Matt Aaronson IMWI 2015 - very long and with some "TMI" here and there, sorry
Well, competing in my first Ironman certainly lived up to
the expectation of being an epic experience. The short story is that I swam
better than expected, biked about what I expected and came off the bike in 5th
place in my age division (M40-44). But my run was disappointing and probably
about 30 minutes slower than it should have been, so I finished in 12th place
(and 73rd place in the overall field of 2990). My finish time was 10:29:06.
I have some clear ideas about what went wrong on the run,
all of which are detailed below, but I think it comes down to:
1. You reap what you sow, and the stress fracture that
punched a hole into my run training came home to roost in the form of
insufficient muscular endurance
2. Biking too hard. The data on this is oh so mixed and I
actually UNDERSHOT my target power by ~10 watts and executed my plan perfectly
(and felt great and strong the whole time, etc. But the split was just really
fast. Rich Strauss biked ~5 minutes slower and I know from riding with him this
year that he is stronger than me on the bike. Shouldn't have happened. So I'm
not clear exactly what happened there.
3. A medication-induced fluid-processing issue. I would like
to blame much of what went wrong on this but I suspect it might be a red
herring.
Reading the above you'd think the race was a disaster.
Certainly not! I finished my first-ever Ironman on one of the toughest courses
in North America in under 10 and a half hours and in the top 3% of my age
group. But my goal was to maximize the potential of my fitness and I just know
I didn't do that. So that is disappointing. And truthfully it's a bit
embarrassing for someone who runs a sub-2:55 marathon and sub-4:30 half-iron to
mail in a 3:59 ironman marathon. It should have been faster.
What's next for me? I'm not sure. But not another Ironman
race!! At least not anytime in the foreseeable future. A few reflections on the
Ironman experience broadly:
- The training was a huge commitment…although technically it
was "the same as half-iron training with longer weekend rides and longer
swims" the reality is that those long weekend rides, coupled with
"bike bike weeks" inserted into family vacations were more than I
really bargained for. My family was really supportive and for that I am so
grateful but the balance was not right
- So much input geared toward a single race isn't my cup of
tea. When I got injured and I realized it would totally derail my run training
I got really down. This sport is supposed to be fun, not full of frustration
- I don't have a Kona dream that I'm chasing. With utterly
outstanding execution and in top fitness I MIGHT have finished 5th for a KQ
yesterday. I think for some people that would be a huge incentive to double
down. One thing I've learned over the years is that for me endurance sports are
more about feeling fit and active and pushing myself to the limits. Perhaps
that's why I'm more wrapped up in chasing PRs than podiums and why I STILL
have that annoying feeling that I should have chosen IMFL rather than IMWI.
- After all that training, I don't actually feel any more
fit then when I'm in top half-iron form. In fact, the quality of my threshold
workouts in all disciplines was lower due to all the accumulated fatigue from
the long endurance training and there is no question I lost speed to build
endurance. It is a totally different conditioning clearly.
So with IM off the table what is really next? As I said, not
sure. I'm registered for the Boston Marathon in 2016 since I have a score to
settle after this year's run. And with my 40th birthday on the horizon I know
that if I want to run a sub-2:50 marathon I'll need to do it really soon or not
ever. So maybe Chicago 2016 for that. If I can stay uninjured…………..
Now, onto the more detailed race report, but not before the
obligatory Garmin links:
Swim, 1:08:40 (52/428 M4044; 367/2990 overall): https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/898146630
Bike, 5:10:45 (6/428 M4044; 17/2990 overall): https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/898149362
Run, 3:59:31 (31/428 M4044; 230/2990 overall): https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/898148246
PRE-RACE
Well I won't recap all the injury detail but the short story
is that I've been running injured for a while and an MRI in early August
revealed a stress fracture of my pelvis that required my run training to be
halted completely for about 2 weeks then resumed on an extremely limited basis.
I didn't run over 25 miles in any week and I had no runs over 8 miles. The
pelvis seemed to hold up fine but gait compensation caused a bunch of other
inflammation that prevented running more than 2 consecutive days and literally
had me limping for the rest of the day anytime I ran. The good (?) thing is
that by taking 1200mg/day of a magical NSAID called oxaprozin I could within 2
days be totally pain free and able to run. Which leads me to…
…the medication strategy for the race. I agonized over this.
In various test-runs with and without the anti-inflammatory it became totally
obvious that I would be a DNF on the run without something. So despite the
risks to my renal system I decided to take it starting the Friday before race
day. A few people recommended that I take a steroid (prednisone) which I was
given once in the past and had worked, but at the end of the day I didn't feel
comfortable taking a PED that is banned in competition. It just didn't sit
right with me.
The arrival in Madison was auspicious. We had planned to
scrap the recon ride of the course due to weather but the weather cleared. So I
drove with 2 teammates and my dad and dropped them to ride a ~15 mile part of
the course from Cross Plains to Verona. I drove to Verona to do a ride in a
different part of the course. Shortly into my ride I my cellphone rang and it
was my dad saying he crashed his bike. Lovely. So I picked him up and took him
to the ER where they diagnosed a fractured clavicle and let him know that his
race at the ITU Worlds the next weekend was over. He will think twice about
coming to my races since the last time we went together to race in Grand Rapids
he walked into a plate glass window and ended up in the ER getting stitches
(although that time he was able to race). I will say that despite the massive
disappointment for him he was incredibly supportive for the whole weekend which
is a testament to his character and a real generosity of spirit.
Friday morning I skipped the morning swim recon in favor of
sleeping – I got 10 hours that night which was great. Since the prior day's
ride was cut short I did a short 30' ride on the "stick" part of the
course in the afternoon to ensure my bike was working properly and to complete
the break-in of my "unicorn chain" (CeramicSpeed chain covered in
white dust that is supposed to be ultra low-friction). I did athlete check-in
which was smooth.
Saturday was pretty low-key. I was very well-hydrated (my
dad pointed out that I got up to use the bathroom quite a few times at night)
and weighed-in on my scale at 138 lb in the morning which was right on target.
I then did a 2-mile run to test that the oxaprozin was kicking in and to prime
my body to accept the ~4500 calories it would get over the course of the day.
Unlike other races where I have had "mega meals" the day before, this
time I didn't gorge myself at any time but rather ate a lot throughout the day.
I checked my bags and bike and that was easy and smooth. My wife and 2 of my
kids arrived mid-day and we just generally chilled.
One logistical note, which was that staying at the Hilton
was AWESOME. I got a room due to the misfortune of a colleague who was
registered for the race but got injured early in the training build. There is
no question it makes the race experience VERY EASY. Per Rob Sabo, the hotel
apparently opens up some rooms close to the race so if you don't get one when
you register you may be able to get one if you keep checking.
RACE DAY
The weather forecast was bang-on and we woke up to high-40's
temps. Over the course of the day it rapidly warmed to around 70 and stayed
there. There was minimal wind in the morning and it built to about 10mph from
the west by the end of the bike. Although I tend to outperform competitors in
really hot conditions, I couldn't complain about the "perfect
weather"
I woke up at 5am. I had bought a bagel at Gotham Bagels the
day before and went down to the hotel restaurant to have it split and toasted.
The place was teeming with ironman athletes and their support crews. Massive excitement!
Per my plan I ate half the bagel with a peanut butter and nutella combination
and had a cup of coffee. Then I went to transition to prep my bike. Meanwhile
my dad generously walked my special needs bags to the drop-point. We then met
up at the hotel room and chilled for about half an hour until it was time to
get dressed for the race…
SWIM – 1:08:40 (52/428 M4044; 367/2990
overall)
As many of you know, I was VERY NERVOUS about the swim. It
was a mass-start with ~3000 people all starting to swim when the cannon
sounded. I got in the water 8 mins before the cannon and hung onto a buoy for
about 6 mins so I only had to tread water for a couple of minutes. When the
cannon sounded I hit start on my Garmin 920xt and started to swim. It was
chaotic but really not as bad as I expected. I got open water here and there
but was swimming around a lot of people for most of the way. It sure made
sighting easier…I didn't really do too much sighting and rather just assumed
most of the others knew where they were going. I only really got one good kick
to the face and strangely it was halfway through the swim. Per my plan I kept
my RPE super-low and focused on form the whole time.
When I exited the water I stopped my Garmin and saw 1:08
which was much faster than I expected. I was planning on 1:15 and
half-expecting 1:20 due to the chaos of the mass start. In speaking with people
the next day they said they thought the swim was fast and they had heard about
many swim PRs due to some of the waves on the long back-stretch part of the
course as the wind started to come in. This is supported by my race data…my
pace on the back-stretch was 1:31/100yd vs. 1:34/100 yd overall. Although I
didn't find any one person to draft off of for any length of time, perhaps just
swimming in the middle of a pack of 3000 people gave some drafting benefit.
There was someone really close to me literally the whole time. One thing I am
certain of is that the fast swim split didn't tire me out…I was taking it
REALLY EASY. My PR half-iron swim is 34' and I have done that a few times so
perhaps all the 4500yd pool workouts really did allow me to just double the
half-iron split. The data from my Garmin triathlon HR monitor should have been
able to shed some more light on my effort but for some strange reason it didn't
transfer to the watch. Bummer!
T1 (6:15)
I ran up the helix and along the way ran into a buddy who
was doing the race. We agreed 1:08 was a pretty good swim split. The rest of
the transition was smooth. I just took the contents of my bag and headed for
the door, leaving only the arm-warmers which I decided in advance I wouldn't
wear. The volunteer probably thought it odd that I had the Madison tourist
magazine from the athlete swag-bag in my transition bag and probably thought it
even weirder when I took it with me out to my bike, stuffing it under my
tri-top as a disposable windbreaker for the early bike miles…thanks coaches for
that advice!! The only thing I forgot was to remove my Garmin 920xt watch…I
realized that while running to my bike but by then it was too late so I just
wore it for the rest of the ride (on the inside of my wrist so as to shield it
from the wind).
BIKE – 5:10:45 (6/428 M4044 and 17/2990
overall for the bike, putting me 5/428 and 31/2990 coming off the bike)
My approach to the bike as articulated in my pre-race plan: "I
am very confident heading into this ride. I am strong on the bike, know the
course inside and out and have multiple 5+ hour rides behind me in many
different conditions and none of them being a failed workout…I have ridden the
full course on back-to-back days and ridden 3 consecutive days…so I know how I
ought to feel at every point of the ride… I am capable of biking a "should
split" at my target watts of ~5:20. My goal is to implement PATIENCE AND
DISCIPLINE, i.e. execute a conservative pacing strategy that allows me to run a
marathon afterwards"
Likewise, my pacing strategy was as follows:
- Start targeting 200-205 watts for the stick. By Whalen I
should be settled into the low end of my race target range. The pacing targets
are:
…under 140 bpm I'm riding almost all by power, starting in
the low 200's up to 205
…for hills I may see small HR spikes into 145-150 range,
that is ok assuming quick recovery
…for the second loop I go to 210 if HR is still <140 and
feeling good…if not, or if increasing wattage requires "hard work",
then stick with 205. That will still yield a great performance and I still have
to run a marathon…</span>
…I AM NOT PERMITTED TO RIDE >210 WATTS UNLESS IT IS ON
THE STICK HOME. I CAN EASILY "SETTLE INTO" 215-220 WATTS IN TRAINING
FOR 3-4 HOURS…THIS IS NOT ALLOWED IN THE RACE…NO 5-MILE SPLITS ARE ALLOWED TO
BE >210 WATTS
…if HR goes into the ~145 range power must be carefully
monitored and adjusted downward
…if HR goes into the 150s it becomes the primary metric (not
power anymore), work to keep it <150…sustained over 150 is bad news</span>
…notwithstanding the above point, HR permitted in the
150-155 range for the last 15 miles of the bike if and only if no material
decoupling…i.e. if I can push …>210 watts at 150 bpm for the last 15 miles
of the bike I will allow myself to do that…but if I need that HR to get 200 I
will obviously be already on "plan B"…
NOW, HOW DID I DO EXECUTING ON THAT?? Ostensibly I did
pretty well but I wonder if something wasn't a bit "off".
The first few minutes on the bike was getting sorted…feet
into shoes, etc, etc. In fact my first 10 minutes was NP 139 watts. I was still
going faster than everyone else so I did a backpedal recalibration of my Quarq
powermeter just in case it was reading wrong.
I then settled into the day with the next ~16' @ NP 196. At
the turn onto Whalen Road I went to my target watts and was NP 204 for the last
5 miles before starting the 2 loops in Verona. My HR was high but that is
normal for me coming off a swim…it was 159 for the first 10 mins, 161 for the
next 16' then for the part on Whalen when I increased my power it was starting
to come down, averaging 154 but down to 147/148 range by the time I got to
Verona.
Loop 1 was uneventful. I was expecting needing to weave my
way through massive crowds but I guess swimming a few minutes faster meant that
the chaos on the bike course was less than I expected. I saw one guy drafting
really blatantly for about 5 minutes but I try not to get bothered about things
I can't control. I will say there was some satisfaction when I passed a penalty
tent about 20 minutes and saw him inside!!
Loop 1 data: 1:54 ride time, NP 204, VI 1.01…BUT, HR
avg 150 bpm. Like, really "locked into" 150 bpm. Based on my prior
experience with the NSAID my HR was typically 7-10 bpm higher than usual, but
thinking back to my plan I was committed to lowering power when HR was >150.
So for loop 2 I did just that…
Loop 2 data: 1:57 ride time, NP 195, VI 1.02…BUT, the
bloody HR was still locked into 150. So there was some decoupling happening.
But unlike when I have had that happen before in races, I was actually feeling
great and strong. Something was going awry and I couldn't figure it out.
Of note in loop 2, the 1:57 ride time is actually 1:58 if
you add a 56-second break to "water the grass" at the top of the hill
on Valley Road (I tried to go while riding but just couldn't make it happen).
At the risk of getting too graphic, I will say my urine color was extremely
dark. Plus it was my first bathroom need since starting the ride and I was 2:42
into the ride. On top of that, I had a slight kidney pain. I decided I needed
to drink more water and started that immediately. I modified my race plan to
skip the Verona aid station and on the second loop made sure I left every said
station with full fluids.
The ride home on the "stick" was uneventful and it
became clear I was near the front of the pack. Many of the people around me on
the second loop were people on their first loop and once I turned onto Whalen
Road I was pretty well totally alone. No one passed me nor did I pass anyone
all the way home until the last mile when I rode past 2 other guys.
Ride home data: 29' ride time @ NP 190, still in an
effort to get HR down. I averaged 149 bpm. The tailwind and net downhill helped
with average speed 23.6mph! I then rode the last 10 mins on the bike path etc
quite easy as I prepared for the run.
THIS IS IMPORTANT I THINK…overall for the ride my NP
was 197, VI 1.02, HR 151 avg. I averaged 21.6 mph. Contrast this with training
rides on the course:
- Jul 30: NP 212, HR 145, hot day, 20.6 mph
- Jul 31: NP 196, HR 137, windy and warm, 19.8 mph
- Aug 1: NP 196, HR 136, cool day, 19.9 mph (2 loops only,
no stick)
- Aug 28: NP 209, HR 140, cool day, 19.8 mph (while on the
same NSAID as I used race day)…speed negatively impacted by bike setup
From this I see that I was:
- Going faster – a LOT faster – then when riding the course
on the same watts. Sure a disc wheel, aero helmet etc will contribute to that.
But 1.5 mph?
- My HR was ~12-13 bpm above what it was on other rides at
those watts, and ~5 bpm above the ride where I was putting out almost 15 more
watts.
It appears my speed and HR were actually aligned but my
power was not. Powermeter calibration issue????? I honestly don't know what to
make of it.
I executed my nutrition plan of 3 caffeinated Clif bars and
8 Gu Roctane on the pre-planned schedule. The nutrition felt good. I also drank
a bottle and a half of Gatorade. After I started to really ramp up fluids I
took another bottle of GE from an aid station but it launched before I was able
to drink it. Despite all the water I tool in, I didn't feel the urge to go to
the bathroom until about 45 minutes before the end of the ride. I was again
unable to go while riding (I tried, several times) so I just waited until I
finished the bike.
T2 (3:55)
Well when you roll into T2 in 33rd place overall and they're
prepared to handle 2990 people you get good service!! I was still feeling great
and like I could have ridden many more miles when handed off my bike to the
volunteer. I dumped my bag, put on socks and shoes, grabbed my go bag and was
out the door. Now my T2 time doesn't reflect such efficiency but that's because
I made a pit stop in the porta-potty. Disturbingly, my urine was very, very
dark. So I resolved to drink water at every aid station.
RUN – 3:59:31 (31/428 M4044 and 230/2990
overall for the run, putting me 12/428 and 73/2990 at the finish line)
Pacing strategy from my race plan:
- My pacing strategy is solely HR-based…I learned from my
bricks that if I don't let HR be the governor I'll run too fast and would
surely blow up. My approach in the race will be "when in doubt, ease
up". If I do that I will be ok and my time will be what it is. The general
numbers:
…starting HR target will be 150 which is the high end of AHR
from the last hour of my highest power training rides (i.e. those well in excess
of IM watts)
…I can go to 155 after 4-6 miles
…after mile 16 can go to 160 if able, although I suspect
that will not happen.
Easy enough, right? Well…
- The first 42 minutes was easy. Really easy and I was
feeling great. HR averaged 148. And I was feeling very good. The problem was
that when I checked my pace after the first half hour I was going slower than
8:00/mi. And my cadence was ~176. Very strange…at that HR I would usually be
around 7:30/mi. And 190 spm.
- I should note that I really was feeling no competitive
pressure. Bruce Thompson was spectating and at around mile 1 he told me I was
off the bike in 5th. What he didn't know is that before I even saw him there
were two guys in my AG who not only passed me but blew by me like I was standing
still. So basically at that point in the run my thinking was just to do my best
and if someone else ahead of me screws up then great.
- When I slowed to walk up Observatory Hill I got a massive
muscle cramp in my left hamstring. It stopped me in my tracks. I massaged it
and got going again but having that happen at mile 5.5 was not encouraging.
- I kept running with HR at 150 bpm and I see in the data
now that my pace was 7:56/mi, although that includes the backside of
Observatory Hill…it was only 8:17/mi with that excluded.
- I stopped for 32 sec to try and pee at about mile 8.
Nothing came out despite the feeling of needing to go. This situation repeated
itself 3-4 times over the remainder of the run.
- Another 18 mins running at HR 150 bpm, pace 8:19
(including walking a bit at the end of some aid stations). Then another cramp
that I spent 30 seconds working out.
- Now 17 mins at HR 152 bpm and pace is down to 8:29. I knew
I was going slower but I see the numbers now and it's inexplicable. No walking
breaks in there, just running really friggin' slowly. The one thing I will say
is that by this point the cramps had me freaked out so I didn't want to push
lest I have a devastating cramp similar to Vegas 2011 or Kansas 2012.
- Overall, mentally, I was ok. I knew I was hosed
competitively literally 5 minutes into the run. So I was really now just
concentrating on managing my body to hold it together. If there was one
"dark patch" in the whole run it was probably miles 8-11 when I
realized things were not going to turn out the way I wanted. Maybe miles 20-23
as well, which was really the only time I felt like not running and had to tell
myself "you have no reason to walk because there is no aid station
here!"
- Although I didn't know it, I ran the first loop in
1:51:19, 8:28 pace. About a minute per mile less than I was hoping for and 30
seconds per mile slower than I expected if I was having a bad run. HR averaged
149 bpm for that whole time. But actually on-track for a 1:42 marathon if I
kept it up.
- I had eaten two gels by this point and was taking water at
every aid station. Also some GE although energy to keep my HR up was not a
problem…I was not bonking.
- At the first aid station into the second lap I spent 43
seconds in the port-a-potty trying to urinate. A few very dark drops, that was
it. Something wrong. For the rest of the run I tried to "water the
trees" several times with either nothing or just a few drops.
- The second lap was pretty much a disaster. It was like my
experience in the Boston Marathon after Newton or in Chicago 2014 where my
muscular endurance just wasn't there so my HR started to drop and I couldn't
run faster. My HR for the second loop was ~140 although there was a bit more
stopping and walking aid stations so at "full speed" it was probably
~145 bpm. But I was going really slowly. Of course I was passing a billion
people who were on the doing their first loop but I could just tell I was going
really slowly. At one point early in loop 2 I checked the time and ballparked I
could still make a 3:45 but that fell by the wayside obviously. I was a true
"10-minute superstar"…I'd have to really get into the data but I was
probably averaging around 9:00/mi when I was running and then throwing away
another 30 sec/mi on doing whatever I needed to do to keep my body functioning
(I got hit with an absolutely brutal cramp at about mile 23…literally I thought
I was going to have to stop…but I worked on it for a bit and then it was gone
and didn't threaten to return…strange).
- Nutrition for the second loop was Coke and some GE. My
stomach felt fine for the whole run. No GI issues at all.
- Well they say you always get a burst of energy at the very
end of an Ironman to allow yourself to rocket down the finish chute. For me that
motivation came from checking my watch as I turned onto the Capitol Square –
3:56:43. I had 3 minutes to make it around the square: uphill first, then past
the chaos at Special Needs and downhill to the finish line. I got to work and
see now that my HR got back up to 150 and I was able to achieve 8:13/mi to make
it under the wire at 3:59:31.
POST-RACE
After clearing the finish line I let the med folks know
about the urine issue and they wanted see me. It turns out there was an
EnduranceNation reunion going on over there with Jeremy and Peter also checked
in. I weighed in at the med tent at only 2 lb lighter than my pre-race weight
so they were not concerned about fluid sufficiency. They tested my blood sodium
levels and they were within the acceptable range. By that point I had been
sitting for quite some time so it was hard to get up. I had never been in a med
tent before and it was quite a sight. No lack of customers. The process was
very well-ordered.
I met my dad and went up to the hotel room which thankfully
was across the street from the finish line, literally 30 seconds away. I had a
shower and felt a lot better. In the meantime my dad and my wife had consulted
with my sister who is an ER doc and her advice was to drink a LOT of water. So
I started on that mission. Then I felt the urge to go to the bathroom
"#2" which I did 3 times in the next 10 minutes. Essentially liquid.
Sorry for the TMI but these are the facts. This ironman race messed with my
body in some strange ways that I just don't understand. In any case after that
I felt 1000% better.
Then my wife came up (after the finish she took the kids to
the other hotel to settle them with a babysitter) and we looked for a place for
dinner. I wanted a steak and for convenience we just went to the steakhouse in
the hotel. Eschewing the common wisdom of replenishing carbohydrate stores I
elected the "fat and protein" approach: chicken wings as an appetizer
followed by a 14oz NY strip cooked rare with a side of fries. The steak was
damn good. Ice cream for dessert. The first "real food" of the day
was awesome and I immediately felt 1000% better (yes, on top of the other
1000%, so that's multiplicative…I felt great). Eating gels and GE and Clif bars
all day long is just plain gross.
My hotel room overlooked the finish line so I packed up a
bit and listened to Mike Riley say "You are an Ironman" over, and
over, and over. It was great. I went to the bathroom several times and my urine
had returned to a totally normal amount and color.
Finally, today. My wife picked up my dad and headed to
Chicago early so the kids could get to school. I slept in, got some breakfast
(Marigold's), met up with a buddy and his wife (the same guy I ran into running
up the helix in T1), and then drove myself home. Then conference calls and a
5pm flight to see some clients out east. The ironman is over and back to
"business as usual". My muscles are a bit sore and I am stiff when
getting up from sitting (2.5 hour car rides not recommended!). But overall not
bad and nowhere near as bad as after running an open marathon.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
I'm glad I did this and I certainly learned a lot. To an
even greater degree than in the half-iron you clearly need to get experience
and try different things to dial-in what works best for you. I have a ton of
questions about why my HR was so out of whack vs. power and RPE on the bike, if
I dealt with it correctly, etc. I really wonder what the root cause of the run
debacle was. There are many variables. At the end of the day the race wasn't a
disaster but I invested a lot in the physical and mental preparation and just
know that I should have done better, which makes it bittersweet.
Any and all comment, thought, opinion, speculation, etc from
my teammates is appreciated…………….
Comments
First, mad props to you! You are an Ironman. Might not have been the result you wanted, but a sub 10:30 is quite impressive, and I'm pretty sure you friends/family are damn proud of you. I also have ridiculous amounts of respect for you and everyone on the team who does this at a high level with demanding jobs and keeping their families first. I think it was apparent in all your training updates that you never lost sight of what was really important, and that matters more than any time on the clock. It was great to share the course with you and see you out there on the run a couple times!
Yes, swim times seemed fast, but I'll take it. I also had a higher HR than planned on the bike, so curious what might be behind this. Can any of that be race day excitement/adrenaline? Also, if you figure out how to pee on the bike, please let me know. Being overly-continent is really unfortunate in an Ironman.
Did the stress fracture become a definitive diagnosis? If so, one thing to also think about, especially as it seems you are planning a running intensive year, is why you got a stress fracture. Sure, it can just happen, but odd that it happens now when I'd assume your running mileage was lower than when you've just trained for open marathons. Any insight here (shoes, speed work, change in core strength/flexibility routines, etc), or just chalk it up to bad luck?
As for the run pacing, that is a bummer. Obviously your body wasn't working how it was suppose to be (dark pee = generally bad), so of course you can't run your potential. Whether that is due to the meds or possibly an overcooked bike or maybe nutrition or just the fact you are asking a lot of your body over an IM day, you might never know, but seriously, DO NOT repeat that medication experiment again. You are a smart guy, but that was a dumb choice. Did you ever see in your training if tylenol was enough to take the edge off the pain? That is a much safer choice. Glad that everything seemed to resolve itself quickly after the race.
Your cadence was slower than normal, but how did you feel about your gait otherwise? Were you compensating for anything? Gait compensations definitely have a higher metabolic cost which takes a big toll over 26.2 miles. The lack of running can definitely be a culprit in your run split and all signs point to that you should've been able to run faster if healthy, but also remember an IM marathon is damn hard! My experience is that paces seen in an IM marathon are paces I cannot ever make myself run outside of the IM even if I'm thinking only turtle thoughts. But still, I realize a ridiculously slow pace for you would still be faster than you went on Sunday, and understand this is disappointing.
Thanks for sharing your report, and I'm interested in what the smart folks are going to say. For now, focus on the positives and be proud of yourself! YOU. ARE. AN. IRONMAN.
And, you have an awesome perspective. I love how you recognize that you don't 'need' Kona to legitimize your beastmode. Family time is fleeting, more so than any training time.
Never say never, though. Recover well.
Not being fast at all, but having done 5 IM's and heading into my 6th I agree...you body does some weird things on race day! I have limited the bad stuff by trial/error/ and a whole lot of learning here in the haus. But even that is no guarantee! Ironman is just a really long day with so many opportunities for something to go wrong (as well as right)! I'm sure if you take another go you'll be just as methodical in your prep, and with one race under your belt ( and the experience from it) you'll do great!
I'm curious what you think your "unicorn" chain and aero items DID do to for your bike split. What advantage do you feel you received if any?
And last but not least, that really sucks for your Dad! I hope he heals up quickly!!!
Look, I'm no expert by any stretch, and there are many here with more experience than me, but 2 things came to mind when reading your report:
1 - your Quarq was off by some degree. I have a Quarq pm, and I could swear that on some of my rides following watts, hr, and rpe that something seems off. Why? You had a faster bike split with a higher HR. This could ultimately lead to you not being able to hit your run numbers that you thought you would. Maybe I'm wrong, and I'm sure that the folks at Quarq would disagree, but who knows....
2 - after first thinking that and reading more of your report, I then thought that it may have well been your sodium intake. I didn't add up what you took in in terms of nutrition, but just reading you RR, this seemed like a factor. Why? You had trouble peeing, you cramped....and this could ultimately lead to the higher HR you experience and smoke your run to some degree.
Again, one of these would be my guess, but there are so many factors. Congrats again on an epic day!
I really enjoyed training and racing with you. I always look forward to reading other's race reports to try and learn as much as I can for reapplication in my training and racing. On my drive home yesterday one thing really sunk in as I thought about your day (without the benefit of this RR obviously), and that is that the IM distance really is a different beast. I really thought you were going to be headed to Kona on your first attempt. I know you had your stress fracture issues, etc but even with that your running was strong and you obviously have a great base with your sub 3 marathon last fall and very solid training volume. Certainly the lower run volume didn't help and the side effects of the medicine played a role as well.
Regardless, you finished your first IM on one of the toughest courses in under 10:30 which is a remarkable feat. You are obviously an incredible, accomplished athlete that under better circumstances would/could have been under 10 hours but as you stated, putting all your eggs in one race basket has risks with it. Unfortunately for you the risks came to bear.
Look forward to following you along to your next challenge. Congrats!
I think all the Men in your age group are glad that you don't have any Kona goals right now. Without an injury and a few tweaks to your nutrition plan and you would be in the top 5 of your age group for sure.
Love your perspective on family and training. I did my first half Ironman this year after doing 3 fulls and was amazed at how much more manageable training for a half is compared to a full. It was fun all the way through.
Matt, congrats on a stellar race. You've now seen what a tough egg this distance can be to crack. When/if life gives you a window to take another run, you'll kill it. But for your first one, this result is pretty phenomenal. Like the old adage about how you can't win the race in the swim but you can lose it, I was concerned that you could lose the race for the top end of your AG in the swim. But you didn't. Congrats on a killer first leg. Your transitions were good, and your bike was scorching (faster than Rich and Mark Carey, a former pro in your AG who largely made his $ on the bike). But ultimately you paid on the run because of the injury and what transpired on the bike. It's pretty common to see higher HR and lower watts after a really hard swim, and I do think that the closed course, race focus and aero mods add a good 1-1.5mph. It also is extremely common for a PM to not function properly at an IM. Just too many data-sharing devices sitting in T2. So . . . was your PM a little off? Could be. But, ultimately, your run couldn't care less about your NP, TSS or speed numbers. It only cares about how much objective damage you've done to your body and, conversely, how much you have left in the tank for 26.2. Sure, sometimes NP, TSS and speed have a close correlation to fatigue/damage, but sometimes there's a disconnect. And the truly objective data here suggests that you left T2 a little too damaged for a killer run: that 151 HR avg was quite a bit higher than any of your long training rides and you were really dehydrated (the latter probably contributed to the former). For most of us, the result is a long, cold walk with a glow stick. For you, it's a sub-4 marathon and a top-12 AG finish, something most of us can only dream about. Again, if you ever take another stab at the IM distance, I'm confident we'd see a scary-fast result.
Thanks for making last Sunday a totally unproductive, but really fun day. Congrats again.
Objectively, this is a phenomenally successful 1st IM. Subjectively, I know it hurts/stings/. As usual, you are right on target with the suspect causes for your run. To achieve what you expected based on past run and IM performances, you would have needed to train like you did for those efforts, and it just wasn;t happening. Your run preparation was basically an exercise in triage to allow you to simply show up and run the whole way. So, mission accomplished there, my friend. Then the pain meds you took for the race upset the delicate balance just enough to affect your muscular endurance somehow. Don't try to figure that out, just don;t do it again. Now, did you bike too hard? I doubt it. That usually evidences itself by a complete breakdown in the run, meaning a lot of walking. The fact you were able to run the whole way, albeit slowly, tells me you did not overcook the bike.
Here's a thought for future race goals (it's the plan which I'm working on myself). The 2017 ITU Long Distance Champs are in Penticton, Canada (End of Aug?), requiring a qualification presumably at the USAT LC Champs in 2016, date and location TBD, but probably late August or Sept. The kicker is, the USAT course will probably be "half iron", and the ITU course will be 3K/120K/30K. Tough, but not requiring the level of commitment IM does in any of the three disciplines. And, ALL of the ITU WC races will be held there over a ten day period - great opportunity for a grand get together. If you truly don;t want to go long, you could qualify to go there in the Standard (Olympic) distance.
Regarding HR - I have to wonder from a purely psychological perspective (related to what Rachel mentioned in one of your previous injury posts) if everything you'd invested in training for this race and an internal pressure to perform coupled with concerns about taking an NSAID and dehydration drove your HR up as you focused on your data during your race.... ???
Congrats an a truly awesome performance - really looking forward to seeing you accomplish your Boston goals!
A quick recovery update which is that sitting here today, Wednesday, it feel 99% recovered. Literally like I should go for a run this afternoon (although I won't…I committed to myself no workouts for a week). To me this is further evidence that I wasn't able to stress my body hard enough on that run.
In the past few days I have thought a lot about this race. If it wasn't for the injury I would be tempted to sign up for a revenge race before the end of the season. But after 3 days off the anti inflammatory and it's obvious I won't be running for a while and so that temptation goes away quickly. But it underscores that really, REALLY annoying thought in my head that I just really fu*ked this one chance up somehow. The thought just won't go away and it really pisses me off me that my lifetime PR is going to be 10:29:06 and it should be better.
A few thoughts on the issues folks have raised:
- I am more and more convinced that the lack of run volume towards the end of the training block made a big difference. The data in the second loop of the run supports that as well as how I felt.
- I am also more and more convinced that my PM was off by a few watts. I should have recalibrated it more times out there. It is one of the new ones that supposedly doesn’t require recalibration as the temperature changes but in spite of multiple comments that HR is higher in a race (which I agree with), I think that over the course of a 5-hour bike ride that you've done multiple times my HR should have been more in line with my power. I don't disagree that the aero stuff impacted my speed by a lot. In most races I'm shocked at how much faster my average mph turns out compared with my expectation.
- I agree I was dehydrated. The question is how I got there considering I drank a LOT, starting right from the beginning of the bike where I left T1 with 2 full bottles. No I do not limit water intake to prevent bathroom stops!! I think that I had a stomach shutdown of some sort. Not the sort of dramatic outcome that I've read about in so many race reports before where people are spending the run in porta-potties or vomiting uncontrollably or in gastric pain. Quite the opposite…I felt no GI distress the whole run and my stomach was fine. HOWEVER, I drank a crapton of water and I didn't urinate. And (sorry for the TMI in advance) after the race I did three very large "#2's" that were almost purely liquid. I think that somehow all that water stayed in my stomach and didn't get processed in my body properly. FURTHERMORE, if that is true, it likely started very early in the race, early into the bike…which disconnects any stomach issue from my nutrition strategy and more likely indicates something else with my physiology that just wasn't right.
- I don't think sodium was an issue. I had the unfortunate honor of getting a sodium test via having blood drawn in the med tent and it came out pretty normal (or maybe they just calibrate "normal" to some sort of "just raced an Ironman" standard!!).
- Racing on an NSAID was a calculated risk. If I did it over again I'd make the same decision. To be clear, without that I would have DNF-ed on the run. Period. After running for about an hour I simply would have been in so much pain and limping that I would have had to pull out. So it was really a choice as to if I wanted to start at all. I had done enough training with and without the NSAIDs that I thought I had a good idea of how they impacted me in a variety of conditions. I even used it in my race rehearsal. So I felt I had enough data. I traded that off against the risks and made a decision.
When it's all said and done I think Mike you really nailed it with "the truly objective data here suggests that you left T2 a little too damaged for a killer run: that 151 HR avg was quite a bit higher than any of your long training rides and you were really dehydrated". I think that is right. Most of the above is really searching for an explination as to what happened with my body to cause that to come to pass. Stomach issue leading to fluid processing problem? Medication-related? Bike too hard due to PM miscalibration? Whatever, it doesn't matter. It happened. I didn't leave T2 in the condition I should have. You add that to the insufficient run training and yes, damn lucky I didn't walk half the run and I should be thankful I ran sub-4 which was in fact a top-decile run split in my AG.
I didn't spend a ton of time analyzing the results but I will say that it is strangely comforting to know that if I ran 10 minutes faster I wouldn't have gained a single place in my AG standings. Even 15 minutes faster would have been only 1 place in the standings…it was a strange clustering of results. I would have needed to run 25 minutes faster to KQ. Based on where slot allocation is going in future races (i.e. from 50 to 40 at most), my "all the stars align" race would be really on the bubble for a KQ. I did note with a chuckle that 2 of the guys who KQ-ed in my AG swam slower than me…imagine that!!!!!
Trish, I think the unicorn chain and so forth are key. I believe all the aero stuff is not only faster, but honestly has psychological benefits on race day. As to the quantification of that…no idea!!
What's Next? Not another Ironman ! Giggle.... I remember this guy who was gonna do a "One and Done Marathon" , then is was a sub-3hr Marathon, then it was Boston , then it was another Boston, and now its a sub 2:50 Marathon...
When you do sign up for another Ironman... I get your schedule vs. mine and I don't envy you having to balance work/life/training...OK so kinda like when I was goading Mark Cardinale into signing up for another , maybe a little bit selfish on my part, but man I'd love to see you take another crack at this animal... If you are doing HIM training someone with your background and fitness can easily do the IM training necessary to KQ... I know you mentioned that you'd rather chase a PR but the PR is just a number on a course where the KQ is the placement/rank of going directly against the guys in your AG.... Coming from an EN HIM plan I think you could do 1 month of IM specific training for prep.... 1- 5hr ride and 1-2hr run per week for 4 weeks .... That would NOT be much more than a HIM plan and should only peak at 16-18hr max... Your a beast on the bike (no need to do another camp as long as your current fitness is intact)....
Edit Added.... Did you use the rice paper?
Re what Al said about Penticton - the Standard distance triathlon is NOT part of the 2017 Multisport Festival/Championship.
On the puts and takes of the race. You never know what you are going to get into out there and considering your injury and the fact this was your first go, you had challenges to overcome. It is a delicate balance to push hard on the bike...but not to hard in sacrifice of your run. How hard is to hard is sometimes tough to determine. The more experience you get, the more you will be able to figure this one out.
It was a pleasure to meet you and to "chase you" on the run. Take some time to reflect on the day and think about what you want to do next. Going from your first IM....into your second has a huge benefit. You have a lot more experience, and can take different decisions to maximise the day. Never say never in terms of another. At the end of the day, whatever you decide to do....would love to keep following as given your background, you will make it a success.
Matt - Just getting caught up on my race reports. First, congrats on an amazing performance in your first IM. Sub 10:30 on this course is beyond legit for anyone, let alone #1. Not much to add to what the others have wrote. Probably a confluence of factors that stressed your body making it impossible to run to your potential. The one thing i can share is that i had a similar situation before my first IM in CDA. 6 months prior i broke my hip and this meant i couldn't even begin to run until about 3 months prior to race day. I did the best i could to build up volume and even managed to race St. George 6 weeks prior. When i got to CDA i thought i was ready, but my run, in my mind and based on my own expectations for myself, was a disaster. I did not over bike and I ran a 4:02 when i knew i had the capability to run much closer to 3:30. I realized that even though i made it to the race able to run, that is much different than showing up able to race. My point being, it is very hard to overcome any kind of dent in run training leading up to a race. The next year, my one and only goal going into IM was to stay healthy and uninjured. Mission accomplished and each of next 3 IM's my run has been 3:30 +/- 3min. Sure, you might have ran a little hot on the bike, but had you not had your injury my guess is you would have been much closer to 3:30 than 4. I'm right there with you on the impact training has on your life. There's simply no getting around those Saturday long rides. That being said, it would be fun to see you take another crack at it down the road. But for now, big congrats, Matt!
Regardless, great performance
for a first iron. Congrats.
Noticed that you had not much
for breakfast. Much more calories
needed for breakfast for the future ?
And more prerace hydration? Yes confusing that you got
dehydrated despite drinking a lot.
But did you hydrate well the day before ? and hydrate well before the race during
breakfast?
Sorry I chimed in late
regarding the nsaid use. And I should
have used stronger language to just not use nsaids. Did you get a chance to test out Tylenol for
pain control? Regardless, i do not
think the nsaid use significantly adversely affected your day. Assuming
your kidneys did not get significantly injured during the day – we would not
know this without blood and urine tests after the race – and your quick
recovery indicated there was not serious kidney compromise.
Selfishly I am one of the
folks that would like you to do ironman again soon to see that potential get
realized. I know it is hard with the
family, job, etc. With your background
and skills I bet you could do a great kona push with training hours that are
closer to what is appropriate for a half ironman (versus a full ironman). Like maximum bike rides of four hours
and maximum runs of 16 miles, working the intensity. And getting more family time by biking
indoors (you know how I feel about biking indoors and you can save hours a week
for your family by doing this).
Still hoping to cross racing
paths someday.