A few days later

Today is Thursday. Since captex's ugly swim, I have been in the pool twice.

First was 4x500 at 2:05 pace with 30" rest between sets. No problem.
Today was a race rehearsal. 2k swim. 41:55. Which is a pr. Easy easy.
I just got totally thrown by the lake last Monday. Hopefully, getting in the water the day before Canada 70.3 will help.
Yesterday was a 75min ride of mostly z4 intervals followed by a 20min run.
Also no problem.

Boy do I miss Crossfit. I really want to pick up something heavy overhead.

But tomorrow is a 2hr run. And Saturday is a 3hr bike and a 20min run and sunday is another 2hr bike.

So I will take my rest where I can get it.

Tough start, good time

Captex oly 2:42:03. My first and only other oly was last fall 2:56.
I picked up 3min on the swim, 7min on the bike, 1 min on the run and 3min in transition. On pretty much the same course.

As I was setting up transition, we got the word that wetsuits were not legal. The water was 81 degrees...
Big bummer.
The swim was tough from start to finish. My hr spiked before the gun went off and it never came down. I had trouble breathing which meant I couldn't swim straight. Which got me more winded. Vicious cycle. Lots of contact for the first 1/2. Most of any race I have done. Lots of breast stroke.
Just felt bad. Really surprised that I only dropped 2 min on my 1500m pool time.
Both transitions were fine. Nothing noteworthy.
I hit the bike pretty hard. At the start my hr was a little over 160. At the end it was about 150. First loop was my slowest. Total for 25mi 1:13. This was the most fun part of the race.
The run started good but my hr got away from me. 10k 49:55. 2 5k laps. Second lap was slower as the heat and my hr got out of control. I would like to criticize my execution on the run but the truth is this is only 1min off my stand alone 10k pr. So I can't argue with the results.
I think the key to getting into the 2:30's on this race will be to tighten up the swim by a couple of minutes and run a bit smoother in terms of pace.

Today is a swim day. I am going to do the workout and see how it goes.

Good morning pflugerville from 5 28

It is 4:20am on he morning of the captex oly. My first race of the year.
I am staying up the road about 20mi at my brother and sister in law's house.
At home, my kids are wearing my wife out and my great Dane is having trouble walking and getting up to go to the bathroom. And he Internet doesn't seem to be working for my wife.
I have trouble focusing in situations like this. I really am tempted to just cancel and go home. I was so excited for this race yesterday and one bad call from home is enough to totally turn me around.
I really have to do some work on this.
Because if I can put focus together for a little sub 3 hr race, what am I going to do when things get tough over a 13 hr slog?
The truth is that my wife can handle whatever come up at home.
I need to learn home to stay focused on what I can control and let go of the rest.

I spent a few weeks in spin class a month or so ago. 2 of the guys from that class are here. Sure want to beat them. Not that they are anything other than nice.

My plan is to swim hard. As hard as I can while maintaining rhythm.

The bikes 4 loops with 3 180 turns rr loop. Ideally, I would go hard lap 1, all out lap 2 and 3 and then hard for 4.
But traffic is a problem in this race. So congestion might dictate when I rest.

The run will be by heart rate. I top out at 170 for 5k. This is a 10k but I want to try and stay up there as much as I can. I just want to see how long I can hold that level of discomfort. We will see. As long as I am running sub 8:30's that will be good enough for lap 1. I am not as wrapped up in negative splitting a race this short. My fastest 10k times (5k too) have come when I have gone all out early for a mile or so and then settled in and then kicked at the end.

Hope the fam is ok. But I am giving myself permission to let go of them till about 11am.

Friday

This seems to be a catch up week. The workload is scaled back. This times out well for me in that I am racing in a few days.
The week looks like this as writtend by en:
Monday: swim
Tuesday 95min brick
Wed swim and short run
Thursday run
Friday swim
Saturday long bike
Sunday intermediate brick.

I added a Crossfit in place of the short run. For a short taper, I will cut Saturday's ride from 3 to 2 hrs and ditch Sunday.

I swam in my full suit Wednesday for the first time in months. Man I go so much faster in that thing. I can really glide forever between strokes.

I am a bit preoccupied with Monday's race. I feel confident with my sbr but still just a bit excited to get on the course and anxious for the pain of 170bpm for 10k.

Another day another brick

Today was a 75min interval bike followed by a 20min run.
Having done a few lately, I feel comfortable making t2.
Ran without socks today to make sure my feet would be ok. They were fine. I expect that for Canada I still may put socks on but not for shorter races.
Tomorrow is supposed to be a swim and a 40min run. I am going to bag the run and go to Crossfit.
I feel the need to swim in my wetsuit so I will do that in the morning. There is a lake nearby but I do t feel comfortable swimming there alone in the dark so I will go to the neighborhood pool. Just gotta be careful of critters.
I am worried about the amount that I am eating, ESP given that I am not really strength training. But my clothes fit the same and that is a pretty good gauge. Better than a scale most likely.

Since I have switched shoes to a pair with a bigger drop, my achillies problems are clearing up. I am very excited about that.

It is Tuesday and I am already getting preoccupied about next Monday's oly.
It is hard to stay focused at work.

Take what you get...

Yesterday was to be my main race rehearsal for Canada 70.3.
Had a 48mi bike and a 5mi run planned.
In order to get it in and be back for the 2 birthday partied that Ellie was going to, I was up at 5 and on the road at 530.
All was well till mile 31 when I hit something and flatted. No problem. Happens in races right? Changed out my spare tube and I was off. And I flatted again. Now I was cooked. Cuz I didn't bring a second co2.
Ended up calling my father in law who has a truck.
When I got home I used the rest of my time to run.
While it was all cut short, I felt great.

Today was an interval ride. It was supposed to be 2hrs so I chose a loop that took me 1:57 last time. Got there 10min fast so I bricked a mile.

All in all, the en program feels good. I am going to stick with it till after Canada.

Bit the bullet

En called for a 2 hr run today. My previous recent long run was 80min so I had planned to go 90 and then Crossfit.
But as yesterday wore on I started to feel like the best thing to do would be to just do the run as written.
So I did. It was a mix of easy pace and faster intervals. My zone 1 pace is about 9:50. At that pace my hr is around 140. That was the base pace for about 60min with 8min and 8:30 sessions sprinkled in.
By the time it was over I was fighting to hold the 8:30. All told I covered 11.9mi in 2hrs with an avg hr of 150.
I knew that my run was weak after my injury but it was still ugly to look at the results. I have a few weeks to build endurance. If my goal is to go 6 hrs I need to shave 7min off of my October time. I know I am swimming and biking faster. We will just have to see if the run holds together.
I am confident that by the time Austin rolls around in October I will be ready.

Tomorrow will be swim only.
This weekend is a race rehearsal. 3hr bike and 30min run. Good to practice nutrition and pacing.
Sunday I will head to the lake with the wetsuit for a swim rehearsal. The Austin oly is in about 10 days and I want to get the suit wet ahead of that.

2k swim test

Bike got rained out today. And work was crazy after being gone for a few days.
So I snuck out late morning and hit the pool. 2k swim. 42:45. No hurry. Just swam along. A whole bunch of 2:08 100's.
I was 49min last summer.
Tomorrow I will do the en brick and a Crossfit.
I am thinking that during the heavy vol days I will be missing class a bit. Oh well.

Relaxing

Dodo this trip to Iowa has forced me to downshift. With the kids and the family stuff going on, there just really isn't time to train.
I ran once and hope to get one more in tonight or tomorrow early. But this is a big cutback in hrs.
This was very bothersome at first. But after a couple of days I have given in.
I am sure I will be better for it.
En calls for a major test race this weekend for 70.3. 56mi bike with 1hr run. I will see if I can fit it in next weekend.
In the mean time I will just soak up the last major rest before my mt tremblant taper. Might as well. Not much choice!

I managed to get Monday's run in.
It was an hour or so. 15min wu with 4x30" strides. Then 2x1mi z5 (4'). Then z2 home. My 1mi times were 7:30 and 8:05. Due to an incline.
Given my background, the high intensity parts of the en workouts dont really bother me. I mean, they hurt. And my hr gets to 169-170 and my body starts sending warning signs to my brain that we have topped out.
But that discomfort is familiar and manageable.
Where I really suffer is the 2mi z2 jog back home! At that pace, I start to notice how much everything hurts. All the aches and fatigue seem magnified.
Which is interesting for lots I reasons.
One thing for sure, I want to go out slow enough that once I decide to ramp the hr up to 165+ I will keep it there till I cross the finish line. And right now, I figure I am good for 3mi at that intensity. So there you go.

En #1

Did my first heart rate zone run from en yesterday.
30'z1
2x10'(5') z3
15z1
20z2
Got the first 80' done but then gi issues forced a halt.
We are on the road in Iowa for a wedding and nutrition is off. Doing my best but only do much I can do in the land of mayo.
The run itself was nice. Farmlands.
En does intensity like cfe but they seem to add volume after the speed work. Gotta say this makes sense.
This trip is a grind. It is challenging to stay positive.
No bike no pool. Might be resting today for lack of an alternative. With a 2yr old and a 6 yr old in the middle of nowhere there are limited oppertunities

I hate 5ks.

They are the standard test for run fitness and lthr. And they really hurt.
Yesterday I did one to set zones for endurance nation.
23:20 at 170bpm the whole way. Ugh.
I've gone a bit faster in the past. A minute or so but my expectations were not that high given the lack of running lately. The main thing is that I out the work in and kept my hr high and consistent. My left Achilles is a bit sore today.
At lunch I went to spin class for intervals for what might be the last time. We did Tabata, fartlek, the works.
The en folks don't like spin due to the different body position vs a tri bike. So I will be doing intervals on the trainer for the next while.
The volume with en is higher than my current but only by an hr or two per wk. but... There is no cf.
So I am going to have to feel my way in to this. I am considering cutting back to 2 or so classes per week durin the peak weeks for tri.
The reason is that I need more "long" than I do "fast". If you look at my times , I score much better on shorter runs. 13.1 and below and I move pretty well. I think that I have more top end than endurance. I think the top end comes from cf. and the lack of long comes from the lack of longer training.
I might need to retitle this blog. Because the deeper I get, the less cfe I am using.
Today is a travel day. We are on our way to Clinton Iowa. 4.5 hrs on planes and 2hrs in cars with a 6 yr old and a 2 yr old. Also an endurance sport.
Today's target workout from en is a 110 min run. Mostly zn1 with 2x10 min in z3. I need to learn my zones cold. I look forward to getting to the hotel at some point, strapping on the hrm and going for a jog.

Rain

Track got rained out. So I went back to sleep.
At lunch I was going to do the bike heart rate test but I forgot my headphones and I was not up for 40min hr test on a spin bike w no music!
So I went to Crossfit. Always good for a beating. It may not be the best tri training but I sure feel good after a couple of days at class.
We worked on the snatch. Pretty tech movement.
Then wod was 5 10 15 of 95lb squat snatches, hang squat cleans and toes to bar. Lung burner!

300!

Finally got a 300lb DL!!!
No structural pain the next day but I am a little sore. Learning proper DL form has been a big eye opener.
The wod was a mix of run and burpees. I hate burpees.
Lunch time was swim. It was hard to get going after the morning session.
But I did drills from the EN site and then 11x100 on a 2:30 send off. This meant 30 sec of rest between each 100. This is too long but it was also the first time that I strung the whole set together without a blowup. So I would call it progress.
I am checking out endurance nation for programming. They are known for quality over quantity but my guess is that they will still be much higher vol than I am used to. We will see.

To do vs to did

This weekend didn't go quite according to plan. I pored rain last night and this morning. So instead of a mini sprint, I waited a bit longer and did one of my regular loops on the bike as a Tt. The roads are horrid and the hills are bad too. But I pr'd vs November 11 by 4:11.
I don't think there will be a lift today as family obligations will make it tough.
Maybe tonight. If really like to swim so Might double up tomorrow with Crossfit and swim.

Rest day

So yesterday when I had to stay slow on my run I decided that it would be best if I skipped a workout this week and take a rest day in Saturday (today).
Today I took Ellie to her first Crossfit kids session. She worked hard. It was fun.
Then my brain started scheming about getting a workout in. Maybe a swim? Maybe a lift? After I got cc down for nap I told Terri that I was going to hit the garage for a workout. She said "I thought today was a rest day? You can't do it can you?" she was right of course. And since now it was a challenge I took the day off and took a a nap.
Tomorrow I am going to do a little neighborhood sprint. 400m in the neighborhood pool, 15mi ride and a 3mi run. Then I will do the ride again as a cool down. Should be fun.
My achillies feel ok but the outside of my left ankle is sore today. Always something...

80min run in z1 z2

I took my 70 min run easy this morning. I was trying out different shoes and didnt want to push pace and distance at the same time.
I ran in brooks pure connect. The heel drop is less than the pure cadence ESP since I was running without orthotics. My achilles feel ok tonight and I don't feel like I worked that hard today. Which is good, because I didnt.
I will be ready to go tomorrow. I have a swim, a strength wod and a bike to get in over the weekend. We will just have to see what fits where. My guess is the bike happens Sunday.

Oh. There is the pain.

So it is two days later and I am sore. Yesterday was bad too. I guess I spoke too soon.
The good news is that it is muscular.
Yesterday was spin class. We did an endurance pyramid. Start at 65% ofax and go up by 5bpm every 5 min. Topped out at 165.
I like the idea of riding and pacing by hr for him and im distances. It is much less expensive than power and to my mind a more truthful representation of how hard I am working. There will be some days when 145bpm produced 150w and some days when it does not.
It is the bpm that tells me if I am going too hard to digest calories and that seems like the limiter for me.
For oly and below my internal Rpe is good but I tend to outpace my abilities in him and 26.2.
During my last 26.2 I watched my hr for the first 13.1 and had a more comfortable back 1/2 of the race.
I need to figure out what my target hr should be for bike and run for the longer races.

Today is cf and swim. Cf was 21 15 9 of DL at 185 and ring dips 6:08 and death by Pullup 16.
Swim was 3x 300 easy, 300tt.
What I DID was 1 easy, 1 Tt (5:46 20sec pr!), 1 easy 1 Tt (5:54 also would have been a 10 sec pr) then my motivation left me.
I did 2x100 on 15 sec rest, then 2x50 hard (45 sec) then another 100 them I just got out.
Oh well. Set a record and swam more than last session.
My hip twinges a few times but nothing major. Good enough for today.

Good day, little pain

Track this morning. The scariest session of the week for me right now.
Today the main set was: 3 rounds of:
400m all out, walk 100, 300/100 200/100 100. With about 3 min recovery between sets.
3 sets was plenty!
400's were 1:26. Didn't time the others.
Worked really hard. Did t feel injured at all.
Noon was Crossfit. Modified the wods to remove double unders.
10 Rnds Tabata squats 16 each
15 min Amrap at 75 lbs of 10 muscle snatches, 15 Ohsq and 8 burpees.
3 Rnds 26 reps.
Brutal workout. I really need to wear my hrm to class one day just to see what happens.
Icing my achillies right now but I feel pretty good. Tomorrow is spin class only which is good because I am totally spent!