Quiet.

I'm quickly learning there are only so many ways to talk about Ironman training: I rode my bike really far [then I did it again], I took a nap, I got sunburned, I am SO hungry, my bike shoes smell. REPEAT.

Things have been quiet, in the best possible way. As the hours increase, I am finding it easier to get the work done - basically everything else is on MUTE and the routine (without giving away my coach's secrets) has become a variation of the following:

Rest Day
short run+Long swim+short run
Long Brick
Long Run
Strength swim+Bike Strength
Long Ride+short run
Long Ridex2 or Long runx2+swim
REPEAT.

I'm focusing in on figuring out nutrition (on the bike and after long training days), finding race pace, and learning where my mental breaking point is. Because it will come in training, just as it will come during the race.

So that is what I will be doing for the next 10 weeks. Maybe I will pop in to document a really great (or awful) weekend of training, or some pretty pictures, or a funny story. I'll definitely write race reports for my two Olympics on the schedule. But otherwise, I'm staying quiet and focusing on getting the work done.

Paint by Numbers

132. Miles ridden last weekend in a 26-hour period.

5. Days between Ironman and a 15-hour flight to Africa.

1300. Calories consumed via Coke, Honey Stinger Waffles and CarboPro last Sunday.

4. Weeks until a glorious 7 days in Bethany.

16,000. Feet of climbing that are currently giving me nightmares.

2/3. How far I made it through the Book Club book that I picked.

2. Days until we go back to Skyline. I'm obsessed.


18. Eggs we usually go through in 5-7 days.


6. Years at my job, as of the Tuesday after Memorial Day.

28. Weeks that it took for DC to truly feel like home. This past long weekend was awesome, for oh so many reasons.

JIM MCDONNELL 5K

When  I was first laying out my race/season, my coach suggested I find at least one, if not more, open water swims of at least 2+ miles. He really wanted me to have experienced a full Ironman distance (or more) open water swim before race day. He was ecstatic when I suggested a 5k, even if the timing was a bit early (we were originally looking for a late June or July swim, which still may find it's way on the race schedule). I completed a few pool swims of 4-5k leading up to the race, but as I was driving out to the lake on Saturday morning, I was weirdly more nervous for this race than I was for Columbia last weekend.

I signed up for the wetsuit division, I wanted to wear my wetsuit for over an hour, as the longest I have ever swam in my wetsuit prior was a half-ironman swim (1.2 miles). There was some debate of wearing it once I arrived race morning and they announced the water temp at 76 degrees (rumored to actually have been closer to 79 or 80) - but I went with my initial plans. I have a sleeveless wetsuit and this was a 5k - I wasn't planning on sprinting for over an hour and wasn't that worried about overheating. Timewise, I was thinking anything from 1:15-1:25 was possible. Despite my earlier nerves, I was totally relaxed starting the race - had fun joking around about pee and other appropriate things with Katie and Mindy.

Photo Courtesy of Thom

Photo Courtesy of Thom

As you can tell, I pulled out the mirrored goggles, trying to be smarter than last weekend, but it would have been useful to perhaps wear them in the pool once before this race, as they were REALLY tight and started to give me a splitting headache in the middle of the race. Maybe by August, I'll have the goggle situation figured out.

Race plan was to descend the 3 ~1ish miles loops (each loop was a bit longer than 1 mile to add up to 3.1). I wanted to swim my OWN race and not get caught up with those around me - focus on sighting/finding feet and discovering a comfortable 'ironman' open water-pace that I could descend from.

Loop 1 was uneventful. Was with a group for about half the loop, got sick of a spastic woman swimming over me/hitting me every 10 strokes, so I simply slowed down a bit and let the group go. I really wanted to focus on swimming MY OWN race. Looking back, this was a mistake, because letting the group go essentially left me in no-man's land. No one around at all.

Loop 2 I totally lost focus. I was sorta bored, lonely and my googles were WAY too tight on my head. I flipped over a few times to adjust them, waved at a support kayaker and made him laugh, and started to get frustrated with myself for not being able to pick up the pace and just FOCUS. This is where I also started having daydreams such as 'I have to swim this far and then RIDE 112 MILES??' Not productive.  I swam a little wide on the this leg back the start, and someone swam by and I finally picked up some feet. These feet were perhaps a little too slow, but I was happy to have something to focus on, so I was content to sit in and let her lead the way.  A quick glance at my watch showed I came around loop 2 in around 53 minutes, which put me right in the range I had estimated.

I breathe to my left and site forward - it's awkward looking.

Loop 2 - all alone.

Loop 3 I stayed on the bit too slow feet for awhile, then jumped on some better feet that came up beside us. These feet were PERFECT. I had to focus to keep up the pace, but I was able to put my head down and reagain mental focus. Probably stayed on these feet for about 1/3 mile before the guy decided to stop and tell me "You're free to pass if you want." Oops, I guess I tapped his feet a few too many times?? But this is open water swimming, and I actually was being very conscious about NOT hitting the feet because they were SO PERFECT and I didn't want them to speed up or take off and leave me in the dust! I started to tell him 'No, I don't want to pass' but I decided it was better to just put my head down and swim. I took a much better line on the last leg than the previous 2 loops, and felt strong and smooth coming in to the finish.

I finished in 1:19:56. Smack in the middle of my estimated time. I was mildly successful in my goal of descending the loops, with loop 1 and 3 being almost the same time and loop 2 being ~1 minute slower.  Doing some estimating, this pace would result in a Ironman swim I would be very happy with.

Oh, and I got a medal and some prunes, which the Race Director was really excited about.

Photo Courtesy of Thom

3 things thursday.

My new goal for Ironman? Figure out how to take cute race pictures, because in the end...that's all that really matters and these just aren't going to do...

1. Swim Exit. Ok, not too bad. [i'm not crazy here ,my wetsuit unzips from the top then rips open...yeah, i don't really get it either...] On display here is my wonderful choice in....violet, clear goggles.

2. Bike Start. Spandex + wet from swim = belly rolls, right? 

3. Finish. This picture a) makes me feel like I actually did get my HR up on the run and b) reminds me that the ONLY thing going through my head at the finish was 'Oh dear..I have to PEE....Find me a bathroom NOW.'

Columbia Tri 2012

Pre Race.
More of the norm. I decided to bike to work day on Friday, so took a full race day on Saturday (vs. Friday as prescribed by my coach), so I had a leisurely Saturday morning to sleep in, have coffee, and sit on the couch and watch the live feed of Ironman Texas for a few hours. I noticed my race wheel was flat and had a minor freak out, but when changing I found a big hole in the tube (vs. the tire) which made me hope that the wheel would hold out for the race. I headed out to Columbia about 1pm to check in and rack my bike. No delays, no traffic and an AMAZING spot in transition - then headed to my parents [much closer to the race] to chill out and play with the puppy for the rest of the day.

4:15am wake up call, out the door by 4:45, in transition by 5:20. No traffic or parking problems, so glad to be there early without stress, but then you play the waiting game, as I was starting over an hour after the pro wave. Set up a simple transition but when I went to put my water bottles on my bike and I realized [HOLY SH$T] I forgot to stop and get a straw for my aero bottle (7-Eleven, thankyouverymuch). I usually ride with 2 bottles in an OLY: aero bottle for calories[Carbopro]+nuun and 1 plain water bottle on my downtube. I took a deep breath, realized there was nothing I could do about it and tried to think positive: less weight on my bike! Oh well.

Went back to the car to try to zone out for awhile. And sulk over this, even though I am not officially 30 for 6 more months:

Swim.
21:59, 2nd/AG
Goal was to SWIM HARD, but swim SMART. I tried to just zone out and find a good line once we got in the water. Not bringing metallic/mirrored goggles was a HUGE mistake and I was basically blind for the first section of the course. Luckily, I literally ran into a friend in the water as we waited for the wave to start. [as she made fun of my choice in goggles]. I swam blind and tried to find feet for the first 'out' section. The course actually curves to the right a bit before the first(left) turn buoy, so I was glad I found some feet that swam a direct line to the turn vs. trying to hug the buoys on the left. The feet I found were a good speed, but she wasn't happy with my occasional tap of her feet, so I moved up to try to hug her hip. Lost her a bit at the turn, swam the short leg solo, and found my friend again on the long leg back to swim exit. Swam a comfortably hard pace on her feet, jumped on to some others to the left (closer to the buoy line), and we all merged and came out of the water in a pack of about 4 or 5 maybe? There were a few girls that were a bit out ahead, but I was very happy with my swim. I feel like I really pushed the pace, but swam smart [minus the goggles mistake]- I was aware of my surroundings and found feet almost the entire swim.

Lesson learned: Buy mirrored goggles, TODAY, so they arrive before next weekend. Review the course maps for the swim. 

Just behind Mindy!

T1. I was worried about being a little rusty here, but it actaully went really smoothly. Wetsuit came off easily, helmet on [with sunglasses attached] and off. I had my shoes on my bike due a really steep run up out of transition, and I had not yet done any transition practice, so I still chose to stop and straddle my bike vs attempting any type of flying mount. It took me a bit to get my shoes on and situated [need to practice this on my brick rides] but think it was worth it in the end for a quicker transition/run out. Had the top transition time in my age group by about 15 seconds - these things matter when 2-5 in my age group are decided by 30 seconds.

Bike.
1:17:41 (19.3mph), 4th/AG
After I got my shoes situated, it was down to business. I passed someone in my age group in the first few miles, then got passed by the eventual age group winner a few minutes later. The ride is basically a constant series of ups/downs of varying degrees, and I absolutely loved it. I am so so glad I had ridden the course a few weeks before so I knew where the climbs where, how long they were, and where I could make up time on flats/downhills. The shorter inclines I pushed a higher gear and attacked, but the longer inclines I was content to down shift and spin up, keeping my cadence high and HR under (race) control. About mile 10 I linked up with a guy who was riding a very similar pace, and we [legally] cat and moused for most of the rest of the race. For the most part, I had no trouble riding my own race on a pretty crowded course. I ran into a few jams on the road due to car-traffic, but I was pleasantly-aggressive and worked my way through the crowds. Took in a Gu about mile 15, but it wasn't pleasant being washed down with grape nuun, but had no water. At that point I wish I had the plain water on my frame. Oh well.

A few years ago, I raced Rev3 Knoxville and it had a very similar type course -a course that really rewards being prepared on the bike. And not just fitness - but comfort with bike handling, climbing, cornering, shifting, etc. I obviously have many, many minutes to drop before I am anywhere close to the 'front of the pack' when it comes to my cycling splits, but I feel like every race in the past few years, I have taken a few steps forward with my comfort level on the bike, knowing my limits, pushing my fears and riding strong. I'm really excited for the summer to keep growing and learning on the bike.

Coming back into transition, I took my feet out of the my shoes (probably a bit too early) and focused on spinning my legs to flush them out and prepare for the run.

Lesson learned: BE PREPARED (ie aero straw). Know the course. Ride your own race. Practice transitions.

T2.  Bike on rack, socks and running shoes on and GO. Top transition time again - small victories.

Run
52:50 (8:32/mile)
Race belt on, water in, focus on cadence and how I felt. I felt GREAT. I was excited to execute the race I had visualized and was moving pretty well through the crowds on a pretty narrow running path. I knew this run was hilly, but this was NOTHING like I expected. This was hands down the most brutal run course I have ever done. No complaints, no excuses, but damn, I wish I had known what to expect. Almost immediately you are hit with a steep climb, and it just never ended. I think there were about 6-7 long, steep climbs and I focused on small steps and moving forward. Looking back, I wish I had been willing to push the pace a bit more on the climbs, but my calves felt like they were on the verge of cramping. My run felt GREAT on the flatter sections, and I tried to open up and make up time on the downhills, but the hills just did me in. There were times were walking was just as fast as the trot I was doing up hill.

Mini Mindy (in the 25-29AG), passed me about mile 5ish, and seeing her definitely helped me push in the last mile, but then I sadly got passed by someone in my age group right about mile 6. I tried with all my might to dig deep and stick with her, but a last, cruel climb to the finishing chute stopped that effort cold. It was also right in the last mile or 2 that I realized I had to PEE SO BADLY ! Painfully bad. I have been able to let this happen on the run in the past, but I think the fact that I was so close to the finish, my mind wouldn't let my body just let go. Ha. And the run course was pretty crowded at this point, too.  I pushed the pace as hard as I could through the finishers chute, and bee-lined it to the bathroom. I'm only realizing as I write this that I didn't ever even consider taking my 2nd gu during the run as I had planned.

The take away from the run, and what I'm trying to focus on versus my time and pace is that I never gave up mentally. I was present for the hills, I focused on each mile, and never got to that dark place I was experiencing last season. Yes, I did walk up a few of the steepest sections, but that overwhelming, all consuming desire to walk and stop and give up never crossed my mind. To me, this is a very small, but very important victory for the day.

Lesson learned: Figure out how to get to an uncomfortable place, be OK with it, and hold on. Trust my fitness and attack the hills.

Final Time: 2:35:00 4th/AG
I have a bit of confusion re: my final age group placing, but it's neither here nor there and the lesson is 5 or 10 or 12 seconds here or there ALWAYS matter.

 

Oh my god, find me a bathroom now.

Overall, I am so, so very satisfied with this race. I didn't put time goals on the race, as every course is different and I knew this was a challenging course [OK, that's totally not true. I thought if I had a good day I could go under 2:30]. I swam hard, rode hard and held on during the run. I'm trying not to be disappointed in the run. If I was running 7-7:30 pace on the flats/downhills, and 9-10 pace on the uphills, the outcome is what I got. I felt snappy and good on the flats and downhills, and really pushed the pace the last mile [as much as my bladder would allow], but it's hard to not be a little disappointed to get passed at mile 6 in the run. I am still working on finding that place of 'hurt' in the run and holding on to it and yesterday I just don't think I was willing to get past the point of uncomfortable on the uphills and it cost me.

ALSO, I was trying out the multisport mode on my watch for the first time, and when I glanced at my watch in the middle of the bike it was stopped at about 24 minutes. I think I pressed 'STOP' vs 'LAP' when I started the bike, so I basically have no data for my race. I am SO super bummed about this. I had decided to race without my HR monitor anyway, but I really wish I could go back and overanalyze my race - especially my run pacing. I think there was an awesome section on the bike that I pretty sure I was going faster than I EVER have before, but more so, I just really wish I could see my pacing on the run.

So all in all, a really good day, some good lessons, and now time to swim a little 5k next weekend.

RACE WEEK!!

....FINALLY!! It's not travel-week, or wedding-week, or rest-week. It's RACE WEEK!

I am super pumped for this weekend. A little nervous, but mostly just calm and ready and excited to see where I'm at. Over the past 5 months, I have put in much more consistent time in the pool and on the bike than any of the past 4 years I've been involved in this crazy sport. And although running has had it's ups and downs and my mileage is less than I like it to be...last week all my runs off the bike felt crazy-good and my legs are [hopefully] ready to put down some speedy miles this weekend.

Sure, I've skipped workouts, including key sessions (such as my open water swim on Sunday. just.too.tired.), but overall, I'm ready. I rode the course a few weekends ago with a huge smile on my face; it's awesome and hilly and fair and I can't wait.

I do triathlons because RACING IS FUN. Training is fine, and I go through the motions and am leaning to enjoy and understand the process, but I have never loved the training, even in my swimming days. I love the nervous energy on race morning, the atmosphere of race day, the competition and pushing yourself to your limits - limits that I'm trying to learn and understand and push past. I am only racing a few times this year leading up to Ironman, and I want to make each race count, learn something, and walk away feeling energized and excited to be on the journey towards Ironman. So there is no over-thinking this weekend. The goals are plain and simple:

GO FAST. make it hurt. don't give up. stay positive on the run. no excuses. and RACE.

3TT

OH, wait...I have a blog?

1. Last weekend, I went to a wedding. It was in the midwest, a place I haven't spent much time. The bride was beautiful, the party was fantastic, I saw an arch and ate frozen custard and all was well in the world. Oh, and golf-ball sized hail doesn't stop a wedding in St. Louis....

2. On Tuesday, I swam 5k in the morning, couldn't really find my groove, and then had some trouble getting my HR up on my bike workout at 6pm. By 8pm, was huddled in the bathroom with a 24-hour stomach bug. I had felt a bit 'off' all day, but after getting off my bike, putting dinner in the oven and rinsing off, I had one of those 'uh oh' moments.... So instead of the planned brick with OLY paced intervals yesterday, I got in a good core-workout of throwing up, and also my have strained a rib/lat. But I awoke exactly 24-hours later and finally the nausea had passed.

I still don't have much of an appetite and have a raging headache, but am hoping by tomorrow I will be good as new. The saddest part of this all? I had assembled an AMAZING pizza creation just as I got sick. Garlic-Herb dough, roasted red pepper, garlic, chicken sausage, feta....and Dan got to eat it ALL :(


3. Wedding weekend #2 of 3 this weekend. The wedding is at a barn...with a petting zoo. I'm excited.