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IMCoz 2014 - Week 9 last third of third quarter

wow. After a great 72hrs of training, I have been hit with the sleepy stick. Luckily this is a relatively light day of just a swim. Later, I might need to sneak in an office nap.

How is everyone? Last push is upon us. I am looking at two more big weeks before it is time to heal up.

Comments

  • Swam this morning. Planning to take tomorrow morning off of work for my RR Run. That way I can start a bit later and not rush to get back to my desk. This weekend I have my second race rehearsal. Have to do it early so I can ship my bike in a week. Looked at the calendar today and it freaked me out a bit. I have a feeling the time between now and race day is going to fly by. Eek!
  • Swim yesterday was fine. Today was a bike run session. Also fine. Slept like a dead person last night. Digging. The sleep thing.
  • ran on a treadmill today. First time i have ever put together an hour on one of those things w/o going nutzo crazy from boredom. Intervals help.
    Got a 4k pool set coming up in 20 min or so. Lots of swimming for this one. It will be good to get out of the water a bit further up the pack and feeling fresh.
    Im working on getting a restaurant reservation for team dinner also. Will post about that as soon as I have it.
  • RR long run this morning started terrific, ended with me falling apart. Sigh. Time to talk to Coach P.
  • Hi guys -- I think a lot of us are using TBT to ship our bikes, which means (at least for me) my bike ships before my last RR. What're you going to do for that workout?
  • I asked Coach P and he said to do it this weekend. For me he said to do the RR Run today, Friday off, Swim Saturday, RR ride on Sunday -- my bike has to go to the bike shop on Monday for shipping. I had to move all that up by a day though, which is why I did the run yesterday.
  • Great -- thanks! We have to drop ours off on Tuesday
  • Tuesday is way better than Monday! image

    It seems like we have to say goodbye to the bikes so early; but at least for me, it's a better option than me trying to take my bike apart, fly with it, and reassemble it. Who knows what kind of mess I'd end up with if I had to put my bike together? Also, it's really nice just to be able to hand over your bike after the race and not deal with it again until pick up at home. So I guess dealing with the separation anxiety beforehand is worth it image
  • It's crazy how one day feels like it's much longer…they must be driving from CA to CO.

    I completely agree on TBT…with my luck I would end up forgetting a wheel or something major. Now just to not forget the pedals!
  • I just bailed on tbt. They had me set for the 15th which was tough but doable then yesterday they moved it up to the 12th. So it looks like i will be bringing mine along. It may cost a little more but I am not confident of my fit on my road bike right now. Plus I guess I found it annoying that it would take them more than two weeks to get it there. Plus Plus I have a good case so I might as well use it.
    Good swim yesterday and good brick this morning. Now to do some actual "job" work...
  • I ship my bike TBT next Wednesday...

    I am wrapping up my "Camp Rich" in South Florida. Runs just under 60 miles and will complete 4th bike tomorrow for about 370 miles. Heat index was 94 on long run today... I hope it helps!

    I will do one high intensity interval ride on the trainer before shipping my bike. Will not test again, rather will use numbers from my rides this week... feels like FTP is 2-3% of where it was at IMMT in August... after the effects of this week set in, maybe about the same. Same with running - I will use estimated VO2 numbers from the runs this week without re-testing.

    Testing indoors or in the cold in MI will not give me reasonable estimates of performance in Coz and I didn't want to burn the time down here with testing.

    I feel a TON better than I was feeling last week... hope training is wrapping up good for all of you!
  • Glad you're feeling better Rich!

    Had my RR swim today. Slower than the last time I did it, but still faster than the last time I raced an IM, so I'm happy. I think some of the slow down was because of lane traffic in the pool.

    Tomorrow is my final RR ride. Looking forward to a better ride than the last time I tried it!
  • 4k swim set today. Long run tomorrow. I can see the taper finish line a couple weeks out!
  • Final RR is complete…was faster on the bike, whoo too


    What workout are you replacing next Sat's RR with since your bike will be gone? I saw some others asking in the macro forums that weren't answered. Should I do a longer bike ride on my road bike or another ABP trainer ride?
  • I also ship my bike Wednesday.

    I'm not sure that what I'm doing will help since my training is off the schedule now. After blowing week 16, I put together the last week as a camp week alternating riding / running each day, culminating in a RR of sorts yesterday. Nonetheless - in case it gives you ideas - here is my approach to the last 3 weeks:

    Week 3 (this week)
    - Ride 3x 15' (5') Z4/Z5
    - Ride 180' of hard Z3 intervals (on second bike)
    - Swim 3 days: 1 day technique, 1 day speed/VO2, 1 day long
    - Run #1: VO2 (4x 1 mile (5')
    - Run #2: 60 min Tempo
    - Run #3: 60 min Tempo

    Week 2 (this week)
    - Ride 3x 15' (5') Z4/Z5 (on second bike)
    - Ride 150' of hard Z3 intervals (on second bike)
    - Swim 3 days: 1 day technique, 1 day speed/VO2, 1 day long
    - Run #1: VO2 (4x 1 mile (5')
    - Run #2: 60 min Tempo

    Week 1 (race week)
    - TBD - working on a plan to acclimate the to the heat
    - Will get on the bike fro race pace intervals in the heat to get heart rate up early in the week
    - Will do short (20-30') runs to drive heart rate in the heat early in the week.
    - Will figure out what else to do...

  • Got a couple of hours of running in this morning with some z2 intervals. Got a not-quite-race-rehearsal tomorrow. This is a tough weekend for me in terms of child management. Soccer games and such. Just gotta keep moving forward and sleep as much as I can. Last really long session will be another rr next Friday. Just gotta keep moving forward...
  • Rich -- thanks so much…that gives me a better idea asa lot of mine (minus the longer bike rides) are very similar. Thank you for sharing!
  • @Meredith - Congrats on the new speed!!
    @ Rich - thanks for the sharing your info!
    @ Jimmy - Great job juggling everything! At least the taper will be here soon, and with it hopefully a bit more time.

    Final race rehearsal done. Used my new helmet and happy that I like it. Got another chance to experience the heat (it just won't quit here). Garmin says it was up over 100 at one point. I felt like I was riding through a dryer vent at times. Had more speed this time, but pretty sure I got some wind major assist some of the way. I definitely got to practice riding into the wind, which was good practice for the back side of the island. I'm very happy that I finally executed nutrition/hydration correctly and didn't fall apart because of the heat, like I did on my RR Run and my first RR ride. I guess I'm finally learning image

    If I get a response from Coach P about next week, I'll share here too. Otherwise, I'm planning to do this next mostly as planned, but instead of the RR Swim and Bike -- I'll shorten those sessions so they are more similar to next week.

  • You're welcome Meredith. We have been training all season, I think that our base fitness is there. Just a matter of putting the finishing touches on it for race week. Those of us coming form the cold north need to be taking care to adjust to the temps. I raced Los Cabos this March and mismanaged it.

    Some things that I will do differently at this race...
    1. I spent last week in Florida with my little camp week
    2. I am going to build time in the wet sauna after each swim from here on out, making sure to hydrate while I do it (raise body temp to try keeping blood plasma levels higher)
    3. No more outside / cold temperature runs or rides. Don't get sick or adapt to cold temp workouts.
    4. Traveling to Coz Tuesday - still haven't finalized my schedule to acclimate, but it will involve raising my heart rate and core body temperature on Tue/Wed/Thur/Fri. I don't want to create muscle fatigue and from Thu onwards will want to start the carb/glycogen loading in the muscles, so the intensity will be lower and duration short.

    When he have acclimated, our blood plasma levels will be higher and we will not lose sodium in our sweat as fast as we will when we first arrive. I have read a lot on the subject this summer and learned the following:
    1. Very important to hydrate vigorously from the time we arrive in the heat
    2. Our bodies will build more plasma in response to us placing demands on it in the heat. This is why doing some short, above race-pace efforts in the sun will help us adapt. Just have to balance that with controlling fatigue, and after the exercise get off our feet and rest.
    3. From what I have read, three sessions of doing this can get us about 70-80% of the way there, depending on our bodies. This it my Florida experience last week - Day 4 I was feeling stronger.
    4. Read #1 - actively acclimating places even more demands on hydration.
    5. We will need more salt than we think we will need. We will need more salt than we needed when we were used to being in the heat this summer. I saw tons of people suffering in Los Cabos.
    6. I have also been reading about 'sodium loading.' Essentially, starting with salt the day before the race so that my body holds water leading into the race. Think Camel. I will try this.
    7. Liquid calories - as we get hot and sweat, our bodies send fluids as sweat to our skin. This leaves less fluid for digestion. In Los Cabos, I was eating honey stingers and cliff shots... and I bonked on the bike. I was right on schedule for eating - but power was gone. I believe it was because my fluids were low and the calories were not getting digested. I was able get fluids in and recover enough to finish the race - but learned a hard lesson. I have switched to 100% liquid calories (sports drink and watered down PowerGels).
    8. Liquid volume: Riding last week in Florida (mid 80s with heat index +3-5º), I found that I needed to push the fluids and the calories hard early in the ride in order to keep the energy levels high at the end of the ride. Coach R says to only use water to pour on your head... I find it hard to drink enough sports drink to get liquid volumes high enough. I can drink 20-25 ounces per hour, but start getting sick of it at that point, while I can add another 10-20 ounces of water - I just add another salt stick tablet. On the rides that I was super hydrated, running was much, much, much easier. Heart rate fell into line and stayed low much better. On rides where my liquids were on the order of one bottle per hour, I felt good at start of the run, but fatigue set in quicker and my heart rate drifted up quicker. I am going to grab a sports drink and a water at each station as a strategy for keeping my fluids high. I learned that low hydration feels like fatigue - but it is not fitness related - it just means that our bodies cannot get enough energy to the muscles. Stay hydrated to feel strong!

    I learned at Los Cabos that "knowing" this stuff and executing on it is not the same thing. The typical thing to do is to get on the bike, get caught up in the moment and behave the same way we always behave on the bike - old habits die hard. I'm going to try really hard to get these things right this time.

  • nice rich. I am going to read that a few more times. lots of salt.
    5:20 ride with a 50min run off the bike today. didn't quite have time for a full fledged RR due to kids soccer games but will do this set up a gain next friday and will call it close enough. supplemented with a salt stick every 20min. Might try going to every 15min friday. Couldn't hurt.
    Good work all. Almost time to start cutting back!
  • Rich - thanks for all the great info. We just joined a gym for the month to get the steam room access. Today is our last day of warmish weather before the cold front rolls through…starting tomorrow the high is around 15. I think we picked the perfect summer in CO to train for a late season IM
  • Wow! So much information. I always see the people going to the sauna at the gym (it's right near the pool). I've never understood it...but now I think I may check it out. We had crazy hot weather here all weekend (as well as on my first race rehearsal, and the race rehearsal run). Even though I cursed at it because the heat really takes a toll, I guess it was good training.

    A high of 15?? Brrrr...that's cold!!
  • I'm not sure how much the sauna is going to help. The idea is to try getting my body to acclimate by raising the core temperature. Ideally, I think riding in the heat would be the lowest stress way to accomplish this... Lots of hockey players ride spin bikes in a dry sauna to get this training benefit.

    Here are a couple links that talk about the effects:

    http://www.sportsci.org/encyc/heataccl/heataccl.html

    http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/11/news/heat-acclimation-gives-big-cycling-performance-improvements-in-cool-conditions-study-finds_148767

  • Rich - Looking at the first study that you posted a link to, it wouldnt seem like there are really any benifits to hitting the sauna unless you are going to be exercizing while in the sauna.
    I think that I will just make sure that I am way overdressed for my sessions.
  • The chart that I was looking at had a "+" next to Increased Plasma Volume and "++" next to Decreased core body temperature... this is why I am chasing it. This chart does not show the concentration of sodium in sweat, but before we acclimate, we tend to lose more electrolytes. I'm hoping to improve that too.

    I think that overdressing for training sessions is a good plan too.
  • ah yes. I see it now. thx!
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