"A" 08/19/2020 ITU Short Course World Championship Edmonton
Ironman World Championship (2020-10-10) #IMKona_20
Your Notes
Last twelve months: IM AZ, ITU LC WC, IM Boulder, USAT SC NC, IM Hawaii, IM AZ. Pretty much drained my mental tank, but a week or two of skiing will fill it back up, and I'll be rarin to hit the Zwift about Dec 15.I aim for about 10 hours/week minimum except for the 1-2 weeks after a big race: 2 swim sessions of 40-45', running 15-20 miles/week, biking 4-5 hours. This keeps my CTL at about 80-90 minimum. It's over 1200 right now.
@Coach Patrick Homework assignment: describe your body work and weight room routine(s):
2-3 times a week, I go to a gym 5 minutes away, and spend 25-35 minutes on the following exercises, in this order, all machines, except as noted.
• Bench press
• Lats pull
• Seated leg press
• Hamstring curl
• Single Leg extension
• Shoulder/Deltoid raise
• Triceps
• Curls (dumbbells)
I do these either as 3 sets of 12/10/8 reps with increasing weight, or as one set of 4, 15 secs up/15 sec down. I switch these up when I feel a need for change
The body work is done at home after breakfast, takes 25 minutes. The first 8 minutes has been standard for decades: "Good Morning" yoga pose ~90s, single leg calf stretches 45 s each, hamstring stretch 25 s each, and a complex dynamic pose which incorporates biceps, triceps, pecs, lats, quads, and neck, 60 s each.
The other half is a set of body work meant to strengthen hip flexors and other groups to aid the tracking of my patellae and balance. Right now I do four:
• I call the first the "one-legged drinking bird", like one of those desktop gizmos which has a bird dipping its beak into water, then moving back Knees pretty straight, movement @ hips.
• Second is a one legged hip raise
• Third are single leg pelvic bridges
• Fourth are clam shells
30 reps each leg. Seems like every 6-12 months, I am switching these out for others, for variety.
When away from home, I try to do at least the stretching and body weight work as often as I can, and substitute in push-ups and lat raises for the weight room work.
This is fantastic. Thank you so much for sharing with me. I have my own short routine that I follow as well, but it’s helpful to hear how you approach this problem as well.
It seems to me that many athletes make “getting stronger“ significantly more challenging than it actually needs to be. I have saved this for my arsenal.
@Al Truscott I got your Check-In update, and have pasted it below. This is part of our monthly process to stay connected, so thanks for filling it out!
Clearly I'm a little bit behind on these updates. From what I recall, you were not home the already in Aspen… But you are going to have some fun with run durability this fall during our little challenge. Exciting!
All the folks that I know, you seem to of found the greatest balance between life and consistency. I'm glad to see that good health has followed you as well. Aside from your hair, I think everything else with you is 100% operational, right? 🤣
~ Patrick
Al Truscott is following the Other Plan / DIY Training.
His Rankings are as follows:
- Swim Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Bike Fitness vs Last Month: 2
- Run Fitness vs Last Month: 1
- Body Comp vs Last Month: 2
Next month's focus: Road Trip thru the West to Aspen CO
I think I owe my consistency to my father. He was a life-long athlete, taking up golf, skiing, swimming and other sports as an adult, after being a triple letterman in the classic team sports in hs and the Naval Academy. He got me playing baseball and competitive swimming as a pre-teen, and ever since I have not felt right unless I'm doing something every day. There are a few things in life I can't *not* do: love my wife and children, write, and swim, bike, ski, or run at least once a day. It's not part of a grand plan, or supreme will on my part, just ingrained at some very early point in my life. E.g., ten years ago this week, lying in an ICU bed unable to speak, eat, or use my arms, my only thoughts were "I want to ride down Lower River Road, and get back to Kona." (I give my mother credit for that -I her will to persevere through cancer, stroke, broken hips, etc., was phenomenal.) It never entered my mind that there was another option. I'm sure you had the same experience, stranded in CA the next year with a smashed pelvis, unable to get back home for a week or more.
Two and a half years ago, I thought my right knee was shot from osetoartritis eroding the cartilage under my kneecap and the abutting femur- at least the MRI, an orthopod, and a Sports Med doc all thought so. The past few months, all the pain I'd been having walking downstairs, cycling, running, whatever, has pretty much gone. I'm going to see what running 1-3 miles a day this winter on a treadmill will do, and if it still feels good, then see how well I do getting ready for the valedictory on the Big Island in the Fall. The only after effects I had from a 7.5 mile run at the end of my DIY Triathlon last month were three black toenails. The knee did not hurt during or after, even thought i;d only been running 2-3x/week, 4 miles max.
My vow for my hair was, "Not get it cut until I get vaccinated - I may die with a ponytail". I think I prefer the latter. For sure, Cheryl does...
@Al Truscott - the great story. We absolutely are a product of our history, and it's powerful to hear you tell how you got to where you are today. I think many of us in the community just take it for granted. And yes, that definitely was my number one thought at the time.
I don't get angry when things go "wrong" I just adapt. Funny how things just normalize again over time...but who knows if that's a result of our willpower / refusal to compromise on a few key things...or just a higher power?
I think you will do well with a really simple, low target run focus. Just to do it. No goals, no paces, just your daily dose. At the very least, you need to represent that ponytail out to the the athletic world. We might need to request some slo mo video of your "do" running down that bike path... 👍
Coach Patrick got your check-in update and I have pasted it below along with his response.
This is part of our monthly process to stay connected, so thanks for filling that out.
Rankings are as follows:
- Swim Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Bike Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Run Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Body Comp vs Last Month: 2Next month's focus: Drop to 2 x / week each swim and body work, continue slow increase in intensity & volume running, work hard at OS bike
I really like your plan. Given that we’ve moved into the outseason, it’s important to “Mc space” for the hard work. I’m not sure what your capacity for handling the increase training load is, but I would definitely consider starting with maintaining the run volume you have now while increasing the bike intensity first. If you did that for about two weeks that would allow your body to absorb that bike and then sit on it while you bring the run up to match. I almost think it’s like raising the volume on the right side first, leaving it there, and then raising the volume on the left to match. I hope that makes sense!
Comments
Here's your updated Season Plan...or at least thoughts about one! 🤣
Coach Notes
Video here, we can discuss full details on our call!
Your Races
Your Notes
Last twelve months: IM AZ, ITU LC WC, IM Boulder, USAT SC NC, IM Hawaii, IM AZ. Pretty much drained my mental tank, but a week or two of skiing will fill it back up, and I'll be rarin to hit the Zwift about Dec 15.I aim for about 10 hours/week minimum except for the 1-2 weeks after a big race: 2 swim sessions of 40-45', running 15-20 miles/week, biking 4-5 hours. This keeps my CTL at about 80-90 minimum. It's over 1200 right now.
@Coach Patrick Homework assignment: describe your body work and weight room routine(s):
2-3 times a week, I go to a gym 5 minutes away, and spend 25-35 minutes on the following exercises, in this order, all machines, except as noted.
• Bench press
• Lats pull
• Seated leg press
• Hamstring curl
• Single Leg extension
• Shoulder/Deltoid raise
• Triceps
• Curls (dumbbells)
I do these either as 3 sets of 12/10/8 reps with increasing weight, or as one set of 4, 15 secs up/15 sec down. I switch these up when I feel a need for change
The body work is done at home after breakfast, takes 25 minutes. The first 8 minutes has been standard for decades: "Good Morning" yoga pose ~90s, single leg calf stretches 45 s each, hamstring stretch 25 s each, and a complex dynamic pose which incorporates biceps, triceps, pecs, lats, quads, and neck, 60 s each.
The other half is a set of body work meant to strengthen hip flexors and other groups to aid the tracking of my patellae and balance. Right now I do four:
• I call the first the "one-legged drinking bird", like one of those desktop gizmos which has a bird dipping its beak into water, then moving back Knees pretty straight, movement @ hips.
• Second is a one legged hip raise
• Third are single leg pelvic bridges
• Fourth are clam shells
30 reps each leg. Seems like every 6-12 months, I am switching these out for others, for variety.
When away from home, I try to do at least the stretching and body weight work as often as I can, and substitute in push-ups and lat raises for the weight room work.
This is fantastic. Thank you so much for sharing with me. I have my own short routine that I follow as well, but it’s helpful to hear how you approach this problem as well.
It seems to me that many athletes make “getting stronger“ significantly more challenging than it actually needs to be. I have saved this for my arsenal.
@Al Truscott I got your Check-In update, and have pasted it below. This is part of our monthly process to stay connected, so thanks for filling it out!
Clearly I'm a little bit behind on these updates. From what I recall, you were not home the already in Aspen… But you are going to have some fun with run durability this fall during our little challenge. Exciting!
All the folks that I know, you seem to of found the greatest balance between life and consistency. I'm glad to see that good health has followed you as well. Aside from your hair, I think everything else with you is 100% operational, right? 🤣
~ Patrick
Al Truscott is following the Other Plan / DIY Training.
His Rankings are as follows:
- Swim Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Bike Fitness vs Last Month: 2
- Run Fitness vs Last Month: 1
- Body Comp vs Last Month: 2
Next month's focus: Road Trip thru the West to Aspen CO
@Coach Patrick -
I think I owe my consistency to my father. He was a life-long athlete, taking up golf, skiing, swimming and other sports as an adult, after being a triple letterman in the classic team sports in hs and the Naval Academy. He got me playing baseball and competitive swimming as a pre-teen, and ever since I have not felt right unless I'm doing something every day. There are a few things in life I can't *not* do: love my wife and children, write, and swim, bike, ski, or run at least once a day. It's not part of a grand plan, or supreme will on my part, just ingrained at some very early point in my life. E.g., ten years ago this week, lying in an ICU bed unable to speak, eat, or use my arms, my only thoughts were "I want to ride down Lower River Road, and get back to Kona." (I give my mother credit for that -I her will to persevere through cancer, stroke, broken hips, etc., was phenomenal.) It never entered my mind that there was another option. I'm sure you had the same experience, stranded in CA the next year with a smashed pelvis, unable to get back home for a week or more.
Two and a half years ago, I thought my right knee was shot from osetoartritis eroding the cartilage under my kneecap and the abutting femur- at least the MRI, an orthopod, and a Sports Med doc all thought so. The past few months, all the pain I'd been having walking downstairs, cycling, running, whatever, has pretty much gone. I'm going to see what running 1-3 miles a day this winter on a treadmill will do, and if it still feels good, then see how well I do getting ready for the valedictory on the Big Island in the Fall. The only after effects I had from a 7.5 mile run at the end of my DIY Triathlon last month were three black toenails. The knee did not hurt during or after, even thought i;d only been running 2-3x/week, 4 miles max.
My vow for my hair was, "Not get it cut until I get vaccinated - I may die with a ponytail". I think I prefer the latter. For sure, Cheryl does...
@Al Truscott - the great story. We absolutely are a product of our history, and it's powerful to hear you tell how you got to where you are today. I think many of us in the community just take it for granted. And yes, that definitely was my number one thought at the time.
I don't get angry when things go "wrong" I just adapt. Funny how things just normalize again over time...but who knows if that's a result of our willpower / refusal to compromise on a few key things...or just a higher power?
I think you will do well with a really simple, low target run focus. Just to do it. No goals, no paces, just your daily dose. At the very least, you need to represent that ponytail out to the the athletic world. We might need to request some slo mo video of your "do" running down that bike path... 👍
~ Patrick
@Al Truscott
Coach Patrick got your check-in update and I have pasted it below along with his response.
This is part of our monthly process to stay connected, so thanks for filling that out.
Rankings are as follows:
- Swim Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Bike Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Run Fitness vs Last Month: 3
- Body Comp vs Last Month: 2Next month's focus: Drop to 2 x / week each swim and body work, continue slow increase in intensity & volume running, work hard at OS bike
I really like your plan. Given that we’ve moved into the outseason, it’s important to “Mc space” for the hard work. I’m not sure what your capacity for handling the increase training load is, but I would definitely consider starting with maintaining the run volume you have now while increasing the bike intensity first. If you did that for about two weeks that would allow your body to absorb that bike and then sit on it while you bring the run up to match. I almost think it’s like raising the volume on the right side first, leaving it there, and then raising the volume on the left to match. I hope that makes sense!
~ Patrick