasted AMAZING...ha!
Monday, January 10, 2011
My first Post!
Woohoo! Let the training begin! More to come! Til then, this video pretty much sums up the next 8 months... (=
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)