It's Heating Up – Swim, Bike, Run, Ironman

Juxtaposing Ironman training with other races is tricky.  As I prepared for the New Orleans Half Marathon I was leery of doing too much because I wanted to run well, and it paid off.  But now that it’s over, most of what’s on my plate is triathlons, and preparation should fit seamlessly into the program.  And that program, is getting intense.

Yesterday, I swam for an hour, mixing in sprints and paddle work (which I now love).  Last night was a tempo run of about an hour and ten minutes.  I still have to pinch myself at times when I’m routinely knocking out an 8 mile run after work like it’s no big deal.  A year ago, I was sweating my first 5k.

The body’s ability to adjust is remarkable.  I wasn’t easy to digest a long-ish run last night, but Mark and I hammered the first of two 25 minute tempo runs pretty good. Daniel joined for the second loop and my legs got heavy, but my breathing rarely did. That’s the amazing part to me.  Just like the New Orleans Half.  I didn’t feel like I was breathing hard at all until I hit mile eleven.  Our aerobic capacities are far more than most of us can imagine.

I remember a lesson I learned from East Nasty Godfather, Mark Miller when I started running last year.  He said the minute your exercise becomes anaerobic, your risk of bonking elevates.  That’s why little things like slowing your pace before you reach a hill are important.

Out of all the things I’ve learned, that one stays close to my brain.  I’m always flirting with the edge of my breathing while I run.  If I’m breathing more than every 4th stride on running, I take note and back it down a little, especially if they are hard breaths.  That’s the edge for me and usually I’ll only push that hard if I’m toward the end of a run.  I consciously focus on taking a deep and relaxed breath to see if I can extend my stride count.  Many times I can.  Even if it’s to 4 1/2.  To me that signals I’m in my comfort zone.  Then it all comes down to what’s left in my legs.

Cycling (albeit inside on a trainer) has really boosted my leg strength.  We’ve done up to three hour sessions, followed by 30 minute runs.  I’m not sure of the mechanics between biking and running, but I feel like time on the bike also makes me a faster runner.  The more I think about it, the more I find the bike an incredibly powerful workout.

If you haven’t spent a couple hours on a trainer, without the wind in your face or a fan and you can’t believe how much you sweat.  The illusion of wallowing through the meadow on a bicycle will quickly be shattered if you lock down a spin wheel on your back tire.  I am really anxious to see how the indoor training translates to the road.

Tonight, it’s back on the trainer for a big gear/threshold session and I’m looking forward to inching closer toward being a “finisher” at Ironman Wisconsin.  It’s the little steps, the small gains, and the barely recognizable shots of confidence that make a difference in the end.  That, and training with a group of guys and a coach that continually give me a jolt when I need it most.

For me, Ironman is 90% about confidence, yet that 10% doubt lurks at all times.  The nagging pain, the bad workout, the exhaustion.  I am banking on momentum to dilute the doubt, the negativity, and I’m seeing the power in that principle more every day.  And that theory is making me more aware that I need to surround myself with positive and inspiring people in general.  Life is too short to be around people that bring you down.

Last Night I Ran

I started with an 20 warm up jog then got down to business:

30 sprint, 30 off, repeat
45 sprint, 45 off, repeat
60 sprint, 60 off, repeat
1:30 sprint, 1:30 off, repeat
60 sprint, 60 off
45 sprint, 45 off, repeat
30 on, 30 off, repeat

Several of the sprints coincided with hills.  I finished with an easy run to make 60 minutes.

It was rough, but In the end I felt great about being able to run a decent pace for the last 15 or so even though I was winded.  My legs felt strong as I glided along to complete the day which included an early morning swim.  I felt like I could have kept going for another hour or so at a jogger’s pace, which is really encouraging.

And from “Today’s Random Conversation” file, what every woman wants to know . . . what do guys talk about inside the men’s locker room?

Earlier that morning, I was sitting in the locker room after a swim and was a fly on the wall as three older black men were having a discussion.  They were all kinda overweight and I surmised part of the morning pool exercise crew.  They moved confidently at a very slow pace while I scrambled impatiently to get the heck out of there.  I am quite fond of random locker room babble and this trio did not let me down.

For the purpose of my recollection of their conversation I’ll call them James, Ray, and Carl.

James: Man, have you seen Bobby around?

Ray: Naw, man.  I ain’t seen him in a couple weeks.

James: Yeah, I heard he was sick.

Ray: He must be sick cuz he was comin every day and gettin in that pool.

James: Yeah, he must be real sick.

Ray: He was in that pool every mornin.

James: I hear you, man. Boy gotta be sick.

Carl: Better get him a Z-Pak!!

James: I know that’s right!

Ray: Hell yeah.

James: He must be real sick.

Ray: Yeah, he was serious about that pool for a month.  Every damn day.

James: Aww man, he must be sick.

Carl: Boy better get him a Z-Pak.

James: Yup.

Ray: Uh huh.

How I Will Cut 25 Minutes Off My 1/2 Marathon Time

Note: I wrote this a couple months before running the New Orleans Half Marathon and didn’t post it because I was struggling with the the fact that some of my posts were getting on my nerves.  I was also probably very confident that day and deep down a little afraid of getting in over my head.  But, since I’ve actually finished the race and did exactly what I thought I would do (even better) I feel like there may be something of value here and not just a big bag of wind.
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Originally written January 14th, 2013

I’m sure this post gives the impression that I’m a cock-ass, but the reality is, I like to push myself and think we generally underestimate our abilities.  So much of endurance racing is mental and I hope you can find one or two things in here that help you reach the next level. 

I wasn’t feeling great yesterday, but decided to take a little run after breakfast.  The plan was to start slow and maintain a comfortable pace for four or five miles.  I ended up going ten.

The whole time I was thinking about my plan for the 1/2 marathon in New Orleans.  I thought about the full, but am not sure I want to push my body that far yet, so the goal is to run my best half.  And here’s how I plan to cut 25 minutes off my first half marathon time of 2:14:33.

The reason I’m confident it will happen is because I’ve seen so much progress.  I have two months before New Orleans and yesterday’s run gave me a major boost in belief.  I started slow, kept it at a comfortable pace, and averaged an 8:57 pace for ten miles.  That pace is only 40 or so seconds away from what I’d need to run to clip 25 minutes.

So, how have I made this much progress in roughly eight months?  And how will I get from here to there with two months until the race?

Cross Training

Since I ran my first half last April I have taken a big interest in triathlons, which has added a lot more swim and bike to my routine.  Neither can be underestimated when it comes to running performance.

My first triathlon was a Sprint and I was more concerned about finishing than blasting through any of the individual phases.  I felt good coming out of the swim and took it fairly easy on the bike to make sure I could actually run the entire 5k.  As it turned out I felt better after that run than I had in any other run I’d done to that point.  There was something about the full body workout that agreed with me, and if I hadn’t been so paranoid about finishing, I think I could have easily run my best 5K after the swim and bike if I would have pushed harder.

There is no denying that biking makes you a faster runner.  I used to do a ton of mountain biking in my 30’s and felt like I was as fast on a baseball field as I’d ever been.  Biking is great for explosive and fast twitch muscles.

Swimming clearly helps your endurance, but it is also great for balancing your muscles and strengthening your core.  I haven’t been killing myself in the pool, but knocking out a couple 1,000 – 1,500 yard swims a week goes a long ways on the run.

I’ve also been doing a lot of push ups and ab work on the side during tv commercials or between editing sessions.  The key here is to do it when you feel it.  I never go to fail or push myself to the point of exhaustion.

Consistent Running and Maintenance

I really don’t run that much.  It kind of scares me.  But I do push myself to run at least twice a week and normally it’s between 3-6 miles.  Until yesterday, I hadn’t run more than 8 miles since the 1/2 marathon, but I have been running those short distances harder and I believe that helps overall endurance.

Three weeks ago I ran a 12k (7.25 miles) at what used to be my 5k pace.  It was a mental breakthrough and what made it possible was running with faster pace groups in training.  It’s like playing sports with better athletes, it can be painful, but you always improve your performance, and in the case of running, those sub 9 miles start turning into sub 8 miles with the same perceived energy exertion.

I’ve also stayed fairly consistent with the foam roller and leg strengthening exercises.  Nothing crazy, but a consistent focus on making sure my legs are warmed up and loose before and after runs.  It goes without saying that running is easier when your knees, ankles, and hips don’t hurt.

Learning to Relax into Form

Every mile I try to remember to “shake it out.”  The repetitive nature of running can cause tension in all parts of our body.  It takes a little more energy to let your arms fall and swing them around, but I always find it gives me a boost.  I also like to put them over my head and stretch as far as I can.  It’s interesting because I can literally feel the blood pulsing through my arms when I do this.

The other thing I notice in long runs is that I typically get sore/tight/lazy in the hip flexors which makes each step utterly painful at times.  This is when I know I really have to concentrate on my form.

When our hips are tired it means we’re sort of throwing the legs forward instead of running.  First, I mentally try to relax both of my legs and let go of tension.  Forcing my toes to spread out and letting go of any pain that may be creeping in.  Then I concentrate on my momentum and finding the controlled fall that forces me to think more about lifting my foot rather than pushing off.  I literally say “lift” to myself over and over as I run, while concentrating on “pulling” my foot toward my ass.  I’ve found this takes a ton of strain off the hips and forces me to glide more than lunge.

Another thing I do with regard to pain is the minute I feel something in my foot, ankle, knee, hip, stomach, etc, I force my mind to go somewhere else.  I mean, if it’s a serious pain, that’s a different story, but I have so many little nagging bouts during a run, I do my best not to focus on them and they usually fade away.

Hydration

It’s obvious to drink fluids during a race, but I am a big proponent of hydrating when you least think you need it.  It’s really about having a well oiled machine going into a race more than it is to put put an extra quart in a smoking engine.

Hydration is a year round process and with the amount of beer I put in my body, I have no choice but to take it seriously.  I have pretty good habits with water, like drinking it right away in the morning and pounding more than I think I need after a workout and I believe both go a long ways.

I also plan to add more fruit and vegetables to get the hydrating benefits of water based foods when you don’t feel like drinking water all the time.

Take Advantage of Race Energy

I feel like race day is good for 15-30 seconds per mile when compared to my training runs.  The energy of the crowd and other racers drive you to new heights.  With that in mind, my plan is to purposely start a minute and a half slower than the necessary pace to reach my goal of 1:49:33, which is 8:21 per mile.  So, I will do my absolute best to run the first mile of the half at a 9:51 pace, which will more likely translate into a 9:30 pace in the excitement of the moment.

The key for me is holding back and finding a nice rhythm.  I think it is always better to start slow and fall into your pace rather than start at it or faster.  Yesterday I really paid attention to this and noticed that around mile 7 I would catch myself pacing around 8 minute miles without really trying to hit that mark.  I instantly slowed it back to a nine minute pace, but I’d always pick up speed.  I guess my point is, it’s better to control yourself by backing down to the right pace than having to speed up to get there.
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Post Script:  My actual time for New Orleans was 1:42:03 which means I cut over 32 minutes off my only other half marathon.