5/23/2006

Went to the gym after work for a swim/run brick. I purposely wanted to do the swim first this time, even though it means drying off and changing prior to running (rather not run in my wet swimsuit until i have to). I dressed for swimming, and headed for the pool. I planned to do at least 2x400, concentrating on form. I started my first 400, and had to stop several times in the first couple of laps to clear my goggles. I've tried two different pair of googles, one Speedo with neoprene around the eye cups and one Nike with silicone rubber. The Nikes fit my face, are fog-resistant, and once they are placed perfectly, are fairly leak-free, but getting them placed just right is a bit fiddly. But I digress.

I had forgotten my stopwatch, so I was forced to rely on the wall clock on the outside of the gym. My first 400 with all the stops and starts, took about 9 minutes. I felt good afterward, but could tell at times my form was not perfect (head and shoulders carried too high). On my second 400, my goggles were settled and I concentrated much more on form and alignment. I finished in just under 8:00. Not great, but the point is to come out of the water fresh and ready for the exertions of the bike and run.

I quickly towelled off and donned my running shorts, shirt and shoes. I jumped on the first available treadmill. My goal for this session was not to worry about distance, and run as fast as I could comfortably for 30 minutes. I've been reading a book called The Pose Method of Running, loaned to me by fellow triathlete Joel. The main premise of the book is that there is a running 'pose' that is the most efficient and natural position to be in when your foot is actually touching the ground. You should be able to draw a nearly-straight line from the ball of your foot, up through the knee, hip, and shoulder. Also, it is far better to run in short steps at a high cadence than to use long strides and risk heel striking.

Concentrating on these form elements, I ran as much as possible at 6.0mph, with about a 3-minute walk at 3.5mph at the one-mile mark. I spent the last minute at 6.5mph, and ended up with a total distance of 2.77 miles in 30 minutes. Not bad for me. It extrapolates to 33.5 minutes for 3.1 miles, which I would be happy with. I'm shooting for between 30 and 35 minutes for the run. It won't win me any prizes, but for my level of running, a ten-minute mile will feel like an accomplishment.

After the run, my calves and knees didn't feel bad at all, save for a minor tightness in my left calf.

My dilemma now is how to train for the next four weeks. Most beginner triathlon training plans recommend a four-week taper (decreasing length and intensity of workouts so one can be fresh and rested for the event), but I don't feel like I'm where I want to be with my fitness yet. I think I'm going to go harder and longer (emphasis on running) for the next two weeks, then taper the last two. We'll see how it goes. I really don't want to experience any more overuse injuries, so I'm going to be walking (or rather, running) a fine line between going too hard and not hard enough.

I'm really starting to look forward to the event. I hope to get to the beach this weekend for an ocean swim. I'm very comfortable in the ocean (surfing, etc.) but have not done much actual swimming in open water. Should be fun!

5/18/2006

Today is California Bicycle to Work Day (part of national Bicycle to Work Week). I am fortunate enough to work in a faciilty with showers and lockers, so I knew I could get cleaned up and ready once I got to the office. I found one lonely (empty) bike rack near the loading dock, so I looked for an alternate place to lock up the bike. I debated carrying it into my cube farm and leaning it against the wall, but found a good railing under trees near the rear entrance. I mapped my route on the Gmap Pedometer (http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=187404). It would be roughly 35 miles round-trip

Woke up at the crack of 5:30, had a bowl of cereal, and strapped on my backpack with clothes, wallet, lock, towel, etc. It felt like at least 35 lbs on my back. In hindsight, it would have been smart to take my clothes to the office the day before, so I wouldn't have to carry on the bike. Oh well, next time.

The ride in felt good, cool weather and light traffic. I was surprised not to see more cyclists on the road. There were a couple of likely commuters, and several riders that looked like they were out for a training ride. In years past, BTW day had always brought out more pedal-commuters. Perhaps it was the time of day (I was earlier than usual). I had given myself two hours to complete the ride, and it took 1:05. I had plenty of time to cool off, shower, dress, and grab coffee and breakfast.

For the ride home, I shed my jacket, knee warmers, head wrap, and full gloves. The ride in was about 64 degrees, on the way home it was close to 82. I felt pretty good on the ride home, although I was dreading the one steep climb (up Erbes Road from Arboles to Sunset Hills). I ground up the hill in my granny gear, and enjoyed the fast descent down the other side. Arrived at home in 1:10 with just over 35 miles on the odometer, and feeling good - not exhausted. Another successful BTW day!

I'm heading out tomorrow for a working weekend at my wife's family place on the CO River south of Blythe, so there will be little to no training this weekend. I'm going to try to fit in a trail run or two, but it will have to be early or late; daytime highs are supposed to be around 105 degrees.

Bricking.

5/12/2006

Went to the gym today with the aim of doing a <5K run and a swim. I decided I'd throttle back since the last two times I ran, my knees and calves were complaining. I set up to do a 1.5 mile run on the treadmill. started with a fast walk warmup, then ramped up to 5.5mph. Felt good, so I pushed it up to 6.0. I figure if I can do a 10:00 mile on raceday, I'll be done in 31:00, and while I won't be competitive in the run, I won't feel like I completely suck, either.

Ran the 1.5 in about 19:00, so missed my target, slightly. Dressed out for the swim.

I got in the pool with the plan to do race distance (400m) twice. Got into a nice rhythm, and finished the first 400m in about 7:38. Rested a bit, then did my second 400m in roughly 8:00 (didn't have my stopwatch with me, so was relying on the clock on the outside wall of the gym.

5/14/2006

Today is to be a bike/run brick. My usual riding buddy had mother's day duties, so I was by myself. Took a nice warm (for a change) cruise around the new Simi development (Indian Ridge) and back home. 16.7 miles, average speed about 17mph over rolling terrain.

Once home, I changed into my running shoes, and headed right out for a run.

I now know exactly what triathletes mean when they say you have 'cement legs' after the bike ride. It took about .5 mile before my legs felt like I could run. I ran to the track at a local middle school, and did four laps (1 mile). My times sucked, but I could tell I was getting stronger as the run progressed. I probably did about an 11:00 mile, but hey, I have a couple of weeks left to work on my time.

5/15/2006

My legs were once again hurting a day after my run. My knee soreness was less, but the lower part of my calves were on fire. I don't know if I'm going to have time to ramp up my distance and speed, then taper off before race day in five weeks. Oh well, worst case - I'll just suffer through it. I have no doubt I'll be able to finish, it's just a matter of how slowly. >;-]

5/7/2006

Today's the day. I'm going to complete a 'gym tri', by riding the exercise bike, running on the treadmill, and swimming in the pool, all at race distance. I woke up feeling pretty good, but was nervous about how my knees and calves reacted to my run Wednesday. I grabbed my gear and headed over to the gym.

I decided to do my 'events' out of order so I wouldn't be dealing with drying off after the swim, then again after a shower at the end. I started with the bike, followed by the run, then the swim.

I set the bike on a medium difficulty level, since the race route is supposed to be very flat. I spun a cadence between 102 and 110 consistently, and finished the 12.7 miles in 35:17.

I refilled my water bottle and hopped on a treadmill. I started at 5.2mph, figuring I didn't need a warmup. I concentrated on landing on my feet softly, in order to minimize the impact on my knees. I was starting to tire near the one-mile mark, so I backed off to a fast walk for a couple of minutes. Kicked it back up to 5.5 to the two-mile mark, then backed off again. At 2.3 miles, I started running again at 5.6 mph. I ran into a problem - even though I had set the treadmill to do a specific distance, it started to shut down after 30:00, going into cooldown mode. I kept bumping the speed back up to 5.6 whenever it stepped down for the 5:00 cooldown period.

When the cooldown ended, I was at 2.63 miles, so I immediately re-started the treadmill for .5 mile distance, and ran it at 5.6. My overall time for the 3.1+ miles was about 37:10. Not a fast pace, but I was really more concerned about preserving my knees and making the distance.

On to the swim! I changed into my trunks and grabbed my goggles and headed out to the pool. Whoa, what's this?! Sun?! Cool! (we have been having May Grey weather for the past three months almost without a break. All lanes were being used, but a good citizen offered to share his lane. Yes, thanks. I slid into the water, adjusted my goggles, started my chronometer, and set off.

I was going to try to do 8 lengths (200K), rest, then do the other 200K, as I did before. Two things I read in the Triathlon 101 book I wanted to try: 1. Lower your stroke count (more gliding, less effort) and 2. Keep the head and shoulders down (more streamlined). I concentrated on both of these, and was swimming a nice easy pace.

I was on my 7th length out, and felt really comfortable, so I decided I would continue without resting. I kept a comfortable rhythm all the way through the 16 lengths, and touched the wall in 7:47. Again, not particularly fast, but I was more excited that I was able to go the distance without stopping.

To recap:
Bike - 12.7 miles - 35:17
Run - 3.1 miles - 37:10
Swim - 400m - 7:47

Keeping in mind these times don't include any transitions, I would likely finish middle of the pack based on last year's results on the race website http://www.triforlife.com. I really want to work on getting my run time down around 30:00 if I can do it without injuring myself.

5/3/2006

Went to the gym for another run/swim brick. Felt good starting out, and after a two minute warmup, was running along at 6mph (10minute pace). About 15 minutes in, my calves started to hurt, as if I'd strained them. Strange, as my last major activity was a 28 mile ride four days prior. I slowed to a fast walk at the 2 mile mark to bring my pulse down, then moved it back up, ignoring the increasing pain from my calves. At 2.5 miles, I upped my speed to 6.2, and at 3.0 miles I was at about 34:00. I decided I was going to shoot for sub 35:00, so I 'sprinted for the finish' at 6.7mph. At 3.1, the treadmill backed off to 4.5 to begin the cooldown. I completed my 3.1 miles in 35:01, which was about a minute faster than my last attempt.
At this point, my calves were feeling it, and my left knee didn't feel quite right. I think my body is trying to tell me I'm not a runner, but I'm going to complete my goal, creaking knees be damned!

I did some stretching, then changed into my swim togs. I had a couple of tips from my 'Triathlon 101' book that I was eager to try; lowering your stroke count and keeping your head and chest down for better streamlining. As I approached the pool, I was informed by a trainer that there was a 'class' taking place in the pool, and there is no lap swimming allowed until its conclusion (in 45 minutes!). Mind you, there was one person in the pool, and it's a three-lane lap pool. I had half a mind to pretend I couldn't hear her (earplugs) and jump in and swim anyway. What was she going to do, jump in wearing her sweats and pull me out? >;-]

Changed back out of my suit into my gym shorts, and sat in the sauna for about 20 minutes to try to loosen up my tight calves, then showered and called it a night. I guess I'll have to get my swimming in this weekend.

(epilog: My calves continued to stiffen up, and I found climbing stairs extremely painful for my knee. I really hope this is an isolated reaction to something I did wrong. I don't want to have to abandon my triathlon goal because I can't run. I did feel much better after my previous run, so hopefully I made some mechanical mistake and if I focus on proper form next time, I won't be paying the price.)