"The Celebration" The Iron Year Concludes, a Brief Race Report of IronMan Florida, November 2, 2013, Panama City Beach, Florida.

Preface: A Chat with a Champion, October 24, 2013

A few days before Ironman Florida, 2012 Ironman World Champion/Ironman 70.3 World Champion Leanda Cave (the only woman to win both titles in the same year) came to Miami to speak to my triathlon club, Team Hammerheads.  She was in town to race Ironman 70.3 Miami, as she has done every year since the race began in 2010. 

Shortly after she arrived, she was standing by herself, and I went to speak with her for a few minutes.  I found her to be remarkably down to earth and approachable, and like all the pro triathletes I have had the privilege to meet, she seems to have a heart for the middle-of-the pack age groupers like me who form the base of the sport (and thus, her own fan base). 

Then there was a "photo op" after her talk. 

Actually, we had met at the expo of Ironman 70.3 Miami last year, and she gave me the "don't I recognize you?" look when I approached - I told her I was the guy with the two rowdy boys who would not stand still for the picture and she remembered!  (My younger son has become a big fan of hers, by the way).

Me and the boys, hanging out with Leanda Cave in Oct. 2012 (Christoper (l) was trying to run away).

We briefly discussed her 2013 outing at the World Championship in Kona (she had been struggling with an injury and went too hard on the bike trying to stay in contact with the lead pack and blew up on the run).  She asked me if I had any races coming up and I told her my first IM.  She said that you will never forget your first one, and her advice was to be positive and view it, not as an ordeal but the celebration at the end of all that training, a day to have fun.  I tried to take that to heart.

Our sport of triathlon is growing in popularity by leaps and bounds but not so much that an ordinary age grouper can't approach the World Champ and just chat like two triathlon fans that we are! Love it.  Fast, slow or in between, we all have the same bond in our "love of the game."

Pre-Race: Wednesday and Thursday October 30 and 31 - Getting to Panama City and Checking In.

I will truncate this part, because, you know, it's the pre-race.  I left Miami mid-morning in a convoy with three friends and fellow triathletes and we made it to Panama City by early evening.  It was about a 9 hour drive, much shorter than the race!  Checked in to the Shores of Panama Hotel, a condo on the first floor of the Hotel (not so good for the view but good for speedy entry and exit, no elevators)... which is only half a mile from the race hotel, the Boardwalk.  I had a nice seafood dinner at the Saltwater Grill up the road, a nice traditional seafood place with a piano bar, and while I was eating, it was obvious that many other triathletes were there. 

Let me digress for a moment.  I noted, not for the first time, that triathletes can spot each other even without race regalia on.  It's the lean, hungry look, I guess.  I talked to a nice couple from Texas, who introduced themselves to me with (no kidding):  "Have you checked in with the race yet?"  Accurate assumption (that I was racing) but I had not checked in (that was for Thursday).  As an aside, I was spotting triathletes on the road and at rest stops the whole way up:  MDOT and 70.3 stickers on the SUV's bike racks with tri bikes.  Like members of a secret club (or obscure cult) gathering on the highways and byways leading to Panama City.

I got up the next morning, and skipped my warmup swim because the Gulf was too choppy, and I went straight to the expo (Ironman Village).  Less than 48 hours pre-race at the entrance of IM village:



What are you going to be?

I got my race packet and gear bags.  Without going into too much detail, you have to pack your gear for the day into five bags:  Morning (what's with you on the beach for the swim), Bike gear (helmet, sunglasses, bike shoes, gloves, etc., Bike Special Needs (you pick it up halfway, and put whatever will boost your morale:  special candy, prescription medicine, sunscreen, etc)., Run gear (shoes, visor, race number), and Run Special needs (again, pick up halfway through the run for a morale boost). 

Not pictured here:  My run special needs bag had Lay's Potato Chips (regular) and a Snicker's Bar.

 

 

That night was the Athlete's dinner, which was very cool and which I shared with a bunch of local triathletes from South Florida with whom we've been training together, comisserating and obsessing in a cloistered online forum (sparing our spouses, coworkers, friends, etc. from the TMI obsessions and angst of first time Ironmen in training)



 

Race Day minus one (Friday November 1, 2013):

Weather was horrible again Friday, as a storm was passing through, but I swam in the Gulf anyway.  I did not want the first time I went in it to be race day.  The surfline was very choppy but it smoothed out a lot after about 100 meters of swimming out in it. My schedule said 15 minute swim, 30 minute bike and 15 minute run.  Basically a systems check, so that is what I did.  The weather said we'd get "perfect" conditions on Saturday

About midafternoon, I racked my bike and dropped off my gear bags.

My modified Cannondale roadie and I had raced 20 triathlons (4 sprints, 11 olympic/internationals and 5 half irons) and our big 21 would be our big Kahuna.  I was hoping for no flats or technicals and that came true race day (thankfully).

I had dinner with a nice couple, Ted and Theresa Blume, who live in Panama City.  I had met them last year when I was volunteering, and they offered to let me stay in their condo.  Long story short, that did not work out because they moved, but they still gave me a nice prerace dinner (homemade tortellini a la panna - yum!) and lots of advice as multiple-time IM finishers.  They would be there for me at the finish to get me to the massage table, get some food in me and escort me back to the hotel.  It was very kind of them!  Thanks, Big T and little t! 


Race Day: 

I slept pretty well and woke up really early to eat.  I made it down to the race site for final prep and then headed down to the beach for the swim start. 

The plan:  My friend Julio Balaguero posted in our group a saying from diving:  Plan your Dive and Dive your Plan - applied, that would be Plan your Race and Race your Plan.  My race plan was conservative.  I had never done this distance before, and my biggest concern was to hit each cutoff and pace myself for a long days' effort.  To that end, a simple plan is best and mine could be summed up with two main elements -

1)  keep the pace aerobic and slow until the the half marathon mark to conserve energy and then make a decision to race it in (if I was feeling my oats) or just keep it slow and steady through to the end (if not). My weakness as a racer is to go out too hard and then suffer in the back half.  I could not risk that in an all day race.  Not to belabor a point but your aerobic system (heart rate zones one and two) can basically go all day long (as in an all day long Ironman!) because it burns fat.  Your anaerobic system kicks in when you increase exertion into heart rate zones three four and five, and you start burning Glycogen.  That is the sugar stored in your muscles and it burns up fast when you go fast.  When it is gone, you "bonk" or get that heavy feeling like you can't move another step.
So for an all day race, you want to be a fat-burning aerobic machine and save your glycogen.

2) keep a steady intake of calories, electrolytes and fluid.  I had been working on this through all those absurdly long bike rides and runs.  I had determined I need about 300 calories/hour on the bike and 200 on the run (you can't eat as much when running because the GI system is all jiggling around (technical term)).  I had food in my bags, food and drink on my bike, and had a plan to replace them and supplement them at the many aid stops.  All in all, this worked like a charm.

1.  The Swim:
It was a mass swim start with about 2800 age groupers starting at the same time.   It was still a little choppy:

This was taken from the beach behind the swim start.  I am the guy toward the right with the green swim cap on (just kidding).  It was pretty hairy at the start, but not as bad as Thursday and Friday (they'd've probably scrubbed the swim if it were!).  Once you got past the surfline it was not so bad.

It was a rectangle shaped course - a half mile out to sea, .2 miles east, and one half mile back (1.2 miles total.  You swim that, run back over to the start on the beach and swim it again.  My friend Nicole captured me between laps:

Total Swim Time:  1:39:39.  Coming out of the water after the second loop, a volunteer helps you strip off your wetsuit, you run under some fresh water showers, grab your bike bag in the transition area from the volunteers, and go change into your bike gear.  To keep it simple I just stayed in my tri suit that I swam in under my wetsuit, but I did put on gloves and the other bike gear (helmet, glasses and bike shoes) and ate some calories to even up the deficit burned on the swim (a Clif Bar and some sports drink).  Again, Nicole got a camera on me running through the Swim to Bike Transition ("T1" as the jargon has it).



 

 "No!  That one!  There!"

 

 

Grab your gear and go!  Thanks, volunteers!

2.  The Bike:

IMFL has a reputation for being a "flat as a pancake" bike course.  Well, maybe to people from far and wide across the fruited plains it is.  I train in Homestead.  Farm Country.  South of Miami.  THAT is pancake flat.  This was not.  Rollers, bridges, some bumpy sections, particularly at the 56-mile turnaroud.  But yes, it was "pretty" flat. 

 

 

Going "aero" on the highways north of Panama City.

My speed was all over the place depending on the headwinds, but it all averaged out around 16.6 mph which was more or less my training pace on Long A** Rides (tm) in training (over 90 miles).  Again, I was holding back to save my legs for the run.  Total Bike Time: 6:47:34.  My coach, Frank Carino, and Alberto Hernandez from our group, got a shot of me cruising back into the Bike to Run Transition ("T2"):

Again, in T2, I elected to stay in my tri-suit and just put on running shoes, and race belt and go.

3.  The Run: 

The Marathon Run is a two 13.1 mile loop course through Panama City Beach, with the far loop in a state park and the near end by the race site.  My specific run strategy was the "Galloway run/walk method" I used in my first marathon:  run 5 minutes walk one minute.  It preserves your legs and erases fatigue.  I also kept my pace in high Heart Rate 2 for the first half, which equated to about 11 minute and change miles.

Again, Frank and Alberto captured me on the first loop, feeling good and strong -- my pacing method was paying off: 

 

How do you finish a marathon after swimming 2.4 and biking 112? One step at a time!

During long parts of the run course I ran with my training partner Gema Midence and, later, my colleague at the law firm, Cynthia Morales.  That was really nice to have the company along the way a friendly face.  We all  finished within about a half an hour of each other, but they had a little more oats or zip than I did, so each of them hustled on and it was "ladies first" like my Mom taught me. Congrats Iron Sisters Gema and Cynthia - we did it!  Together!

 
Anyway, so when I hit the special needs bag and ate my chips and Snickers, it was time to make the decision - race it in or just finish.  Clearly, it was "just finish" I had no race in me.  In fact, I fell way off the pace in the back half.  I wasn't bonking or particularly sore or tight, just 12 hours of racing caught up to me.

Lest I forget,
OH MY GOD, WHEN THE SUN WENT DOWN THEY PUT OUT WARM CHICKEN BROTH AT THE AID STATIONS - IT WAS SO SO GOOD!!! SALTY WARM FUEL to finish with.  If you race this race, do yourself a favor and eat the chicken broth. 

Just throwing that out there for anyone who may be reading this race report as a race report for their future use.  I into got a routine at the aid stations - Powerbar Perform Drink, Coke, and Chicken broth.  After the turnaround I could not eat anything.  That might be part of the reason for me slowing down, but again, I think it was more the day catching up to me.  Good thing I'd conserved energy, because I was able to run my intervals all the way in, just the run intervals became more like "plod" intervals.

Anyway, there was nothing to do but plod on in the darkness until I saw the lights of Panama City Beach and then the finish line appear.  After the quiet in the park, the cheering you got on the course was really great. 

The Finish

My friend, Tim Reimink's wife Melissa Goldberg took this - thanks for Sharing!  I love it.


I can't really put this into words, but I will try.  To cross that finish line in a state of absolute physical fatigue and combine that with an overwhelming sensation of relief and JOY is a heady, intoxicating combination.  I felt tears come but I didn't cry.  I was probably too dehydrated! Marathon Split Time:  5:54:12  Official Finish Time:  14:42:12

Hooray!

 

That crazy man is happy.

Finisher Photo - Unofficial, by Frank and Alberto.

The Ironman Litigators

"Hi, how are you? I am an Ironman.  Did you know that?"  :O

After celebrating a little with my friends at the finish line.  I got a massage in Ironman village (free to athletes) then went home and, with Ted and Theresa's assistance, got all my gear squared away and me in bed.

Gennifer and the boys could not make it, so I don't have one of my traditional "me and the support crew" photos, but they were watching me on the Ironman.com live feed and rooting for me.  When I got home, I saw the signs the boys had drawn.  Aw.

The next day, I had a celebratory lunch with Gema, Cynthia and Mari from our group, and Cynthia's friend Liz, at a seafood place called Hammerhead Fred's.  Ice Cream at Hershey's after that (Not for nothing did we burn 7500 calories - time to live a little and put some back!!). 

From left to right, me, Mari, Cynthia, and Gema.  Newly minted Ironmen.

Then it was time to drive home to Miami and resume real life. 

Everything was back to the same, and yet one couldn't help but feel that in some way, now everything was going to be different too.  What, a problem, a challenge, you can't do this or that?  Wait a second, if I can keep plugging through a 140.6 mile, all-day race I think I can handle _________.

To be continued.... Stay Tuned.
 

Ten Lessons Learned from Completing Ironman

I hope that this journey is more than a medal and fond memory.  I want to carry it forward.  In the Army we followed every training exercise with "lessons learned" to capture what went right and what went wrong.  What we should do and not do.  In my event, I have no regrets.  I trained as hard as a busy married professional father of two could possibly train and finished my race healthy, uninjured and in good spirits.  Here is what I hope to take away: 

1.  You can do anything you set your mind to if you commit, plan and do the footwork.
2.  You will need the support of those around you to make it come true.  You make it happen alone, but you are not alone - no one is an Island.
3.  Train now, find the motivation later.
4.  Show up Every Damn Day and make it happen.  No excuses.
5.  Life will happen.  Adjust.
6.  Realizing a dream is a process and a journey.  Enjoy the journey and learn from it.
7.  Plan your race, then race your plan.  Exercise self-discipline.
8.  You can do more than you think you can.  Dig deep.
9.  Believe in yourself.  Trust the hard work you've done.
10.  When you work and suffer to make a dream come true, there is no joy like it! 

"Edson Briggs, you are an IRONMAN!"

What a year this has been.  What a journey.  I did it; my Iron dream came true in Panama City this Saturday and my goal was realized.  It was a long, hard day's work, but as I planned, I kept moving forward until the finish line appeared.  The experience was overwhelming and everything I hoped it would be.  I am an Ironman!  Post-race exhaustion, Saturday night, recover and a long drive yesterday, and the need to get caught up with work and family limit my thoughts for now, but more details will follow.

The view from two weeks out.

I've written a lot about the journey, the training, the mix of emotions that taking on this challenge has stirred up.  My radio silence of late has been a function of several factors (other than lack of discipline as a blogger which has to be in there somewhere, I suppose).  First, I would say that the last month of training was just absurdly hard.  Time consuming and exhausting.  For example, the long rides reached and exceeded 100 miles (3 rides of 100 or more), and the runs reached 20 miles (2)  I am only able to chime in now because it has finally eased up in the "taper" weeks.   Second, it is because I have pre-race butterflies, and that is not a comfortable thing to write about.  I go within myself when stress impends, and this is no exception.  The butterflies are telling me I have a big event coming as they have in the past with exams, Army Airborne training, getting married, becoming a father, etc.  It is hard to put the mix of apprehension and confidence that I feel into words.  Apprehension of the unknown, confidence that I put in as much training (or more) than my busy life as a married professional parent of small children could support, without any grave injury or accident (so far, knock on wood). 

Escape to Miami Triathlon:  Quick Race Report. 

I was about to Escape to Miami (Olympic Style) when I last wrote.  Let me encapsulate that experience quickly.  I did this race (which was my first full Olympic distance triathlon in 2011) for the third time at the end of last month.  It is a cool race --  well before the sun comes up, you ride out to a small Island in Biscayne Bay near Margaret Pace Park they call "Escape Island" on a ferry.  You then dive in the water, swim to shore, and wait for the swim to start as the sun rises.  They have music and drinks on the island, while you wait for the race.  You swim a dogleg course to shore on the mainland, get on your bike in Margaret Pace Park north of Downtown Miami, ride two laps over to Miami Beach and back over the Julia Tuttle (equalling many bridge repeats) then run the 10K on the MacCarthur Causeway, almost to the other side and back. 

A couple of observations about the race and course follow.

Pre-Race and Race Morning

Picking up my packet, racking my bike and riding to the Island all went smoothly.

Riding to Escape Island with my Team Hammerhead friends and club-mates.

Before the Swim Start:  So, after swimming to shore, I find myself in the water, goggles and cap on, the sun is rising, and I am surrounded by a couple hundred other male triathletes from various age groups, all ready to go, and quiet reigns.  It is a clean, austere moment that soon will transform into the familiar dynamic of a thrashing swim start. 

Swim Start  A short while later, the gun went off and the swim began.  For three years in a row now, Biscayne Bay has had its way with me on this race with its strong current pulling me out of my line and adding 100-150 meters to my swim, and despite several sessions of swim coaching and sighting practice, this year was no different.  But it was still my fastest Escape swim this year in 37:49.  Also, I felt good, not tired coming out of the water, as I had not had to push the swim. Out of the water and onto the bike.

Out of the water in fine spirits. 

Bike Leg:  I was very happy with it.  Felt strong and in control and fast the whole time.  It did not feel, as it has in years past, like a struggle.  I could go as fast as I wanted to without redlining it at all.   I stay in the big gear on the hills, I comfortably knock out a fast bike, 1:20:53 my fastest Olympic bike leg yet. 

During the Bike, I get RAINED ON HARD FOR A LONG TIME without it fazing me, though the mph did go down during that portion. 

Starting the run                                                            

 

 

 

 

 

 Bringing it home - the finish line.

The run was much easier.  Unlike last year where a combination of heat exhaustion and a fall near the finish line wiped me out on the run, this year I ran a decent 1:04:04 10K and crossed the finish line smiling.  3:08:32.  Three minutes faster than last year, and a new PR for the full Olympic distance (51.5K).  Now that may not sound like a lot, but here's the rub:  I blew it out last year, pushed it to the wall.  In the fall mentioned above, I hurt my ankle, and I was disoriented by the heat, and finally ended up in the medical tent to cool off.   This year, I walked out of there smiling with a faster time.  I trained through it.  It felt easy.  I pushed, but stayed within myself.  That afternoon I felt fine.

All this I attribute to Ironman training.  Just as marathon training turned a half marathon from "a big deal" to "let's go run a half" like it ain't no thang... I feel IM training has turned Olympics for me into something very doable.  It's a good analogy because Olympics take a bit longer than a half, but it is in the same range - 2 hrs. for a half 3 hrs. give or take for an Olympic.

End of Race Report. 

REST ON THE TRAIL:  OCEAN REEF.

After the race

The following weekend was a bit of a mental health break in Key Largo.  I got some training in, but not 100% by any stretch.  I think the mental break was more beneficial than any "hard effort would have been."  Hanging with Gennifer and the boys was a reminder of life outside the artificial life that IM training has become.

Back to present day, two weeks later.

It is the Friday afternoon before another big weekend relatively speaking.  The week consisted of a run, a brick, an open water swim and two strength sessions.  The weekend will consist of another, - 1 hour, open water swim, 10 mile run, Sat, then a 50 mile bike/40 minute run, Sun..  Then shorter weekday workouts and the ride up to PCB Wed. after next.  The calm before the storm.  Don't expect much between now and then.  The training is basically complete.  The hay is in the barn.  Put down your pencils and stop working, exam time is over. Nothing left to do but

Wish me luck, track me, you'll hear something soon.

My next post may very well be a finisher photo......stay tuned! 

 

Recovery Week into Race Week.

For the first time since the volumes started climbing heavily in early June, the weekend training load backed way down, for a recovery week.  Boy, did that come just in time.  90 minute run on Saturday, followed by a 3 hour bike ride and 30 minute run on Sunday.  For the run, I started at Tri Beach and ran toward the Key and back, a total of 8.25 miles at a nice easy clip.  I actually felt really good by a few miles into it.  At its best, my run feels like my body is being propelled forward by a force being generated from within, like gliding or flying, and my feet are hardly touching the ground.  And I had moments like that on my 8+ miler.  Honestly, I had not felt that way in a while.  My longer runs, the 18 and 20 milers I did recently, felt like painful plod fests, pounding the pavement until the watch said "20.0" and being glad it was over.  

I don't read too much into workouts like that.  The show must go on, they say in show business.  That means you have to show up and do your best regardless of how you feel.  Sometimes you will feel it, the energy and the motivation, and sometimes you won't. As an aside, I think that is one abiding Iron Lesson, if you will - with apologies to Nike and 100 motivational slogans - just suit up, show up, and do the work.  Just do it.  Keep moving forward.  As my friend Gema shared with me, "train first, find the motivation later."

BUT, all that said, at the root of things, I don't do this for a PR, to watch the numbers get better - though that is fun and it does honor to the fact that the sport involves a "race," not a jog or Sunday ride.  The best way I can say it is I do it almost as a physical form of Zen meditation - for example - in my second half marathon ever, March 2010, in Sarasota, I had reached about Mile 8, coming back into the city over the bridge from the beach, I was feeling good, in touch with my body, and I could see the sun rising over the city skyline as I felt the cool breezes blowing off the water.  Right at that moment I felt that my mind and body were one, that I could fully and thoroughly enjoy the beautiful day around me, and I felt united with the procession of runners all around me in both directions, grateful that I and they were healthy and active and able to do this together.   Those moments don't last, but they are the "price of the ticket"  and anyway, after three and a half months of hard buildup, I had lost touch with that feeling entirely, and it was so nice to feel hints of it again, as I flew over Bear Cut Bridge onto the Key.

Then, on my Sunday ride, I was by myself, riding a route I've ridden with others dozens of times.  I was alone with my thoughts as I pedaled through the palm tree farms in Homestead, watching the sun break over treeline and the wind rushing in my face.  I felt very light on the pedals coasting along for good stretches at 20-21 mph in my lowest heart rate zone, shades of how I'd felt on the run the day before.

So after a nice recovery weekend, I get one more reprieve - instead of another slogfest high volume weekend, I get to race on Sunday - Escape to Miami.  I think with two weeks off from the slog, I will be ready to slog for a couple more weeks, because I'll have 1) had a break and 2) the "taper" will be in sight.  Starting to see the end game here.


I needed this!

This Is Ironman - Become One

In case you missed the broadcast of Ironman Kona... great ad. 

Strength Training Thursday.

I want to thank "Triathlon Mami" Cristina De Molina Ramirez for the generous offer she arranged with Fitness Together Miami to offer a free trial workout to readers of her blog.  I took her and them up on the offer and met Gabe at the Grove location  yesterday and had a great core/abs workout with Andrea.  He had me chopping wood (with cables), squatting, doing pull-ups, step ups, planks on a stability ball, and lat pulldowns, in two circuits of three exercises, two sets each.  The workout is focused and intense and you get the job done quickly.  I liked it so much I signed up for eight more sessions to occur over four weeks (then, of course, I will be tapering!).  I don't know about you, but I have a hard time making my "sport specific" training goals each week (swim bike run) so it's been easy to neglect strength training, as important as I know it is.  So it was good to be guided through a workout.  I can't help but think even as few as nine intense focused workouts will be of great benefit to me in the race.  Because increased strength will help me hold my form longer, which will help me keep my pace longer, and, in sum, increase my endurance and speed over the long, long haul of the IM. 

Rest on the Trail during long ride on 8-31-13.

On a very long ride down into farm country, you can look forward to stopping for a drink or a smoothie at Robert is Here fruit stand.  In fact, with all the delicious fresh fruit for sale, if you were not riding a bike, you'd want to stock up on that too.  This was the second to last day the stand would be open until Nov. 1, 2013, so it's all over as far as the Iron Year is concerned.  There are gas stations nearby with Coke and Gatorade for sale, and rest rooms, but somehow it won't be the same.

Catching up, or Riding that Train Revisited.

More than any race I've trained for in the past, training for this race has become a way of life.  An absorbing one too, in a life that was full to begin with.  The last three or four months have been a complicated juggling act, and I just hope my loved ones and all the other shareholders in my life have the patience to put up with me for two more months, when I will shake this temporary insanity called Ironman triathlon.

The training is, there is no other way to put it, a grind and a chore at times.  A constant cycle - wake up early, train, do life, go to bed, repeat.  It is going fine on paper - the numbers are going up.  In my distance/endurance training, my long swims, rides and runs are approaching race distance. 

For example, I recently rode the race distance in just over 6 hours and 40 minutes, which was just an absurdly long ride.  We were not racing, but finished exhausted nevertheless.  To think of running a marathon after that long trek (all the way down to the entrance of Everglades National Park, past "Panther Crossing" signs on the road, plus several 10-mile loops through Homestead farm country) puts into the spotlight how challenging race day will be despite all the training.  And how much more work there is to do to build that endurance.

To the readers of this blog (if any), I apologize for my radio silence since July.  It's not that I don't have anything to say, it's just that the routine has become so ingrained, so intense, and so demanding that it is hard to get it out in writing, polish it up and post it.  I was going to write that I've been too busy and/or tired from training to write, but that's not exactly true.  It's partly true, but when I logged on to the blog, I see I have started about seven posts and not finished or published any of them since my last post in July.  So the real truth is I have been too busy and/or tired to complete my thoughts!

Here is one example pulled from those drafts - for the sake of journaling the experience - polished up a little for publication:

July 25, 2013:  "Do No Harm:"

One thing I am having trouble distinguishing is "listening to my body" when it needs rest, but not listening to it when it wants to be lazy.  It comes down to a high level judgment call, really:  is anything wrong?  Soreness?  Higher fatigue then normal?  Or is it just "don't feel like it"  Because I have to override the latter every day!  Confession time:  after x weeks of doing high volume training, I hardly ever "feel like it" anymore.  I don't wait for the motivation - I just do it (apologies to Nike). 

Here's a contrasting example of not listening one day and listening another - test case is the same, a pool workout.

1.  I had a pool workout last week (2.2 miles), where I felt good, but kept getting the impulse to stop, a powerful impulse from my mind, and at least 9 or 10 times, I overrode it and made myself finish the workout.  I had no basic reason to stop other than inertia, getting bored of the workout, feeling uncomfortable and unmotivated.  All of that = override. 

2.  This week, the day after my race on Sunday, I had a pool workout, and it was supposed to be 3200 meters (2 miles).  I was smoked and beat.  I did 1000m, and my body just said "no more" and there was no room for doubt.  I got out of the pool, showered and went home, without a pang of guilt or a second thought.  It was good to flush out the lactic acid a little and move a little, but after PR'ing at an International Triathlon on Sunday and running 15 miles on Saturday, something had to give, and it did.  = Listen to your body.  

The tough part is making that call.  If nothing hurts I will err on the side of doing the workout.  But the bottom line, the reason for this post, is that with the fitness level where it is now, the only thing that could really keep me away from the finish line is Injury.

Comment:  Yeah, I am still making that call every day.  Time will tell if I am right or wrong.  At this point, I am erring on the side of never missing my weekend workouts, which I call "money in the bank" but not stressing if I opt for sleep over a tempo run or lap swim here and there.

Double Digits

99 calendar days on the wall, 99 calendar days.  It's real, it's real. 

Have Fun!

That is what my first boss in the Army, a kind female captain who was a great mentor, used to advise me to put at the end of the "goals" section of each Officer Evaluation Report Support Form, the form the junior officer gives to his rating senior officer at the beginning of the period.

My thought as I slogged through another hard weekend of training last weekend was to try to approach the impending IM and the remaining training, as much as possible as something I will enjoy, something I want to do, and to try to have fun with it. 

Yes, the moment of crossing the finish line (God willing) will be exhilarating, but what about the hundreds of hours of training time and the better part of a whole day of race time?  My thought is to try to enjoy the journey as much as the destination, because there will be a lot more of the former than the latter.

100 days today

It's no longer even possible to pretend this race is a long way off.  Fifteen weeks to go.  Wow.  That's actually about right.  If it were shorter I'd be more worried, but I can't keep up this six day a week two day weekend training pattern, with the volumes increasing, forever.  I can't wait, but I am glad it's not next week, at the same time.  I need every day that's left!

Mack Cycle Triathlon Trilogy II, Virginia Key Beach.

It's not always easy for Gennifer and the boys to come watch me race, so it is always a special treat when they do.  They made it out to my International Triathlon today, which as a race was also a very good outing for me.

A short race report - Intro

The Mack Cycle Triathlon Trilogy, our local summer race series, will have a special place in my heart as the "place it all began" for me in 2011.  I have now raced 19 total triathlons, but my first was Father's Day 2011, the Sprint version of  Triathlon Trilogy, Part I.  That year, they were all held next to Miami Marine Stadium.  Last year, they were held on Crandon Park.  Because everything is all messed up on Key Biscayne (long story), it has moved yet again to Virginia Key Beach, so it has been basically a new series each year.

Pre-Race.  Packet Pickup on Saturday was smooth.  I got in early right after my morning run and it was not crowded at all.  I did my typical pre-race checklist (written), and packed.  Got up pre dawn and was over there just after 5 am, early enough to park, set up and warm up before my 6:45 start.  Of note:  as soon as I opened the door of my car, I was a breakfast buffet to every mosquito on the Key. If you are reading this and doing Part III or the Bonus Round - apply bug spray!.  Oddly when the sun came up, I didn't notice them any more.  I'm no entomologist, so I don't know what that is - vampire mosquitos?  Otherwise, getting marked, getting my chip and setting up transition went fine.  I rode 10 minutes, ran 10 minutes, then went down to the water and swam 10 minutes.

Swim:  the swim went fine.  it was in the bay parallel to the shore of the Key, around 3 buoys.  Typical mosh pit for about 2 minutes, then I found my clear water and just knocked it out.

Bike:  the bike course is four five mile loops with about four hairpin U turns.  I quickly learned that if you want overall speed there is one very long straightaway and that's where you have to do it - put the bike in a big gear and a high cadence and go nuts, because in U turn land, you are always slowing down just as you get up to speed.  The Marine Stadium and Crandon courses included several bridge repeats that would slow you down, this year it was U turns.  Anyway, very happy with my bike, under an hour split with 21mph and change!

Run:  All through the old historical park, 10K in two 5K loops.  My Team Hammerhead buddies were there at the turnaround to douse me with water each time I went around and egg me on to run faster!   I was glad after a hard 20 mile bike at a good hard clip to run 9:30s in the 10K.

Overall.  PR by eleven minutes at this distance!   7 of 16 in my age group!   In the early days of this amateur racing craze I'm on, I'd PR every other time.  As I get fitter, and my goals and priorities have changed (less races, more long distance getting ready for Ironman Florida), they don't come as often.  Today was sweet for that reason.  My last PR at any distance was my fourth Half Iron- Ironman 70.3 Miami on October 28, 2012 (my 6:34 finish beat my PR by just one minute).  It's been a while, and I love how it feels.

#IronManTraining  I did not really need to do this race; it is a father's day thing, a nod to my first triathlon, a chance to go fast, but my priority is and has been for a while Ironman Training.  Thus, I did not taper for this, it is not an A race, and I am not going to take much if any time to recover - just train right through it.  In fact, the day before the race I ran 15 miles in searing heat and humidity, normally not advised.  But this race was going to just be a "timed workout" let the chips fall where they may.  I had no expectations of PRing or even doing that well.  I was VERY pleasantly surprised to find that not only did I have bike legs and run legs, but I stayed within myself the whole time too, didn't really redline it or risk injury.  It is said that "quantity has a quality all its own" - applied here it means that though my training has been mostly aerobic (slower) speed training in large volumes - guess what?  That makes you faster.  In running, the same thing happened, the week after my first marathon in 2011, I destroyed my 5K PR and continued to better it all year, with very little speedwork.  Long slow distance above 5K made me faster at that distance.

Post Race Recovery - backyard BBQ with family friends made for great post race recovery.  Playing in the pool with the kids cooled off the legs, lots of protein carbs and hydration, then I napped for hours in a cool airconditioned bedroom like a madman while my wife caught up on all the gossip with high school friends she had not seen in years.

In closing -  I've dropped  well over 10 pounds since this started, three this week alone, and I am not dieting!   Which led me to the following thought - apologies to Jeff Foxworthy:  "If you eat everything that isn't nailed down, and you're still dropping weight more than you ever have, you might be #ironmantraining!" 

Thanks for your attention!  Adelante!

18 Weeks Out!

Eighteen weeks.  123 days.  Somehow that feels significant.  Four months and change.  I have never really stopped training; I rolled right from training for and completing the Miami Marathon into training for IM 70.3 FL, six weeks ago, then it became Ironman training exclusively.  That half iron race gave me a base to work from, but there's a lot of work to do, and that much time left to do it. 

The View from the Train:  It's a lot of time, and yet it's no time.  The first eight weeks have been a roller coaster ride.  The days are starting to blur together, a familiar pattern of short workouts during the week, with a rest day thrown in (my schedule says Monday usually, sometimes Friday), and long workouts on the weekend.  This past weekend was like a Mini-Ironman:  a 1.8 mile long open water swim, 15 miles running (over two runs) and 67 miles on the bike.  In all, about two thirds of the race over a three day period.  I am very smoked, but not injured.  During the blur of these first few weeks, it is almost like I didn't have the luxury to feel anything about it other than relentlessly dragging my rear end to one training session after another - the "just do it" mindset.  After this big weekend, and a good night's sleep I find that I can take a wider view of things and realize the whirlwind of emotion that started when I signed up is still there, it was just suppressed by discipline and physical exhaustion. 

Confidence and Fear, (at the same time):  I find myself feeling two contradictory things at the same time, yet both quite strong.  On one hand - confidence!  What a confidence booster that weekend was - makes me feel like I've got this.  On the other hand, fear!   I realize how compressed the next four months is going to be; how several weeks of disciplined effort has paid off, but is there enough time left to do the work I need to do to have the race I want to have?  All that is really nothing but fear.  I am not sure if that is even good or bad.  Confidence is good.  Overconfidence is bad.  Fear that holds you back is bad.  Fear that motivates is good.  Where's the line?  I don't know.  I do know one thing -- this train is going full speed now, and it ain't stopping until I cross that finish line on November 2; it's not even slowing down.  I will occasionally comment on the passing scenery here, and share it with friends, family, training partners.  In conclusion, I trust the wisdom of my mind and body acting together, fully awake - they've taken a look at the mountain ahead of me and said - now! now's the time to buckle down.  There is time to do the work that remains to be done,  It can be done.  I will do it.  This is going to be a hard life to live from here to Nov., like a monk or a Spartan.  Wake, Train, Work, Family Time, Sleep.  Lather, rinse, repeat 122 times = Ironman. 

If you want it you can have it, just look at me:  I am no star athlete, just an ordinary guy who happened to be gifted, not with a fantastic serve or jump shot, but strong legs and a seemingly extraordinary capacity (and willingness) to endure pain - the sport found me, if you will.  Maybe someone is wondering if they can be an Ironman and one day they will wonder if it's normal for their feelings to be all over the map.  Well, if I am normal - it is!

Day in Day Out:  What's the biggest challenge - doing the workouts day in and day out whether I feel like or it not.  A healthy fear of this race has proven to be the thing that has finally gotten me consistent like I've never been.  But guess what?  It's tiring.  Faced with the day's workout I say to myself "training?  again?  really?  didn't we just train yesterday?"  and then I am dragging my rear end into yet another workout.  Usually I feel pretty good about it after.  It mitigates the fear and feeds the confidence.

Have Goggles, will Travel:  I travel like a gypsy with various items of gear in my trunk, ready to catch a quick run or swim when my schedule opens up.  I change in my car like Clark Kent and I've gotten pretty quick and discreet about it.  I finally have begun to look at food as fuel, and crave blueberries, bananas, walnuts, lowfat yogurt, ground turkey, kale.  Don't get me wrong, Casola's Pizza is not going to go bankrupt for lack of my business while I train - (but I'll burn it off!).  I am often heading to bed before Gennifer (who's of the early to bed, early to rise persuasion, where I've always been a night owl), and getting in workouts before any of them wake up sometimes.  I am learning to be present wherever I am, to give my full attention to whatever I am doing, because I have no time to waste.

HTFU:  In sum, this process is turning me into the athlete I've always wanted to be - hardening my body- focusing my mind - but be careful what you wish for.  Working out six days a week is NO JOKE.  Then you do it again.  But I can already see that I'm getting "gears" I've never had.  You can't mentally "tough" out 140.6 miles with a body that's not ready.  Mental toughness without physical fitness = the medical tent.  But I know I will do this task - with a tough mind and fit body.

Is it worth it?  I expect it is; I do know these hundreds of dollars and hours I am spending on this are not merely directed to acquire a piece of metal and a memory.  I hope and expect that a different person will wake up early on Sunday Nov. 3 to buy a finisher jacket.  An Ironman, who knows something new about himself, by going to and through some pretty dark places inside and nevertheless seeing it through, with relentless forward motion, one stroke, one pedal and one step at a time, who knows, from experience, that "Anything is Possible!"  It will have been worth it. 

Good Tired

After a solid week of training capped off by a long open water swim Friday evening, a long run Saturday morning at a good clip, and a long bike/short run on Sunday morning, I feel generally tired all over (mitigated by a good night's sleep last night) but not sore or injured, and I'm mostly happy and confident from having completed another weekend of training.  Trust the process:  others have done this before and codified what I need to do in a plan -- if I keep adding eggs and milk and sugar at the right time and in the right amounts, I have to trust that the recipe will turn out!  A friend shared with me "train now, find the motivation later."  That's about right.  Got to drag myself out of bed and get to the session, and then I'm glad to have done it.  What is really going to make this fearful is if I shuck the training or half step it.  I feel very strongly this cannot be "winged."  I know this is going to hurt and at times even be miserable, but I can control how well trained I am to face it.

Riding That Train....Triathlon is the Fountain of Youth

Riding that Train:  Signing up for Ironman Florida 2013 was like buying a train ticket.  The months that followed were full of a mixture of excitement, fear and other emotions swirling around the fact that I have irrevocably committed to undertake the hardest challenge of my amateur racing career.  Like standing on the platform, watching the trains, being excited to take a ride.  And I had a lot to say about those feelings.  Well, I am on the train now, and there's less to say, but lots to do.  I am working out six days a week, going to bed earlier than I ever have, losing weight (10 lbs.) and slowly building the foundation that will take me through to the finish line in November.  So now that the train has left the station and the scenery is whizzing by (20 weeks to go), there's not as much to say.  Just training hard, trying to stay healthy, and I am pretty much tired, hungry and sore all the time.

Becoming Fitter than Your Younger Self - Triathlon is the Fountain of Youth:  People would be less inclined to call us "crazy" if they knew how fun it was to get better at something physical as you get older.  My friends that do this loco stuff all look 10 years younger than they are, too.  Keep that a secret, or we'll never get into a big race again!  I am much fitter than my 43 year old self!  What prompted that thought was...

EZ Heart Rate 10K Run Today, Alternatively known as 2010 10K Race Pace Run!:  After my 6.2 mile (10K) run this morning at a nice 10:09 clip in Heart Rate Zone 2 (aerobic), for a total time of 1:02:40, driving home I reflected that relatively easy run was faster than my first three 10K races in 2009-2010, that I flat out raced, in Heart Rate Zones 4-5 (anaerobic)!  In fact, I did not break 1 hour for the first time in a 10K until November 2010 at the Turkey Trot, again going flat out.  So, that was encouraging.  This is a year when I have not been racing much, more like going long, building a foundation, but I do have fears that the lack of racing is making me slower.  Not so.  But I think I am going to run a July 4 5K just to see what I've got in the tank!

Photos from Ironman 70.3 FL

Gear laid out!

The finish line and Ironman Village the day before.  Calm before the storm.

Racked in transition

Pre-race with friends and teammates.

The scence at IM village during the race.

Just finished!

 Mom and Dad came and visited my loco world!

Team Hammerheads won a team prize!

Here's the prize

Ironman 70.3 Florida Race Report

Sunday May 19, 2013, I raced and finished Ironman 70.3 in Central Florida.  Official time - 7:09.  The numbers don't tell the tale.  I ran my first 4 half irons all under 7.  Yesterday, though, for me was not about time, it was about survival.  The temperature rose to 98 degrees on the run, and I quickly gave up any notion of gunning for time; I just wanted to finish. 

Prerace:  I had no problems arriving in Haines City, checking in and racking my bike.  I went back to the hotel and did a quick 55 minute warmup in all 3 disciplines - 15 min swim, 30 min bike, 10 minute run.  Pasta and shrimp for dinner and early to bed. 

Race day:  No problem getting to the race site and setting up transition.  Checked the tires and went down to the beach of Lake Eva for the swim start.

The race;  The open water swim took place in Lake Eva, which was murky, but that didn't matter at least to me.  I sight above water anyway.  I had no real issues - out of the water in 46 minutes feeling fine.  On to the bike around rural Polk County.  It was hilly, but not too bad.  I tried to save some leg strength for the run, and the downhills give a nice rest from the uphills.  Off the bike and into the running shoes, and that's where it got ugly.  You run 3 4.4 mile loops around Lake Eva, and there are two big hills in the first mile.  With tired legs from the bike already a limiter, the heat coming off the road was nearly 100 degrees.  It was all I could do to plod through it.  My splits show me going 12 something on the first loop, 13 something on the second, and 14 something on the last one.  And I can run 9 minute miles over a standalone half!    My mind kept dialing up my body and ordering up some more speed, and my body just wouldn't do it! 

The good news is that the execution of the race was smooth and flawless - I had no injuries, no cramping, no flats, crashes or other bike issues.  That was my secondary goal, and that was achieved.  In previous half iron races, I have had trouble with cramping on the run leg, but I think the hydration/nutrition plan kept me out of trouble this time.  Namely, I took in enough nutrition and fluids on the bike leg to get me through the run.  I've had bike issues in two Olympic triathlons - a crash in Nautica 2012 and a flat in Nautica 2013, but knock on wood, not in a half, and that held true for this race.

I knew that my primary goal of beating my time from last year (6:35) was dependent on course conditions and might not be feasible.   My reason for doing this was to set the baseline for the beginning of Ironman training.  In that regard, it was a bit of a wakeup call.  However, my second goal, to run a flawless race (technically), meaning no injuries or cramps, a disciplined nutrition plan, and no bike issues (flats, crashes or otherwise), was accomplished just fine.  More time racing = more experience that will be useful in November.

There is a lot of work to do. 

A Journey of 140.6 miles ....

officially begins with a single step, or in my case a single swim workout, on May 6, 2013. 

When the Iron Year began, I calendared Monday, May 6 2013 as the Day One of training for the actual Ironman Race.  That's because it is 26 weeks out and not only is that symbolically important as a half of a year, or six months, but also it was the duration of the training plan I had planned to use, Gail Bernhard's "26 weeks to an Ironman" in her book Training Plans for Multisport Athletes. 

As the event approaches, I have come across other plans of 30 weeks and 24 weeks.  I may use elements of all three, so 26 weeks is arbitrary.  Another couple of  reasons it is kind of arbitrary are 1) that I have been training up to this point, so it's not like I am actually "starting" to train as such, just more like designating a day to be day one, and 2) these early weeks of all three plans are base building, relatively low intensity work to build the aerobic system, and finally 3) I actually have a race on May 19, Ironman Florida 70.3.  That Monday, May 20, 2013, I will be 24 weeks out with no major races (except one Olympic) between then and November. 

But me being who I am, I need to announce an official "Day One" of Ironman training, and I like the symmetry of a half year, so - there it is - Ironman training is officially underway (actually week one is complete, this is the first day of Week 2).  The base building of weeks 2 and 3 will dovetail nicely with "tapering" for IM 70.3 Florida this week, and "recovering" from it next week. 

NOTHING TO IT BUT TO DO IT!

Time to do it.

The big race is 191 days away.  I am basically now in the early stages of training.  After having written down so much about what I think and how I feel about this challenge, it is now time actually to undertake it.  It's a different feeling.  My focus is shifting toward "do the training."  Do the training and the result will happen.  Wake up early, get it in before the day's demands kick in.  Get in 45 minutes at lunch.  Get in :30 after work, get in an hour on the trainer or in the pool before bed.  With all these windows open, just get it done, preferably first thing.  And do the training every day whether I feel like it or not.  I have been too hit or miss on weekdays, counting on my "long" weekend workouts to get me across the finish line.  That ain't gonna cut it for IM; no way to bluff it across 140.6 miles with mental toughness subbing in for consistent disciplined training.

Also part of my training plan is to minimize stress:  stay organized, manage time, keep life in order on all fronts. 

 

Climbing the ladder - toward the 70.3

The sprint tri on March 17, 2575 Miami (Ft. Lauderdale, really) went well, a pleasant way to get back into racing mode.  Next up was an Olympic tri, Nautica South Beach International Distance.  That race went fine.  Of note, the ocean swim was very choppy this year, unlike the smooth nice swim in the same race last year.  More importantly, I was compelled to change a flat in race conditions, right after the swim.  That was not pleasant.  I had only had to do this twice before, during group rides, but never during a race.  I did get up and riding and finished.  Of course, my time wasn't great, but if you subtract the tire change, it wasn't bad. 

Next up in the future is Haines City, In part it is one of my goal races and in part it is a training exercise for the full in November.  Call it a B+/A- race to IM being the A race.

After that, I will be doing one more Olympic in September as a tuneup and I might add one sprint in the summer, perhaps a Triathlon Trilogy race.  This year is much more about training.  It's a switch from my typical pattern of doing lots of racing and using races as my speed workouts.  It is going to require more discipline this way.

My key discipline focuses for now - weekday consistency, and a clean diet.  I am good with getting long workouts in on the weekends, but I've got to nail down the weekdays much better.  I also want to drop 10-15 pounds before the training gets too intense (and I will be needing to eat lots of calories).

Warming up at the sprint on Ft. Lauderdale Beach - RA!!!! Says it all about my love of the game.

Getting back in gear - dusting off the racing spurs.

This blog and the life associated with it have been absorbed by "trial mode" through most of February.  The six day trial ended two weeks ago today.  Since then, I am slowly but surely returning to my regularly scheduled life, including family, training, and even other cases at work!

I had a big training weekend following the trial:  A 1K swim on Friday and 7 mile bike ride, an 8 mile run on Saturday, and a 60-mile bike ride on Sunday.  (For those keeping score at home that was my longest ride - previously that had been the 56 mile bike legs of my 4 half iron triathlons and a couple of training rides at that distance).  Anyway, all that went a long way toward clearing the decks of stress and sleepless nights.  It was also a positive sign that I have not turned to jelly!

On that note, next Sunday, I am kicking off the 2013 tri season with a sprint - the "Miami' 2575, which is now being held in Fort Lauderdale because the venue of Key Biscayne is beyond messed up (long story).   Linky - http://2575miami.com/

2575 means 25.75 kilometers of racing in total, exactly half of the standard olympic 51.5K (at that distance, there is also a series called 5150-it's the same idea). 

The breakdown is 750m swim (just under a half mile), 20K bike (12.4 mi) and 5K run (3.1 mi).  Compared to the endurance slog of a half iron or iron race, at these short distances you can pretty much go all out the whole way, hence "sprint."

Looking forward to stepping on that starting line.  I will be doing a lot fewer races this year (because of that "biggie" of IMFL) in Nov., and I love to race, so I am going to really enjoy each one. 

If..., by Rudyard Kipling

This poem has some great comments about staying calm and mentally tough through all the challenges of life and work, and deriving one's satisfaction and self-esteem from within rather than from external circumstances.  The first and last verses are famous... which is why I looked it up. 

What struck me when I read it again is the entire sixth stanza, beginning with "If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew/ to serve their turn long after they are gone" and the first two verses of the last, together comprise the most accurate and poetic description I have read of how I (and I am sure, others) feel in the final six miles of a marathon or half-ironman.  Here's the entire poem, enjoy:


If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too:

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim,
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss:

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a man, my son!

The discipling of training for and completing endurance races over long distances is an exercise in mental toughness that cannot help but make one better able to face up to all the other challenges of life as well.