Week 14

Week of April 24th - April 30th 2006

Hmmm, this is supposed to be the week of increased effort ramping up to the next and final week.

Monday - run 38:17.66, 3.346 miles @ 6.8 mph (8'38" mile) @ 157 bpm
I am running out of steam. I finished the run at about 175 bpm and didn't really enjoy it a whole lot. I think I should have taken a day off after yesterday's test. Hmmm, this is not too good and weather is crappy, so I can't bike either. We got snow in the morning and a bit more in the evening.

Tuesday - tried my new Zoot Z2 Sleeveless wetsuit. This is about the best fit. It still feels a bit funny but I am getting used to it. Besides that, I do look good in it. I am learning not to kick a whole lot and pay attention to my breathing and strokes.
Swim - 25 laps (1250 yards, 0.71 mile) in 24:08.00 @ 146 bpm average. I saw the bpm going up towards the end, but I was swimming a bit faster, too. My normal time for 25 laps would be about 26.5 minutes. I think it may save a bit of energy, I have to do a comparison. With and without the suit with an HR, that should tell me.

Sent in for Brazil visa today. If everything goes well, we should have them in about 10 days or so. Hopefuly.

Still felt pretty exhausted today, so I didn't run. Stretched and massaged my legs for about 1/2 hour at noon, hung upside down on the inversion table for 15 minutes. Had icecream early afternoon for a treat. Yummy. Getting the weight back to 175+

Wednesday - Run, 5.846 miles in 54:36.22 @ 6.4 mph (9'20" mile) @ 153 bpm

Thursday - Swim, 42 laps in 40:40 @ 153 bpm
Run, 6.7 miles in 57:34.84 @ 6.9 mph (8'35" mile) @ 160 bpm

Friday - Day off

Saturday - Day off

Sunday - IronBaby
Weight before swim: 176.8 lbs
Swim: 42 laps (1.2 miles) in 39:37.19 @ 150 bpm
Weight after swim, before bike: 176.8 lbs
Bike:
Timex: 56.24 miles in 3:07:52 @ 17.9 mph @ 146 bpm
CatEye: 56.10 miles in 2:57:06 @ 18.8 mph
Weight after bike, before run: 172.4
Run:
9.197 miles in 1:30:27 @ 6.1 mph (9'50" mile) @ 152 bpm
3.921 miles in 43:27.84 @ 5.4 mph (11'05" mile) @ 151 bpm
for a total of: 13.118 miles in 2:13:54
Weight after run: 167.2 lbs

Total time: 5:59:44 (Timex GPS)


Things learned:
1) I did a TinMan !!! - this is the furthest I have ever gone
2) I got about a gallon of water low. Considering the weight loss of 9.6 lbs, I can probably attribute 1.6 lbs to burned fat and other things. There are 8 lbs unaccounted for, likely water
3) The reason the run time is split is because I accidentally pushed a wrong button on the watch at one time.
4) Watering schedule:
24 ounces before swim
8 ounces before bike
2 x 24 ounces during bike ride
12 ounces before run
4 x 6 + 8 ounces during run (32 ounces)
For a grand total of 116 ounces

So lets break it down (gallon of water is 8.34 lbs, 2.09 lbs / quart (roughly)):
2.2 lbs loss swimming - thats 1/4+ gallon (32 ounces) - there isn't much I can do about it at the race, other than drink 48 ounces of water before I start the race. OK, that's the baseline.
2.2 lbs loss biking in 3 hours - it looks like I need to add another 36 ounces of water to bike schedule in addition to current 48 == 84 ounces in 3 hours == 28 ounces per hour
5.2 lbs loss running - 0.62 gallons (80 fluid ounces) need to be added to existing 32 ounces while running. 80 + 32 = 112 ounces in 2.25 hours ~ 12 ounces every 15 minutes == 48 ounces per hour

Projected watering schedule

• Start the day with 2 x 24 ounces, water only
  


• Before bike, drink 8 ounces during transition


• On the bike, drink 28 ounces each hour, that means 24 ounce bottle every 45 minutes


• Before run, drink 8 ounces during transition


• Running, drink 12 ounces every 15 minutes, considering my average pace of about 6 mph, that's about 8 ounces every mile

Hmm, the above is pretty crude estimate of what I need to do on the water front. I have to consider several other facts.

• I didn't dehydrate by running alone, I started the deficit while swimming and biking
  


• Florianopolis is at sea level, probably about 75F and likely about 55 - 60 % humidity
  

So, I may go a bit up or down on the figures above. Overall, it looks like I need to start hydrating about 2 days before the race, have 2 x 24 ounces before the swim, then 8 - 12 ounces every 15 minutes on the bike, have another 8 - 12 ounce dose before the run and then 8 - 12 ounces every 15 minutes.

Hmmm, that sounds pretty unrealistic. 0.7 liters every 1/2 hour? When I was 17, I drank beer like that. 1/2 liter mug every 15 minutes. Managed to drink 13 beers like that but the only exercise I did was stumbling to the bathroom.

Oh well, got to give it a try, see what happens.

On the food front, I tried to eat more nuts (almonds, carob energy cubes). Doesn't sit very well with me. I think I still like Gu better.

Equipment wise:
Bought a Camelback "big bite" hard plastic bottle, their latest and greatest, mounted on the handlebars - totally useless on the bike, waste of money - it just takes too much energy to suck the stuff out of it and I can't see where the hell I am going when sucking on the bottle.
I think I need to buy another pump and mount it under the horizontal bar. Then I can have 2 bottles on the frame and a 3rd one on handlebars? Maybe - got to think about it. So if I have 3 x 24 oz on the bike, I don't have to stop for 2 hours, if I go with just 2 bottles, I have to stop and refill every 1.5 hours. It's probably not too bad to get off the bike every once in a while and stretch anyway. I favor 2 bottles then.

Also got a couple of 5 oz small bottles - they fit comfortably in my hands and are relatively OK to run with. Looks like a good 1/2 hour supply after a stop at an aid station. So, if there is an aid station every mile, I can drink 8 ounces there and fill up the little ones for 18 oz total. I should be good for about 1/2 hour with 18 ounces - that means stopping at every 3rd aid station. I'd have the luxury of stopping at every 2nd if it comes to it.

One thing for sure - I have to map the aid stations exactly, so I have a feel for how far I can go with the water I have.

Other:
Salt endurolyte tablets - don't put them in your jersey pockets - the caplets will dissolve in your sweat. Bummer. Other than that, they seem to be OK. I don't know whether they work or not but they don't seem to cause any harm. I'll take at least one every hour.

What a week.

Week 13

Week of April 17th - April 23th

Practically I have 3 more weeks of training before I back off for the race. This is the first week of ramping up. At least that's the plan for now.

New stuff:
Bought a bike jersey from J&G from Oregon (http://www.bicycleclothing.com/Mens-Bike-Jerseys.html). Good stuff, nice solid color, don't look like a bilboard on wheels. Fits well, although their sizing chart is a bit messed up. My chest is about 40" and according to the chart I should order size S. I don't think so. Got medium, fits well, nice pockets, comfortable, doesn't scratch the shit out of my nipples.

Stopped at Fleet Feet in Boulder and tried on a couple of wetsuits. Signed up for a rental of Zoot and Ironman, Tuesday and Wednesday. Will be trying those in Westminster pool. The Ironman suit was somewhat easier to take off and seems to have a better range of arm motion as well as a bit higher neck seal. They're both pain in the ass to put on. I will have to buy one since I'd have to rent one otherwise. Not very economical at $14 / day. It will run me about $240 for a last year's model. I am very curious to see whether I'll be able to do my laps a bit quicker.

I am beginning to think a lot about the logistics of the race. I study the bike as well as running course. The bike has a 50 meter elevation (about 150 feet) hill on it, I'll have to get over it 4 times, running elevation isn't too bad, about 10 meters (30 feet), we'll hit it twice.

Started calculating my food, how much do I need to have on the bike, how much do I need to take with me running, what kind. I do like the Cliff Shot cubes, but they only have 100 calories per 3 cubes. I got to have a shitload of them for a 5 - 6 hour bike ride in order to keep up with about 300 calories per hour intake. Well, part of the intake will be (about 90% sure now) Gu2O electrolyte drink, 24 ounce bottle should also feed me 150 calories. This stuff is kind of like Gatorade but it doesn't have any junk in it and it doesn't taste pukey sweet like Gatorade. I like the Mango flavor the best. I got to make sure I have enough of it with me on the bike as well as for the marathon.

I need to get a hold of Carl - I used to work at a company next to his. He did Ironman France last year and is partly responsible for my madness. I need to ask him about some logistics of the race, how do you transition, how much food do you take with you, what to put in your transition bag, should I wear swimsuit under the wetsuit (I think not but I don't know). I see people in pictures and videos doing the whole thing in a pair of Speedos. I don't think I want to ride 112 miles on a bike wearing Speedo with no padding - yes, my ass is spoiled now. A bunch of tiny details that will probably make all the difference in the world.

As I mentioned last week, I don't trust the HR. Either the air is too dry or it's too windy and it's drying up the HR belt. I caught it several times showing 240 bpm and I am pretty sure I'd be dead if that was my real heart beat. Need to change the battery.

Anyway, here we go with the first week of ramp-up:

Monday - bike to work - Timex: 1:16:06 @ 18.7 mph, 23.77 miles @ 170 bpm
CatEye: 1:12:39 @ 19.6 mph, 23.72 miles
- bike home - Timex: 1:30.41 @ 15.7 mph, 23.84 miles @ 175 bpm
CatEye: 1:27:00 @ 16.3 mph, 23.79 miles

Tuesday - bike to work - Timex: 1:32:43 @ 148 bpm (no GPS)
CatEye: 1:24:53, 16.7 mph, 23.99 miles
- run at noon - just about perfect run. 46:45.58 @ 6.2 mph (9'39" mile), 4.839 miles @ 160 bpm
- Nancy picked me up at work since we needed to go to a Super Foods seminar at Wild Oats. It was kind of cold anyway.

Wednesday - Pool - swimming in Ironman full sleeve wetsuit. The results:

5 laps - 4:23.34 @ 146 bpm
5 laps - 4:35.71 @ ??? bpm
10 laps, no wetsuit - 10:23.41


So, it shaves about 1.5 minutes off 10 laps. However, it's not really comfortable. I don't have the same feel for the water.

Thursday - Pool - swimming in Zoot Z2 Full Sleeve


4 laps @ 3:36.16 @ 135 bpm
5 laps @ 4:38.40 @ 144 bpm
10 laps @ 9:17.48 @ 153 bpm


The feel is about the same, the Zoot fits a bit better. Well, this is about it for renting a suit. I had a nice talk with a couple of people at work who have done Ironman before, several times. Florianopolis will probably be around 75F and the sleeveless is supposed to be more comfortable, I think I'll buy one of those.

Friday - Bike to work, 23.77 miles in 1:16:13 (CatEye)

1:18:38 @ 144 bpm (Timex)
Run at noon, 4.167 miles in 40:43.56 @ 153 bpm
Bike home, took a shortcut through Boulder. 31.65 miles @ 17.5 mph in 1:49:57 (CatEye)
31.83 miles @ 16.2 mph in 1:57:16 @ 151 bpm

Saturday - day off, went to Boulder, bought Zoot Sleeveless, size ML. Also bought Sugoi Tri shorts and tanktop. This stuff is made specifically for triathlon, so you can put it on in the morning, do the swim, get out of the wetsuit, do the bike and keep on running. It dries up really quick and it 's supposedly pretty comfy to run in it, too. The shorts don't have as much padding as regular bike shorts, but it does seem adequate.

Sunday - the plan was to do a Tinman today, however, my stomach really didn't like the jalapenos I ate last night. I woke up in the middle of the night and felt that pepper just drilling a hole in my stomach. Got up and drank some milk to get rid of it. Anyway, I got up in the morning, had breakfast and started working on the bike. Managed to make a gizmo that lets me attach my watch to the bike so I have the HR display in front of me all the time. Much better for monitoring the heart rate. So I took the bike for spin, stopped in Boulder at Fleet Feet, exchanged my shirt I bought yesterday, then went to Longmont, back home and then went for a run - good transition training. Results:
Bike:
CatEye - 57.30 mile in 3:05:22 @ 18.4 mph
Timex - 57.36 miles in 3:16:46 @ 17.4 mph @ 158 bpm
Can't trust bpm, most of the time it was around 150, many times below 140. The screwy thing is that before I really start swetting and when the wind blows, my skin is too dry and the HR shows me 240. Kind of sucks. And I do use the conductive gel. Maybe my belt is going south. Anyway, there was a race on HWY 128, they let me through, but the guy said: "Be careful, these are professionals, they come up on you pretty quickly". Well, I took off about 5 seconds behing a group of women and was able to keep up with them without too many problems. When we got to the turn around point, I looked back and saw the men coming. Oh well, I didn't do the turnaround, went to Boulder instead.
Came home, got off the bike and went running. Now I was sweaty enough so the HR was working, but the GPS battery died right after I took off. Today was technologically challenged day. Returned home, replaced battery, ran to local high school and did bunch of laps on a flat track. I was in no mood to climb hills. Then I went to a gas station, got a bottle of water and took about 4 miles to come home. Good run.
Running: 1:33:56 @ 6.2 mph (9'38" mile), 9.737 miles @ 157 bpm

Things I learned today:
Biking - I am becoming relatively efficient, most of the bike ride is below 150 bpm, although I do push it to a little over 170 on steep hills. Not for long. Food on the bike was 2 Gu gels, about 7-8 gummi bears, about 6 carob nut energy cubes from Whole Foods. Top it with 2, 24 oz bottles of Gu2O at 150 calories each. I think I did close to about 250 calories per hour. I will try salt tablets next time.
Running - I ate pretty well on the bike, drank about 12 oz of Gu2O before the run and I took 4 Gu gels with me for the run. The bike shorts are very comfortable to run in and so is my new tank top. No nipple scraping like I experienced in several of my other shirts. Started the run at about 8'30 mile, running right around 155 bpm. After the first couple of miles I started to slow down since my heart rate hit 165. I kept slowing down and the heart rate kept creeping up. So I took the first gel in about 35 minutes, now I am at almost 10' mile but the HR is still around 165. I took another Gu, this is about 5.5 miles into the run, HR is still going up. I got off the track, ran to nearby gas station, got a bottle of water and drank it. Amazing. I proceeded with the remaining 4+ miles home at around 155 again, got back to sub 9'30" pace and overall felt pretty good even running uphill a bit. When I had about 2 miles left, the HR started creeping back up. I didn't have any more water, no gas starion, so I just pushed ahead. When I got home I was over 165 again. I think I'll try the salt tablets especially for running.

In conclusion
- I lived mostly on sugar, but mixed in some proteins. It was not horribly uncomfortable but I could feel my stomach a bit.
- Next time I'll try salt tablets in conjunction with Gu and Gu2O
- Water matters - I really got to watch my HR while running. It looks like having something like a cup of water about every 15-20 minutes may prove to be extremely beneficial. Especially after the Gu gel. People (who have done this before) tell me that just eating Gu will dehydrate me since the sugar just sucks the water into my stomach. Next time I'll start hydrating a day before.
- Got sunburned a bit today. Got to remember not to do this in Brazil, bad things happen when your skin is burned. Got to pay attention.
- I am not severely hurt, my knees are doing relatively well. There are 3 things I changed lately. I started using the biggest chainring up front, which means more leg power needed and more speed developed, provided I can sustain it. I started using 'Happy Hempsters' natural Hemp rub on my knees - this is like Sombra on steroids. I also started consuming a table spoon of olive oil before I go to bed. At least one of these things is helping.

Weight at the end of the week: 172 lbs - it really doesn't count since it's in the evening after heavy exercise. However, I did notice my weight going a bit down lately. I am eating well but I think I do more proteins now. I do carbs before and during workouts. Also, it seems like since I started swimming again, the body is being challenged in new ways again and it's dropping some weight due to different muscle group usage. Hmmm, or it's them blueberries :)

Week 12

March 10 - March 16th 2006
Pretty much the week off after Saturday ski gymnastics. It was time to take a break anyway, maybe try to do a bit of swimming.

Monday - day off, 45 minutes of stretching
Tuesday - pool, first 10 laps in 10:27.54, second 10 laps in 9:54.75 for a total of 20:22.29. Yup, kind of sucks
Wednesday - pool, first 10 laps in 9:58.81, second 10 laps in 9:58.41, total of 19:57.22. Much better, sustained < 1 minute lap for 20 laps. Much happier. 30 minutes stretching in the gym.
Thursday - just schmoozing in the pool, trying different things, stretching in the water, did a few laps breast stroke, then tried the best I could. 3 laps in 2:58.18, followed by 5 laps in 4:50.11. This is about where I'd like to get - be able to do 10 laps in 9:40 and not be exhausted. That may take a while.
Friday - day off - 30 minutes of stretching in the gym
Saturday - day off
Sunday - went for leasure bike ride with Nancy, 2:09:23 @ 9.5 mph, 20.75 miles. Were showing Nancy how to run up on a curb, fell off the bike, severely bruised my right hand - kind of stuck a sharp gravel right through my glove and into my hand. Ouch. Came back from the ride, transitioned to a fast run: 35:18.50 at 7 mph (8'28" mile) for 4.167 miles at 174 bpm. Hmmm, pushed myself pretty hard on this one. I am not sure about the bpm, looks like my HR monitor is running out of battery. Need to check it.


Pretty good resting week. My right knee is bugging me a bit on the bike. Got to pay attention. Weight at the end of week: 178 lbs. I think I'd like to drop 6 more and I'll be at an ideal weight for the triathlon.

Week 11

This is the week of Monday March 3 - Sunday March 9, 2006

• Monday
  
  • Bike to work, 1:29:29, 23.8 miles @ 15.9 mph, @ 148 bpm
  
  
  • Run, 38:12.45, 4.332 miles @ 6,8 mph (8'49" mile) @ 167 bpm
  
  
  • Bike home, 1:27:14, 23.84 miles, 16.44 mph @ 150 bpm
  
  
  
  


• Tuesday
  
  • Bike to work, 1:32:52, 22.89 miles, 14.7 mph @ 139 bpm
  
  
  • Bike home, 1:26:09, 23.88 miles, 16.6 mph @142 bpm
  
  


• Wednesday
  
  • Bike to work, 1:13:54, 23.69 miles, 19.1 mph @ 148 bpm. New GPS battery, GPS died, this is Cateye time and distance. Timex time was 1:15:48 - my best time ever, got lucky with the lights - only lost about 2 minutes stopping at stoplights and signs
  
  
  • Run 38:25.00, 4.269 miles, 6.6 mph (8'59" mile) @ 161 bpm
  
  
  • Bike home, 1:55:58, 23.92 miles, 12.3 mph @132 bpm. Worst time ever. Had a headwind so strong I thought I was moving backwards a few times. There were times that I had no more gears I could shift and I was moving at 6 mph on a flat road (my bike has 27 gears). Certainly a good workout.
  
  


• Thursday
  
  • Run, 42:02.9, 4.085 miles, 5.8 mph (10'17" mile) @ 140 bpm. Dan did really good, this is the first time he broke 4 miles
  
  


• Friday
  
  • Run, 38:21.52, 4.243 miles, 6.6 mph (9'02" mile) @ 156 bpm
  
  


• Saturday
  
  • Went skiing in Winter Park. Met this kid, Gustavo (Gus), from Miami. Amazing kid, this was the second time he was on skis, he saw snow for the first time in his life on Friday. He never even took a lesson but was doing really well. He started asking questions, so I shown him a couple of things, how to turn properly, distribute the weight, etc. In a couple of hours I took him to a steep (smooth) blue/black run and he made it without a fall. Next run I took him to the edge of moguls and had him go in for a few. He didn't do stellar, but good enough to be able to make it down a mogul field. Cool kid.
    
  
  
  • I also did (not my first choice) a somersault on skies. Landed kind of funny on my left leg and hip. Laughed it off, but it started hurting a bit with time. We packed up at about 2:30 and went home. Getting out of the car really hurt, I could hardly walk. I did some stretches, took some ibuprophen, had Nancy stand on my lower back and soaked in the hottub for a while. I am concerned about getting hurt bad enough so it interrups my training and I can't afford that now. I think I am going to take some time off next week. I am a dumb ass.
  
  


• Sunday
  
  • Laying low, licking my wounds, left hip still hurts but it's not too bad.
    
  
  
  • I should probably call Duffy and schedule a "rolfing fixme" session.
  
  
  
  

Great training week and I wasn't hurt until I did my ski acrobatics. I biked almost 150 miles, ran about 17 miles, did something every day.

But I got hurt. Lets just hope it's not too severe, preferrably it's just bumps and bruises. I'd like to buy our airplane tickets tomorrow.
My hardest week of training is coming up pretty quickly, it should be probably be the week of May 1st. I think I'll lay off a bit next week. It maybe a good week to get back into swimming, I have been neglecting it lately.

Week 10

• 
  Monday March 27th: Day off
  


• 
  Tuesday March 28th:
  
  
  
  • 
    Bike to work: 23.85 miles in 1:19:09 (18.1 mph) @ 153 bpm. GPS battery ran out, needed to replace before running.
    
  
  
  • 
    Run at lunch: 5.876 miles in 50:12.33 (7.0 mph - 8'32" mile) @ 168 bpm
    
  
  
  • 
    Bike home: 24.41 miles in 1:32:58 (15.7 mph) @ 146 bpm. Took a shortcut through Broomfield and got lost there. Bummer.
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  Wednesday March 29th: easy run 2.531 miles in 26:10.45 (5.8 mph - 10'20" mile), @ 141 bpm
  


• 
  Thursday March 30th: 4.372 miles in 42:56.36 @ 6.1 mph (9'49" mile) @ 156 bpm
  


• 
  Friday March 31st: Day off
  


• 
  Saturday April 1st: Day off - building a desk at home
  


• 
  Sunday April 2nd: Was going to go skiing, didn't do it. We did go to Winter Park, it was just too windy and cold and I didn't have enough layers on me. We went to have a nice breakfast and then schmoozed around the local minimall instead of being miserable on the slope. Nice day off.
  

Notes: It's becoming pretty clear to me that I need to setup a spreadsheet with all this data and try to make some kind of sence out of it. It's becoming increasingly difficult to read back this blog and try to figure out whether I am somehow improving somewhere. I do feel very good about being able to run a 1/2 marathon or bike to work, run and bike back while not being in too much pain, but still, I don't have the hard numbers. I need numbers, I am an engineer. I am probably going skiing tomorrow (was going to, see above).
My weight is still around 178 - 183. Need to be 175 solid before end of May. I have been slacking with my food, I even had icecream last night while watching a movie.