Overall an awesome experience and a great race.  Walla Walla is a very windy town and a very nice town.  Most of the weekend it was hard to tell if it was going to open up and pour for 40 days or if the sun would come out.  The only constant thing about the weather was the wind. 

 

I went in to the first race of the year focused on a PR on the run and to improve my overall Olympic distance experience.

 

Goal Time: 2:40:00: Swim <30:00 (27:00); T1 1:30; Bike <1:20 (1:17-19.36 pace); T2 1:30; Run 55:00.

Actual Time: 2:39:52; Swim 28:42; T1: 1:13, Bike 1:20:27; T2: 1:02, Run 48:29

 

Key Learnings:

• Never underestimate the power of good training to improve your run times – THANK YOU STACIA !
• Try to avoid races with mass swim starts if possible.
• There is a big trade off between going sockless on the run and the number of blisters you have at the end.

The Swim

Swimming for so many months in the pool, even with a pull buoy, I had totally forgotten how much the wetsuit actually helps with buoyancy.  I waded into the water and swam out to the first buoy came back and chatted with a few people that I knew then the gun went off.  The 2006 season was underway for me.  The start was very uneventfull, but the fun was just around the corner.  199 people all starting at the same time.  I positioned myself on the right despite worrying about getting pinched in.  The gun went off and I just went into autopilot as I have for many saturday long swims.  My bliss quickly vanished with the first punch to the head, my coach warned me to stay calm and not retaliate.  That was fine for the first two times then I got kicked in the face and shortly thereafter someone was trying to crawl up my back.  I spent a lot of the swim looking for unpopulated water which was sporadic at best.  I will try to stay away from mass starts in the future if possible.  My HR stayed very low for the swim which was one of my goals.  I didn't want to come out of the water with a jacked up HR from all the craziness.  HR 120.  I rounded the last buoy and sighted the boat ramp and got mentally ready for T1. 

 

Total Time: Swim 28:42 - rats over my goal of 27:00. 

 

T1

Uphill run to the transition area in a sloped parking lot - UG.  I made it to my bike and was beginning the process of stepping out of my wetsuit when I had a flashback to the day before.  I had asked my son (4) to take a bath and 10 minutes later he still wasn't in the bathtub I went in to check on him.  He was desperately trying to get his pants off without taking off his shoes.  He was very determined that he could do it and was not going to give up.  Fast-forward - I did not unzip the legs of my wetsuit and found myself in the same situation in T1.  I began to laugh as I considered the similarities between the two situations.  I struggled a bit but managed as he did to get free of my wetsuit.

 

Total time: 1:13

 

The Bike

What can I say about the bike?  To say that the ride was uphill into the wind would not really get the full picture across.  This was the windiest bike ride I have ever done in my life.  I saw people with disc wheels getting blown across the double yellow line.  I was tossed around several times and what started out as a simple ride plan was quickly "blown" to bits. I was seriously looking for funnel clouds. WOW!!!  I maintained my goal HR was 153-164.  I averaged HR 161; 15 mph outbound and 29-31mph back with a tailwind which saved my time :).  I stuck to my nutrition plan of 400 calories (2 gels and 1 20 oz bottle of Powerade) after 10 minutes into the bike.  I think sticking to my HR and nutrition plan really paid off in the run. 

 

Total time: 1:20:27 – I need to work on my wind training.

 

T2

I made the decision to go sockless because my Brooks are a little small on room with my orthotics and I did not have thin socks with me. Overall I think this worked out ok.  The only thing that tripped me up was I had forgotten the feeling of numb feet after the bike. As a result of my condition I had a hard time getting my toes into my shoes because they were wet and sticky and I could not tell if they were in the shoe or not.  I ended up having to push my toes in with my hand because my feet were not responding to normal neural impulses.

 

Total time: 1:02

 

The Run

My goal was to run at my previous PR for a 10k which was somewhere around a 9:00 pace.  My target HR below 5a is 176 so I decided to hold it there no matter what the pace turned out to be, I assumed that my pace would be 9:00.  BOY WAS I WAY OFF!!!! 

This year I started working with a coach and have been putting a lot of emphasis on my run.  I literally knew nothing about running or how to get faster; I assumed my running was a product of my genetics.  Mentally I used to dread the run and viewed it as a necessary tax for getting to swim and bike - two things I love to do. The run was billed as flat so I was somewhat eased by that.  However like the glossy holiday brochures things are never what they seem in the photo's (e.g. the pool and the rooms are usually way smaller than they appear).  I assumed I was in for a long hilly run. 

 

After running out of the parking lot the run headed out a dirt trail mostly used by horses.  Up and down through the fields we ran till we hit a bike path, flat, to the turn around.  I put my Garmin in my back pocket off the bike and promised myself I wouldn't look at it too much.  I tend to use those gadgets as security blankets and not trust my body or my HR.  I felt like I was running on air, overall it felt effortless and I assumed I was running at a 9:00 pace.  You can imagine my surprise when I looked at my Garmin and saw I was running 7:30's.  For most this is not a fast pace but for me it was nuts so I assumed I was out of range for the Garmin or the wind was playing tricks on the thing.  It turns out that my winter training had taken and completely changed my run pace.  In addition I now understood what it meant to pace myself instead of going out like a jack rabbit then falling to pieces half of the way in.  I ran the best run leg of my life and I hit my goal time because of the run for the first time.  I normally make up all my time on the bike and hang on for the run.  My focus on becoming a better runner really paid off.  My whole outlook on the sport has changed completely.  I feel like I can now call myself a runner.

 

Total time: 48:29

 

Overall results: 3rd in my age group and 82nd out of 199 overall and 11 out of 59 women.

 

Conclusion:

The surprise for me was how unprepared I was for the windy ride.  I wonder if I can hook my computrainer up to one of those high speed movie fans.

Overall: be patient and trust your fitness, I am ready and I will be fine.  I deserve to be here I am race ready throw it to the wall but pay attention to the plan.  Remember how I will feel at the end if I don’t try hard remembering you want this!!!

 

Goal finish time 2:40:00: Swim <30:00 (27:00); T1 1:30; Bike <1:20 (1:17-19.36 pace); T2 1:30; Run 55:00.

 

Race prep –

Night before: 2 days before (Friday) lay low on fiber, protein and salad.  Take big meal at lunch on the day before and a light dinner suggestion soup and crackers.  

A.M. before: 2-3 hours ahead take in 400 calories oatmeal and banana and electrolyte drink, no water after an hour before. 

Warm-up: start reverse warm-up after laying out transition - run (8-8:15) down to the water run up to the in slot from the swim to bike, notice landmarks, exit the transition area take in the last mile.  Come back jump on bike (8:30-8:40) notice the exit from transition to the bike get a good handle on the amount of space between exit and start of hill.  Return bike.  Get ready for swim go down early get in some time coming at the exit from the water (8:40-close the water).  Take in about 1/3 of a bottle of electrolyte but nothing else.

 

Swim – Swim nice and steady (strong and relaxed) after a good strong first 100 yards start right only to the extent that you feel you won’t get pinched in.  Start close to front and deal with the physical stuff as it happens but don’t retaliate.  Find a good pair of feet that will help but not hold you back.  Remember that you don’t get a lot of time in the swim and jacking up your HR won’t help you on the exit.  No specific HR goal just don’t want to come out of the water so jacked up that I can’t get my HR under control for the rest of the race. Remember CK’s swim checklist – 1.  Posture (head to toe):head in line?; rib ends in?; pelvis engaged?;   rotating enough?; 2.  Propulsion (head to toe): anchor?; 2-beat kick?; kick in line?; 3.  Breathing: exhaling?; keeping head in line?; 4.  Am I on course and sighting effectively?

Goal time 27:00 or about a 1:44 pace.

 

Bike – Leave leg power for the run, be patient.  Go out calm and cool and prepared to follow the plan.  Pay attention to the moment, how am I feeling?  What do I need to do right now?  Keep HR below 163 on the bike ride goal is to average at least 19.36 to make 1:17 and not blow up for the run.  Try to stay 154-163 no higher than 163 on the hills.  Steady up the hills they will be what they are. Pay attention to your threshold HR and find that point at which if you go over you are out of control.  Stay well away from this point.  HR range should take care of that anyway.  Nutrition: Don’t eat or drink for 10 minutes into the ride to settle your HR down after the hill coming out of transition.  Goal is to take in 2 gels and at the very least 1 bottle of electrolyte try to aim for 430 calories.  Goal time 1:17 or about 19.36 pace.

 

Run – Run for the first mile letting your legs come back to you keep tabs on how your legs feel and use this as a gauge for effort.  If they feel bad then go off of HR if they feel great you can give a little on the HR.  Keep HR in check and in the 178-184 range.  Pay attention to the point of no return and come back quickly if you feel you have gone beyond and can’t sustain.  At mile 5 come home strong and give it all you have, remember you want this and this is the time to put it out there and see what happens.  I am ready and I am fine, be patient and trust your fitness.  Goal time 55 minutes or about a 9:00 pace.

If good wishes were wings then I would have wings to carry me across the entire 26.2 miles.  That may not make a bunch of sense but the sentiment is gratitude.  I am very grateful to everyone for their good wishes.  I had no idea that there were so many folks out there pulling for me.  The journey to the marathon has been an amazing one.  I could not have made it without the help of my coach Kevin and my family and friends for helping on those long run Sundays.

I dedicate this run to everyone out there who is running with me in spirit.  I won't let you down.  Just one more mile   Thank you thank you thank you.

Nice easy swim 30 minutes, stay loose...  Goal for the week is to drink lots of water and 1 small gatorade per day.  Been checking the Phoenix weather and its been in the 70's.  I am worried about that b/c heck I train in 40 degree weather in the rain.  The weather will play a role in my sweat rate and overall hyrdration levels.  I know the heat hurt some people at NY marathon. 

Well I can hardly believe it but I am already 5 days into my two week taper prior to the race.  I am a mess of emotions wondering if I should have run farther, if I will make my goal pace and basically how will I respond in the last 4 miles. Was thinking about calling my relatives and asking them to make sure I keep walking at the finish once I become delirious and start talking about purple elephants and green monkelys.  I have gotten a lot of advice and great support from people who have done this before.  To make things a little worse I am not feeling very well today, very tired and sick to my stomach.

 

Negotiating with my coach to run a little less this weekend trying to justify it with taper examples from the web.  This will either piss him off or convince him that 14 at race pace is not a good idea on Sunday.  In the mean time I am going to bed and sleep for a while.

 

 

Wow I really lost touch on this, I mostly blame it on my ankle and work.  I am still training and will do the marathon in 4 weeks.  I can hardly believe its already 4 weeks out.  Tomorrow I have a 16 miler, 20 miles the next weekend, then 14 and then the race.  These next two weekends will be kickers but I am up for it :)

Ran 40 minutes easy with 10 minutes warm up.  Felt good.  Stiff

Great run today 4.25 miles in 40 minutes 9.2 the whole time “easy pace”.

Wahoo, I am back in action and feeling groooovy.  Great swim today.  About 1:10 total.  I think being off for a week had me a little pent up and looking for a good outlet.  Ankle did hurt a little bit at the beginning with the kick sets.

 

Workout - 11/14

Warm up - 900

200 swim, 2x50 kick

150 swim, 2x50 kick

100 swim, 2x50 kick

50 swim, 2x50 kick

Main Set - 2000

400 @ 6:20 (1:35)

2x200 @ 2:50 (1:25)

300 @ 4:45 (1:35)

2x150 @ 2:10 (1:25)

200 @ 3:10 (1:35)

2x100 @ 1:25

100 @ 1:35

2x50 @ :40

ez 200 any stroke

Plan : ride 60-70 minutes.  Got 38minute into a ride on computrainer and Kevin woke up very weeeeepy.  He needed me to HOOOOOLD him for about 30 minutes.  That kinda blew this mornings workout. No worries b/c he really needed me.  Goal is to finish ride tonight and possibly swim for 30 minutes at lunch.

Swim 30-40 minutes, ankle a little achey.

Running in Bridal trails for my 14 miler.  Fell and tore tendons in my ankle.  I was going to take a picture but its really huge and ugly.  Not sure what my fate is for the rest of my training season.

Full rest day.  Went to a wedding and had a great time.  Did not overeat as I thought I would.  We had to leave before cake which is always a highlight.

Planned 10 miles easy, end of recovery week.  Sad that this is the last weekend I will ever see 10 miles until the marathon.  It was a very easy run, surprising how this periodization stuff works.  Ran 9:20 pace about 10 seconds slower than planned race pace to make 4 or sub 4 hour marathon.  Probably was supposed to do it slower than that but with one week of recovery I was a little wound up like a spring.  :)  Bring on the death march of the next three weeks before my next down cycle.

Cycling HR zones

Z1 (Recovery) less than 131

Z2 (base)  131-144

Z3 (tempo) 145-151

Z4 (threshold a) 152-161

Z5 (threshold b) 162-165

 

Wattage

Z1 less than 106 (easy)

Z2 106-116 (endurance)

Z3 116-127 (endurance tempo)

1/2 IM 127-138

Olympic 138-143

Sprint 143-147

Cruise intervals 143-159

Threshold 159

Planned 60 minute ride.  Did a CP 30 test with Stacia to determine my wattage training zones and bike HR.  This test started easy enough but soon got reeeaaaallly difficult.  As time went on it took more and more effort to increase my average wattage.  Fairly intuitive but hard to do.  I was huffing and puffing at the end.  I probably started out too low on the wattage scale and so the total test was lower mileage.  Big thing I noticed is the massive variable wattage output in my legs and over time.  I found consistency really hard to master.  I think this is a key to success next year and the computrainer can teach me consistency in my output.  That's my theory and I am sticking with it.

Planned 40 minute ride.  This was fun, first time on my new computrainer.  I loved it but don't know what the heck I am doing with wattage training.  Need to schedule time with Stacia to get my zones set up for wattage training.  Overall an easy ride.

Planned 40 minute run or about 5.5 miles.  Started out the morning not feeling very good.  Slogged down to do my run anyway.  Ended up talking myself into 20 minutes promising that I would take my gear and do another 20 minutes at lunch.  Well work got crazy and one thing led to another and I managed to talk myself out of the second 20 minutes.  The good thing is that this is the first time in 4 weeks I have slacked.  The bad thing is I slacked.  I will get out the effort I put in so I better not make this a habit.

Swim 1 hour - great swim did 2600 500x5 plus 100 drill.  400 swim 100 kick.  Loved it.  got a little bored but able to sustain easily compared to four weeks ago.