IMFL RR #2 Training Report

jimmy augustine

Link to bike data:

http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/BGRBEWCGZDS6VJYNS2OOXTUTHU

Link to run data:

 

http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/7YG3XMWUFY6XXUW4RAH6MZ6QG4

Short version - kept the rubber side down this time. Found a flatter course. On the edge in terms of TSS (293). IF of .72 VI of 1.01 time of 5:37 including a 2 minute stop to refuel after hour 3. I certainly don't plan to work harder than this on the bike on race day.

Bike nutrition was 6 bottles of perform. 1/2 power bar every 30min for first 2 hrs then 1 power gel every 30min. Alternated between caf and no caf. I peed at mi 45 and again at mi 100.

Run went fine. avg hr 152 but it was trending higher. My happy place is 150 to 155. For the first 3mi I just tried to settle my HR into the lower end of that zone. For the second 3 mi I watched pace because I was running too fast when at my target HR. I wanted 10mi per mi so whenever my pace got down to 9:45 I just walked till it moved up to 10:15. That seemed to work.

Run nutrition was a flask of pickle juice and every 30 min gel. My original plan was to do 1mi loops so that I could drink from a bottle of perform that I had set out but I just ended up going 3mi out and 3mi back so I didn't drink as much as I would have liked. After a bike course that was 4 laps, the thought of a 6 lap run was too much for my weak brain.

All in all, I feel pretty good. This was the longest bike I have ever done. There were low points. around mile 40 and again at around mile 90 but they pass.

I guess I am about as ready as I am gonna get.

 

jaleslie

Good job.  Nice and steady.  I can see what you mean about the run pace....looks like it was hard for you to stay at 10:00ish.  Perhaps after a 2.4mi swim it'll be a little less "easy"!?

John Stark

Good work.  Nice numbers.

Only question I have is your run pace.  For the first 6 miles it should be your IM run pace -:30.  So is your IM run pace 9:30 and this fist 6 you went 10:00?  Just curious.

jimmy augustine

John - no. I ran too fast. My goal pace is 10min/mi and I ran 9:30. guilty.

Al Truscott

Posted By jimmy augustine on 18 Oct 2013 10:30 AM


John - no. I ran too fast. My goal pace is 10min/mi and I ran 9:30. guilty.

Yeah ... what feels easy enough in the RR for 6 miles may come back to bite you after 10-12 miles on race day. There is no way to over emphasize the critical necessity of going *stupid slow* for the first hour or so of the IM marathon ... if you can hear yourself breathing, if you can feel your legs, you're probably going out too hard. Use that time to be a camel, tanking up on fluids. Especially if biking is your strong suit, as it appears to be for you.

jimmy augustine

Thanks Al. I was thinking that as I was running. Would I be going like this if it was 26.2mi and not 6mi to go? The answer was NO.
I think that what I will have to do is just walk more. If I cant get my body to run 10:30's I can run for 3min / walk for 1min or what ever formula I need to slow down enough.
I can use that extra time to drink more as you sugest. I wonder about having a full bottle of perform in my T2 bag or grabbing an extra towards the end of the bike. Just so I can put an extra 24oz in me at the start of the run. That would also force me to slow down in the first 30min so that I could drink it.

tim cronk

@Jimmy.... Your ready....

The bike file is a thing of beauty!

The run file looked perfect for 4 miles.....Then you could see short term pace quicken and HR climb.... Like Al said "stupid slow" keep asking your self is this stupid slow?..... Think steady stupid slow aid station to aid station for one hour.... Then the IM run will sort out your pace for you !

Your ready!

jimmy augustine

Thanks tim. For the first few miles I went by heart rate. I just stayed slow enough to keep it below 155. For the last 3 miles I switched to pace. When I saw my pace speed up to 9:45, I walked till it floated back up to 10:15.
But I could feel my heart rate getting up there. I think that I might have been a little short on fluid. I felt like I was overheating a bit even thought the temps were in the mid 70's.
Sticking to heart rate as an upper limit might be a good idea. Especially for the first hour or two till I am in the groove. If my threshold HR is 172, there is no way I should be in the 160's till the last 30min of the day.

I dont feel that confident about my run pace. Earlier this year I had an open 26.2 at 3:52 which is high 8's and a 1:41 13.1 which is high 7's. But my last run test was in very hot temps and let me to a target IM run pace of 10:15. VDOTs all over the place weather dependent. Makes me want to try and run by heart rate. It may lead me to fade towards the end of the run if the temps are cool but it should keep me from blowing up.

new2703

The only thing I see that might be worth mentioning is the decoupling that is occurring between your heart rate and power number towards the last 1/2 of the ride. This suggest that your body might be starting to work harder. You might want to think about scaling back your power goals to avoid or minimize this decoupling. This will set you up for an even better run.

jimmy augustine

John - Thanks for pointing that out. I saw it too. I remember during the ride that I was surprised that I was at or below 140bpm for so much of the time. I am usually closer to 150. In RR #1 I decided that if it got over 155 I would dial back. But maybe I need to lower that number? Like a cap at 150bpm?
I also wonder if drinking more would have helped keep it down? could it be that my blood vol was low because I was sweating more than I was drinking and so my heart had to move the blood that I had faster?
Either way I will pay more attention. I remember thinking towards the end that I I was having to work a bit to keep 160w. It was my first 112mi ride so at the time I figured that it was supposed to feel like work. Maybe I dial back to 158 regardless of what FTP suggests?

new2703

Jimmy
Take your avg Hr from FTP test and x by .95. That will be approximately your FTP heart rate. Next multiple that number by .79 and .89. That will be you a floor and ceiling. Try to keep in middle of those two numbers. Look at how that calculation resembles your data from the rides you've done.

jimmy augustine

John - that brings me back to 150 as an upper end. Which also lines up with Rpe.
Rpe was sending warning messages to my brain over 150. That was about 100mi in to the ride so I just pushed thru.
I will keep an eye on it.

Coach Patrick

Jimmy, curious to see what the temps were. The higher HR isn't an issue IF IF IF the power stay steady and temps go up. In your case, the power seems to have faded over second half (can't tell how much) and HR really really climbed. I usually look at that as the intersection of too few calories and increased demand for fluid/calories. I think you need to plan on 2 bottles of perform an hour (or more than 1!) until you burp it back up, then dial it back to 1 an hour. All other nutrition the same.

An HR cap is okay on the bike, but do what you can early to keep it down (pacing, nutrition, etc). On the run, the pace is a target, but HR is best (10-15 beats above bike average unless you are over 50, then it's probably closer to 5-10 beats, or even 5). Ultimately you need to constantly be asking yourself, "Will the pace I am running right now allow me to run all day, or not?"

jimmy augustine

Can drink more easy. Will do. NP for last hour was 156 vs 158 for ride.
Thx!