What Does Chris Do All Winter?

Answer: Freeze his toosh off.  No, seriously, this whole triathlon lifestyle I'm living makes me a regular freezy cat.  I've had the electric mattress pad rolling for more than a month now.  Long sleeves and sweaters have been in the wardrobe rotation fro just as long.  Maybe body fat does keep you warm.  Who knew?

 

As for training, I've studies my last few years.  Looked at some race results.  Not all mine, mind you.  And come up with some goals for the upcoming twelve month period (that is a year for those readers who are not so quick).  I will, most likely, write down those goals here in a few months.  But, for now they reside in my head.  Remember that my goals and mine and should not affect your life in any way, shape, or form.

 

Any who...  How to get to those goals.

 

Here is the general plan that I'm looking to follow until mid-January:

 

2 basic bike workouts every week with a FTP type workout every second week thrown in just for fun.

 

3 interval based swim workouts every week.  My "test" interval will be 6 or 7 x 200m.

 

1 long (read painfully boring) swim workout per week.  I do get some of my best thinking done during these swims, so I may become a dunce if I completely forego them.

 

4 solid runs per week with one at or below my goal race pace every two weeks, or so.  Weekly mileage should be above 30 miles during "work" weeks and around 20 on a recovery week.

 

I am an avid stretcher so yoga and stretching are just part of my life.  So, that will be there.  But, I don't count it for anything.

 

About the bike:  A typical training workout for me would be 4 minutes easy and 1 minute hard.  "Easy" and "Hard" will be by feel.  My intention is to do a little sleeping in and just keep on friendly terms with the old bicycle.

 

About the swim:  This is my new project.  Had I known I could get faster with just a little real work, I would have done this years ago.  Anyhow...  Now I do a warm-up, a drill set, two work sets, and a cool down.  This has also reinvigorated my desire to swim.

 

About the run:  This is still the third that I like best.  I intend to do about the same total mileage that I did in 2010 in 2011.  But, I intend to do a lot more speed work and even some track workouts.  These next 6 weeks, or so, I will just be getting my body ready to go a little faster than it is comfortable with.

 

Unfortunately, my personal (read "my family's" and really "my wife's") training schedule will not allow me to attend too many of the Brent Emery lead training sessions at the Milwaukee shop.  But, I will make attempts to make as many of those as I can in order to be in shape for the spring road races.

 

Send me an e-mail if you want to get together for some winter training fun.

Where have ya been?

Back by popular, or at least regular, demand, here is a blog post. Now, stop asking me, "When are you going to update us?" You can still e-mail me any questions. I just have not been in hyper-training mode. Actually, i forgot about the blog a little. Don't tell anyone. OK?

I've had a chance to unwind after the triathlon season. I've done a bit of running, biking, and swimming just for fun and fitness. That was actually kind of nice. Friday afternoon runs have been peaceful to say the least.

Now, the meat of today's topic: Reviewing the year's results/accomplishments and thinking a little about 2011. Overall, 2010 was a good year. Other than High Cliff, which kicked my a$$, I improved my times (Note plural here. It is called foreshadowing) from last year. Well, kind of and we'll get to that.

Over the course of the year I intended to run a little more than I did last year which looks like I will do.  Last year I ran just under 1,200 miles and this year I'll be over that for sure. For this year, as opposed to last year, I only ran 4 times each week. Basically, I cut out those 2 or 3 mile "short" runs with the intent to put those minutes in on the bike.

On the bike, I really had two main goals for the year. One was to get a solid tempo ride and a solid "long" ride in every week. The second was to complete the bone ride and be functional the next day.

My bike training consistency was more than I could have hoped for. Darn near every Monday I did a solid tempo ride and just about every Friday I, and the gang, got a good 60+ mile ride logged. I do have to note, and challenge some others, that I did most of my tempo rides alone. I quickly learned that when I got into pedal, pedal, pedal mode I quickly could leave others behind if they were not willing to push a little. Even when I did all the pulling, I would sometimes get into a zone where I would forget to look back every once in a while. Not wanting to be a jerk, I just figured that tempo ride was a day for a little alone time. Hint: Ben and Steve get on your trainer now so you can keep up;)

The Bone Ride this year saw more great weather and completing it was not even near the exhaustive effort it was in 2009. I can only credit this to the stupid number of 3+ hour trainer rides I did in February, March, and April.

Well, those are the two sports I did better in during 2010. I would really say that consistency of training allowed the gains I saw. I plan to do a very similar program in 2011 with a little more specificity. How's that for a fancy word, huh? Basically, I hope it means I'll have a power meter for next year to turn my engineering mind onto. Also, I have been experimenting with low heart rate running and have found that very interesting. That may find its way into my early season training too.

Now for sport number three: Swimming.

I will admit that, before about six weeks ago, I was a pool slacker. I read in some book somewhere when I started triathlon that swimming in a triathlon should be an aerobic effort and that I should be doing long distance workouts. So, off to the pool I went to reacquire the skill of swimming I had in my youth. With a solid eighteen years out of the pool I started training myself to swim longer and longer distances. As my swim fitness grew, my times got faster. But, as my race results show, my swimming speed stagnated (I have a word of the day subscription if you didn't know). I also found swimming, as I was doing it, bring with a capitol "B". I would often, turn a 2000m swim into an 800m swim just because I couldn't look at that stupid black line any more.

What did I see that jumped at me from my race results from the past three years? My swim times were all about the same. My swims didn't improve at all let alone in relation to my bike and run times.

Verdict: Get serious about swimming. Or is that a sentence?

Being college educated, maybe overly so, I looked into what kind of training I should have been doing and got myself started. Heck, I even went out and bought a pair of paddles. I have to admit that I will not buy a pull buoy because I don't want to be labeled as the tri guy at the pool. Everyone knows that triathletes go to the pool and stick that thing between their legs just way too much. Anyway, I have been using the paddles and actual drills (Yes, I am doing swimming drills) to reestablish proper form and intervals to work on going faster. So, far it has been so good. Let's see what happens in 2011.

That is what has been on my mind. Swimming faster and just logging a few rides and a bunch of base aerobic runs. Oh, and I might have been playing husband and father too. Now you know why I haven't posted anything.

One final thought. I really want to log a least one outdoor ride a week this winter. I'm not sure how that will work. So, far I've bailed on a bunch of Ben's morning rides. Now that I am skinny (or at least close to it), I have a hard time staying warm. Heck, I have the electric mattress pad on the bed already.

OK. A second final thought. One of my ideas for 2011 is to race about eight or nine pounds lighter than in 2010. For most of 2010 I went between 175 and 178 pounds. I have a feeling that being in the high 160's may pay dividends come race day. Editor's Note: Julie thinks this is crazy and this may make riding outside in the depths of winter even harder. The Wii Fit in the family room says I should weigh 166. Can you take training advice from Nintendo? I just want my Mii to look better.

 

It has been a while

Well, gentle reader, I didn't want you all (ya'all to the folks south of the Mason-Dixon line) to think all I have been doing is sitting around and eating big hamburgers.  Sidebar: Big hamburgers are delicious.

 

Now back to the story at hand.

 

The Jayhawk Latebird Tri.  Ben did a great job explaining his side of the story.  Now for the truth.  Or, at least my rendition of the events.  Yes, yes I know that the race was a month ago.  I've been not being a triathlete for a while.  So, you just had to wait for this gripping tale.

 

The whole Emery's gang was there.  Brent, Julie, my Julie, Ben, Kari, Matt, Andy, Scott (my hero), Anna, and I were all in attendance.  Ben's Steve (actually Anna's Steve but he was Ben's Steve first) was out due to injuries and or other commitments.

 

I have to admit that it was my hope that all the fast guys like Scott and Andy would be exhausted from IM WI and other training to allow me to contest for an overall win.  Not so.  But fun was had.

 

Leading up to the race Ben and Kari started swimming again.  From our conversations, it was learned by me that both were definitely faster that I was.  This made me happy because Kari was in my lane for the swim.  I was planning on drafting off her for the entire swim.  Well, that didn't happen either.  I started first in the lane and Kari right behind me.  Throughout the swim she was right behind me, but never passed.  So, there I was stuck actually swimming.  I saw Ben get out of the water as I started my last 50m.  At that point I knew I has him.  Not only was I starting about 2 minutes behind him, but I knew my transitions would be faster than his.

 

Sure enough, as I exited the pool into transition, there was Ben messing with his wardrobe.  I understand that fashion can influence speed on the bike.  But I'm not sure whatever Ben was messing with was worth it.  I believe he was color coordinating his earrings and nail polish.  I'm not sure, but that is what I am going with.  So, I passed Ben while he was standing still in transition.

 

On to the bike I went.  Pedal, pedal, pedal.  At the first turn, which might be about 1.5 or 2 miles in, I glanced back and saw nobody.  I continued to pedal, pedal.  I did finally see Ben after the turnaround at about mile 7 or 8.  By my computer's clock I had a bit over a minute on him for sure at this point.  I kept my pace nice and even figuring that he would have to seriously blow himself up to catch me on the bike.

 

In T2 I had a good transition and was not able to see Ben at all.  Figuring transition time, etc. I figured I had over 2 minutes at this point.  I didn't think Ben was going to run 6 minute miles, so I went on to concentrate on my run and hopefully a decent overall time.

 

Mr. Garmin kept me at 6:45 pace through the whole run.  Which had me feeling quite good.  Sidebar again: Mr. Garmin had my average pace as 6:48 min/mi for 3.24mi but timing and scoring had me at 7:11 for 3.1mi.  I finished the run strong and feeling pretty good.  What was really cool was that I was the first person through the forest section and I was able to run with a family of deer for a little bit.  Not exactly a normal race thing.

 

In the end, I think I was 6th overall.  Andy beat me this time where I beat him in the spring.  Ben, although he was looking really good (earrings and nails you know), came in a couple of minutes behind me.  It was really, really cool to see all the Emery's folks finish. 

 

My Julie really did well.  She wound up 3rd in her age group and with a personal best course time.  I have to admit that her accomplishment far outweighs anything I did that day.

 

End of the race season.  That was the last of the races for 2010.  I might do a couple of running races yet.  But, we'll see.

 

I made it through the Monday and Tuesday after Whitewater without working out.  By Wednesday the ants in my pants required some feeding.  Since then, I've just been working out for workout's sake.  No real goals, just staying in shape.

 

I've taken a look at my results this year.  Although my swim times have not been poor, they were not front of the pack kind of times either.  I, to date, have really only done aerobic swim training.  I'd go swim 800, 1500, 2000, 2500 meters straight.  If I ever did pace work, it was rare.  And, I mean rare.  Like, maybe, 10 times in the last 5 years.  My race plan has always been to not work too hard on the swim, catch the fast swimmers on the bike and try to run as fast as I can.  I think my strategy may need to change a little for next year.

 

I know what I was capable of swimming in my youth (yut south of M-D line).  I also know that I am not 20 years-old any more (even though I try to act it).  So, my "until new year's resolution" is to swim like a swimmer for a bit.  I should be able to get my aerobic swimming pace into the high 1:20's over the next few months.  Maybe coming out of the water with the lead pack will allow me to conserve a little on the bike to allow my runs to be stronger.  Come along with me and we'll see.

 

So you've been warned.  If you see me in person I'll smell like chlorine, I might have marks on my hands from my paddles (which are way fancier now then they were in 1989 the last time I used paddles), and as usual I'll have a new goal to be working towards.

 

If you're looking to school me in the pool, give me a shout via e-mail, etc.  I am more than will to suffer if you can get this old man any faster.

Let's Talk Overtraining

The big "O".

 

Get your mind out of the gutter.  I mean "Overtraining".  First, I am writing it as one word.  I'm not sure it is, but I am too lazy to look it up.  So, one word it will be to me.

 

I've been thinking and promising these thoughts for a while.  A real world example has prompted me to actually write it down.  Or, in this case type it down.

 

Second, a brief review.  We train so that our body will adapt.  Some train to just make it without dying.  Other train to make it in less time than it took last week, last year, last decade.  Adaption is our goal.  By training we stress our bodies, expect them to repair themselves, and then expect them to get better.  Here is the formula (Forgive the engineer/scientist thing it will not last long):

 

Training=Stress

Repair=Recovery (Active or Inactive)

Result=Faster or Stronger

 

Training + Repair = Result

 

Simple substitution yields:

 

Training + Recovery = Faster or Training + Recovery = Stronger

 

Without going into a bunch of Gaussian Elimination, I will tell you what that silliness yields.

 

We all know what training is.  And, we probably all know how to do.

 

We all also know what our desired result(s) are.

 

That leaves us with recovery.  I would actually argue that both training and results are a function (fancy calculus term here) of recovery.  Thus:

 

Results f(Recovery)

 

Training f(Recovery)

 

Note two things are linked to recovery.  IT IS NOT Recovery f(Training, Results).

 

The amount of recovery needed will depend to the volume and intensity of training.  But, it will also depend on what you are trying to get out of your training (results).

 

Enough talking in math circles.

 

You can train all you want.  Or, you can try to.  At some point you have to allow your body the time and ability to heal itself in order for it to adapt.

 

What does that mean?  It means all your workouts can't be at warp speed.  It means that you can't do three-a-day workouts for six months straight.  Without recovery, be it moderate/slow paced workouts or complete rest, you will very quickly see results flushed down the toilet.

 

What do I do?  I make sure my workout plan involves some active recovery, and I make sure that my plan included one complete off day a week.  I do at least one swim, bike, and run workout a week at about 60% effort.  That means a nice swim for the sake of swimming, a bike ride where I suck wheel most of the time, and a jog.  Side note: while jogging I look for dead bodies.  It always seems that joggers find dead bodies all the time and I log enough miles that I should find one soon.

 

What is/are the sign/s of overtraining?  Google it yourself. 

 

Here is what I have seen recently.  When Ben started "Tri Training" again he added all kinds of stress to his happy training routine.  He started running and even started some swimming.  I'm not Ben (He is much younger than I), but I would call that added stress.  When you go from just riding your little bike to being a triathlete, you are upping the ante as they (I still don't know who "they" are) say.  What he didn't do was add recovery at the same time.  He really added a lot of running and swimming.  But, like I noted, he is younger than I and knows his own body. 

 

How do I know?  Well, we went for an easy Sunday morning ride.  We don't usually ride on Sundays.  But, I had taken off to attend some family chores (see below post)on Saturday, so 60 miles of no work fit in both our schedules.  To fast forward, Ben had a bad day on his bicycle.  He had more issues than I could pay attention to.  Granted, I have a short attention span.  But, he did not have fun.  I actually thought he was practicing for marriage or something.  I'm not sure how many days in a row he worked out previously.  I was coming off a complete day off, so I was fresh as a daisy.  Or the sweaty male equivalent of a daisy.  I was tootling on my bike and Ben was working way harder than he should have been.  What Ben found was the point at which his body could no longer repair itself from the training that he had been putting it through.  Ben, very quickly, figured out that he overtrained himself.

 

Now, everyone's limit will be different.  There is diet, sleep, life stress equations all that to add to the above equations (Gaussian elimination is really necessary).  Once you've been there you will not quickly forget it.  I try to, but sometimes fail at, being 5% undertrained rather than 1% overtrained.  Sometime training is too fun to stop.

 

Your mileage may vary.

There is More to Life than Triathlon

Yes.  Believe it or not.

 

Now, I'm just as OCD about my tri training and participation as most others.  I think it is important to have as plan, stick to it, and be constant in your training.  But, let's face it, most of our chances of going pro as slim.  Triathlon is a great way to get, and keep, one's body healthy.  It is a great group of people to hang out with.  And, it is just plain old fun.

 

But, there is a point of diminishing returns.  What I am talking about here is both over training and about negatively impacting one's non-triathlon life.  The second, of course, assumes that you have a life.  If you don't, that sucks for you.  Get one, you'll like one.

 

First, to the second.  With Ironman Wisconsin around the corner, I have witnesses a lot of triathletes not talking about tapers, runs, or bike rides.  They are talking about how their families are all looking forward to when, "Ironman is over."  Now, I don't know what their family dynamics are like, but I can speak to mine.

 

I would like to do Ironman.  At least one, but I know myself and one would probably start a trend.  My wife knows this too.  I've sat down with the numbers and with my training schedule.  For me, personally, to do an Ironman would require about an extra eight (8) hours of training a week.  Side note: When I say "do" an Ironman I speak to maximizing my personal performance at one.  I would not like to "just do one to finish it".  That is not to say that just finishing an Ironman is not an accomplishment.  I just feel that if I am going to do that volume of training, I want to maximize whatever my performance would be at that race distance.  Back to the story:  So, I need about eight more hours a week for about three months.  For Ironman Wisconsin, that would mean for the months of June, July, and August I would have to keep my training schedule about the same as it is now during the week, but would have to add Saturday and Sunday training.  See, right now, I only train for two hours on Saturday.  I do a kind of long run and a short swim on Saturday and Sunday is my off day.  I think for Ironman I would need Saturday for a long bike and medium run and would have to add a long run on Sunday.  I would make Monday an off day, but still.  Now, what does that have to do with the subject?  In order for me to change my training as such, I would seriously impact my family's schedule.  And, I would make seeing Daddy on the weekend more difficult.  Believe me, Julie and I have discussed this at length.  She understands that I want to do Ironman.  And, I understand what function I play in our family unit.  Together, right now, I remain content to race one Half Iron distance and a bunch of sprints.  Maybe next year I'll do a couple or three halfs (not halves).  We'll see.

 

So, to the second point from above, I have a lot of fun training for and racing triathlons.  But, I have a lot of fun being a husband and father.  I do what I can to prioritize and get in my tri training done.  But, through much negotiation with Julie and some actual understanding, I know that husband and father are better life titles than triathlete.  Some of the guys I've recently overheard talking along with what they are saying about their families, have lead me to think that either one, some, or all of the following may have taken place in their lives:

 

1.  They did not really understand how much training is necessary to do an IM.

2.  They did not express how much training is necessary to do an IM to their family.

3.  Their family did not really understand how much training is necessary to do an IM.

4.  There was not a family discussion about doing an IM.

5.  Real life priorities were not kept during IM training.

 

I can definitely see how any or all of those above could happen.  A couple of those are holes that could just keep getting deeper if you let them.

 

In the end, as non-professional athletes, what are those fifteen minutes off your Ironman time worth?  If you want to go to Hawaii, I'll bet just about any travel agent will book the flights for you.  Heck, what is that silly piece of tin with an attached ribbon from your local tri worth?  What are they worth when you weigh them against your life outside of triathlon?

 

As for over training.  I'll touch on that in an upcoming post.  I have to admit that I am just tired of typing right now.

 

See ya.

 

 

Waupaca Area Triathlon Race Report

I have to say that the Waupaca Area Tri is my favorite.  Sure, I do some other well run races.  But, this one is the best.  The level of volunteers and the fact that the whole community comes out to watch and cheer makes for a great event.

 

Anyhow, Julie and I arrived early Saturday morning and got ourselves set-up.  The swim is 1/2 mile, the bike a little short of 20 miles and the run is supposed to be 3 miles (it is 3.22 according to Mr. Garmin).  The long swim and little longer bike plays well into my strengths without making me run any more than necessary.  Julie, on the other hand, was not thrilled with the 1/2 mile swim.

 

Standing on the beach before the start of the elite wave, there were two young guys doing very vigorous warm-ups.  They were both wearing red "guard" Speedos and Swedish goggles.  I looked at them and said, "Self, those are the feet to follow."  My thoughts were confirmed as I over heard them planning on taking turns at the front every big buoy.  Yeah!  The horn went off and into the water we all went.  The Speedo guys did not disappoint.  They went out fast and I was just able to stay in their draft.  I thought that I would be able to stay with them and maybe get a PR on the swim.  Well, the best laid plans of mice and men oft go astray.  At about the 200m mark, I was forced to swim over set of Speedo feet one.  I don't know what he did, but I think he just stopped or slowed way, way down.  Anyhow, I sped up a little to catch back on to Speedo feet number two.  I was not on his bubble for more than 100 meters when he too fell off.  He actually grabbed the lane line.  So, around him I go.  I had to hammer a little more than I would like to catch the lead group which had put about 20 or 25 feet on me by the 1/4 mile turn around.  After the turn, I was able to find a good pace and a couple of feet.  But, the feet I was finding were a little on the slow side.  I wound up swimming the last 300m by myself.  Not my plan, but what can you do.  I got out of the water in 3rd or 4th.

 

I passed one or two in T1 and onto my bike I went.  This year's bike route was a little different from the last few years.  Luckily, Julie and I were able to ride the changed portion of the course on Thursday, so I had a good idea of what to expect.  The new course has a bunch of little hills rather than the two on the previous course.  Anyhow, on the bike I worked just off my cadence.  I've found a way to disconnect the speed sensor (remove the wheel magnet, duh) so I just get my cadence and nothing else.  My goal was to spin 90 to 100 rpm for the race distance and see what I get out of it. 

 

At about the 10 mile mark, I was passed by another guy on a pretty P2.  I have to admit to being partial to the white and red Cervelos for an unknown reason.  I was able to stay with him for about 2 more miles, but those young guys are pretty fast.  While I was still with him, a course marshal indicated to us that we were 2 minutes behind the leader.  That put me in 3rd overall.  Knowing this and being able to hear the sound of two disc wheels echoing down the country road made me very happy with life at the time.  After a while, I was not able to keep up the pace that my new friend was keeping, so I slowly lost touch with him.  With around one mile to go, I was passed again going up a hill.  I repassed this guy after a 90 degree corner (which he must have used his brakes going around) and a little down hill section that I was willing to hammer on just before T2.

 

In T2 my new Nike Lunar Racer 2's went on way easier than the ones "lost" at Tri-ing for Children.  Plus they match my Emery's kit better too.

 

The run course is flat and fast.  This is not good for me.  The guy I repassed on the bike re-repassed me at about the 1/2 mile mark and proceed to run about 30 seconds per mile faster than I was able to.  Forth overall.  Let me remind you, gentle reader, that I really enjoy running the most.  I am just not the fastest runner out there.  I know this.  So, when on the run, I am in "just try to save the time you gained in the water and on the bike" mode.  I thought I did a pretty good job of that.  Another fast guy passed me around the 2 mile mark.  Fifth overall.  I was able to up the pace a little within the last 1/2 mile, or so, and finish strong.

 

It turns out that the overall winner came from wave number 4.  So, my 5th was actually 6th.  But, hey I'll take that.  Final result was 6th overall and 1st in my old guy age group.

 

After I was done, I was able to see Julie and her friend Jen through T2 and then catch them both out on the run course.  I have to say, I'm really getting into the whole cheering out on the course.  It is way more fun than I would have thought.

 

Overall, it was a great weekend.  Julie and I were able to get a good race in.  The kids got some solid time in the lake with grandma and grandpa too.  Heck, the dogs even got a bath.  So, life is good.  Fluffy puppies and tired kids are always good things.

 

Over the next couple of weeks, I am planning on posted some stuff about training plans and equipment choices.  I've been looking at new toys, their prices, and what they might do for my race results.  I've also been noticing that although I do like racing (a lot), I may actually like training better.  More to come...

Everything is Something and Other Random Thoughts

Well.  I guess I stepped into something with my last post.  I wish I could say that I am sorry that some readers did not enjoy my thoughts.  But, alas, I cannot say that.  I really do believe that if you work towards something then you own whatever it is you have created.  Whether the creation is a home-made airplane (A stupid example, but I am trying to make a point) or a personal best time at the Pewaukee Triathlon does not matter.  You are the one that makes such things exist or happen.  Sure, you are assisted by family, friends, the wrenches at Emery's, etc., etc.  But, you are the one that "creates" the idea and then puts it into reality.  You own it and you deserve the rewards that come from what you create.  Let's just leave it at that for now.  If you want to discuss this more, you will have to meet me for a bike ride or a run (It is hard to have a conversation while swimming and my swim workouts are usually less than a half-hour.  And, this requires more time that that).

 

On to random thoughts...

 

The brake system on your bike can hold a lot of calories. 

 

Here is the back story:  A few weeks ago, the rear brake on my TT bike stopped releasing.  It was gummed up with the following:

 

Dirt

Energy gels

Energy drinks (various types, but orange Gatorade seem the most prevalent with green a close second)

More dirt

Lubricant

 

After removing the brakes and cleaning them, I was amazed just how much stuff can sit on a set of brakes.  I had two full paper towels covered in crud.  I like to put ice cubes in my watter bottles, but with the recent humidity, I think the volume of condensation this causes added to this issue.  Using a gel pack as an example of 100 calories, I would say the rear brake had 150 and the front a little less than 100 calories.  I would bet that with my between the aero bars bottle mount, I could get more on the front brake.  But, I also use my front brake way more than my rear.  So, the front probably has less opportunity to build up.  I train with, but do not race with, two behind the seat bottle holders.  Putting two sweating bottle right over the rear brake and using it only every other ride or so must account for the large volume of crud accumulated.

 

The more you ride, the better your bike handling skills will get.

 

After cleaning my brakes on the TT bike, I put the brakes back together and went out for a ride with Ben.  Just a usual ride with me (because I was on my TT bike) pulling for the first two-thirds of the ride.  About 20 miles in, Ben says, "Hey man (he says that a lot), your rear brake is rubbing."  Upon examination, it was.  So, I pushed it over but in swung back to rubbing.  Then I adjusted the cable tension to minimized the force of the rubbing that was unfixable (is that a word?) without a pliers (which we did not have).  The cool part about this was that we were going 24mph down Racine Ave. while all these repairs were done.  I'd like to say that I stayed in my aero position as I did these repairs, put I did have to use my base bar to turn the cable tension down.  Anyhow, a few years ago I would never have thought about monkeying with the rear brake while moving.  In this case, it didn't even cross my mind to even slow down let alone stop.

 

Riding with Brent Emery will make you a better bike rider.

 

I have to admit that my life has made it difficult for me to train with Brent as often as I would like.  But, the last Thursday I was able to make the 6am ride.  Bent had recruited a new guy for the ride and I was able to sit back and watch the new guy and Brent "discuss" (I use this word for lack of a better word to explain Brent's normal intensity) the new guy's riding.  Now, let me say that the new guy was definitely a life-time athlete and really was on the ride to learn.  The guy that finished the ride was not the same guy who started it.  In the span of a little more than an hour, he went from a 53x12 pedal masher to a high cadence spinning, pace line member.  Very cool to watch, very cool to be a part of.  Heck, I learned more than a little too.

 

You can train too much.

 

Overtraining exists.  Where it starts, I'm not exactly sure yet.  But, I think I was there.  I took three full days off after the Tri-ing for Children race and came back to training like a new man.  My guess is, like tapering, this is a very personal thing.  My goal for the rest of the season will be to go even harder on my hard days, but go much (read as much, much) easier on my easy days.  I'll report back on my results.  So, you might just see me at some group rides I usually would not do.  My hope is that other groups will force me to keep my pace in check, or accelerated, as needed.

 

And finally, cycling gloves are nice.

 

So, I bought a pair of gloves from a fellow Slowtwitcher for really, really cheap.  And, I had sold some old aero bars, so I had some money sitting in the PayPal account just burning a hole in my CPU.  To date, I have not worn gloves.  I never liked gloves while lifting weights and generally don't wear them in the winter if I can get away with it.  Fast forward, the gloves arrived, fit, and were as advertised.  On the first ride, an easy fifty miler, they were a distraction for at least the first hour.  By the last half-hour I had to agree they were nice.  What I really liked was their ability to absorb the volume of snot that I threw at them.  For the road bike, gloves are a plus.  I actually took Julie to Emery's that very night to get her a pair.  She came to the same conclusion: Gloves make riding nicer.

 

I did try them with the TT bike, but the jury is still out on gloves and the TT bike.  I actually felt like I was not as connected with the bike with the gloves on.  I'm going to try more in the future, but I have to admit that my tempo ride on Friday morning was done sans gloves.

 

Now, the above paragraph needs to be read with a grain of salt.  I am real touchy, literally, about my contact points on my TT bike.  I have a really good "feeling" while on that bike.  Not to say I don't feel good on my road bike, I just feel better on the TT bike.  I have even kept the old bar tape on this bike, when I got replacement tape for Christmas last year, for fear of messing with my feelings (yes, this is me talking about feelings) on this bike.

 

See ya.  Drop me an e-mail so we can get together and ride or run.

Be Proud of What You Do

Well.  This might be a little off.  But, it may be right on too.  You can be the judge.  In the end, I don't care.  Your, gentle reader, opinion matters little to me.  Some people's opinions matter more than others.  That is just the way it is.  That is the honest truth.  With that out of the way, on with the blog.

 

The following may have something to do with athletic endeavors, which is why it is here.  But, I am afraid that its ideas are much farther reaching than that.

 

On Tuesday night, last (I just love writing like that), my lovely and loving wife asked me, "Don't you ever get tired of being exceptional at everything?"  I, of course, said, "No."  I have found simple, one word answers the easiest and the most communicative.

 

The thing is, I said it as just a quick response.  Or so I thought.  But, the more I thought on it (you see, my iPod took a dump and I was forced to run with my own thoughts - THE HORROR!) the more I realized that I actually meant it.

 

What she was referring to at the time is not of consequence.  What is, is that I am proud of the things I have done (and do) well in my life.  I know that it is popular, and socially expected, to be ultra humble about most things and that putting one's self above society is not in vogue.  You know what?  Forget that!  Let's start celebrating the things we do well.  I am going to come out and say that it is OK to succeed.  It is OK to do something well.  It is also OK to do something better than someone else.  It happens.  That's a fact.

 

Somewhere in the not so distant past we stopped, or were told to stop, celebrating individual accomplishments.  Why?  I can guess.  But, I think that is my big question.  Where, and when, did the individual's accomplishment get vilified?  I know that is too deep of a question for most.  But, the next time you are without your iPod, give it a think.  Or, maybe throw away your iPod and just think about it.  This might just be that important.

 

Now, for the time being, be proud of what you have done.  Did you set a new PR?  Good for you.  Did you get yourself out of bed to train (on a treadmill or bike trainer even) when it was easier to push the snooze button and listen to the pitter pad of the rain?  Even better for you. 

 

Just because the rest of society puts no value in those things does not mean they have no value.  Heck, I would even argue, that because they do put no value upon those things is exactly why they have great value.

 

Summary:  Get out there and do what you want to.  Do what makes you happy.  Set a goal, believe in that goal, and work to achieve it.  No matter what others say or think of the goal, it is yours to have.  Remember it is you that places value on the things you do.  Do the things that have value to you (Not like the dishes.  Those have to be done so you don't live in a pig sty).  And, do them well.  You will be rewarded.  This I am sure of.

 

Don't apologize for your accomplishments, whatever they may be, and do not apologize for the rewards that your accomplishments reap.

This is the first (really second, but first thought provoking) post that is not also posted on the Third Coast Tri blog too. I've been listening to a few text books while running lately and I found a very thought provoking article. I've taken this article, copied it and edited it to fit my thoughts a little bit more. I'll give credit to the author at the end. I know if I mention the original text's author, some may not continue to read it. So...

[Someone] asked me whether I could present the essence of my philosophy while standing on one foot. I did as follows:

Metaphysics - Objective Reality
Epistemology - Reason
Ethics - Self-interest
Politics - Capitalism

If you want this translated into simple language, it would read: 1. “Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed” or “Wishing won’t make it so.” 2. “You can’t eat your cake and have it, too.” 3. “Man is an end in himself.” 4. “Give me liberty or give me death.”

If you held these concepts with total consistency, as the base of your convictions, you would have a full philosophical system to guide the course of your life. But to hold them with total consistency—to understand, to define, to prove and to apply them—requires volumes of thought. Which is why philosophy cannot be discussed while standing on one foot—nor while standing on two feet on both sides of every fence. This last is the predominant philosophical position today, particularly in the field of politics.

My philosophy, Objectivism, holds that:

Reality exists as an objective absolute—facts are facts, independent of man’s feelings, wishes, hopes or fears.
Reason (the faculty which identifies and integrates the material provided by man’s senses) is man’s only means of perceiving reality, his only source of knowledge, his only guide to action, and his basic means of survival.
Man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life.
The ideal political-economic system is laissez-faire capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as traders, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. It is a system where no man may obtain any values from others by resorting to physical force, and no man may initiate the use of physical force against others. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man’s rights; it uses physical force only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use, such as criminals or foreign invaders. In a system of full capitalism, there should be (but, historically, has not yet been) a complete separation of state and economics, in the same way and for the same reasons as the separation of state and church.

That above text was written by Ayn Rand back in 1962. I edited out her lead-in and text she added in a later reprint of it.

Personally, I find these thoughts very interesting and very much thought provoking. Ms. Rand had some interesting life experiences and some really good ideas. She also was a militant atheist. So, you really can't hang onto every one of her words. Oh, and her fictional characters are beyond fantastic.

How would those, if they would at all, words change in todays information age? Socialized medicine, elections and politics, and what about the current economic conditions? Talk amonst yourselves.

Taking It Easy

So, a little background.  I've been seriously training for a half-ironman distance triathlon for the last 22 weeks.  For those of you a little slow on the math side that is five and a half months.  I started in earnest on January 18, 2010.  I picked a plan from a book that I thought was appropriate and pretty much stuck too it.  "Pretty much" means that I did almost all the bike and run workouts and a solid two-thirds of the swim workouts.  You see, I am a decent swimmer and am often not motivated to stare at the black line at the bottom of the pool any more than necessary.

 

Yeah, yeah.  What about taking it easy.  Well, the plan called for a half-taper week followed by a full taper week the week of the race.  I have to admit that I was leery of the taper from the start.  I put it in my calendar with an sense of unease for sure.  During my last few "work weeks" in training I was doing between thirteen and fourteen hours of training a week.  The half taper week had about eight hours and the full taper had a little over five hours scheduled.

 

Blah, blah.  Gez man, get to the point or at least a point.  OK.  During the half taper week I blogged that I had ants in my pants.  My wife will claim that the ants are always there, but that is a whole other discussion.  Let's agree that there were considerably more ants than normal.  Shall we?  During the full taper, the ants took over.  Sure, it was kind of nice to have a bunch of spare time.  Heck, I even slept past 5:30am a couple of times.  A forty-five minute run is easy to fit in.  Putting the bike on the trainer, setting up the TV, etc. takes just about as long as a twenty minute bike ride does.  Let's not even get into the fact that the same laundry is created with out said laundry creating the sweat puddle on the basement floor.  We all know that your physical condition can be tracked by the sweat stain on your basement floor.  Don't we?

 

But, there are a few things (in retrospect) I noticed.  Because my training level went way down by food and fluid consumption did too.

 

I usually take a little cooler filled with fruit and yogurt along with a water bottle filled with Gatorade/Cytomax/EFS/Rehydrate (I do tend to mix and match until about 2 weeks before a race.  Then I switch to whatever will be used for the race).  I also always have a Sam's Club size box of fig newtons and bag of raisin in my vehicle where ever I go (There is also a stash of Hammer gels and Cliff Bars too in case a little pick-up is needed during the lunch workout).  I sip the Gatorade before my noon workout and then fill the bottle with water afterwards.  At the end of the day, I am eating my last piece of fruit as I drive home while sipping what would usually be the second or third water bottle refill.  But, for the last two weeks, I got home and had to empty out my little cooler and dump out the water bottle.  I also didn't even have raisins or fig newtons in my truck.  The funny part about this is that I did not notice their absence.

 

A quick side note here.  I very rarely eat when I am not hungry.  Somehow, either through the way I was raised or through good luck, I just don't have the desire (I did not say ability.  Put a pan of fresh brownies in front of me and keep your fingers clear.  I think Julie does this to me just to mess with me) to eat when my body is not requiring nourishment.

 

Anyway, for a week and a half I was eating to fuel my taper training volume.  I have every reason to believe that amount of food I ate for a solid ten days was not enough to fuel a half-ironman race effort.  I also have to take the responsibility for not noticing what I was, in this case, not eating or drinking.  I should have taken notice when Julie asked me on race day morning, "You're not going to eat anything?"

 

The verdict: Chris does not taper well.  I should have kept the training time closer to what I had been doing for the better part of the year and just toned down the intensity.  I should have also really kept track of my diet and fluid intake better.

 

Now, finally dear reader, to the taking it easy part.  "Easy" is a relative term.  Like training data (which is still mine and should not matter one iota to you), rest and recuperation is an individual thing.  The body is a very interesting machine.  Training input matched with rest is required to promote increased fitness (Note I used the word fitness rather than health.  More on that in the future).  I guess all the preceding words are leading up the fact that my idea of taking it easy might just be an easy two hour bike ride or one hour run done with a stopwatch running.  I do like my chair in the family room, I just don't like being in it too much.

 

We will see.  Like most things in this world, there is no instruction manual.

A Walk Along the Beach, Some Wind in My Hair, and a Stroll Through the Woods

"Boy, am I glad that is over."

 

That is exactly what I said as I crossed the finish line at the High Cliff Half-Iron Triathlon this past Saturday.  Now, as you may be aware I do enjoy a certain amount of physical discomfort every now and again.  I also do not give up or break too easily.  That course on Saturday crushed me!  So, here is my race report with a few musings added for seasoning.

 

Not only was this a race weekend, but it was a get away for the Boss and me too.  The kids were being corralled by Great Grandma, Grandma, and Grandpa (that made it a fair fight from the adult perspective) and we had a hotel room at the Hilton (shameless plug) for two whole, adult only, nights.  Saturday was race day.  The Wife was doing the sprint and I the half.  After that, we had nothing else planned.

 

Saturday morning came around and off to racing we went.  The day was beautiful as long as you were no where near Lake Winnebago.  Unfortunately, the race course on, around, and through the High Cliff State Park is right on (and in for the swim) Lake Winnebago.  The wind was blowing.  Not like a knock in your house of straw or wood, but like a valiant attempt at your brick house.  I said to myself, "Self, everyone else has to deal with same elements."  I responded, "Self, you are not very convincing.  And, I believe you are only trying to make yourself feel better."  At that point I stopped talking to myself because I believe that talking to yourself is OK, but it is bad to start getting answers.

 

Anyhow, the swim started with a 200m walk through the shallows of Lake Winnebago.  Every time I started to swim (and scraping my hairy knuckles on the sandy bottom of the lake) I would run into someone from a previous wave walking.  It was beyond frustrating.  The water was quite choppy (OK they were some pretty big waves), but I was digging it.  For whatever reason the conditions suited me.  The course was set up in a rough rectangle, and after the first turn buoy the walkers were forced to float and/or swim.  They became easier to avoid either because they sank to the bottom (I heard no reports of this) or because I was swimming faster than them.  By the second turn buoy, the currents had reeked havoc on the field.  Most were being pushed into shore and way off course.  I picked a nice straight line, accounted for the current and started swimming.  I really felt all alone for a good ten unites or so.  I kind of fell into a rhythm with the waves where my breathing was perfectly timed with my body just about cresting a wave.  I was actually having fun.  I was also passing a lot of colorful swim caps.  I had started behind three hundred others, so the water had a bunch of dots of color bouncing around upon it.  Rounding the last buoy (the third one if you didn't catch the whole rectangle thing before), I was forced to swim a little off course.  Apparently, one of the course marking buoys had popped loose and floated about four hundred feet north.  I was sighting on this one for a few minutes before I noted that it was pounding itself on the rocks of the nearby peninsula.  Course corrected and then I was able to walk the last hundred meters into shore.  As I am sure you are all astute readers, I can assume that you will have noticed that the water was very shallow near shore and made for a lot of water walking.

 

Up the hill, into T1, off with the wetsuit, and onto the bike.  Julie and I had ridden the "big hill" (you know, the one up the cliff in High Cliff) the night before.  I knew it was a little less than half a mile long and steep enough to warrant the use of my small chainring.  I got to the top, didn't get passed by anyone, but passed plenty.  Once the course got out of the park, I very quickly understood why people have invested so much money in building all those windmills around the area.  It is freak'n windy around those parts.  Sure, I saw and felt the waves in the water.  It never occurred to me the wind making those waves would be the same wind on the bike course.  It was mostly a cross wind, but when it wasn't, brother it was not.  I had a fantastic hydration/calorie plan.  Drink first bottle by aide station one, check.  Aide station one was not there.  There were boxes (I assume filled with delicious orange and green Gatorade), but nothing else.  So, sip off bottle two I did until aide station number two.  Got back on plan at station two feeling OK that I did not do any permanent damage to myself.  Aide station two would get me through to aide station three.  But, three never came.  There was a drop zone.  I could have gotten rid of all my empty containers, but not get any full ones.  "Yikes," I believe I may have said (I assume that kids may read this some day).  So let me explain something for those of you who may not understand.  Approximately 10 ounces of Gatorade is not enough to get you through approximately an hour on a harder than your average bear bicycle ride.  At about mile fifty, I got my first cramp.  A little light spinning and some on bike stretching made it go away.  Five minutes later it was back.  First it was just in my left quad.  Then both quads.  Then my right calf.  I could continue, but that would be a waste of 1's and 0's.  I was never so happy to get off my bike and into T2.

 

I walked through T2.  I'm not kidding anyone.  I was cramping like a mo-fo (sorry kids).  Put on the socks (yes I was actually wearing socks), shoes and race number.  More importantly, I grabbed four electrolyte pills, two cups of water, and one cup of Gatorade and off to the run I went.  Well, to say run is just plain wrong.  I was jogging and I was walking.  I walked up the cliff hill stopping twice to stretch out my still cramping quads.  The run was not fun.  It was actually un-fun.  The course itself is mostly through the woods and I am sure it could allow for some great communing with nature and a lot of self introspection.  I saw none of that.  I was just living between vibrations on my Garmin 310XT telling me the next 1/13th of the run was completed and the not so well (to my very addled body) spaced out aide stations.  I even started to think about the Hammer Nutrition guys handing out the electrolyte tabs as the pusher men.  I really could not wait to see those guys.  By mile 9, or so, I actually started to feel OK.  I'm guessing that my electrolyte balance was back into normal ranges.  Now, I'm not saying I was good.  I'm just saying that by this time I was not as bad as I was on miles one through about six.  Without too much more drama, the run and the race ended.

 

5:02:something is not a bad result.  But, it is not as good as I think I could have done either.  This race will have to be filed under "Learning Experience".

 

Let me add that I have never had cramps like that in my life.  With all the silly training and the regular activity I have in my life, I've never cramped like I did on Saturday.  Some eating and drinking experiments will need to be conducted.

 

Some things I have learned:

 

1.  What you eat the days before a race matters.  Duh.

2.  Your training before a race should not taper too much.  A twenty minute ride is not worth doing and only creates laundry.

3.  Tapering your training tapers your eating and drinking which goes to number one above.  I felt fine, but while training I tend to "crave" fluids and calories.  I should have been eating more and drinking more during my tapered training.

4.  Aide stations should not be completely relied upon.  I know they are manned by volunteers, etc., etc.  I planned on getting about 300 more calories and a bunch more electrolytes on the bike course.  Three more gels and some little pills would have fit in my pockets without much issue.  My minimalist side has a problem with this, but those cramps hurt (like a mo-fo(sorry again)).

5.  High Cliff has a high cliff.  Running down it does not make up for walking up it.

 

As for the rest of the weekend, let me say this:

 

We arrived home to find that the kids had not duct taped grandma and grandpa in the corner.  Nor had they started cannibalizing each other or any of the dogs.  Julie and I had a fantastic time to ourselves.  I'm not so sure we even stayed awake until 9pm on Saturday night.

 

Although this race report comes across negative, the weekend was excellent.  The race was good (not being able to race would be the worst), the people were all great, and no one got hurt.

 

 

The First Blog Post

Well, I signed up for this blogging thing a while ago and didn't do anything with it.  Then my bicycle racing team started a blog and I, well, sort of enjoyed writing for it.  I also got a bunch of really good responses.  So, here I sit typing.

The other blog is heavily geared towards the whole bike racing / triathlon crowd.  I have thrown a bunch of "real life" stuff into it.  And, quite honestly, it has been the real life stuff that has gotten the most (note I don't say the best) reaction.

I guess I'll use this as a place to put the stuff that really would not be relevant to the Emery's Third Coast Tri (shameless plug) blog.

So for now, some stuff will be a repost or edited post of stuff put up on that blog.  Once I get going, I expect they will have only a little bit to do with each other.

Thanks for reading and don't be afraid to e-mail me or comment here.  I can always just delete them.