Feeling Skinny

I'm starting to feel kind of skinny and I am getting comments from people about how much thinner I look. I guess that is what happens when your heart rate gets pegged at 175 when doing workouts such as yesterday's 300 in the gym. I thought that on the box jumps my heart was going to explode. I was operating at an oxygen deficit. Kind of like the same feeling I get when cycling up the Westernport Wall.

Today's run was a tempo run.

5.9 miles
48:33
8:13 minute miles
avg HR 151
max HR 164

Recovery Run?

I just can't help myself. Set out at 5:42 pm to do a "Recovery Run"... but it was a warm October evening and there were a lot of people out on the Sligo Creek Trail. So, what do Type A people do when they have someone up ahead of them? They try to pass them, of course!

6.33 miles
54:11
8:33 minute miles
avg HR 143

Here is how killer that Saturday workout was... I am just now (9:00 pm on Tuesday) feeling the soreness go away. Looking forward to doing a 300 workout tomorrow!

Results

Guys love to see results. Well, at least this guy does. I started training with Paul Timmons in August. One of the first things he did was weigh me in and looked at my body composition. Here are the numbers from August 6, 2010...

Weight 207 lbs.
Tri 6
Abs 22
quads 15
SU 24
Total 67mm = 18.2%

We checked in today and here are the results...

Weight 197 lbs.
Tri 5
Abs 17
Quad 10
Su 8
Total 40mm = 12.3%

Big difference. Granted... on August 6, I was coming off about 6 weeks of inactivity. And between August 6 and today I had been training for the Half Full and doing Paul's workout routine. Nonetheless, I am pleased with the results. The key for me is not to rest on my laurels. I still have a way to go and now that I'm on a routine that is working, I have to stick to it.

I left the beach this morning as I had to get home. One thing led to another and I didn't get out on my run until 1 pm. I hadn't eaten very well when I set out and I didn't have enough time to go the full 10 miles on my schedule. I felt a little light headed from lack of food (forgot to take the Gu that I planned and only had water on me) and decided it was best to not push it too hard. Plus, my body is still sore from yesterday's incredible workout.

I took this route, which has 6, 8 and 10 mile (or longer) options. I wound up doing 6.33 miles.

1:03 pm
6.33 miles
57:46
9:07 minute miles
avg HR 135
max HR 150

The Rehoboth Beach Marathon is my next race. It is on December 11... only two months away. I have got to start ramping up the volume so I can wind up with the results I'm trying to achieve. My marathon PR was set on March 20, 2010... 4:24 at the National Marathon. Was on pace for sub 4:15 but started getting lower leg cramps at mile 21.

This week's schedule...

Mon off
Tues 6 mile recovery run
Wed 300
Thurs 6 miles faster than Tues so tempo pace, 10 mile race pace, let's call it comfortably hard
Fri 90 mins cycling / endurance pace
Sat Row 10 x 500 meters on 60 seconds / goal put them all under 2 mins, I would open with a 1:59.
Sun Run 15 miles!

Discipline - Rehoboth Beach Training Build Weekend

I earned a black shirt today at The Firm Fitness Center. Best workout I've ever had. Thanks Paul! I did some warm ups and then the main sets were 95# squat/press and tire flips/jumps. I did 3 sets of this. Brutal.


Video of a similar tire flip workout. Our tire was bigger and I think is 273#

Then we did 3 sets of 500m rows followed by 25# ball drops. Sounds easy? HA! Try it sometime. Gonna shoot for at least one set of 60 ball drops next time I do it.

About to clip in for a ride. 90 minutes is on the training schedule but it's a pretty nice day. I may roll longer than that. We'll see.

UPDATE 6:01 pm

Did a 40.2 mile ride. Out and back from Henlopen Hotel down to Route 54 at Fenwick Island and back. GORGEOUS day. 78 degrees and sunny. Not a cloud in the sky. Wind was out of N-NW so it was nice on the way south... a little slower heading back north.

11:05 am clip in
135 avg HR
159 max HR
40.2 miles
1:49:27 ride time
22.04 mph
avg cadence 86

How gorgeous was it today?


Scene from my Beach Cruiser

The Weekday Ride

On Friday, I had another "oh my God, am I going to get the workout in" day. I left work early and headed out after some delays for the 60 minute ride. I took my local route. BEAUTIFUL sunny Indian Summer afternoon. In fact, all weekend is supposed to be gorgeous and I write this entry from Rehoboth Beach, DE. Doing a little training build this weekend.

Stats...

4:41 pm clip in
AVG HR 133
MAX HR 153
15.7 miles
53:31 ride time
17.6 mph
Avg Cadence 84

Back on the Stick

OK... so I raced on Sunday. I was toast on Monday, felt better Tuesday and could have done something yesterday. But, life was on 11 so I couldn't get a workout in until today. I did a weightlifting session at lunch over at the LA Fitness. 2000m row, 3* 10 24" inch box jumps with 10 push-ups in between each set. Then I did 3 * 10 pull-ups with 3 * 10 @ 135# floor wipers. Wrapped it up with 35# dumbbell squat/press and then a set of 10 dips.

When I got home from work, I did my little neighborhood run... I was supposed to run with a neighbor but I was chomping at the bit and ran out a little early... I missed her... we'll tee it up next time.

3.5 miles
27:48
7:56 minute miles
avg HR 153
max HR 171

I think I did the first mile in about 7 minutes. I really couldn't wait to get back out there.

I plan on getting in an hour ride tomorrow and then heading down to the beach. I'm working out with Paul on Saturday morning, doing a 90 minute ride and then on Sunday, running 10 miles. It is supposed to be BEAUTIFUL weather.

If Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade

Ron Rothgeb, a mentor of mine - Died 9/11/2003 - Pancreatic Cancer. Timmy Sutter, my birth father - Died 4/23/1999 - Colon Cancer


Half Full Triathlon Results - 6th Place Clydesdale

Here are the stats...
30:29
Swim avg HR 139
Swim max HR 147

2:57:18
18.95 mph
Bike avg HR 145
Bike max HR 164
Average Cadence 91

2:09:45
9:54 minute miles
Run avg HR 139
Run max HR 168

As I've written so many race reports, I think I'll today simply ride a race summary. An introductory paragraph and then a bullet point list of things worth noting... and a special note... my buddy Lennie Phillips was third place male cancer survivor. My other cancer survivor buddy... Mike Lampe... was second place male cancer survivor! They are both inspirations to me.

2010 has been a challenging year for me. I have separated from my wife and the end result will be divorce. My daughter turned 13 years old and being a teenager is tough... and it ain't any easier when there is instability in the family unit. This was going to be an off year for triathlon though I did sign up for two races... Philadelphia in June... and today's Half Full Triathlon. Training for Half Full (the year's "A" race) was interrupted as I was hit by a car on 4th of July while cycling. I lost five weeks of training time... and as Philly was on 6/27, I really lost an additional two weeks... before that race and the week after. Today's race was actually indicative of how this year has gone for me. And triathlon is like life (or a box of chocolates)... you never know what can happen on race day. You know... here is my theory on life... life is 10% what happens to you... and 90% how you deal with it. That is how race day can be, too. Honestly, I looked at today's race and estimated I'd do a 5:50... challenging course... and my run isn't where I want (and need) it to be... yet. Coming in at 5:46 is pretty sweet... considering some things that happened out there today.

1. Great weather... cool and crisp... but not too cold. Water temp was in high 60s and was not an issue at all. I was very used to the race venue having done Columbia Triathlon 5 times... and trained on the course at least a hundred times over the years.

2. On the swim... I didn't have any problems... except on the last leg when it was hard to sight the final turn buoy. I veered a little too far right and could have saved time staying closer to shore. Other than that, buoys on the way out and even leading back to the final buoy were easy to sight. It was a far run from swim up to T1.

3. My transition are notorious for sucking. Today was no different. Getting my socks on took forever and I was wearing a tri top that I had never wore before. Pockets were in the back. Took me a while to get my stuff in the pockets. Oh yeah... wet suit removal... another misadventure trying to get that thing off. Lastly, I wore arm warmers and they took forever to get on, too.

4. On the bike, I really felt GREAT. I flew out and just passed dozens of people. Rode up the first set of hills with no problem whizzing by people left and right. Heart rate was in 142 - 147 range so definitely was not pushing too hard.

5. However, at about mile 15 or 16, after cresting a hill, I pulled out a Clif bar and started to feed... put it in left hand and went to left shifter to get back in the big chain ring. I pulled it back and nothing happened. Flipped it back and forth again and... nothing. What is irritating about that is that part of the course is about 4 miles of nice flat (minor rollers mixed in) where I can fly at 27 - 29 mph. Now... I was stuck in small chain ring... I'd get up to 25 mph... but my cadence would be like 110... HR 120. Also, the smaller gears were creating a racket as the chain was rubbing the derailleur. That meant I really could only use 6 gears So...

6. I attacked on the hills and spun on the flats, and coasted the downhills. What else was I going to do? Wait for the sag wagon? Get off and try and "fix" it myself? Looking back on it... this probably worked out to my advantage as it kept me from toasting myself on the flats and downhills. On the hills, as I was plenty rested (HR like 120 on flats) I would just fly up those suckers. So instead of the normal 9 - 11 mph on the tougher hills... I'd be doing 13 - 14 mph. So, just make some lemonade!

7. My "ride" time was 2:55... according to bike computer. Only 1 minute off the fastest I had ridden the course in training. When I got back to T2, almost all the other Clydesdale bikes were nowhere to be seen. I headed out on the run and didn't see a lot of other people in T2 or heading out. I had a solid bike.

8. A buddy of mine, Mike Reed, started two waves behind me, passed me at right after mile 1... I would see him later at mile 9... he was walking and it looks like he DNFed. Fast guy... but sometimes he blows himself up.

9. Early on the run I had some cramping issues on inside of my legs above the knees. I took 3 endurolytes and 5 ibuprofen and then my stomach starting feeling strange. I remembered that I should probably eat a little something as it was probably the pills on the empty stomach. I ate some pretzels from an aid station and pretty much dialed in at that point. I was doing 9:35 miles for much of the first part of the course and that included walking up some of the hills.

10. But, then the cramps returned (about mile 10) and this time my upper hamstrings in both legs took turns "catching". As in... walk motherf**ker. I kept the walking to a minimum and don't think it was more than a 1/4 mile either time. As I came into the chute, they had some green carpet that looks like grass... as soon as I hit that, I sort of rolled my ankle and that made my leg cramp up. It must of looked pretty dramatic as I grabbed the railing and was sort of walking, pulling myself toward the finish line. What a Diva!

Overall, a typical TJ race... strong on the swim... stronger than most on the bike... endure the run. However, I definitely could feel the payoff on the recent training. I believe if the cramps hadn't come, I could have done that run in less then 2 hours... perhaps even south of 1:55. So... I'm encouraged and ready to work on it... next up... Rehoboth Beach Marathon in December.


Back of my right leg, July 8, 2010