This past week my legs felt tight and slow. My PF is biting me more and more, even when I walk. I haven't put a complete halt on running yet; however I did give in and call Wellington Orthopedics. This means Tuesday I'll get to see the doctor and he'll most likely tell me to give the running a rest.
Today the plan was open water swim, run 30 min, bike 3 hour, run 30 min. I met some other tri-athletes at Ceasars Creek around 7:30am. The water felt good, the run felt good since it was mostly trail and the bike was just ok today. As I turned the corner to end the run a torrential rain came pouring down. Jumped in the car till it let off a little. Collaborated with some others with the consensus being to head back to Cincy area and try later or tomorrow. I knew a few others were out on the bike trail and even though there was lightening and more storms ahead according to the radar, I wanted to be out there with the others. The three hour bike was stuck in my head and it was going to happen. I waited about 30 min, the rain stopped, I jumped on my bike and went in search for swimmer boy and belayer playa. I never found them, because apparently I took the wrong turn on the bike trail.
So I biked solo out to Xenia, back to Corwin and around the olympic tri loop. And this is what happens when you spend too much time alone on the bike...a little bit of thinking, talking to yourself, smiling, laughing to yourself, pretending and singing. Some general actions that might cause others to wonder. When you're out in nature and the oxygen is flowing, the ideas in the mind start leaking out of the box too. Imagination, creativity, freedom. Making up songs and singing to oneself. It was rather pleasent lalala'ing in the tunnel of trees. I sang several variations of 'On the Bike Trail' to the tune of 'The Horse with No Name'. Some were better than others, but I only had the chance to get one on camera...so I guess I'll share. When the sprinkles started again, I came up with some other songs to the tune of 'Ain't No Sunshine When it Rains'. Those were pretty good too...actually better...but no documentation of those. I know...so disappointing.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Mission 112 Louisville Ironman Practice: Success
The nice thing about doing an Ironman race close to home is the opportunity to actually practice on the course and get to know it's ups and downs. This past Saturday was an official KY Ironman group practice through iAmTRI. I woke up at 5:15am Saturday morning to the pouring rain in northern KY. The option was to crawl back in bed or go forth to Louisville. The radar called for showers and storms all day. The rain would probably make the Ohio River more polluted and the bike ride slick. Lightening could potentially cause great harm and group training to be canceled. The thought of not going crossed my mind for about 2 seconds and that's it. I jumped in my tri shorts, made some coffee, gathered all of my gear, my bike and nutrition. My friends Dr Rush and Nurse Peanut Butter decided to come along for the big training day too. So if anything should happen on the course, at least I'd be surrounded by medics. Around 6:15am our caravan hit the rainy highway to Louisville. As we traveled closer to le 'ville the rain let off, the sky opened and the sun greeted us for a good morning.
We arrived just in time to meet the group and walk down to the swim start. There were maybe 30 people present for the open water swim practice. Two other Ironchicks, Lady Leonard and Ms K, from back home also made it down for the day. During the swim clinic we learned that we will be swimming in one of the most polluted areas in the country. We were warned not to come down and practice by ourselves, especially after big rains. We were warned to keep our mouths shut and be plenty hydrated before the swim. We learned that it would be a good idea to keep our strokes short while swimming up stream and to kick harder towards the end while swimming downstream to prevent our legs from cramping up. We learned to arrive super early and get in line for the self-seeded start. The start will be time trial style with two athletes entering the water every few seconds. *Note to self bring a bottle of water to sip on while in line. We put our goggles on and jumped off the short pier into the Ohio River. We swam upstream along the side of Towhead Island. We turned around at the end of the island and swam back downstream. It was nice swimming between the island and mainland because it was like a giant lap lane which made sighting easier. During the actual race we will swim around Towhead Island out into the main part of the river. We were told to use the red roof of the Galt House Hotel for sighting on race day. We did not wear wetsuits today since the race is wetsuit illegal every year due to higher temps. The water was comfortable. My goggles stayed on as I jumped in the water, I breathed every three and both up/down stream felt good.
Time to bike. I was determined to do the full 112 bike course today. Nurse PB didn't really think it was a good idea...but we drove together so he kind of had to do the full. Dr Rush wasn't quit sure what he was going to do. We were almost finished with our first loop around Lagrange and there was some complaining about the hills all over and head wind on Rt 42. When it was time to make the decision between 80 and 112, they both made the right (actually left) turn for the second loop around Lagrange. No turning back...we were all in for the full 112 at that point. The fantastic people from iAmTRI had aide stations out about every 15 miles throughout the course. My chain dropped once as I switched gears at the beginning of a climb. It was stuck and I had a hard time fixing it. I drank about 10-12 bottles of fluid throughout the course and did not pee till we were finished. I ate 3 energy bars, a banana, peanut butter, half of a frozen orange and one packet of perpeptum. I chewed gum most of the ride. Keeps my mouth moist and it's fun to blow bubbles. This was not a chatty social ride. Although nothing is off limits to talk about on our bikes, we talked minimal today. Dr Rush ended up missing a turn towards the end and had a side adventure of his own. We all made it back (eventually) and Nurse PB and Dr Rush did their first centuries (plus) today!!! (with very good times for a hilly course) 112 miles, 17.7 mph ave, 6:18 time, Ave HR 145, Max HR 180. So my goal for race day is to be faster than that. More training, taper, race wheels, aero helmet, weight loss will all hopefully help. I will be mentally prepared that anything could happen...good or bad...on race day.
Post ride, I ran. I was excited to get off Strawberry Fields, put my feet on the ground and run. Yes, my right foot PF hurt but other than that it felt good. There is a nice park along side the river to run through. I ran under the bridges, through the park and downtown, past the Galt House Hotel and turned around a little past 4th St. So now I saw where I will be staying IM weekend, finishing the race and celebrating afterwards.
Post run, we hit up the riverside Tumbleweeds. Nothing like chips, salsa and a margarita to replenish those sodium levels. Mmmmmm...salt. Then we drove home, jamming to Jack Johnson and Cake. Straight to bed Saturday night and up bright in early again Sunday for Ride Cincinnati. Thousands of bike riders started on the Purple People Bridge to support breast cancer research on Sunday. This course was out and back on Rt 8. I opted to do the 45.2 for an easy recovery ride. There were a couple other options and lots of friendly faces out there on the ride.
We arrived just in time to meet the group and walk down to the swim start. There were maybe 30 people present for the open water swim practice. Two other Ironchicks, Lady Leonard and Ms K, from back home also made it down for the day. During the swim clinic we learned that we will be swimming in one of the most polluted areas in the country. We were warned not to come down and practice by ourselves, especially after big rains. We were warned to keep our mouths shut and be plenty hydrated before the swim. We learned that it would be a good idea to keep our strokes short while swimming up stream and to kick harder towards the end while swimming downstream to prevent our legs from cramping up. We learned to arrive super early and get in line for the self-seeded start. The start will be time trial style with two athletes entering the water every few seconds. *Note to self bring a bottle of water to sip on while in line. We put our goggles on and jumped off the short pier into the Ohio River. We swam upstream along the side of Towhead Island. We turned around at the end of the island and swam back downstream. It was nice swimming between the island and mainland because it was like a giant lap lane which made sighting easier. During the actual race we will swim around Towhead Island out into the main part of the river. We were told to use the red roof of the Galt House Hotel for sighting on race day. We did not wear wetsuits today since the race is wetsuit illegal every year due to higher temps. The water was comfortable. My goggles stayed on as I jumped in the water, I breathed every three and both up/down stream felt good.
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| These two piers are where we will jump into the water for the swim start. We will swim to the right upstream first. |
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| We will swim in the channel between Towhead Island and the mainland. We'll take a left and swim around the island when we reach the end. |
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| We will swim downstream in the main part of the river and exit at Waterfront Park |
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| "The Yellow Lot" where all of the group rides start close to Tumbleweeds on the river  80 vs 112 miles |
Post ride, I ran. I was excited to get off Strawberry Fields, put my feet on the ground and run. Yes, my right foot PF hurt but other than that it felt good. There is a nice park along side the river to run through. I ran under the bridges, through the park and downtown, past the Galt House Hotel and turned around a little past 4th St. So now I saw where I will be staying IM weekend, finishing the race and celebrating afterwards.
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| The Galt House, host hotel for KY IM |
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| 'fabulous' as the waiter would have said 100x |
Post run, we hit up the riverside Tumbleweeds. Nothing like chips, salsa and a margarita to replenish those sodium levels. Mmmmmm...salt. Then we drove home, jamming to Jack Johnson and Cake. Straight to bed Saturday night and up bright in early again Sunday for Ride Cincinnati. Thousands of bike riders started on the Purple People Bridge to support breast cancer research on Sunday. This course was out and back on Rt 8. I opted to do the 45.2 for an easy recovery ride. There were a couple other options and lots of friendly faces out there on the ride.
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| Ride Cincinnati 45.2 mile starters |
Friday, June 10, 2011
Creation, Deterimination, Situation, Inspiration, Education, Preparation
Where does it start? Inspiration?
What gives it the green light? Situation and Creation
What keeps it going? Determination
What makes it go further? Education
What makes it successful? Preparation and Care
It's a complicated equation
Tomorrow is a day of preparation. Since my last update, I've taken a few more steps deeper into the situation. First of all, I have seeked out a coach. The past two weeks I have followed my coaches plan, I have pushed a little harder, kept track of my heart rate, modified my diet and encouraged more sleep. I went back and forth on if I needed a coach or not. We can do things ourselves and we can be successful; however with the support and push of others we might reach higher points we never thought we could. If I was going to get a coach...of course it would have to be the great Bob D. of Cincinnati. http://veritasendurance.com/
First step of the program was field testing and power testing to determine breaking points. There is something satisfying about pushing yourself to your breaking point and seeing what's really inside on any given day (which is variable). The human potential might be more powerful than most of us think and then most of us try to reach. Why? What stops us? There are legitimate barriers; however there are other barriers (and excuses) that stop us and maybe shouldn't. Injuries, illnesses, financial problems, lack of support, emotional hurt and attitude can all keep the drummer from kicking...make it harder to kick...or they can fuel the drummer to kick harder.
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| Ice/Epsom Salt Bath |
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| Darco Body Armor Night Splint |
So my power test on the bike was not bad at all...actually it was a lot better than I thought it would be. Maybe my expectations were too low. My swim is ok so far. My running is inconsistent. This week in conclusion has provided me with higher expectations for the bike and frustrations related to the run. PLANTAR FACIITIS! It has attacked my right foot and it will not subside. I've tried stretching, icing, different shoes and a tad bit of rest. Have I done everything I can? Of course the answer is...no. I'm determined to kick back and fix it. This is where the discipline comes into play. PF is nothing compared to the obstacles and barriers other people run into. The fight against PF is going to include water bottle icing 2x/day x15 min, ice bath with Epsom salt 1x/day x20 min, magic ball massage 1x/day x5 min, night splint wear, step stretching 5min/2x day and anti-inflammatory nutrition. In addition to that, my running mileage will most likely be slightly limited and I will start focusing on small amounts of barefoot running and small muscle strengthening. So let's see if all this works...and how patient I can be...to let the kicker heal. This is all part of the preparation. Just like all other parts of life, some parts of preparation are more enjoyable than others. For instance, my pre-big training day rest and meal tonight put a smile on my face. Today was a rest day. After work, I went to the closest beach with waves, took my time planning a meal, listened to Ziggy Marley sing about a beach on Hawaii, made a meal that was all natural and enjoyed every bite of it as the lightening and thunder danced outside.
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| Mango, Pineapple, Cranberry and Red Dandelion Salad Mango, Pineapple and Pine nut Couscous Salmon with Trader Joe's Island Soyaki M-Dot liquid anti-oxidant |
We have so much power to create our habits and routines. We have more power than we think to control our bodies, brains, feelings and change the world. These past two weeks, I have pondered the concepts of careful preparation and letting what happens to just happen. I'm prepared and I'm ready to see what happens tomorrow on the Louisville, KY Ironman course. Goodnight!
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