Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail

I've been given my orders from headquarters. Here is this week's training plan... let's see if I can stick to it:

Monday
swim session / 500 easy / 5 x 100 on 2 mins / 10 x 50 on 60 secs / timed 500 / 100 cool down
6 mile run endurance pace.

Tuesday
40 miles cycling / sub 2 hours

Wednesday
strength session 300
6 mile run endurance pace

Thursday
1500 straight swim

Friday
off

Saturday
ride 60 miles under 3 hours

Sunday
run 8 miles endurance pace

Half Full Bike Course

Half Full Triathlon Bike Course Map

My next triathlon is on October 3. The Half Full Triathlon is a 70 mile race out in Howard County, MD. The bike ride will be 56 miles. It is a very hilly ride and parts of it include the Columbia Triathlon bike course. I think there are only two little sections of the Columbia Tri course that did not make the cut for Half Full.

Anyway, fresh on the heels of completing my first tri yesterday, I rode the Half Full course today for the 4th time. I had set a goal of doing it in under three hours. I rode today with Paul Kwiatkowski and he had two buddies from the Montgomery County Triathlon Club join us. One of those guys is doing Kona. He won the lottery. His first Ironman... at Kona. One day, I'll do Kona.

Funny... in the parking lot... about to clip-in were Marcia, Wendy, her husband Mike and Chris Stokes future son-in-law. Because Paul's Kona buddy was running late, we couldn't get going with Marcia and her group. Rob Vigorito, race director for Eagleman and the Columbia Triathlon, was also in the parking lot getting ready to clip in.

We got started late and it was immediately evident that Paul's buddies would not be able to keep up. So, we just kept the hammer down and dropped them. Paul stayed on my wheel almost the whole time. I dropped the chain on a hill about 15 miles into the ride, and we stopped to top off water bottles at mile 46. Paul was falling off the back by then and we had those last two hills to go, so I thought it be best that we fill up. It was a short stop.

Statistics...

7:37 am clip-in
56 Miles
Avg. HR 137
Max HR 163
2:16:22 in 126 - 150 HR zone
Average cadence 88
3:04:12 ride time

So, I didn't make sub-3 hour... but I did go faster than last week... at a lower heart rate. It was a sunny day... but not very humid and temp probably only got up to low 80s.

Next weekend... Deep Creek Lake.

DC Tri Club Training Triathlon

DC Tri Club Training Triathlon Course

So, I did my first triathlon of the year today. I had signed up for two triathlons earlier this year... DC Tri Training Tri in June... swim was cancelled because of no lifeguard. Then, the Philadelphia Triathlon on June 27... swim was cancelled because a swimmer drowned the day before. So, the tri's turned into duathlons. As a result, I have now swum in a race and I have done very little swim training this year. In fact, the last time I swam in a pool was in late July. I did some ocean swims on vacation, but I think I've been in the pool less than 10 times thus far this year.

The training tri takes place down at Hains Point. We swim 400 meters in the Hains Point Pool (a 50m pool), do laps on Ohio/Buckeye Drive and then run one lap. Typically we do the long loop at Hains Point, but there was going to be two marches down in DC today... Glenn Beck and Al Sharpton. So, it was decided to do 5 short loops... I believe that results in a 15.5 mile bike. 3.1 mile run.

It also turns out that the local Team in Training triathlon team was doing a training tri down there, too. So, there were over 200 triathletes present and crowds starting to assemble for the political rallies. This resulted in Park Police getting nervous with our presence and cutting the race off before it ended. Fortunately, I finished before they pulled people off the course.

Swim as approximately 8:30. I was passed by three people, including Lennie, who got in the water right after me. I felt good on the first lap and the last lap... but was sluggish in between. I smoked the bike... ride time was 42:44... and I got behind some tour buses and Team in Training people a couple of times. Average HR was 153, cadence was 90 and overall, felt real strong on the bike. I did the run in about 26 minutes. Lennie had beaten me out of T2 but I passed him about halfway through the run. I put the hammer down and never looked back. I finished in 1:21:36... average HR was 152 and max was 163. I finished ahead of Lennie, and that is all that matters. :-)

Overall, a pretty good day. i don't think they'll ever have official finishing times because when I came in at the end of the run, the Park Police was hassling everyone and breaking up the race. No timers appeared to be present at the end.

Tomorrow... Half Full Triathlon bike course. I think I'll run a loop around the lake after the ride, too.

Two-a-Day

The triathlete staple... two workouts in one day. Before and after work... you'll typically find your triathlete engaged in a workout.

Got up bright and early on Thursday and drove down to Hains Point. I clipped in at 6:11 am and did a long lap by myself. When I got to Ohio & Buckeye, Philip Schmidt and a couple of other guys were waiting. We chatted very briefly and then headed out. Didn't take long for those guys to get up to 26 mph... we were burning rubber before I knew it. Workout specs...

1:14:30 ride time
25 miles
133 avg. HR
87 avg. cadence

It was a nice, cool morning. By our third lap, I could not keep up with the pace and fell off the back. Them boys can ride!


View Larger Map

After work, I headed over to LA Fitness and did the 300 workout. Warmed up with 2 * 1000 rows... 4:18 then 3:51. Then the superset. That fifteen minute set had an average HR of 154. But, it feels so good. I'm deadlifting 135# - 3 * 10 with ease. Might need to increase the weight. Feel a lot stronger on the pullups already. Finished up with floor wipers and dips. 25 minutes of tough love.

Taking today off. First day off since 8/13. Doing the DC Tri Club training triathlon tomorrow and riding the Half Full Triathlon bike course on Sunday. Trying to complete it in under 3 hours. Stay tuned...

If It Feels So Good, Why Do I Stop?

Previous triathlon seasons resulted in me doing the long run on Wednesday mornings. In the book "Going Long", it is suggested to break up the long ride and the long run. Therefore, I'd do the long run on Wednesday morning... and the long ride on Saturday or Sunday. This season, I have gotten away from my long run on Wednesday mornings. I didn't know how much I missed them until I was finished today. It feels so good to knock that mother out early in the morning. Makes the whole day better.

I followed this route. Started at 6:10 am and ran for 1:00:14. Average heart rate was 138.

Mid Week Workouts

OK, blasted home from work, changed and then clipped in. Rode the same route as last Tuesday. Clipped in at 6:10 pm, average heart rate 138, spent 40:30 in 115 - 145 HR zone, average cadence of 90 and 54:26 ride time. Weather was overcast, low humidity with temp about 75 degrees. Nice riding weather.

Tomorrow, I plan on getting in "the long run". I haven't run over an hour in some time nor have I done a mid-week morning run... probably since weeks leading up to Ironman Arizona 2009. Wednesday is my long run day. So, I guess now that I'm getting back on the stick, I have to get back into that habit, too.

275 Short of 300

That was the hardest 25 minute workout I've ever had. I left a flood of sweat on the floor of the gym and my heart rate was probably at max level for 23 of the 25 minutes.

Here was the workout:

Warmup
1000m row- 4:15
1000m row- 3:51

Cycle 1
Pull-ups 5 - 5 - 5
Dead Lifts 135# 3* 10 (YES! 10 each time!!!)
Pushups 3* 10 (these are easy... should I start doing more?)
24" Box Jumps 3 * 10
35# Dumbbell Squat/Press 3 * 10 (alternate each hand)

Cycle 2
135# Floor Wipers 2 * 10
Dips 10 - 7

The Cycle 1 sets took me just under 14 minutes. Cycle 2 took about 3 minutes. Altogether, 25 minutes of effort.

One of these days, I'm going to get into a swimming pool.

Running Through History

Susanne and I hamming it up at the Lincoln Memorial

One of the great things about living in the Washington, DC area is being able to train on the National Mall. And, one of the great things about triathlon, is all the great people that I have met. Those two facts coincided yesterday as I did a "fun" run on the National Mall with Susanne Navas and Travis Seindehl. Susanne is a really great person who I met at Timberman 2007. We've been friends ever since, though she lives in Connecticut. She is training for Ironman Cozumel 2010. Travis just got married last month and is doing Ironman Lake Placid 2011. So, we'll be doing a lot training together.

We ran on a cloudy, humid Sunday morning from the Botanical Gardens to the Lincoln Memorial and back. It was a fun run as Susanne was only in town for the weekend and she wanted to stop and take some photos. As I needed a "rest" day, I was alright with that.

Run Statistics...

Started at 9 am
~5 miles
1:01:53 total time... stopped four times for photos ops
Average HR 127

Today... I am hitting the gym to do a Paul Timmons inspired lifting routine. I'm really looking forward to it. I am also going to try and get in the pool as Paul has called attention to my lack of swim workouts.


Travis and I trying to look tough

Aero Position Meet Dead Lifts

I rode the Half Full Tri bike course this morning. I rode with Lennie Phillips, a 35 - 39 year old Clydesdale. He is also a brain cancer survivor. He will be doing the Half Full on October 3 and today was the first time he had ridden the bike course. I was trying to remember on the ride if I had done the course two or three times already. It is two for sure... once with Roseann Dougherty (June 20) and once with Gary Daigle (July 25). I think I rode it once with Willie, too... but I can't remember for sure.


Video before bike ride on July 25

This is the first time I've done hills since July 25, first time I've done 50+ miles since then and also the first time I'd ride longer than two hours since I've started my new weight training routine. I could definitely feel the effect of dead lifting on my lower back while I was in the aero position. I'm certain that as I get better at it (dead lifts) and more saddle time, this will go away.

Today's statistics...

Clip in at 7:47 am
56 Miles
3:08:33 ride time
average HR 143
In 126 - 150 zone for 1:52:40
Average cadence 88

We stopped once... 32 miles into the ride. Hit the head, filled up the water bottles and talked for a bit. I think it was about a 10+ minute break. Hot and humid but not stupid. Head wind on the way BACK. Overall, an encouraging ride as this is a hard bike course.

Long Way to (Gor)Go

One day, my name will be on this list. Until that day, I will be preparing for that appearance. So, a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step, and that is what I did today.

I did a lunch time workout at LA Fitness and tried to employ some of the new training techniques that have been shared with me by my Yoda... my sensei... Paul Timmons.

Here was the workout...

2 x 1000 m rows on Concept II (4:32 first 1000... 4:03 second 1000)

3 cycles of following exercises in order with rep for each cycle listed...

Chin Ups 3 * 5
Dead Lifts 135# 10 - 6 - 6
Push Ups 3 * 10
Box Jumps 21" 3 * 10
Clean & Press 30# Dumbbell Alternating Hands 3 * 10
Time: 13:23.7

I then did two cycles of the following...

Floor Wipers (on flat bench - using barbell) 45# * 10 - 65# * 10
Dips 2 * 10

I was sweating up a storm and a bit gassed by the end. I went to the 135# Dead Lifts because LA Fitness does not have the big 10# or 25# weights like they have at The Firm. So, on Wednesday when I did Dead Lifts, I had the smaller 25# plates on each end of the barbell and it just didn't feel right at the bottom. I was going too far down. So, I upped it to 45s on each end (135#)... got 10 on the first set but only could do 6 each successive set. Will definitely need to work on Dead Lifting 135#.

I also now know how many stacks to put under the "board" so I can replicate 24" box jumps. I was a little short today as I estimated 24" based on where my knee is. I need to be a little above the knee to get to 24".

So, I'm on my way... but there is still a long way to GorGO!!!

Same Run, Different Day

As I was disappointed after Monday's run, I was looking forward to doing it again today. After work, I rushed home, changed and headed out with a bottle of Fruit Punch Gatorade. I started the run at 5:32 pm and completed the 5.44 mile course in 51:57 (minutes/seconds). Average HR was 150 and max was 167. Best of all... NO WALKING. Though it was hot and sunny, it was not as humid as Monday. I only wound up sipping on the Gatorade at 20 minutes, 30 minutes and 40 minutes into the run.

Paul Timmons told me about Gym Jones and I checked out some video on YouTube. These are the kind of workouts that Paul has me doing now:


Gym Jones "The 300 Workout"

LA Fitness - Silver Spring

Video of equipment available at LA Fitness Silver Spring.

Back to Work

Double entendre with today's title. I went back to work after being away since August 5. I also am back into a regular triathlon training routine. Today, I cycled after work. Clipped in at 5:25 pm and rode for 54:52 (minutes/seconds). I got in 19.75 miles on this route. Average heart rate was 147 with a max of 161. Average cadence was 92 and I was above the 121 - 150 HR zone for 23 minutes of the ride. It was hot and humid again but definitely not as hot as yesterday's run a little earlier in the afternoon. I went out with one bottle filled with 80% Gatorade and 20% water. I drank about half of it.

I am doing the Half Full Triathlon on October 3, 2010. I am doing the race with Team Fight. It's kind of like Team in Training, which I've done four times, three of them as a mentor. They recently sent me their training schedule. The August calendar is below. I plan on using this as a guide and will probably do some of the organized workouts with the Team.


Team Fight's August 2010 Training Schedule for Half Full Triathlon

Training Camp Closes

I closed out "training camp" today by doing a 5.44 mile run. It was extremely hot and humid and the route was hilly. You can find the route I took here. I did the run in 55:04 (minutes/seconds), my longest run since June 27. So, the pace was slow and I had to walk four times after the 35 minute mark. My maximum heart rate was 169 and my average was 151. I think this reflects the hilly nature of the run and also the extreme heat and humidity. I drank almost all of one bottle of water.

Today's run marked the end of my summer vacation which I used as a training camp. As I had been out of action since being struck by a motorist while cycling on 4th of July, I had a period of inactivity that extended until August 6. On that first full day of vacation, I did an ocean swim with the Tri Delaware group. I took Saturday off, cycled two hours on Sunday and then did it all on Monday, August 9. I ran for the first time since June 27, doing a 20 minute run along the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk. We (me and four other Tri Delaware athletes) hopped in the ocean on that foggy morning for a 25 minute swim and then I did an hour ride... going just south of Indian River and then back to Rehoboth.

I'll post some more later, but as you can see, I had a blast!


TJ on the Bethany Beach Boardwalk