Mercedes Half Marathon RR

Feb 6 - Feb 12

S:  14,800 yds - 3hr 42min
B:  71.06 mi - 4hr 33min
R:  52.26 mi - 6hr 26min
Total:  14hr 41min

Biggest run week ever...that about sums it up.  And it all culminated with Mercedes Half Marathon on Sunday.  As this clearly wasn't a race that I was trying to rest up for, I didn't quite know what to expect in terms of how my legs would handle it and what kind of pace I would be able to sustain.  That being said, the game plan was to go out the first 3ish miles at a semi-conservative yet still pretty quick pace, try to pick it up a little bit in the middle portion of the race, and then really crank it up if possible for the last ~5k.  Well, this is how it unfolded.  It went pretty much exactly according to plan, which is of course always a good thing  In hindsight, I might could have gone out a little bit harder...but I knew I wanted to be more cautious than aggressive for the first couple miles.  All things considered, it was a good early season performance indicator and I'm pretty encouraged about the upcoming season! 

Random Thoughts
The past couple of months of running have been lots of mileage, but almost exclusively at an aerobic pace (with the exception of some short fartlek type efforts).  Even though I haven't been doing very much fast running, it was still possible to run a fast half marathon.  And by fast I mean something fast relative to what the majority of my training has been at.  This should speak volumes to the benefits of 1) what building an aerobic base can do for you and 2) the benefits that you get from having your body make specific adaptations to high run mileage (running economy, etc).  It seems as if there are always arguments against high run mileage, like "you'll get injured" or "your time is better spent elsewhere."  As with anything in life, it is an opportunity cost problem.  At some point, maybe you do reach diminishing returns or the risk of injury is too high.  But the general idea that you can get faster at running off of less running is contrary to, well, everything.  If you want to get good at something (traithlon, playing the guitar, solving math problems, etc) then doing more of it is the way to go, isn't it?  Sure, you can improve as a runner off of limited mileage, but the flaw in that analysis is that you should be comparing to what you could have done if you had run bigger miles, not what you have previously been doing.  Of course it's a little more complicated for triathletes because of the whole 3 sport thing, but in general I think that people have been conned into thinking that running a lot is bad for you!

Week Six

Jan 30 - Feb 5

S:  16,000 yds - 3hr 43min
B:  114.73 mi - 7hr 19min (10,048 ft of climbing)
R:  45.83 mi - 5hr 55min
Total:  16hr 57min

Highlight of the week was buying a new car (08 4runner).  Besides that, it was another awesome week of training!  Lots of running and swimming, and it's feeling good.  For the first time in awhile, I was able to ride outside for all 4 rides, culminating in yesterday's ride in perfect sunny 60 degree weather.  Mark Fisher and I went roaming around Vestavia and Hoover to find some hills, with much success:

Grindin'

Jan 23 - Jan 29

S:  15,350 yds - 3hr 43min
B:  118.37 mi - 7hr 1min
R:  43.90 mi - 5hr 40min
Total:  16hr 24min

Whew.  Slight increases in swim/run volume with an increase in intensity across the board.  I'm finally getting into a routine here, which as anyone knows is key to getting quality work done.  After not getting a lot of sleep lately, I felt as if I was digging myself a hole that I couldn't get out of, but after finally getting 8 hours of sleep the last 3 nights, I finally feel like I'm myself again.  Running is feeling good...hopefully I can produce a decent time at Mercedes Half Marathon in 2 weeks.  I haven't ran 13.1 miles in...errr...since this time last year...so hopefully I can handle it!   

Jan 16 - Jan 22

S:  15,200 yds - 3h 50min
B:  117.31 mi - 7h 2min
R:  41.06 mi - 5h 15min
Total:  16h 7min

Another week, another solid set of deposits into the bank.  All 3 are going good, especially running.  It really is amazing what the human body can adapt to on the fly and what you can handle as a base training load.  It is also worth noting that necessary to adaptation is getting enough sleep to allow ample recovery time.  So, due to LIFE getting in the way, I'm a bit more tired than I should be after this week; but that's ok, I wouldn't have it any other way!

Why?

It’s the question that I have been asked a zillion times.  Why do you train so much?  Why do you wake up early so often?  Are you crazy?  Is that really fun?  Why do you put yourself through that?  Honestly, I’ve always had an answer to these questions, but after thinking about it some over the winter I realized that there are more reasons than I originally thought!

Why do you play the game?  At least for me,  the primary reason is competition, or to win.  Whether it was playing church league basketball or little league baseball growing up, flag football or rowing in college, or road races and triathlons post college, the goal for me is and always has been to win.  That is what I want to do.  It is fun.  Another thought is this: as much as it sucks to lose, if I know (emphasis on "know") I pushed myself to the limit and still lost, then I’m OK with that.  Some people aren't.  That doesn’t mean that I am happy by any means, but at some point you have to get over it and move on to the next task, using anything you can as a source of motivation.  Over the years, I have came to realize that competition is necessary for me to do what I do and train how I train, but it is not sufficient.  In other words, if you took the competition out of triathlon or any other endurance sport, it would have no interest to me.  But having the competition is not enough in itself; if it quits being fun, then I would lose interest as well.

You may not think so, but the daily grind of training really is fun.  It's really a lifestyle, not just a chore-list of workouts you have to do each day.  I mean, no one likes chores, right?  Now, this may be hard to understand, but it really is true.  Why else would we do it?  Why do 30 people show up on MWF at 5:10 am to swim with the Birmingham Swim League master's group?  It's not because we have to...it's because we want to.  It really is hard to describe the exhilarating feeling that you get on a bicycle while bombing down a hill going 50 mph.  Or spontaneously slamming the pedals and taking off up that same hill and having an ad hoc race against your best friend.  While you are bitter enemies during those few minutes, you get to the top and laugh between gasping breaths about how much fun it was.  Or that rush you get in a race when, for a short period of time, you are running as hard as you can and there is no pain.  Or the sense of accomplishment you get after completing an epic training ride or run or race or season.  There is just something to be said about logging hours; just you and the open road, giving you time to think, ponder, listen to good music, sweat, and just get work done.  It makes you feel alive.

Nothing really compares to the scenery that you encounter over the years on your bike or in your runners...like biking up a challenging mountain and then treating yourself to the amazing view at the top, or running some dirt road in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees, birds, and the occasional squirrel or deer.  Or climbing up Smyer Road and riding across the bluff of Shades Mountain RIGHT at sunset…anyone that has lived in Birmingham for awhile knows how awesome this is!  Romans 1:20 says, “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky.  Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature.  So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”  For me, it’s clear to look at all that I see and come to the conclusion that He made it all, that no one else could have done it except for Him.  It’s almost like my own little worship session; being in awe of creation.

For obvious reasons, doing exercise is good for you…as opposed to sitting on the couch and eating potato chips all day.  Now, we won’t get into the fact that you might twist your ankle while running, hurt your shoulder swimming, or wreck your bike…but those are inherent risks that are assumed and that are all around us anyways.  Also, the social side of endurance sports is there just like anything else…you get to meet people, hang out, fellowship, do life…it’s like what anyone else does with their friends…it’s fun.

Now the old saying goes, “limits are made to be broken.”   What is less boring: to be challenged and put out of your comfort zone, or to easily repeat the same task over and over again?  This question could have many different mediums, whether it be school, work, sport, or life in general.  Why do people challenge themselves?  Why do people set New Year’s resolutions every year?  Is it to challenge themselves to be a better person?  Is it because testing and challenging one’s self is ingrained in the human nature?  Do YOU know what you are capable of?  Do you want to know?  I still don't know what I'm capable of in the future, but I do know that what I'm capable of now dwarfs what I thought I was capable of 4 years ago.  The only way to find out is to go for it.  In triathlon, the athlete is very familiar with the words “test” and “challenge”.  To race at the highest level, not only is the day to day routine challenging, but putting together an entire season is even more demanding.  If it’s so demanding, then why do it?  As with any trade-off analysis, the reason why anything is done is because the pros outweigh the cons, the good outweighs the bad.  It’s hard to describe the feeling you get after winning a race.  It’s also hard to describe the feeling you get after just barely finishing a race that you thought there was NO WAY you were going to be able to finish, but somehow, miraculously, you went blatantly beyond any “limit” that you thought you had.  It’s a sense of accomplishment and a sense of knowing what you can actually do, because you actually did it. 

So, in the end, it’s a number of reasons that lead me to do what I do, and I'm sure I left some out.  These reasons are all related or intertwined in some way, and they each have their place.  If it doesn’t make sense, then don’t worry about it. 

0 12

2012 brings a new year and a new approach to my triathlon adventure  Pops always said, "you play how you practice", and it's no mystery on what it is that I need to do; become a fish, become a Kenyan, and keep on bikin'.  3 weeks in and some holidays and pretty good weather opened the door for some big hours compared to what I'm used to.  I've never really touched much more than 30-35 miles/week running (or 17 hr weeks for that matter), and I've been a bit surprised at how I've handled it because I was definitely a little doubtful at first.  I think the key here is using frequency to get in big hours without letting any one particular workout trash you for the next day or two, with the exception of yesterday's Birmingham Bike League 4 hour death march...I couldn't move for the next 4 hours!  In hindsight, it probably wasn't the best thing to do because it pretty much trashed the rest of the day, but it was totally worth it!  For me, having fun is and always will be a corequisite of racing.  Sometimes it's worth pushing back that run until sunset! 

Dec 26 - Jan 1
S:  10,800 yds - 2h 46min
B:  154.95 mi - 10h 1min
R:  33.52 mi - 4h 29 min
Total:  17h 16min

Jan 2 - Jan 8
 S:  14,050 yds - 3h 23min
 B:  152.22 mi - 9h 11min
 R:  38.15 mi - 5h 0min
 Total:  17h 34min

Jan 9 - Jan 15
S:  14,650 yds - 3h 41min
B:  152.22 mi - 8h 32min
R:  40.25 mi - 5h 10min
Total:  17h 24min

Best of the U.S. Amateur Championship Race Report

This really is a good way to analyze learn from a race...re-hash it play by play...

Beach!  I kind of decided to replace Age Group Nationals with Best of the U.S. after winning Buster this year because 1. I don't feel like traveling to Vermont and 2. beach trip, duh!!  So with this reasoning in mind, I've been getting ready to race at the Best of the U.S. Amateur Triathlete Competition since around mid June.  This race is farmed out each year to an existing race around the country, and this year it just so happened to be held at Team Magic's Alabama Coastal Triathlon in Gulf Shores, AL, which I have never raced before but have heard excellent things about.  Race participants for BOUS were low this year (short course and 70.3 Worlds on the same weekend); there were only 15 males that were entered in to the race.  Here's how it unfolded...

Pre-race
"get going"
Arise at 4:30am and...COFFEE!  Seriously though, it's a legal performance enhancing drug.  Starbucks Costa Rica grind, yes please.  After a cup of the good stuff, a banana, and a bagel w/peanut butter and honey, I'm good to go.  I conveniently stayed at a condo 0.5 miles away from the race site, so fellow BOUS competitor Colin Riley and I pumped up the tires and headed over to the race at around 5:45am.  After racking my bike and organizing the transition area, I headed out for a warm-up run.  Goals for the run include 1. get the legs moving 2. get the HR up a little bit 3. open up the hips/get loose and 4. get the feeling of leg speed.  So, I ran a couple minutes easy, did some butt kicks/high knees/etc to get loose, jogged some more, then did a couple of 10s strides to get the HR up a little and then a little cool down...all in all around 10 minutes and I was feeling goooood.

Swim: 22:39
"time to become a fish this winter"
It is what it is.  The 15 of us lined up about 50 feet from the ocean's edge, and at "go" we were off.  The fishes quickly separated themselves from everyone after the first 150m or so.  For the rest of the swim I was all alone, although I could see 2 guys up ahead of me by maybe 10 seconds or so.  From there I just tried to focus on going hard, knowing that I'd need every second I could get.  The only eventful thing that happened was a jellyfish sting with about 100m to go..what tha!!!  I took a stroke with my right arm and STING!  It didn't hurt to bad, more annoying than anything.  I could see 2 guys running up the beach as I exited the water.  I came out in 12th out of 15.

Bike: 58:06
"it's all about the watts"
Plan for the bike:  1.  CONSTANT wattage  2.  be aggressive but SMART  3.  reap rewards and go fast
Well, I admittedly did not follow Coach K's plan.  I've raced most Oly distance races this year around 260 watts...although most of these races were 90+ degrees and on tired legs.  With temperatures in the low 70's and a full taper leading up to the race, I knew I wanted to/needed to be a little more aggressive on the bike.  Of course you always have to balance the run, but you never want to leave anything on the table.  K and I decided to try and nail it at 270-275 watts as a "rough" estimate of what to shoot for.  That should usually give me right under 60 min.  Off on the bike and I tried to settle in quick.  After 10 minutes I was around 282 watts.  It felt great.  Definitely a good buffer under threshold.  I seemed to be wanting to naturally settle in at around 280, so that is what I did.  I normally don't concern myself with HR too much, but I usually have it on just because it is interesting to look at after the fact, but it can also be helpful sometimes...like, if I'm feeling "good" but my HR is in the 180's then maybe I really am cooking myself.  But I quickly glanced at it and was steady around 170 bpm.  Usually, something around 180 bpm +/- a little is when I seem to tip over to anaerobic.  So...the rest of the bike was clockwork.  Nail a wattage, let the winds take you where they will, and see what happens.  I was 12th out of the water and passed 6 guys on the bike, so I came into T2 sitting 6th and feeling gooood.    

Run: 39:19
"finally"
So this was kind of big...I've never actually run a 10k under 40 minutes.  Of course I haven't run an open 10k in quite some time either, but this year I have usually ended up around 41-42' in the Olympic distance.  Coming out of T2, all I was focused on was keeping my leg turnover high.  Do that, and the speed will come.  The first mile was kind of painful.  I was trying to get in a rhythm, but it just wasn't working out to well.  6:39.  Then it clicked.  Miles 2-4 were 6:23 - 6:23 - 6:24.  Fellow Alabamian Travis Grappo passed me slightly before mile 4.  I eventually bridged up to him and tried to turn it up the last 2 miles.  We ran stride for stride for the next ~2 miles,  6:18 and 6:11.  With a little less than 0.5 miles to go, Grappo bolted.  There was not a chance that I could go with him.  I picked it up to 5:45ish pace but that was about all I had.  All in all, it was a good effort.

Total: 2:02:13
9th out of 15
As much as it hurt, I had fun ALL DAY!  Racing head to head with a mass start is just where it's at.  TT starts leave something to be desired, like, "I really wanna know if I'm beating this guy right now or winning this race or barely losing this race."  I was able to meet a couple of the guys too, and everyone was really cool, and of course, fast.  Overall, it was a perfect way to end the season.  Nothing left on the table.  And most importantly, I know what I need to do to really start competing next year.  All in all, this season has been full of highs and lows, good races and some mediocre races, and I've learned a lot.  I've kind of decided that if I don't want to quit the sport at least 3 times during the summer, then I'm not training hard enough.  Sometimes people ask me why I do it...the obvious answer is that I genuinely love the sports, but sometimes I even pose the question to myself of why I do the daily grind.  It's days like today that answer the question; it's not just about going out and doing a race, but actually RACING it.  Whether that makes sense or not doesn't really matter, because it makes perfect sense to me.