Peaking

If you are an athlete, especially and endurance athlete, you know what it means to be "peaking." I'm there. Tough part is not doing too much before taper. I've made that mistake before. I won't repeat it. I had a solid track workout tonight after smashing out a solid 4k in the pool this morning. I have a decent weekend scheduled, but nothing over the top. I will enter into taper next week. Because I'm still over 3 months out from Canada, I'm primarily going to be racing on base miles with one training block that included more intervals. That being said, I'm there. Not where I will be in 3 months, but where I wanted to be for this upcoming race. I had a smile on my face all day. Time to get some rest. I've been battling a cold I picked up Monday so today was my first outdoor workout. I've been sleeping a ton and avoiding the outdoors as much as possible as it has been cold and rainy. I'm feeling near 100% today and as I mentioned earlier, I'm definitely peaking from a fitness perspective. It's a great feeling. Thanks for reading,

-T

Hagg Lake Swim

Another race in the books. This past weekend flew by. Saturday was another big day of training, including a solid long run for me. I woke up early Sunday to drive out to a friend's house to hop on our bikes. Our plan was to ride from his house in Sherwood out to Hagg Lake for an open water swim that the 3 of us were registered in. It was just under 35 miles each way from the lake. We set out for our ride before 7:30am and before I knew it we were pulling into the lake. We had a great ride out, and were now ready to jump into the lake for a long swim.

There were three distances to pick from at the lake swim. We were doing the longest distance, a 4k which is just over the Ironman distance of the swim at 2.5 miles. My Dad and Mom came out as well as my Dad was swimming in the race. My buddies, Jer and Josh were there two. I pulled on my new Xterra wetsuit and made my way down to the lake. It was freezing!! Race director said he recorded the temp at 64. A friend of my father that was out swimming out there last weekend recorded a temp of 54. My guess was it was somewhere in between. Either way, it was incredibly cold. My goal was to stick with Jer for as long as I could.

The countdown commenced and before I knew it we were off. I quickly jumped to Jer's feet and stayed there to around the first buoy. He was just too strong for me that day. I hadn't been swimming a lot so I was really looking at this race to boost my swim training and test my fitness. My goal was mid 50's for my time. I went a 55:07 at IMAZ, and we figured the 4k was about 2 minutes slower based on distance. Well, I think the triple the day before and the ride out took it out of me a little bit as I struggled to keep feet that I know I would normally stay with. As I started the second of two loops, I figured I was in about 7th place or so. I started to gain speed and strength and passed an athlete. As I continued on the second loop I just started to wear down. I chalk this up to the lack of swim training last few months. I tried to finish as strong as I could, but got passed by a few athletes the last 10 minutes. I finished in 58 something. Which, if the course was accurate, after subtracting time to equal the Ironman distance, would put me right about where I came out at Arizona. I'm ok with this!

Jer came in 3rd, not sure about Josh, but believe he was two minutes ahead of me. My Dad had a good race as well after overcoming the cold shock of the water! In fact, the cold affected most of us as we struggled with cramps. My other two friends that I rode over with finished strong and both had respectable times. Well, we grabbed a few burgers and hopped back on our bikes and rode the 34 miles back to Sherwood. My day was done! This is my final week of tough work before entering into taper for Boise. Can't wait!! Here are some pics from this past week...

My pre race (night before) meal. Man I love pizza

Not enough body glide on the neck resulted in some new nicknames at work. How about Bolt?

This cute little guy was waiting on my BBQ when I went to grill up a buffalo burger

Thanks for reading!!

-T

Coming together

Over the past few month or so I was seriously doubting my training program. I had been very diligent about my base build up and here it was, late April/early May and I felt slow. I also felt like I was still carrying a few extra lbs that I should havealready lost. But then I had the Eugene 1/2. Although the race didn't live up to my pre race time goals, I was dealt a tough card and was able to still put forth a solid effort with a very compromised airway. That gave me some confidence, maybe I knew what I was doing all along?

Fast forward to today. After multiple 40+ mileage run weeks recently and consistent high volume bike mileage the past few months...well, I was starting to feel pretty fit. I went out this morning with Meg for a run. I had 14 on the docket and she had 7. Now let me be very clear about one thing...this was to be Meg's longest run in almost 2 years. This poor girl has dealt with all kinds of injuries to get back to running! She was doing so well that she said she wanted to run a 1/2 on July 4th. I broke open the computer and set her up with a training plan. Today was a big day for her. There was a point after a couple hundred feet of uphill that I put my arm on her back and smiled at her. I was so proud of her at the moment. For never giving up when so many people would have. She is a trooper. She turned and smiled at me and asked me what was up. I looked away and wiped my eyes so she wouldn't see me crying and looked back and said, "I just love you."

Anyways...sorry...as usual I digress! So I turned around with Meg half way through and then went back for seconds. I took off man. I was feeling so good. The first mile is uphill. 7:55. The second mile is slightly uphill, but levels out: 7:45. Third mile: 7:27. Fourth: 8:02 (not sure what happened there?). Fifth: 6:59. Sixth: 7:15. Seventh: 8:16 (cool down). Overall pace for the second half of the run was 7:34. The best part was my average hr for that 7 mile portion was 150. For me to average 7:30s at a controlled HR of 150 for the last 7 miles of a 14 mile run in the mud, gravel, and rolling hills of Forest Park...that tells me I'm fit. I polished the day off with a swim workout and later I spun out the legs on the trainer. To put this in perspective, I was running a little over 20 seconds per mile slower than I averaged at the Eugene 1/2 on a muddy course in the middle of a big training block, at nowhere near the effort I put in at Eugene. This makes Trevor very happy! One of my goals that I have for Boise is to try and put together a run in the same time area as the Eugene 1/2. This will be tough after the 1.2 mile swim and 56 mile bike, but I'm feeling very good as the event gets closer.

Tomorrow should be fun. I'm riding out to Hagg Lake with some friends. 35 mile ride out. Then we are competing in a 4k open water swim. Then we are getting back on our bikes and riding back. I'll be interested to see how I do in the swim. I'm definitely not quite race ready in the pool, but I'm getting closer. Overall, I'm no longer doubting my plan. I set it up for a reason and, as the title of this post states, it's coming together. The great news is my plan has my truly peaking in August for Ironman. Boise in 3 weeks will be great, but my fitness will be even better in 3 months up in Canada. Thanks for reading :)

-T

Passing the torch

Role models are important in life. Since as far back as I can remember, my parents have been mine. They are the most amazing, loving, considerate, successful, and gracious people I know (well maybe a tie with Meg!). I am lucky to have them in my life. I mentioned successful, but don't know if that term does justice to what they have accomplished and continue to accomplish. This past weekend Meg and I had the pleasure to spend some time with them and toast my Mom's recent success...let's just say I will soon have two Dr.'s for parents!! That and a lawyer for a wife...man everyone is smarter than me!! Anyways, I digress. 3+ years ago I decided to change my life. I was overweight and unhappy. I had been successful at work, but my previous success in athletics was a distant memory. In fact, you would have not been able to guess based on my appearance.

Why triathlon? Well, I blame my Dad!! Just kidding, but the fact I was a former swimmer and loved my bike helped. Couple that with my Dad's history of Ironman and I figured I would train for my first triathlon. 3 years later I'm eying my fourth season of triathlon racing, training for a few milestones at the half Ironman and Ironman distance this summer. This includes racing on the course that my father tore up back in the day. This past weekend we were able to spend some time together on the bike. Actually, about 4 hours :) You can't imagine what it means to each of us to be able to do things like go on 4 hour rides together. People, this main is old enough to collect social security yet is still an animal on the bike! It was great to reflect on his past experiences and my training/racing.

As the summer season approaches and Boise and Canada continue to get closer, I'm reminded of why I push myself so hard. There are a few reasons, but the main reason is my desire to be the best I can at all I do, athletics included. That being said, having a role model that has been involved in Ironman at an elite level is wonderful, because Ironman has a dark side as well. My role model keeps me focused on putting in my tough training blocks, but also is instrumental in making sure I dial it back when needed. Next month when I'm struggling through the run portion of Boise trying to keep my pace down so I can reach my goal, I'm going to think about this past weekend. My Dad can still kick some ass on the bike, but the torch has been passed. The best part about this is, the torch is still glowing very bright and he will always be there to help me keep it lit. Some pictures below from our ride together to celebrate his birthday.

This past week was great. I ended up at 202 miles on the bike and 40 miles run. I backed off my run on Sunday by a few miles due to fatigue in general. I'm feeling much better today and just got my 1 hour track session done on the treadmill. Hope everyone is happy and healthy,

-T

Triple Play!

I had yesterday and today off from work. Prior to heading to the coast for the weekend, it was time to test my fitness a little. Yesterday was the big day. Early morning 3k swim and then home to change into cycling clothes. Out the door for a 4 hour ride. The ride was done at a mostly aerobic rate, with a big effort on a 25 minute climb. I felt great great on the bike. Back home and time for some grub and chill time before throwing on the running clothes. Normally I would just run right after the bike, but I was going to run with a few friends and they couldn't start until later. Plus it was nice to have a break! I ran down to where I met them and then we went off for a 7 mile run. The pace was good, around 7:45 and it didn't feel too hard despite the tough day. Overall I was able to get in 11 miles.

I woke up today feeling pretty good actually. I was quite tired, but that was it. Legs didn't feel incredibly slow. Today called for a long ride, originally targeted for 5 hours. Due to time constraints and some flats, I went 4 hours. I felt ok during the ride, not great, but ok. Boise is a month away and I'm feeling quite good with where my fitness is. I will end up over 200 miles on the bike this week and close to 45 run miles. The next few weeks will include a fair amount of intensity while maintaining some good volume. I've decided to skip the Duck Bill next week to participate in a 4k open water swim instead. My swimming is not where it needs to be yet, so the extra swim workout that week will be good. Plus we are riding to and from the race so I'll get in 65 miles of cycling with a 2.5 mile swim sandwiched in between! Thanks for reading,

-T

Final Build

As Boise 70.3 nears, I have one final training block to get in before racing. This will include some heavy miles and some good intensity. I'm very much looking forward to pushing my body and ensuring that I enter into taper at peak fitness. I'll keep this post short as I've been extremely busy with work and life lately. On a side note, I would not recommend two glasses of wine prior to an evening run. The 5 miler tonight was brutal.

Some pictures from this past weekend...

My lady...aka "the cheese lady" winning some prizes at the Beaver's baseball game!!

Columbia Gorge at Crown Point looking west

Pops and I rode out to Multnomah Falls


Blurry camera picture of the bottom of the falls.

Had another great ride with my dad last weekend as you can see above. I'm blessed to be able to do these kind of things with my father. On top of that, Meg has been able to run more lately and we are getting in a decent amount of runs together again!! Life is good. More to come. Thanks for reading,

-T

Moving forward

What a hectic week. For numerous reasons. It is now Wednesday night and I'm sitting in another hotel room (3rd of the week so far) about to fall asleep. I'm pretty exhausted. Not from training, because this week is a recovery week for me, but just life. I had to hop in my car and drive 4 hours post half marathon on Sunday which gave me a lot of time to reflect on my race. As I mentioned previously, it was not the race I wanted, but it doesn't really matter. My race is August 31, 2010 in Canada. So how to move forward from a disappointing race? That's what I've been dealt with this week.

Luckily, I've been distracted by work. That helps make it easier. Also, I still had a good race, just not what I wanted. Moving forward though is a tough thing. Endurance racing is not something you just forget the next day. Whether it is an Ironman you have tapered for and spent months preparing for or a 1/2 marathon you jumped into to work on a few items...you dwell on the race after. It's just what happens. Until, that is, you start to focus on the next challenge. And I love challenges!! The next challenge is Boise. I have a couple key workouts next week that will help provide me with a barometer of my fitness level...I'm so looking forward to those workouts!! Beyond that I have a heavy 4 week block of training that will take me into a short taper for the event.

I feel like my bike is where it needs to be and when healthy my run is where it needs to be. I need to really bang out the swim the next 6 weeks as I have neglected it the past 2 months, but I'm not overly concerned with this. The next 6 weeks will help prepare me for a solid 12 week cycle leading into Canada. That is my ultimate challenge. The challenge? Well, I've set a few goals. I'm not willing to share all of them yet, but let's say I want to ride to my ability at IMC without overly exerting myself. I also want to run a quality marathon...something within the neighborhood of my current open marathon PR. And finally, well...there is a certain family record in Canada that I want to take a run at. It will involve me shaving 53 minutes off of my time at IMAZ. Time to move forward.

-T

Eugene Half Marathon

Today marks the one year anniversary of my first marathon. It also marks the one year anniversary of the proposal at the finish line :) I've been looking forward to doing the half this year for quite some time. Last year I had the proposal at the finish line to fret over and I also had to race sick. I struggled my way to a 3:33. Well, today I didn't have a proposal to make at the finish, was fitter, and wasn't sick per se. Unfortunately, I was still recovering from a sinus infection so I knew my asthma wasn't going to be great.

Unlike last year I did not taper for this race. My big race this year is Ironman Canada in August. I was using this race as an opportunity to work on some speed and pacing for Boise 70.3 Ironman in June. So I toed the line this morning during the middle of a build up to Boise that had me somewhat beat up, but feeling ready to race. Well, I messed this up right away. My buddy Jer and I were hitting the restrooms right before the start so I wasn't able to get towards the front of the back before the gun went off. I should have run up along the side and then hopped the fence right before the start line. Instead I tried to make my way through the 7,000 people towards the front. No luck...I started with the 10 minute per mile pacer.



Holy cow. What an ordeal. I didn't even start moving until almost a minute after the race started. Damn, this was going to suck. Within the first 2 miles I must have passed 2,000 people. I was so frustrated. I was zig zagging all over. Running along sidewalks, grass, etc. My goal going into this race was to go sub 1:30, I had my sights set on 1:28:30. The plan was to go first 4 miles at 7min/mile pace, middle four at 6:45, and final 5 sub 6:45 if feeling good. My splits are below

Mile 1: 7:05
Mile 2: 7:00
Mile 3: 7:05
Mile 4: 6:55
Mile 5: 7:06 *hill*
Mile 6: 6:51
Mile 7: 6:54
Mile 8: 7:08
Mile 9: 7:28 *hill*
Mile 10: 7:08
Mile 11: 7:07
Mile 12: 7:08
Mile 13: 7:10

By mile 4 I knew my race was over. I had not fully recovered from my sinus infection and could tell I was in trouble with my asthma as a result. My chest cavity got so tight, it was like...well you ever been in a wetsuit that is too tight? Makes it hard to breathe? It was kind of like that, but then imagine that feeling but you are at altitude so it feels like each breathe is half what it should be to begin with. That is the best way I could describe how hard it was to breathe today. My chest burned. I tried to stick to the plan and put in a few decent miles at sub 7. I saw my fiance and family just before 8 miles and was hurting so bad I was worried I wouldn't be able to finish. I thought about just throwing in the towel and walking on in with them, but then figured what the hell, why not just try to find a pace that I can deal with and work on my mental/run toughness. I made it up the fairly decent hill you get at mile 8.5 and settled into somewhere around 7:10 pace.

The last 4 miles went by quick enough. I tried to pick it up multiple times, but it was useless. My airway was so inflamed, I didn't have a chance. This year the finish took place at Hayward Field, which is awesome!! Unfortunately, I was so frustrated with the race I didn't really get to enjoy it. Shame on me, there are things in the life that you can feel sorry about, but being able to race for fun shouldn't be one of them. That being said, I was still pretty down. I crossed the line in 1:33:15. A PR for me, but almost 5 minutes slower than I wanted, and knew I was capable of today. I figure if I had started nearer the start and not had to expend so much energy running around and through people I probably could have delayed the asthma issue and would have been around 2 minutes faster or so. Just a guess, but who really knows. These are what ifs anyways. It doesn't really matter. What matters is what you learn from this tough races. Here is what I learned and will take away:

* I'm much fitter than last year. To be able to hold 7 minute miles on a damaged airway is something I definitely could not do last year.
* I felt very comfortable running at 7 min pace for my half marathon despite the airway and during a high mileage week without rest.
* I now can settle into a pace and hold it for miles at a time, regardless of pain, terrain, etc.
* Despite where I am, I still have a lot of room for improvement. Rather than what you might think, this is a good thing!
* I have done no speed work yet this year, only two other road races, so I'm looking forward to seeing my pace drop as I incorporate more track sessions into my training.

My buddy Jer found me at the finish. He had dominated...a 1:25!! I was really happy for him. Glad one of us left there under our goal :) I walked over and found my family. Big hug to Meg and the day was complete. Yes, that means no medical. I guess I should add that to my positives on the take aways...I know when to throttle back when my asthma is that bad :) Thanks to everyone for the positive messages, cheering, texts, etc. I look forward to giving this time a run for it's money next month in Boise!! Thanks for reading,

Final Results:
Total Time: 1:33:15
155th place out of 4058

-T