When it all goes wrong again and again
So two years ago my wife and I had a wonderful new baby girl. And she is still wonderful, worth every bit of trouble and brings so much joy to everyone. My diet went to hell though. Then not too long after she was born I blew out my knee. Not training or anything logical but getting out of my car in the garage. So the new tri season was starting and I wanted to train. My knee protesteth much. I go see my doc.... no major issues on X ray. I tried to train. My knee protesteth even more. I see a knee specialist. He thinks this thing will just work itself out and go away. I even did a race! I swam, I biked (it was all uphill all the way and I can prove it. Marble Falls sprint (all uphill). I then tried to jog.... my knee cried. Literally it cried and I grimaced. I go back to specialist. He says it'll improve. I go on a company geology trip which includes lots of hiking to see lots of rocks in Utah. I even hike the trail to the Window Arch in Arches Nat'l Park. My knee cries more. I tell it to STFU.. I go back to doc. Doc says MRI. MRI negative. WTF? I try to exercise more. Knee cries. I go back to doc. Doc says we gotta scope it and I'll fix it. So that whole year is caput. Knee gets scoped turns out meniscus was torn in two places in the rear. So to get in there they have to really pry. Well I have perfect cartilage, strong tendons and big ass leg muscles so they used a big machine and the "two strongest nurses" to pry my knee open and fix it. Well the recovery took way longer than anyone anticipated especially me.
So do season planning. I want to do HIM Texas and IMFL and some local stuff. Well outseason starts. I can swim which aint part of it, and I can bike a bit, but I sure can't even walk yet without limping and I'm really damn fat. I'm 224 or so. For my last half a long time ago I was 208, but I probably should be 175. When I started my first sprint training 4 years ago now I was over 250. I didn't even weight myself for the first 6 or so weeks because I didn't want to know. So now back to the story. I'm 224 and can't jog one lick really. So outseason comes and goes biking a bit improved but running is nothing. Coaches are positive I"m positive. It will improve. So the holidays end OS since I'm on the October plan and I'm pretty well depressed since I can't jog one lick. So I get fatter! Well then I start the HIM plan for Galveston. I can swim (slow cause I'm fat and out of shape). I can bike (same slow). My first FTP test was so bad I laughed. Especially when I did w/kg because I weighed 232 now! So Galveston is a no go. We still go there for the weekend though and the weather was ideal for the race. Mad me sad but the family had a great weekend. I always enjoy trips to Galveston and the beach.
So now it's time to Get Faster. Hey bike FTP is coming up. Swimming is not so bad. Jogging not a chance. So baseball season is here and we always have a Rangers plan (this year 20 games; been to about 12 so far).. So going up and down the stairs is killing the knee especially carrying my lil girl. She loves baseball. Yes she is only 21 months old, but she knows baseball, can say "get a hit," "go Rangers," "play ball," and she can sing her ABCs and count to 10 already. She is smart..... We're gonna be in trouble.
So now it's time to plan for IM and get serious about the diet. There is no way in hell I can finish an IM if I weigh over 200 and I know it. So I start my IM training. Swimming okay, but I'm often pressed for time because I do this before work or at lunch. Biking is getting better. Diet is working. W/kg is going up! Weight loss goal is 2 lbs per week. To date I'm about 1.8 lbs per week average. So one day going to the game walking the stairs, I notice my knee. I notice it because I'm not noticing it. I'm like this is the first day in forever I haven't been bothered by my knee. So next run day I get on the treadmill, set it to 2.0 degrees and break into a jog. Guess what I jog.... I jog and the knee doesn't bother me. Crap my running shape sucks, but I can jog! I do the same for several weeks. I swim, I bike and I jog/walk. It's getting better. I'm increasing the jog interval times and speed too. I even make a chart of speed vs weight for my easy Z2/Z3 jog. So the great news is that I'm down to 210 right now and on the right track. It was actually 210.0 this morning so I will probably be in the 209 range tomorrow morning. I'm only 2 lbs behind on my 2 lbs per week goal currently. The diet works.
The bad news any time I've tried to work out the past two weeks has been really crappy. I can't go. I CANNOT GO! I can't breathe, oh crap now I'm having coughing fits. This cough, it won't go away. I've had more mucus and consumed more cough syrup in the past two weeks than in my previous 44 years of life. I finally see a doc, and I have pneumonia! It's going to be another two weeks before I can GO again according to the doc. I have a follow up in 5 more days. I've missed 4 weeks in the middle of my first IM race plan! I'm screwed. To top it all off I'm going to miss two more weeks 6 to 4 weeks before the race due to a business trip that I can't get out of. So there you have it IMFL is out the window. I will not be ready. The only thing worse than admitting that would be to slog through and force myself to a DNF or an ambulance ride at 16.4 hours. Losing the entry fee hurts bad too, but a family trip to FL to watch me DNF or take an ambulance ride is worse.
So what do you do when you get a big fat pile of Lemons? You make Lemonaide baby! I can still be ready for my two local tris in September. I can do them. I won't be fast, but I won't be last.
Some quick searching found a half distance race (non WTC) that is not too expensive and in Louisiana only 5 hours away. It's also on Nov 21st giving me two more weeks to train. Now I may not be ready for an IM, but I can have a PB half distance race if I stay on the diet and switch to the HIM plan now. Then next year I will be ready to do great for HIM TX. And then I can make plans to conquer my first full IM. So have a glass of lemonaide with me.
I didn't know what forum to post this in, so I put it here. Not everyone will read my Micro topic. Not everyone reads medical help. Not everyone reads nutrition, and this one kind of encompasses them all. I know not everyone will care, but I also know someone out there might be in a similar boat but not the same boat thank goodness. If I made you laugh even once, then that works too. Have fun, keep training, keep working and eventually you can make your goals reality. If life tosses you lemons, adjust and move on.
Comments
Anthony,
I've had similar issues not making races, not finishing due to other issues. This year I completed an IM at 225lbs with relatively little running going in to the race. It can be done but it's not optimal. With your knee issues less weight is better for sure. I'd say focus on the local shorter races, continue the weight loss and set up next year for a great season. What is the risk/reward from doing a 1/2 this year?
After this year's finish at Lake Placid I think I've finally realized that I need to step back on the distance, be committed to consistency in training (I knew this one before), lose the weight (same) and then come back to long course, particularly IM in the future. I might just do local sprints and possibly a 1/2 next year. I'm thinking the half is even too long.
I'm not sure this is you, but for me the distance of the race was what I used to get me off the couch after a long lay off. I needed to get moving or I would not finish in the 17 hours. I'm just trying to say don't let the distance dictate the value of the race, there's lots of goals for short course racing and you can do more of it.
Now I've been throwing around other speed goals in my head to get me motivated and focused on short course. I realize this is not a particularly good indicator due to differences in courses and weather conditions so I'll have to think through other metrics as well that I'd like to measure that will allow me to move up in distance.
Patience with that knee - hyperattention to any little twinges, tweaks or creaks. Caution always on increasing distance and speeds. If it takes a year , it takes a year, just don't mess things up so it takes longer.
I;m with Gordon - there's nothing special about Ironman except the $$$$ you spend doing it and the crowds you do it with. Shorter races are just as much fun and WAY easier to prepare for and recover from. Says the guy who's trying to cut back to one IM a year
Racing local and shorter, more convenient races keeps it fun, recharges the batteries.
Maybe the knee thing is the limiter that could force you to shorter stuff. Increased frequency of runs but of shorter duration. It does add up and it's pretty amazing how running very consistently, even at very short durations, pays off. Potentially, your knee is asking for a reboot, telling you to hold the horses on signing up for the HIM and the IM until the parts are in compliance with what is asked of them to train for that crazy long distance stuff.
It's a bit of an ego check to train with the local crew when the discussion of races pops up. It seems like everybody has that sexy WTC IM on their calendar. Well, I got over that. For 2 years now, I've just worked my ass off for 0, ZERO, races last year and all of 2, TWO, this year, a local oly and a local grass roots half distance. This approach has allowed me to re-prioritize things. No longer does a big wko HAVE to take precedence over things like a long work day, busy family day, twinged calf, feeling run down, etc. Without the pressure of having dropped $1k on a day that I get treated like the rock star that I'm not, I can make clearer judgement calls on my training, macro and micro, and this has led to more consistent training, with realistic and appropriate weight loss rate, more sleep, maybe a more relaxed family. And, I've gotten faster by focusing on the shorter stuff. Ask the local crew.
The really big, really sexy races aren't necessary to enjoy this stuff. Don't sweat it, or at least don't rush it, and adjust according to what your life has available for you to give to the game.
re the knee: if structural damage has been ruled out, try consistent very short runs with some pool running mixed in (both deep water, if available, and the usual 4 ft lap lane stuff).
Keep us updated!
Yes I'm going to have to shift my priorities. Honestly fitness and time are the issues. My knee is great finally. It's been 10 months since the surgery and it's pretty much a non issue. If it does become one, you can rest assured I will back off and fast.
I know with my body type my success will come at shorter distances. I know that based on the sports I played in HS and my track times at various distances etc and the fact that I can make 1000 watts of power for short intervals but my FTP sucks. I can also swim fast for short distances but not long ones. I can do a 1:10 sprint or quicker..... but for long distance I resort to about 2:00 per 100.
I still want to do a full distance race at least once.... My real goal in the next 3 years is to be one of those 45-50 guys that is finishing the local podunk sprint right at 1 hr. I've done it in 1:15 but that was a long time back when I was 208ish but fit. I won't talk about how it went this past July but it was my first anything in almost 2 years. I'm going to the same race series in 5 weeks in September looking to improve on July. Next May I will try for a good time on that course. I still think a half with good pacing and nutrition is doable at the end of November.
Consistent very short runs..... that will be on my list of things to do for sure once this pneumonia is gone.