Races Cancelled: What's Next?

23 hours of training last week was my biggest yet! With just over 15 hours on the bike, 51 run miles and 1:15 of strength, I am beat. Being my first full week back after influenza A, I could feel the fatigue in my body. On Sunday, I decided to hit the reset button after the news of Ironman Tulsa being postponed (date TBD). I started my week with no training and focused on neglected house maintenance before tackling a century ride on Monday. The rest of this week will be focused on recovery.

With IM Tulsa postponed, my training is up in the air, for now. My next official race is Des Moines 70.3 June 21^st followed by Muncie 70.3 on July 11^th. DSM is likely to be cancelled soon, and Muncie is still on the fringe.

This week I decide where to go from here. I can go back to Zone 2 base build in hopes of racing a full in the fall, or I can drop some volume and target more speed for a faster 70.3. Either way, I am anxious to test myself and check fitness.

April 4^th-5^th, I am planning on racing a virtual half Ironman (duathlon) to find out. To give myself that race feel, I’ll take a few easy days before, use race wheels, wear my kit if it’s warm enough and make my car the transition area away from town. I also have the following goals so I have something to shoot for:

22mph on the bike (self-supported) just under a 2:33 split. I haven’t been over 21mph in training, but hopefully my race effort will get me there.

1:30 half marathon 6:50 min/mi or better.

Total time under 4:00 hours excluding transition. I don’t plan on dawdling or recovering before the run. Hoping to drop the any time over 2:30 on the bike from run split.

Some pictures from my Century Ride with Jeff Paul.

1st fuel stop at 45 miles. 2.5 hours of 15-20mph headwinds

Jeff pulled most of the ride / 100 miles right at dusk

The Flu: Quick Update

It’s been a crazy last few weeks with the Covid-19 outbreak and self-quarantine regulations. Unfortunately for me, I picked up influenza A from my office 2 weeks ago. It actually put me in the emergency room after passing out and smacking my head against the sink. I was probably out for 2 minutes, and I couldn’t even sit up without blacking out again.Ty found me on the floor and worked with me to get in the car. 

At the hospital, they took my blood pressure and pulse laying down and sitting up. Each time I sat up, my pulse jumped from 50 to 90 BPM, and my blood pressure tanked. I received 2 bags of IV fluid a piles of warm blankets. When they swabbed me, it came back positive for Influenza A. The flu put me out for 5 days where the most I did was walk around my cu-de-sac. All I could do was impatiently wait it out until it passed. As soon as my fever lifted, I was back on the bike trainer hardly pushing 80 watts. 

Since that first ride, I’ve ramped back up to a 15-mile long run and 3.5 hours of cycling. My legs are beat up from the sudden volume increase and lack of swim recovery, so I plan to back off after my current 20+ hour week. Even though IM Tulsa is unlikely to be held on May 31^st, I am training as if it will be. I will continue ramping up unless I hear otherwise, and at that point I may switch to less volume more speed for the 70.3’s coming up.

With that, I encourage everyone out there to please be smart and stay safe. It’s not just for yourself, but for everyone else around you too.

Why Race Ironman

Many times, I am asked why I spend so much time, energy and money training for Ironman. Simply put, I set a goal and I will not stop until I achieve it. And even after that, I doubt I’ll slow down. I know that’s a pretty weak answer, so that’s what this post is about.

I’m taking a deeper dive into WHY I do what I do by answering the following questions:

“Why race Ironman?”

“What gets you out the door when you don’t feel like training?”

“What Actually drives you?”

I originally wanted to complete an Ironman to test my limits and join a rare company with the title Ironman. Now, I compete to chase a far less attainable dream. Training for and completing my first Ironman was lifechanging on its own. But now, I have set an even higher goal, to reach the pinnacle of Triathlon at Kona. To qualify, I must earn a slot by coming in 1^st or 2^nd in my age group (unless a slot is rolled down). On this journey, I am determined to inspire and show everyone that Anything is Possible. I also believe fitness is essential in getting the most out of life: better health, stress coping, improved sleep, etc… 

Most days I get out that door simply because it’s become habitual. I determine my workout for the day ahead of time and just go do it. When I really don’t feel like training, I remember my goal and all the people following my journey. My competitive nature fuels me because I know that when I’m not out training, someone else is.

The hardest question for me is what Actually drives me. Exercise in it of itself “feels” good, especially after completing a hard-earned workout. For me, there is something deep inside that wants to see improvement. I love the idea of progressing forward, and I get to watch my body get stronger and faster first hand. So for me, a timed race is one of the simplest ways to track both progression and improvement, and watching that time drop keeps me motivated.

There is Nothing like running down that finish chute

If there is anything I should go deeper into or other questions you want answered, please let me know and I will include it in my next post.

I will also call on a few friends to share their whys as well.

Calorie Intake and Meal Prep

Endurance athletes consume A LOT of calories. Questions I get asked are “Can you eat whatever you want and not gain weight?”and “How many calories do you consume?”

I definitely can't eat whatever I want, and I've never tracked calories (until last week). No matter how much I train, a steady diet of junk food will cause weight gain. It would also reduce the energy needed to sustain a high training volume. To better control what I eat, I choose to meal prep.

Sunday Meal Prep

My typical lunch consists of hardboiled eggs, carrots, avocado, an apple, yogurt, chips, granola bar, a “main dish” and a piece of candy. The main dish last week was slow cooked chicken with black beans, salsa, pineapple and cream cheese laid on a bed of rice and lentils. Recently, I’ve been prepping a 2^nd main dish for lunch each day to keep my energy level up.

Reason to Meal Prep:

It’s Quick - With a full-time job and 15-20 hours of training each week, time is limited. With the main dish prepared, assembling my lunch takes a minute. Having that little bit of extra time is invaluable when I’m jumping between workouts and trying to have a life.

It’s Cheap - Eating out/using the cafeteria adds up! With how much I consume, I’d be spending at least $15 a day on lunch. Based on grocery bills, a week of meal prepped lunches costs me around $20. Some quick math shows me saving at least $55/week, $220+/month and almost $3000 a year! Helps pay for the sport =)

It’s Healthier – By controlling what I bring to work every day, I am forced to either eat what I brought or go hungry. When I DO get hungry, I eat everything in sight. So at work, I’m stuck staring at container of carrots and an apple every day. Sure I can order a salad at work, but I’d like to refer back to the green point =)

Since I always gave a ballpark on how many calories consume, I used MyFitnessPal to track consumption last Wednesday.  The app allows you to conveniently scan bar codes and create recipes by listing the ingredients and quantities. For items that can't be scanned, there is a search option for restaurant items and miscellaneous foods. Below is what I entered in the App:

Breakfast

2 hardboiled eggs, 3 slices cinnamon bread, ½ cup baby carrots, 2 Tbsp Guacamole, Plain Bagel with cream cheese, 2 clementines

Lunch

Mountain Dew (a rarity), 2 servings of Famous Dave’s Georgia Chopped Pork with 1 bun, 1.5 cups hand mashed potatoes, 1.5 cups Cheesy Mac & cheese

Dinner

2.5 cups of my pulled chicken and salsa recipe, avocado, 1 cup 2% milk, chocolate chip cookie

Snacks

Zone bar, protein shake, Honey Stinger Waffle, Packet of Emergency

= 5,700 Calories!!!

That day, my workout was a 2:45 trainer ride at a low Zone 2 effort. Garmin estimated I burned 4,200 calories that day. I would guess that my typical intake is around 5,000 calories/day, and the catered Famous Dave’s made the number a little high when I was tracking.

As always, I’m up for feedback and future topics if anything interests you!

Building Aerobic Base

Took a few weeks off from posting, but I’m back in action! The last 4 weeks have been the longest stretch of training I have ever done. It was recommended by friends/coaches Brent Pease and Stacy Sims (link to their page below) that I lower my intensity and focus on volume for the first 6 weeks of the year. Rather than running near my race effort of ~155 bpm or cycling at 200 Watts, I have significantly decreased my effort. Watts are down to 150-160 and my running heart rate is 145 bpm or lower.

How I feel about treadmill running

Ice has forced me inside a few times, but I'm still finding ways to get outside as much as possible. 

Building an aerobic base: With this new (at least to me) way of training, I have found that I no longer need a dedicated rest day every week or 2. Since the end of December, I have taken 1 rest day to recover for the increased volume. Since starting this, I have noticed a few things…

1.    The pace I can run at while maintaining a heartrate in the low 140’s has dropped 5-10s/mi. So with the same effort, I am running slightly faster. I believe this will also translate to increased speed at my race effort once I get back to training at a higher intensity.

2.    I do not constantly feel beat up and needing of a rest day. Even though I have added 4-5 hours of training each week, slowing down and keeping my heartrate low has allowed me to continually feel “fresh”.

3.    I am itching to start pushing myself again and get back to the harder workouts. While training at an easy effort feel nice, I find myself missing the sense of accomplishment from hitting those tough splits.

4.    My caloric intake has increased dramatically. I was already eating a lot, as most triathletes do, but I am now needing 2 full lunches to get through my work day. I believe this is due to both the increased volume and from staying in the aerobic zone. Next week I plan on posting about what my weekly meal prep looks like ;)

With two weeks of high-volume Zone 2 training left, I plan on closing out this first block with a lot of hours. My goal is to swim at least 10,000 yards, bike 8-10 hours, and run 30+ miles both weeks.

https://www.dynamomultisport.com/triathlon-coaches

2019 Recap and 2020 Plans

Overall, 2019 was a great year. I had a few important learning experiences as well as some success. The goal is Kona, and my performances at Muncie 70.3 and Ironman Wisconsin were great steps towards qualifying. With the year behind me, I plan on using 2019 as a stepping stone towards qualifying in 2020. I believe with proper training adjustments and a well-executed race, this is my year!

As for a recap on 2019, here are a couple significant events.

2019 Mileage Totals

Shout out to my dad for completing his first triathlon in the late Spring! I am incredibly grateful for the support he has shown me in my racing, and I’m exciting to see how he progresses in 2020.

Dad's first Triathlon!

At Muncie 70.3, I successfully focused on faster transitions with an end of swim recovery and flying mount/dismount. I hit my goal of a top 5 AG finish and came 31s short of 4:30.

5th Place AG at Muncie 70.3

Ironman Wisconsin was the best race I have ever put together. I hit just over 20mph on the bike and ran a 3:15 marathon. With my goal of top 10 AG, getting 5^th was beyond what I expected.

Nothing quite like an Ironman Finish

Ironman Louisville. What was meant to be my best race and ticket to Kona turned into a tough day. After the cancelled swim, forgetting bike nutrition at the hotel and bonking, I just wasn’t having it. The good news is, I powered through the marathon in under 3:30 because of a special someone waiting for me at the finish. Right after finishing, I proposed to Ty where we first met and kissed. So despite the race not being what I wanted, the day couldn’t have ended any better!

She said YES!

Plans for 2020

I have quite a few races planned for the first half of the year, but I am leaving the second half open until after Ironman Tulsa. My secondary goals are to BQ at the Illinois Marathon and qualify for 70.3 Worlds at the DSM or Muncie 70.3.

4/25 - Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon

5/09 – Thunder in the Valley Olympic Tri

5/31 – Ironman Tulsa

6/21 - Ironman 70.3 Des Moines 

7/11 - Ironman 70.3 Muncie

8/01 - DeWitt Crossroads Triathlon

9/13 - Ironman Wisconsin (if I miss Kona at IM Tulsa)

Happy new year all, and I can’t wait to see what 2020 holds!

Some Things Never Change

Hey! Final post of the series and for 2019! 

I love the phrase “If it isnt’t broke, don’t fix it”. So, this post will be dedicated to the things I have been doing since day 1.

Avoiding the Trainer and Treadmill

Frost and icicles from my breath

For me, running in place is torture. I have always been anti-treadmill and doubt that will ever change. I will run in sub-zero temperatures to avoid it. The only time I compromise is icy conditions or if safe routes are difficult to find while traveling. The same goes for the trainer, but I tend to stay inside after a recent snowfall or ANY chance of ice. I simply prefer “actual” road miles when I train. I love the outdoors and training allows me to be outside all the time.

Nutrition

Disposable bottle with Gatorade 

One thing I I take pride in is being flexible with using on course nutrition. In an Ironman I start the bike with a disposable bottle. Since my first full, I have used this approach to avoid refilling or carrying more than 1 at a time. Having 1 bottle reduces weight and improves aerodynamics. This works well because I am never more than 15 miles away from fluids. I have always used what is offered on the course for this reason.

I also start the bike with a chocolate chip cliff bar. Although an odd choice, I use it because I always have them in the house. I have yet to experience GI issues on long rides, and I have performed well racing so far. If it isn’t broke…

Need to Improve Cycling

After 3 years in triathlon, cycling still has the most room for improvement. While I still work to improve my run, the largest time impact will come from a faster bike split. Running has been my bread and butter from high school cross county, and a marathon was my first endurance race that got me into Ironman. I never enjoy working on the things I am bad at, so cycling has felt like a thorn in my side since the beginning. I am always open to feedback to improve my bike split and will continue putting the most time towards cycling.  

Key Takeaways:

Try new things but don't force it! A cliff bar is very solid fuel, but it works for me so I stick with it. I have tried all liquid or more gels, but I either bonk or upset my stomach. 

If it works for you, stick with it. I personally perform better and am more motivated training outside. 

Training is a never ending process. There is always room for improvement and ways to drop time. For me, cycling will be the 1 thing I know I can spend more time on.