The Countdown: 6 Weeks to CDA
Ok so first RR is in the books and we're halfway there.
Had a nice 3300m swim in the pool today. Rich needs to do some better math on his totals.
No time for the run, will do taht tomorrow. Plus don't think the legs would have taken too well to TP.
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I am not sure I am ready yet...I guess that is the way it is supposed to feel? If it is anything like the HIMs I have done, it will be that 2-3 weeks leading up to the race where I finally feel like I can get this thing done!
CdA...here we come!
Swam yesterday and ran. Felt surprisingly good given the big volume Thurs-Sat last week. Feeling downright sluggish today though. May call an audible on a day off... or maybe will just splash around in the pool a little bit.
Just got back from the pool. Did some technique work then the 6 x 400m which basically sucked. Felt like I was going backwards by set 6. Really need to work on my form. Maybe I should have done this over the winter. Oh well. I'll take my 1:20-30 swim and move along to the bike.
Off to do my run from yesterday now on the treadmill. Bad weather this week here in NJ. Rain all week. Really hoping it holds off Thursday as I don't fancy a long run in the rain.
Stephen: you are right on track physically and psychologically. we all SHOULD be wondering if we are ready at this point (i.e. to finish, PR, etc.) since it reflects a proper respect for what is to come.
as Art points out, the EN race strategy will get you to where you need to be during the race.
enjoy this time, enjoy race week and especially race day!
Tucker: amongst most of the age groupers, the swim is such a non-factor. the 4keys will get you past a significant number of faster swimmers. i am in the same boat as you, so i am going to be very consistent with the swim from here on in until race day and see where i end up. whatever it is, it is. i spent a lot of time working on bike and run this off season, so it'll give me something to do next season!!!
hope everyone has a solid week.
over and out.
GH
Nice this week in Seattle (Hey, we deserve it!) so looking forward to getting out on the bike this afternoon/evening...
Re: feeling ready... my anxiety usually peaks about now, then the hard work I do from weeks 6-to-go to 3-to-go takes my mind off that. Then, I try very hard to answer the oft asked question, "Are you ready?" with, "No, I don't intend to be ready until 7 AM June 26th. That helps me keep things in perspective thru the final two weeks, when mental jitters are harder to deal with than the decreasing work load
Got to say, Im just plain old excited at this point. All the numbers have headed in the right direction since 2009. Hopefully, I can keep it together for race day.
As soon as I got back, work has dealt me one blow after another. Monday was filled with patients. Then, at about 2:00, I found out the plane that the hospital uses was in annual maintenance longer than anticipated. That meant an impromptu 4 hour drive Monday night to Great Falls. Had a busy ass day seeing patients then another 4 hour drive back.
Im surviving still though. Monday, got the run in. Combined the 2X 1.5m Zone 4 into 1x 3.0m Zone4. My run coach has me mixing things up a little to get out of my run rut. Basically going Zone 4-5 for 4 min, then surging for a minute, then back to Zone 4 for another 4-5 min. At the very least, it keeps the run more entertaining!
After the drive back last night, I got onto the trainer for the 30/30's. I just had my bike tuned up and its amazing the sound difference. My wife thought I had bought a new trainer. Oddly enough, that went well after this weekend.
Today, put in the Tuesday swim. I agree with Tucker, the 200's sucked. I also have a little twinge in my neck and left shoulder. Hopefully that will go back to where it came from soon. Tonight, doing the hill run workout.
Tomorrow, back on the road again to Great Falls for clinic. Doing the rides this weekend in Glacier National Park. The roads are finally clear enough from SNOW.
Anyone have any advice for running in the rain? Well everyone except Gil, I'm sure he doesn't know a damn thing about it! Looks like rain is in the forecast tomorrow. Should be fun.
When Gil runs in the rain, he doesnt get water on him. The water gets Gil.
mile TT this evening with running group...
5:18.
then mile repeats...
5:45;
5:42;
5:39.
Tucker: Nothing special about running in the rain. If the temp is cold grab a light jacket, if not, just go run. I like running in the rain, somehow the rain flying past makes it seem like I'm going faster. When you get done, get yourself into dry clothes quickly and feel like a badass knowing that rain don't scare you!!!
As far as workouts go...I can feel the accumulation of training stress and workout loads setting in...it is the week after week of long rides and runs, with all the other consistent shorter rides/runs, that just adds up. I am going to have to be very mentally tough today to get through this long run.
Happy running to all!
Hi Team - Sounds like everyone is training hard this week and beginning to get excited for the race.
Interesting week so far for me. Monday I rested since I had to travel to Park City UT for work meetings. It was my first rest day in several weeks so I figured I just needed it.
Tuesday am- Found an outdoor lap pool @ a health club in Park City. Water temp was 78 ,but it was snowing while i was swimming so i had the pool to myself @ 5:30 am. Actually pretty neat experience once I got into the water. But the altitude really effected me since Park City is at 6900 ft. I could only do 2500 yds and had to stop every 200 to catch my breath. Tuesday pm - ran 4.5 miles and was able to do 2 x 1 mile @ ; 6:50 pace. My HR was ws in the same range that I have been running this pace in IL @ 700 ft elevation. Strange but the altitude didn't hit me on the run the way it did on the swim.
Weds - Did the 30/30s on stationary bike. I had to max out the resistance on it to get my HR up to Z5 range. Then ran 3 miles on dreadmil with 2 X 5' @ 6:25 pace to get my HR up to Z3-Z4. I was very surprised that I could run (at least for short distances) at the same pace and same HR @ altitude tthat I have been doing at lower elevation.
Thur - More biz meetings in am. Fly back to Chicago in afternoon, then do the long run this evening. It will probably be about 7 pm when I am able to start the run. Will simulate the late day run @ CDA.
Good luck training to all. Stay focused and healthy.
I ran only 1:40 today....trying to increase my mileage without injuring myself. Between plantar fasciitis and injuries from a bike crash, I didn't run all winter and just started running 6 weeks ago...not sure if I'll be up for a 2:30 long run before IMCDA. Even though I'm disappointed that I won't have a chance to PR my first Ironman with EN, I'm grateful to be able to participate!
a goose! i've heard Macca refer to people he doesn't like as a, "goose". an australian slang term, but Vicki's tales are probably why.
by the way, i don't know anything about rain, nor non-human wildlife, since i was raised in an urban environment in Los Angeles.
nice work by everyone, especially you guys with travel and board room meeting jobs. way to get the work done.
my bike session was today, 4 x 3:30ish @ 108-113%. tomorrow i do the 150minute run in Solvang, California and then I'll watch the TOC TT stage...maybe i'll run the TT course on opposite side of the street as the riders and get EN some TV time.
safe training to all.
gh
As Stephen had mentioned I am starting to feel the accumulation of workouts in these legs. Paces were really tough to hold and sometimes didn't hit them at all.
@Art, when are you getting to NYC and for how long? I work there.
@Vicki, how did you know it was a male goose?
@Tucker - Geese travel in pairs and are mates for life. It is usually the gander who will attack you if it believes you are too close to the nesting female or pose a threat to their young.
The accumulation of fatigue is significant. I bet after the taper I am going to be feeling like a rocket come race day. Can't imagine what feeling fresh would be like now...it has been a while.
Got off the plane, cab home and then hit the long run. 18.1 miles in 2:30. Felt good the first 7 miles and did the 2 x 12' @ ; 7:03 pace. Then began to get very tight in my rt calf, so I skipped the Z2 stuff and just plowed along @ Z1 8:30 pace for the next 10 miles. Felt better towards the end and did the last mile in 8:05. I think the tightness was b/c I ran intervals 3 days in a row. Probably not a good idea. Oh well, got it done. Now time for ice.
I second the nomination for Vicki as the Goose Expert. The only thing I knew about geese before reading this thread is that they fly in V's.
Man oh man, I am running too slow. Just mustered 15 miles in 2:30 today. That being said, I wasn't fatigued at all at the end, and I quite a few "interruptions."
@ Vicki: I one up your Geese, I ran into a bear. Check out my blog. ironvan.com
X3 on the accumulated fatige. My legs were heavy when I started. Just told myself "this is how your probably going to feel on the run on race day... just keep truckin'". Psychologically , it also helps that last year at about this time it took me 3:08 to make it 16 miles... and I was fresh last year when I did it. All good.
@ Tucker: I'll be there tues-thurs of next week, but I'll be pretty wall-to-wall with meetings... I will however schedule some "meetings" that invovle me and my runnning shoes... going to sneak my workouts in during the day so I can go to all the client dinners and whatnot...
@ Allen: stabbing pain is not to be pushed through... Sounds like you have a sane plan. Another thing you could think about is, if possible, build your run volume through frequency. Granted I have never seen you run, but I'd guess that some of that is form related. However, some of it could be plain old adaptation. Last year was my first year of "long" runs and I had a left knee issue that limited my volume (and that was on a long and slow old school first time ironman plan). Tendons and ligaments need time to adapt to the stress... much more time than muscles do. I am by no means an expert, but if I was forced to quibble with the EN way, it would be in the area of those relatively new to running long... if you are new to running long, or running in general, I'm not sure the percentage of intervals in the EN plan is the best way. Doesn't sound like you are, but don't beat yourself up. Like we talked about a bit at dinner last weekend, this whole deal is more enjoyable/reawrding if you take the long term view. Get a little better every year...
To finish is to win.
Looks like I have a chance to do a cold open water swim tomorrow, so I will try to monopolize on that and get that in before the long ride. Should be interesting to get a feel for what the water will be like prior to getting out there.
Have any of you given thoughts as to if you will be doing the neoprene hoods, booties, etc. for the race?
@Vicki - you got to be careful with those geese, my grandma used to have one and everyone called it her pet attack goose. That thing would chase you to the car, in the car, etc.