Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Shortbread and trail runs

Christmas is always a challenging time of the year for me. The main reason is that I can't help myself. I grew up in a family that embraced Christmas. It was always a huge family event. The house decorated to the rafters.

This year I'll be spending Christmas with Margreet and Luka here in Squamish. A year ago I was in Toronto and Margreet back home .. and Luka was wandering around north of here enduring a tough start to life.

Our lights are finally set outside after a bit of back and forth to Canadian Tire to sort of the colours and the extension cords. And Margreet crafted a wreath for the front entrance.

So while the snow has melted here this past week and it actually is relatively mild outside today, there is still lots of Christmas spirit.

With that in mind, I devoured a 'small' box of shortbread cookies between last evening and midday today. So small that it is hardly worth mentioning. As I said, I couldn't help myself. I don't train all year for nothing.

To make up for it today, Luka and I hit the trails this afternoon and wow, we had a solid 45-60 minute run up and down, through some streams, navigating a bit of ice. A beautiful training session.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Charlotte Paul

Charlotte had a busy 2009 - five iron distance races.

She won China, was third at NZ and fourth at WA. In between NZ and WA, she raced at Roth and in Kona - though both days didn't pan out quite as planned.

A very very solid year of racing.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Become a Fan on Facebook

Become a Fan on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Running-Shoes-Are-a-Girls-Best-Friend/207783926601?ref=nf

Ollie Whistler

Ollie Whistler .. you'll see this name a lot in the future and for good reason.

At Ironman WA a few weeks ago, this 21-year-old Aussie swam 48.22 and spun 4.35.

However, he - by his own admission - stopped drinking and taking his nutrition.

As a result, his day ended rather abruptly on the run.

While he didn't make it to the finish line that day, he learned a few lessons. And no doubt he'll be a tad more disciplined next time.

*Waiting for word on his blog

Motivation

It's been tough to train these past few weeks. It's dark when the alarm sounds in the morning and it's dark by 5pm in the afternoon. And race season is a long time away.

I know the importance of being consistent with my training and 'banking' the work that I do now for next summer.

Still, it's tough to get out the door when the temperature drops and the snow is falling.

But I'm still walking with Luka every day and I consider him to be a key to maintaining my fitness through these short winter days.

There was a story in The New York Times this week about the benefit of walking a dog. Here's a small excerpt:

New research from the University of Missouri has found that people who walk dogs are more consistent about regular exercise and show more improvement in fitness than people who walk with a human companion.

Here's the link for the story:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/14/the-best-walking-partner-man-vs-dog/

Before Luka arrived here earlier this year, I didn't really have a clue how much time we'd need to invest in him every day. Margreet talked of walking him three hours a day and I thought, geez that's more time than I train and I struggle enough with that. In my mind, I nominated her as chief executive dog walker.

We now split our dog walking duties. Because of my work times, Margreet has the morning shift. And I take the little guy - he appears to have hit his adult size - in the afternoons.

For quite some time, Luka intimidated me. I just wasn't sure how to interact with him. Something has changed in me, though I can't say exactly what it is. It's a confidence issue. And I have great confidence in my ability to manage him.

That sounds far too clinical. If you have a dog, you probably know what I mean. We've had a melting of the minds. In simple terms, I'm thinking more like a dog. His needs are simple: food, water, play, sleep - repeat, not necessarily in that order.

The simplicity with which a dog approaches life has provided me with the gentle reminder that I need from time to time when I let some life stress take too high a priority.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Swimming like a fish

I was at the pool today and asked whether there was anyway to determine how many times I visited this past year. I have a swipe card and thought that there might be a continuing count of its use.

Well, there is and there isn't.

I was given a sheet with a list of all the times that I've swiped my card when the swipe system began at the end of April.

How could I resist? I run every other number I can find. It's part of being a triathlete.

So here's some of the raw data:

May - 10
June - 13
July - 6
August - 8

What's not captured here are the outdoor swims in July and August ahead of Ironman Canada. To be honest, I don't keep detailed training records, I just train. I should keep better records and I try to do that with some key sessions but for the most part, I don't want to think about it too much. That's something that I've learned with ironguides.

Back to my swimming though.

I took September off. The main reason was that the pool was closed for two weeks for maintenance. And the other reason was that my race season was over and I wanted/needed a break.

I returned to the pool in mid October and hit the water six times. In November, eight visits. And so far this month, seven.

If I can get to the pool at least twice a week, and preferably three to four times during winter, then I know I'll be set for the season ahead.

If only Luka could swim a few laps.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

In memory of

I often write about perspective and it’s something that I have thought a lot about in recent years in part because of triathlon but more importantly because of ‘life changing events’ involving my parents.

As I edge closer to the half century mark, I’m increasingly aware of how finite one’s time on earth is, how precious one's health is and the importance of making the most of every single day. I think Marc Becker would agree.

That's why the news of Marc’s death struck home for several reasons.

First because he died far too young. And second, there is no doubt in my mind that he had so much more to contribute to this world.

Since hearing of his death, I have spent a lot of time searching the internet for references to him and have been reading all that I could find that he has written.

Marc was a bright, articulate and forward-looking person.

He also was a high achiever and yet he didn’t need to say so. He was an entrepreneur because it gave him an outlet to reach others.

Marc wasn't perfect and his life wasn't perfect. He had his share of success and failure. And he seemed able to re-balance himself, to keep life in perspective.

For me there is no greater legacy than for the simple words of encouragement one can offer to another when life throws a curve ball. Marc seemed to have a natural instinct for doing so.

The tragedy is that he lost all hope. He lost his perspective.

The private Marc remains private. I never met him. I had very little direct contact with him. He was not my direct coach at ironguides.

I know little of what happened in his last few months, weeks, days that helps put his death into context. And I don't need to know.

***

On the ironguides website, there is a section called The Inner Athlete and Marc wrote a series of articles on the building blocks for success. I have selected a few of the comments that struck me.

***

“Determination is a resoluteness of purpose, a resolve to carry on without fear of failure until your objective has been reached. It’s “don’t weaken in the tough times” and it’s the voice inside you that speaks up and drowns out the words of the naysayers around you. Unbridled determination is an irresistible force, wearing down good opponents who are nevertheless forced to confront their inequity in the face of your power of determination.”

***

“A great attitude sets you up for success because it differentiates the gold from the glitter. A great attitude means the inevitable setbacks in life don't hold you back, but are transformed into the fuel to drive you ever forward. If all else fails and you hit a rough patch, focus on one thing and on thing alone: Try to return quickly to the perspective you want to take on life. Find your great attitude, and you'll find your self, too.”

***

“Taking responsibility means you erase uncertainty and doubt and are able to act and be decisive in the pursuit of your goal.”

***

“Detachment is also the quality that enables you to tune out the noise that threatens to drown out the core values in your pursuit of excellence.”

***

‘’I had several hugely disappointing races in my athletic career. Racing from prize purse to prize purse, when each podium counted to pay the rent, and taking a year off career and work to invest in training and then having major DNF's at my goal races all taught me a thing or two...about triathlon, about the world, but mainly about myself and the cracks in my character that kept me from achieving everything I dreamed I could or thought I could. The work is the work - anyone can be coaxed enough to complete it. But that is only the beginning.’’

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Building blocks

From Marc's comments on success:

It’s not the process, it’s how we apply ourselves to that process that spells the difference between success and failure. By adopting the attitude that “we will never surrender” we give ourselves but one option and that is to succeed.

Marc wrote a series of articles on what he called The Building Blocks of Success that you can find in The Inner Game on the ironguides website.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Training resumed

It's been a busy month and my training is back into a routine, not quite as yet as disciplined as in the summer months.

My Saturday spins are at 2.5 hours, soon to reach the 3-hour mark and then beyond. Today's session was inspired by Jason Bourne and a new indoor set up.

While I have had to spin a lot on the trainer in the last month - it's been particularly wet here, I have been capably doing so in the garage. This last week, with temperatures dropping towards zero degrees Celcius though, have driven me inside.

Today I have set up my winter training room. And apparently Luka was impressed as he slept on the couch beside me for the entire time. Photo to follow shortly.

Time now for a recovery walk with the little one.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Running Shoes Are a Girl's Best Friend



Margreet has published her first book. In it she profiles 53 women runners, ranging in age from their early 20s to their late 50s. It's a book about the shared experiences of women who run. For those who are looking for some motivation and/or inspiration, please check it out.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Re-positioning


It's time to tweak my bike position. This is pre .. I'm waiting for Koach Kristian's advice for the post-photo.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Finding a race

Having fallen off my bike at IMC, and the disruption from that, I feel like I didn't have a chance to race. That I have a huge amount of untested fitness.

And so I have been looking around at what I might be able to do.

Ironmans though are hard to get into even during the current economic environment in North America.

For example, Wisconsin is next week (sold out but perhaps too soon anyway). In November, Florida, Arizona and Cozumel are sold out. So is the new one in Utah next May. In fact all of the North American events are sold out for 2010 except for Louisville, late next August.

It's true there are 'community foundation spots' at some NA events but I haven't won the lottery and won't be buying my way onto a start line anytime soon.

I could enter WA or Malaysia or NZ or China or Port Mac or South Africa or almost any/every other overseas event - but there is the added cost of getting to these places. Frankfurt is one overseas event sold out for 2010 - and I've raced there already.

In contrast, just three 70.3 events to be held in the year ahead are sold out at the moment: Muskoka, set for next week; Augusta later this month and Eagleman next June.

There is just one 70.3 event which may make sense: Austin, Texas on October 25.

Looking ahead

It's Saturday morning and I was up at 4:40am, though not to train. This is the first Saturday morning in a long time in which I don't have a long bike and short run to do. And that's a good thing.

The week after every Ironman is tiring. I'm out of my routine. My sleeping is disrupted. I have indulged on chocolate, had a few nutella sandwiches and quaffed a few beers. (In the month of August, I had just one Mars bar and one beer - on my birthday.)

I have walked a lot these past few days with Luka and walking has helped a lot.

Overall, I am recovering well physically. I'd hoped to have secured an A.R.T. appointment but for some reason demand is high today, the easiest day of the week for a lot of people it would seem.

In three days from now our local pool will shut for three weeks of annual maintenance. I already miss swimming. I have avoided the pool this week to let my road rash heal a bit more. It's not particularly easy on the eye either.

I'm really looking forward to accelerating through the water through fall and winter. This past season has renewed my love for swimming. At IMC I had a swim split pace of 1:43 per 100 metres. That was bang on the times I was hitting on my 100 metre set sessions.

In many ways I'd like to race again - soon. I'm somewhat envious that Margreet was able to find another marathon to enter soon after her Vancouver effort. Unfortunately there simply aren't enough Ironman events.

Friday, September 4, 2009

IMC

It wasn't pretty but I got to the finish line and I got a medal.

**

I'd had very high expectations heading into the race.

I felt more fit than before any previous Ironman. I had been training consistently for a solid eight months, responding well to 'The Method' as espoused by my ironguides coach Kristian Manietta.

I was setting PBs in the pool, on the local TT course and running. I was strong and as light (lean) as I've ever been.

And in the final two months before the race I was able to lift my training efforts for which I give a lot of credit to having my Aussie friend Dingo on location here in Squamish.

I felt competitive and believed that I had an opportunity to win my age group.

**

On race morning, my mind was calm. I had been calm most of the previous week.

We arrived early to be bodymarked and I was ready to go more than an hour ahead of the starter's countdown.

As planned, I went for a warm-up run. I remained relaxed. While I've made progress in each discipline this year, I have felt my biggest improvement has been with my run. I was really looking forward to running a 'fast' marathon.

Simplicity was my watchword for the day. I intended to focus on 'what's important now' and continue to remind myself of that through the day.

As per my pre-race plan, I bolted at the start of the swim.

Bam, bam, bam. Strong and powerful strokes. I swam as hard as I could for the first 500m or so to get as much clear water and to get as far away as I could from any potential chaos.

The swim was about 1.6km straight out, then about 500m across and then 1.8km back to shore.

I got to the 1.6km mark in less than 25 minutes. I ran the numbers through my mind and was on track for the 1 hour start to my day. I exited the water in 1.05 and was initially disappointed. But I didn't dwell on it. It was time to spin.

**

The first part of the bike course is flat and fast. I hit the 40k mark in 1:01 and was very happy. I opted to ride without speed or distance on my bike computer, just cadence. My nutrition was going in, I was taking a salt tab every 20 mins or so. All systems on target. Then the first of the 'packs' swarmed me.

I hadn't ever heard of drafting as an issue at IMC and so was really taken aback by it. It really really bothers me. And I saw little to no attempt to control it.

At 60k I had clocked 1:33 and felt strong. Richter - a solid half hour climb - lay ahead. And then ...

**

I took the turn at Osoyoos with a bit more speed than I realized. The road drops a little as it curves and I misjudged how fast I was going and how much room I needed to turn.

I braked a bit and slid on the white painted road markings. My brakes locked and crossed into the adjacent lane.

At the same time a SUV was driving in that lane, fortunately headed in the same general direction as me. And I slammed into the middle passenger door/side and then fell to the ground.

(*Not that I noted at the time but the SUV simply kept moving. I hit it hard enough that I'd think someone would have noticed.)

As I processed what happened, I stood up and a spectator came from somewhere and helped collect my bidons and my bike. I did a very fast bike check, hopped back on and started off. I knew that I had to keep moving.

Needless to say my focus was disrupted! And I was sore. I nailed my left side - shoulder, arm and leg. My rhythm wasn't quite the same after the fall.

I have six road rash areas .. and two wicked bruises. Otherwise I am good. Everything is healing well.

**

The end result was that my mind was now in overdrive and not in the most positive way. In hindsight, I was a bit dazed too.

I was passed by so many athletes going up Richter. It was disheartening after I'd begun with such a solid effort.

I lost the plot for about 100k despite trying to focus on 'what's important now'. I was wary of my bike and so took the downhills a bit easier than I would have, though I'm no downhill specialist.

I eventually regained my composure and put in a solid bit of work for the final 20k of the bike. I came good again. So the first 60k and the final 20k were basically as per my race plan! Small victories!!

I ended up with a bike split of about 5:41, according to the clock on my bike. That was a good 20-25 minutes slower than my plan. Still I had to remind myself it was a decent time given what had happened.

**

The first step off the bike told me that I wouldn't be running quite as fast as I'd visualized. I was far less mobile on the left side than I expected. I wasn't in a happy place.

I walked to get my run bag while volunteers were zooming this way and that way. I almost laughed. At least, I had plenty of time to put on my long socks I thought and I took my time doing so. I got some sunscreen and headed out.

The first 5k were OK. My mobility increased the more I ran and I started to think that I'd still be able to run a decent time. My run cadence was good. I got to the 10k mark in about 52 minutes. I was coming good - I thought. Ha!

I kept my pace for another 5k or so before I started to hit the wall - not ideal! About 25k earlier than the plan.

Then I made a mistake. I walked through a few aid stations to get in my nutrition etc. That wasn't such a good idea. It was tougher to restart than I anticipated. I hit the turnaround at about 2 hours.

My mind switched gears at that point. It's not that I gave up, I just realized this wasn't going to be my day. I couldn't force in my nutrition.

I kept moving though and decided that no matter how slow I was running, I would run to the end. And I did that.

I was in a good place as I entered town for the final 5k or so. The spectators along both the bike and the run courses were superb - among the best at any race I have ever done.

I would not 'sprint' the chute.

I saw Margreet with about 20 metres to go, third time that I had seen her during the day. (IMC is a superb race for athletes but it's not very spectator friendly because the bike is one loop and the run is one loop too.)

I ran 4:24 .. a solid hour slower than I had in mind.

Final time: 11:21 .. well off the Sub10 in my race plan. 53rd in my age group.

No Kona for me this year.

**

Not surprisingly the day after the race, I felt like I had been hit by a truck. Ha! But as I said earlier I'm recovering well.

Two solid walks with Luka on Wednesday helped, another on Thursday was good too, and more in the next few days.

While I failed to achieve any of my performance objectives, I don't intend to lose any sleep over what happened.

I'll be back in the pool, pulling on my running shoes and clipping into my pedals in due course. I love being a triathlete.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

IMC Stats

TIMOTHY MOORE

SWIM BIKE RUN OVERALL RANK DIV.POS.
1:05:18 5:43:32 4:24:21 11:21:05 445 of 2595 53 of 313

LEG DISTANCE PACE RANK DIV.POS.
SWIM 2.4 mi. (1:05:18) 1:43/100m 451 47


FIRST BIKE SEGMENT 42.5 mi. (1:56:34) 21.88 mph
FINAL BIKE SEGMENT 69.5 mi. (3:46:58) 18.37 mph
TOTAL BIKE 112 mi. (5:43:32) 19.56 mph 457 54

*19.56 miles per hour is 31.48 km/hour


FIRST RUN SEGMENT 13.1 mi. (2:02:17) 9:20/mile
FINAL RUN SEGMENT 13.1 mi. (2:22:04) 10:50/mile
TOTAL RUN 26.2 mi. (4:24:21) 10:05/mile 445 53


TRANSITION TIME
T1: SWIM-TO-BIKE 2:54
T2: BIKE-TO-RUN 5:00

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Time to catch up

It's been a very hectic month since my last post, which is why it has been so long since I did post a post.

I will fill in a few gaps as the 'taper' has begun and the rain is well timed.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Cypress-ed

I have wanted to do this route for a while - Squamish to Cypress and back. It's about 140km and it includes the 11km road 'up' Cypress Mountain.

The first day we rode - Dingo and Volker at the front most of the way - was a superb summer day. I had been off my bike a week and was on my race wheels as I'd yet to find new training ones after destroying them on my last long spin.

Almost immediately I knew it was going to be a tough day in the saddle. I don't mind tough days, I just love that feeling of when spinning is effortless.

http://www.mapmyride.com/

From the highway to the end of the road at the top is a distance of 15km with an elevation gain of 917m or 3008 feet! (I just did the conversion and didn't realize it was that many feet.)

The elevation chart for mapmyride says there were a few sections of 9 per cent or higher and I can confirm that it was steep in more than a few places.

I was dropped by the other two but still worked to keep my head on the task at hand and to spin - though my cadence target was out the window for most of the climb. I was focused on going up, nothing else.

We made it to the summit and then headed back down and back home, stopping for a bottle of the Real Thing (Coke) before pushing on for another 40km - a solid 180km in 6 to 6 1/2 hours.

The next week I was on my own. I was keen to repeat the route as I had struggled so much the first time.

I rode solid for the first three hours and got to the top of Cypress in good form. It wasn't easy, but it was easier knowing what was ahead.

The weather though wasn't as cooperative. The temperature at the top of Cypress was closer to 10 degrees and I spun through some low level clouds and mist. I froze on the descent.

As I spun back home I realized my energy level was dropping fast. At the 4 hour and 50 minute mark I called for a lift and Margreet collected me about 5 minutes further down the road.

I didn't need to hammer myself into the ground. I had some lunch and then slept for almost two hours. A solid spin and on track for the 30th.

New Wheels

I was having an awesome long ride. The plan was to hit the 5-hour mark and I was in good form.

Then .. bam, bam .. hmmmm .. two flats!

Earlier I had cycled to Whistler, about 60km from here. Not a particularly tough spin though there are a few hills and a few breezy sections. But it was a beautiful summer day.

It's always about or at least half an hour faster on the way back as it is 'downhill' to Squamish.

I made good time and was following my program. The last hour of my day was a 30-minute timetrial and then 30-minutes easy.

I cycled the timetrial, covering about 20km in less than 32 minutes and I was very happy with my effort as I kept my cadence firmly in the 70-80 range as 'requested' by Kristian.

It was as I was pressing my bike computer to record my 'impressive' time that I went from bright sun to full shadow and directly into a sinkhole. Ok, not quite a sinkhole but a hole.

There was one immediate flat .. no question about that sound.

I had control of the bike and didn't fall. I was a bit annoyed but more ecstatic about the time. I didn't realize til a few moments later that I had two flats. With one spare tube, that put an end to my spin.

Later when I was changing the tires, I saw a very solid dent in the front rim and also a crack on the back rim. Time for new wheels.

After a bit of a search I found a set at Mavic's at one of my local shops, Corsa. I was able to get them immediately and get back on the bike too.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Vancouver Half Iron - finish




Truth be told. I was running hard to get under 4:42 and it appeared that I had accomplished this objective but my finish time was 4:42:01.

The lean - well, it was unintentional really. I was running hard for the line, of that there was no doubt. But I also stumbled because of a bump in the carpet.

The end result was a great finishing photo and a new strategy to lean across a few more lines!

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Craig Alexander

Check out the latest issue of Impact Magazine for a story written by Margreet on the World Champ.

A real gentleman and sportsman.

http://www.impactmagazine.ca/profiles/2009/ironman.html

Peloton denied

This morning it was back to the Titans time trial course for a fourth effort, and I couldn't be happier with the result.

Dingo was going to sit on my wheel as he continues to recover from running into a tree branch at last week's race.

The course is on Squamish Valley Road starting about the 2km mark (there's a sign) and it runs down for almost 10km. Just before the 'bridge' you turnaround and head back to the start.

I was in good spirits and as often is the case looked to push myself.

For the first half, I rode 15.29 and clocked 15.48 on the return. I believe that's the narrowest gap so far.

As I struggled to keep my pace on the return, Dingo was 'encouraging' me with reports of a fast approaching peloton, in particular that Cavendish guy. And it helped spur me forward.

I had a bike revelation of sorts: lower the gear, speed the cadence and go faster. I was pushing gears up and down in part to refresh my legs, and it seemed to work.

The stats:

Today

time 31.18 .. avg speed 37.1 .. avg cad 90 .. distance 19.8km

July 3rd

32.37 .. avg sp 33.5 .. avg cad 79 .. dis 19.6km

June 11th

31.40 .. avg sp 33.7 .. avg cad 76 .. dis 19.5km

May 28th

31.44 .. avg sp 35.9 .. avg cad 79 .. dis 19.6km

Ah yes .. We were too fast for the peloton today. Stage win for me. A good way to start the day.

Vancouver Half Iron - bike

Monday, July 13, 2009

Race nutrition

Deciding exactly what to consume on race day is a long-term process.

For this race, I opted for two cans/bottles of Ensure Plus (355 cals each) and one chocolate Powerbar sport bar.

I had a cup of tea on the drive from home to the start.

Ahead of the swim (15 mins) I had one scoop of Gatorade with 100ml of water. Right down the hatch.

I felt strong through the swim, consistently so. I also felt good on the bike.

On the bike, I had mixed three Powerbar caf gels (50mg caf each) with water in two 500ml (small) bidons. I had some water with a light Gatorade mix in my jetstream. And I had a 750ml water/gatorade mix on the downtube.

I sipped the jetstream initially but then got onto the caf/water mix at about the 20 min mark and kept drip feeding myself at that point.

On the fourth lap I dumped the fluid from the bottle on the downtube .. I didn't need and I didn't want to carry it anymore either.

Onto the run, more diluted caf gels. I had two caf gels with water in two gel flasks. I used those to drip feed myself through the two laps, and took some water cups along the way too.

Post race .. a Vera burger and homestyle fries! Ah!!

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Vancouver Half Iron

Perfect conditions. Dry, clear and no rain for the previous two days. Much better than the forecast earlier in the week.

It was another 3.30am alarm.

But when you're keen to race, it's not too hard to get going. Though I almost fell asleep during the drive to the start line (I was a passenger).

It was a PB performance for the distance for me ... and until I do some background checking, I believe I knocked at least 20 minutes off my previous best half time.

I crossed the line in 4:42.01 for 1.9km, 91km and 20km. That put me in second place. A superb day.

The stats:

my swim 33.37 (several people post race suggested the course was long. hard to know. always hard to swim as directly as one does in a pool.)

T1 1.56 (decent distance from beach to bikes)

my bike (91k) .. 2:35:15 .. avg sp 35.2 .. an awesome ride .. felt great

T2 1.23 (and that includes going to the wrong rack for my shoes! still a few cobwebs to clear but getting better.)

my run 1.29.53 or 4.30 pace

I achieved everything that I wanted on the day.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Dingo arrives

My younger, faster training partner has cleared Customs. It will be good to have someone to chase in the water and on the bike, in particular.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Long spin/Long run

A solid two days of training has left me exhausted.

I managed 4 hours and 50 minutes in the saddle on Saturday with lots of big hills. The speedo says 121kms which doesn't sound like much but I worked hard.

I rode up Highway 99 towards Whistler and then turned towards the Nordic Olympic Park. I recall driving up there months ago to watch a World Cup ski jump event and thinking it would be a great place to spin. I knew there were a few hills but I hadn't recalled the top 10 per cent grades - of course these were going to be downhill on the way out.

As good a ride as I had, I was smashed when I got home. I opted to delay my 'run off the bike' for several hours so I could eat and recover a bit. Not ideal but I decided it was better than simply hammering myself for 15 mins than the 40 mins that I needed to do.

Today I backed up with a solid 1.55 on the treadmill and shed about 2kgs of water at the same time.

The 5x 5mins mod and 5x5 mins comfort uncomfort went very solid .. I started 5x 5mins hard at 10 speed, then 10.2 for second interval and 10.4 for third .. All 6 min miles or faster .. I was ripping along and thinking of different pros with whom I was running shoulder to shoulder .. One needs some distraction!

I sort of hit the wall during the fourth hard interval .. jumped off the treadmill for several 10 sec breaks before dialing back the speed to 9 .. ran the fifth interval at 9 .. lots of mind games at the end ..

A great weekend.

Friday, June 26, 2009

Swim breakthrough

I woke up this morning at about 5am but I didn't want to get out of bed that early as the pool doesn't open til 6am and I don't need an hour to get ready so I managed to slide back to sleep for another 40 minutes.

Then I dragged myself up and out of the door and downstairs to flick on the electric kettle for a strong cup of tea in my 'transport' mug and I headed to the pool.

My energy level was a bit low to say the least.

I got into the pool and started the set .. 3 x 50m easy, then 3 x mod, 3 x fast and 3 x all out .. all of my times were 45s-46s .. as much as 5 seconds slower than I have clocked in recent weeks and so I wasn't so optimistic.

I worked through another set of 12 x 50m practicing deep water starts.

Then I set for the 200m all out rep ..

About half way through I found a new rhythm .. it felt as if I was pulling a ton of water .. as if I had my paddles on and my forearms were huge .. I've never had such a feeling of strength in the water ..

One benefit is that I had a guy swimming beside me - in the next lane - who is a solid swimmer .. I see him almost every time I swim and in general he swims a bit faster than me.

Today though I slowly pulled away from him and as I did I had this boost of energy and confidence.

My 200m time was 3.08 (within 4 secs of my fastest ever) - I was smashed when finished but very happily so.

I finished with 3 x 400m .. easy.

**

I immediately changed and hit the treadmill .. again, I didn't start on a high energy level .. but I needed to get this session in this morning .. logistics!

I did my warm up and my moderate and comfortably uncomfortable sets .. I was slowly building my stride rate and really trying to be consistent .. starting at about 88 and building to 94-95 .. and then I opted to push myself on the hard 15 mins set ..

I ran the entire 15 mins at faster than 6 minute mile pace .. I really started to struggle after the first 10 minutes but I refused to let myself off the hook .. I kept thinking of exiting the energy lab .. and running down the hill and towards 'hot corner' and then to the finish line .. my energy level was rising and falling .. my stride rate was a bit more inconsistent .. but i got the job done


**

Ah .. a superb start to the day!

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Iron Mountain Olympic

I told margreet before the race that my plan was to be on the podium and I took third in the 40-49 age group. I felt confident because I've been training well and also because I didn't expect a deep field given there was a half iron this day too.

swim 23.19 (two loops with a run around a picnic table on the beach)

bike 1:13:35 (one loop with two solid climbs and lots of rollers, some rather technical turns and some awesome relatively flat stretches too)

run 43.00 (two loops .. undulating .. two short sharp hills .. the last downhill gave me the momentum to sprint away from someone who had caught me!)

2:21:50


The guy who won my age group did 2:07 (37 10k). He raced as an elite for 10 years when he was younger but still looked to be in "decent" condition!

The guy who came in second finished in 2:21:01.

I was 12th overall, having been passed by one guy on the bike and one guy on the run.

The winning time overall was 2:00:29.

I'm happy with my effort and my performance. I had a few reminders on what I need to work on including shedding my wetsuit and doing so in front of "my" bike.

It was a bit cool and damp to start the day though it didn't rain during the event. Still I needed to hit the brakes a bit more than planned a few times as I hadn't checked out the course ahead of time and wasn't aware of some of the turns, nor what might be around the bend.

I hadn't noticed the cold on the bike and so I didn't realize how cold my hands were until I was trying to get my feet out of my shoes heading toward T2. I got one out but couldn't release the strap on the other. And I then struggled to put on my shoes for the run. Oh well.

My feet were frozen for the first 2km or so of the run and were sore after the race too.

A great start to my season.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Nutella - free

No, I'm not saying one can get Nutella free. I tried. Well, I tried to get Nutella as a sponsor. It was a bit of a lark. But my efforts - so far - have been to no avail.

I wasn't to be discouraged. I simply bought it at the store - usually two 750g containers at once, because that was the most effective shopping move.

Let me backtrack a bit.

I had never heard of Nutella and wasn't even keen to try it until tramping in New Zealand in March 2005. I've made a solid dent in making up for about four decades of Nutella deficiency in the past four plus years.

I suppose there are many ways to consume Nutella. I chose spreading it on bread - the traditional approach. And I became very proficient at it. I was able to focus without distraction. And unlike a run, if I had a bit too much, I didn't need any additional recovery time.

However, I felt a change was needed.

Two weeks ago today I scraped out the remaining amount from the last container. And I've been free ever since.

Ok, I have had a Mars bar or two. But the point is that I would have had one or two of those anyway. I like chocolate. I'm not giving up chocolate - I'm simply modifying my chocolate consumption behavior.

Smashed

About three weeks ago I increased the frequency and the overall volume of my training. It's been both a positive and a negative.

The positive is that I have been pleased with my cycling. I have put in two solid timetrials and been up and down Highway 99 towards Whistler - a bit of an uphill going north and then down on the return.

I've also been powering in the pool, at times having a feel of the water that I've never had.

Running though has been a bit hit and miss. I have had some solid sessions but also some real challenging ones.

I wouldn't call it a taper but my training is modified a bit this week ahead of my first race of the season. That's good - I need a few more recovery minutes at the moment.

When I hit the water this morning, I just knew my energy level was a bit low. But I wanted to see how I would go.

My first 200m all out - after the normal warm up - was 7 seconds slower than what I was hoping to see. I did remind myself that not every session needs to be a PB .. but still ...

I put in the rest of the 'in-between' work and then did a second 200m. Man. I actually thought that I was swimming half decent. However, the clock never lies and I had slowed another 20 seconds.

I put in a recovery lap but that was it. Home and food and then a bit of couch time before work.

On a positive note, it wasn't race day today!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Motivated

From Koach Kristian:

... people have a tendency to quit when something doesn't pan out how it was meant to, or some challenges seem insurmountable, but your biggest success may just be around the corner.

On a personal note, I came excruciatingly close 3 times before I got to Kona, and the first time I got there, I needed a roll down and I had just gone sub 9! In fact those close calls motivated me further, however last year in Kona, my race was nowhere near imagined ... I was in the best race shape of my life and I made nutritional mistakes. I was completely devastated, actually I think I cried when I saw Charlotte ... I pretty much had quit, but a new day dawned and I knew I wasn't done ... but I was surely tested in the 7 weeks between Kona and Ironman WA.

Many times I nearly pulled the pin, but I got to the start line with 3 clear objectives, my motivators. I wish I could say I felt fantastic all day, but I didn't - doubts would creep in but I focused on "what's important now" and not quitting rewarded me with my greatest Ironman success to date.

Remember you're motivated... just needs fuelling daily :-)

Cheers
Kristian

IMC 2008 - some results

Top 10 finishers in 2008 in the 45-49 age group:

09:53:52
10:04:16
10:07:37
10:12:58
10:13:59
10:22:33
10:24:54
10:25:13
10:27:18
10:27:33

*There were seven tickets to Kona. The final ticket went to the guy who finished in 17th place in 10:48.

IMC 2007 - some results

Top 10 finishers in the 45-49 age group in 2007:

09:34:01
09:57:22
09:59:11
10:00:47
10:02:08
10:02:54
10:03:23
10:03:40
10:12:05
10:16:16

*There were seven tickets to Kona. The last one went to the guy who finished in 19th place in 10:38.

My recovery partner

Monday, June 8, 2009

Phelps - On Competition

From his book, No Limits:

"The point of competition is to compete. It's to take on the biggest challenge. When you compete against the very best, it makes you better; I don't care if someone is twenty times better or one-tenth better. I want to race the best.

I hate to lose. But I was not afraid to lose. I am never afraid to lose.''

He had decided to race in the 200 free in Athens against Ian Thorpe and Pieter van den Hoogenband. He was questioned why since they were better than him. Nonetheless, he wanted the challenge. He ended in third.

"That loss in Athens has to be looked at as a -- maybe the -- defining moment in my swim career. I stepped up and raced the best. I found out that I was good but, in the 200 free, not good enough. I had work to do.''

Phelps - On Consistency

From his book, No Limits:

"For five years, from 1998 to 2003, we did not believe in days off. I had one because of a snowstorm, two more due to the removal of wisdom teeth. Christmas? See you at the pool. Thanksgiving? Pool. Sponsor obligations? Work them out around practice time."

...

In the winter of 2002 .. Phelps says he was averaging 85,000 metres a week in the pool .. and he dropped it back to 75,000 in spring ..

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Margreet Wins


Margreet won the North Olympic Discovery Marathon on Sunday, in northwestern Washington state, and set a course record too.

It was her second marathon in five weeks. She ran another 3:10.

Her coach for the second marathon - for two weeks - was my Koach: Kristian. Power to both Charlotte and Kristian for challenging Margreet to excel and to race because there was a race.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Inspired

There's nothing quite like someone you know challenging herself and that's who inspires me day in and day out.


Friday, June 5, 2009

Long spin

I opted to do my long ride this morning as we're on the road this weekend. And what a spectacular morning to be outside.

I had an AWESOME ride .. felt strong .. legs felt fantastic ..

The numbers: 3:32 ride time, 100.6km, avg speed 28.4 (max 66), avg cad 65 .. this was the route towards Whistler and back .. I went a bit further today as my time came up short last Saturday.

Last week's numbers: 3:23, 94km, avg sp 27.9 (max 59), avg cad 64.

I really needed to get outside and on the road to confirm my bike fitness. I'm not yet in Ironman racing form but my mind has been quieted by my performances so far. When I've needed to push, I've been able to find that extra gear.

Friday, May 1, 2009

Catching the ball

A casual look at my library would show that I'm building a decent collection of books about boosting my self-belief.

It's not that I lack confidence in my ability. It's that like a lot of others I'm looking for that edge. I like to read about the psychology of sport and how athletes find the zone. I recently heard that Michael Phelps' book is a good read, in particular what I understand is his W.I.N. principle - What's Important Now. I was thinking about that in the pool this morning as my 10 x 200m set was dragging on.

I want to be able to focus more clearly and for longer periods of time. I want to be able to counter and/or delete the negative thoughts and doubts that multiply as does the distance of the race. I am getting better at using mantras and telling myself, even when each step seems tougher than the last, that I'm strong and fleet of foot.

In my library, I have a copy of 'Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ..' by Richard Carlson. As with most books of this type, some ideas have greater resonance with me than others. I'd like to share one which I continue to return to.

"If Someone Throws You the Ball, You Don't Have to Catch It" starts on page 219.

The 'chapter' is short, just over two pages. I'll condense it even a bit further for this post.

"Developing a more tranquil outlook on life requires that we know our own limits and that we take responsibility for our part in the process."

I find this worth thinking about, especially as my training volume increases and fatigue creeps in.

"When someone throws an idea or comment in your direction, you can catch it and feel hurt, or you can drop it and go on with your day."

Without thinking about it, I recognize, in hindsight, that I catch more than my fair share of balls thrown in my direction. Learning to listen without responding is a skill that I'm working on.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Peaking

"What’s peak condition?” asked Dr. Pivarnik, the exercise physiologist. “It’s one step from falling off a cliff.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/health/nutrition/23best.htm

***

This Sunday is Margreet's key race of the season - the Vancouver marathon. She's trained hard and as always has been disciplined and determined. She's had to run in some miserable weather at times and logged five 3 hour runs. Margreet is as fit as I can ever recall. She's put in the work.



Of course the extra challenge was the arrival of Luka, who's fitting in though still testing us to see what he can get away with.

He inspired Margreet to add a note to the Vancouver Marathon newsletter, which you can access here:

http://www.bmovanmarathon.ca/newsletter/articles144.php

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Recovery walk



Motivation has been in short supply the last two weeks, drained by the arrival of Luka into our lives and also doubts about whether we were as ready for the challenges he brought.

But he's here to stay and we're busy adapting to his footprint. And that is getting bigger by the day.

He's also opened up a door to Squamish that we had yet to explore. Above is one of the views from a recent walk. And we've met more people in the last two weeks than in the past six months. If you're in need of a few friends, adopt a puppy.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Inspiring

She drifted in the swim, was chasing all through the bike but then fast stepped her way to victory in Ironman China.

Charlotte Paul, You Are An Ironman Champ, Again!

Whoooooooo Hooooooooooooooooooooo

Who's your K-oach?

Oh ya, he's my coach too. Superb. Kristian Manietta!

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Luka's lessons

Luka arrived here a week ago. Without a doubt it's been the most intense week in a long time. Margreet and I have both endured massive highs and lows - thinking at one point that we'd have to return the little guy because we doubted our ability to cope and to provide the structure that he needs.

In less than a week, Luka's mere presence has made it clear that we're far busier than we have acknowledged to ourselves. The week before his arrival I was working like a mad man in the yard to prepare it as best as I could for him. And then we did our best to 'pup proof' the house which again led to some manic work.

It's sort of like the days ahead of a holiday when you rush around to the point of collapse, completing your packing in the middle of night, hours before waking to catch a cab to the airport.

Luka is going to force us to sit quietly in the yard, but also to actively engage with him to keep him happy.

I've been reading one of Cesar Millan's books to better understand our guy and as it turns out, to better understand myself. http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/index.php

Our dog trainer - Yes, we've already found one - believes as we do in positive reinforcement. She had a great comment, at least one that resonated with me: a submissive dog is a relaxed dog.

For Luka, it's been a wild start to life. He was born in the dead of winter and has a rip in one ear flap to show that he's had a few scraps. There's no doubt that he started the week with us somewhat stressed and then we were stressed and then he was more stressed. The viscous cycle syndrome.

But with the help of our trainer - and puppy school on Saturday to help him release a fair bit of energy with others of his same age and size and energy level - all three of us are finding our balance again. I won't lie. It's going to take more time, more effort, more patience and more focus and the key is to tire the little guy out. Exercise feeds his soul both physically and intellectually.

Here's where I return to me and being a triathlete. Instead of Luka 'fitting into my schedule' this week has shown that I need to adjust to his schedule.

And that means I need to be a lot more efficient than I have been. And that's a good thing.

I don't like stress. It's one of the aspects of training with ironguides that suits me. I have one to two months of the exact same sets and when I drop into the water or clip into my pedals or walk out the door - I can do what I need to do without overthinking it.

Thanks Luka.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Kindness

"Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind."

Eric Hoffer
1902-1983, Author and Philosopher

Luka arrives

Well, Margreet and I have a new training partner - though at the moment his focus is on helping to wake us and recovery walking.

http://lukathedog.blogspot.com/

And while I could detail the value of a pup in teaching one about patience, a key Ironman trait, I'll wait for another day.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

What the coach said

200m is ALL OUT , no pacing, just give it everything you have. Sure you will fatigue, it will hurt like hell, everything will be screaming at you to stop or slow down. This is what you have to fight and push all the way to the end. This just teaches you to go hard and over time you'll be able to hold for longer. You can drop 'rest' between 25s to 15sec now on that set.

Good work on the 60x25 set.

Cramp - maybe diet related, try some ultra muscle eze or something similar. Add some sodium to diet and see. Also LEARN to FLIP TURN no excuses.

Bike: all good and it will be great once your outdoors a little :-)

Run: great work. re feeling more fluid later on is because you are flushing the system. The first ones never feel as good and that's normal.

Cheers
Kristian

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Early April Update

Kristian asked for a state of play, and so here is what I had to say. I'm putting it here mostly so I can find it easier. While I have VISA statements going back a decade - though the shredding process has begun, I just haven't had the same consistency with keeping a log.

**

swim .. last week i felt good .. i am getting into a very good rhythm with the 200 metre repeats .. learning to pace myself a bit better .. if anything i still think that i tend to hold back a bit so i don't go out too fast .. consistent and steady progress .. the toughest is knowing how fast i could go in a race .. i feel confident in the water though and that's positive .. i still struggle with all the rest time between repeats .. even the 30 secs between the 25m ones .. but i do appreciate that it means i can push through each rep and make it a high quality session .. as an example .. i started my 60 x 25 m set today and was putting in 22 secs for one 25m lap .. and i was 23 secs for the 58th and 59th laps .. now i wasn't watching every single lap per se, but i would say that i'm more aware of the consistent level of effort i need to swim at a steady pace

* i have a tendency to get a cramp in one of my calves late in a session especially when i'm swimming hard .. i don't flip turn .. i think what happens is that i push off on an angle and my calf doesn't appreciate it .. but a mix of rolling, deep heat and voltaren (wrapped overnight) is keeping it in check .. i don't think it's diet related .. any thots appreciated though


bike .. haven't got outside yet .. more a reflection of the weather not quite being ideal .. i'm keeping my cadence in check and really putting my faith into the strength that i'm building and have been building these last four to five months .. i feel good on the tri bars .. i've not ever really had an issue with that in the past anyway but i do feel quite comfortable doing the TT work on the trainer .. i'm looking forward, and not, to getting on the road .. it is something that i want to do later this week


run .. i've had a breakthrough in the last week or so .. wrote about it on my blog .. as you said i would need four to five months for the 96 to become more natural .. i can now hit 96 or rather 94-98 on a consistent basis and in a much more relaxed manner .. previously i've been so focused on counting and ensuring that i turn over fast that the rest of my body has been very upright .. not sure if that's the right description but i'm going to assume you know what i mean .. in any event, last friday as i was doing my 90 60 30 and 15 sec repeats .. i was hitting my numbers and felt very fluid in doing so .. i do notice that i need to phase into it though .. for example .. i find myself more fluid in the second and third 60 rather than in the 90 or first 60 .. perhaps i need a longer warm up? or should warm up at a slighty higher tempo? but overall, i'm ecstatic with my running ..

Thursday, April 2, 2009

30mins @ 46 cad

I'm not named Lance and I will never be an Armstrong.

Several years ago when Lance, of whom I am in awe, was in his prime I recall reading about his high cadence approach to racing. It was at a time when I never thought a second about cadence in any way. I didn't know why what he was doing was unique.

But watching him spin at hyper speed was hypnotic. Yet when I tried to spin fast, I was out of control. It's a skill and one that I am OK with not having.

Fortunately I have always enjoyed shifting to the biggest gears and grinding it out. I like the physicality of cycling; the benefit of having played lots of hockey and carving a few turns at Whistler.

Then ironguides came along and apparently I've been developing almost an ideal cadence without even knowing it. And so now I'm focused on cycling for strength, which translates into low cadence.

My average cadence of 46 for today's 30 minute timetrial on the trainer - book-ended by 30 minutes to start and 30 minutes to finish - is what it's all about.

Here's the official word:

... the most effective cycling style for triathlon is to “grind” it out in a big gear rather than adopting a higher cadence because low cadence cycling against a higher
resistance:

• Fatigues slow twitch muscle fibers while preserving fast twitch fibers
• Caps heart rate due to the slow contractions and high resistance
• Consequently conserves glycogen stores and draws more on fat as a fuel source
...

http://www.ironguides.net/news/186/65.html

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Longish Day

I had a superb day of training which included a 3.5 hour indoor trainer session on my bike and then a 30-minute run with some speed work.

It shattered me - in a very good way.

As I noted elsewhere, I had a solid few 'recovery' moments on our new couch.

And as a result, I'm looking to nominate Ikea for a Nobel Couch Prize.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Blackcomb day



It wasn't on my program but I just had to ski today. (My K-oach approved though as long as I carved a few turns on his behalf - being the former pro snowboarder that he is.)

Here's why I had to ski: 35cm in the last 24 hours, 64cm in the last 48 hours, 142cm in the last seven days!






Friday, March 20, 2009

Every decision

I had this quote on my Facebook note page and it appears to have struck a chord with a lot of friends so I thought I would post it here too.


"Every decision you make - every decision - is not a decision about what to do. It's a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do."

Neale Donald Walsch
Author of Conversations With God

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Back

It's good to be cleared to train again and a good reminder to be taking my vitamins again. And I've started taking a new one this week - Centrum Protegra.

Why?

Well, I've taken Centrum vitamins for years at the suggestion of my dad, a pharmacist and a firm believer in the power of vitamins. He has taken a range of vitamins every day for as long as I can remember.

In the past decade I've taken a range of vitamins from the normal multi ones to magnesium ahead of races and extra vitamin E and now extra vitamin D.

I've an avid reader of health posts at the New York Times and Washington Post and elsewhere if I happen to surf upon a story. All the rage at the moment is the benefit of antioxidants. I'm no expert and as with all health issues there are a lot of opinions on what's good and how good.

I do think though that as an athlete I can be tough on my body and some vitamin supplement is a good thing - though simply eating healthy remains the most important decision that I can make day in and day out.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Happy St Patrick's Day

Yes! A day to be green!!

And for an indoor ride while waiting for the electrician.

Monday, March 9, 2009

Daylight

It is fitting that Coldplay is singing in the background as I type looking out the back window with the sun shining through the bows of the evergreens that tower over our house.

It's 6pm and yet it is as bright outside now as at almost any time through the day. Thanks to daylight savings, of course.

There's still a chill in the air, and a drift of snow on the ground but the tips of the grass are starting to turn green. It's hard not to be enthusiastic about what lies ahead - spring.

And the clouds burst to show daylight
coldplay

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Smashed

Well, I have had to delay the start to my tri season as I hit the wall last week. On Tuesday, I just didn't have the zip in the pool that I expected and by midday on Wednesday I was starting to fade.

The potent mix of training hard, racing full out and then crossing the country took its inevitable toll.

I could barely move on either Thursday and Friday as I fought off a fever and a developing head/chest virus. Everything was a bit hazy on Saturday and I knew there was no sense in racing on Sunday - losing an hour of sleep didn't help.

This isn't the first time that I've smashed myself this hard. I seem to have a knack for doing so about once a year. I know I will recover. My body is simply telling me to take a rest.

On a positive note, I was able to watch most of NZ and saw Charlotte run her way into a very respectable third place. My very good mate, Pete, secured his first sub 10 finish, Juan got a ticket to Kona and Robbie put in another top notch performance. Great motivation for the weeks ahead as I get myself back on track.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Koach says `Sleep'

"SLEEP ... is probably the most under-exploited form of recovery."

Here are Kristian's "simple rules":

• Aim to get as many pre midnight sleep hours as possible (these are considered more important then post midnight sleep hours)
• Get 7-9 hours sleep every night
• Maintain the same to-bed and awake time pattern – when these are inconsistent it can be the cause of great fatigue.


Remember we only have a limited amount of training time and we want to get the greatest rate of return and use the effects of compound interest to our advantage."

http://www.xtri.com/features_display.aspx?riIDReport=5407&CAT=3&xref=xx

Sunday, March 1, 2009

The Intangibles

I came across the following story titled The No-Stats All-Star in the NYT Magazine about a NBA player named Shane Battier who plays for the Houston Rockets.

“He can’t dribble, he’s slow and hasn’t got much body control.”

And yet

When he is on the court, his teammates get better, often a lot better, and his opponents get worse — often a lot worse.


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15Battier-t.html?scp=1&sq=battier&st=cse

Saturday, February 28, 2009

SBR Ambassador


Congratulations!

You have been selected as a member of the SBR Worldwide Ambassador Team!

We received over one hundred applications from so many amazing athletes of all ages, abilities and nationalities.

After reading through each and every application, we are confident that we selected a solid team of men and women to represent SBR Multisports and the worldwide triathlon community.

The Worldwide Ambassador Team is comprised of athletes ranging from 22-66 years, and 26 different locations around the world.

SBR Multisports

Thursday, February 19, 2009

All a twitter

Well, I'm still not sure that it's relevant to have a Twitter account in that I'm not quite sure how someone like me - not a techie - would benefit from having it nor what I'm really supposed to do with it.

That said, I've had a few requests to link my blog to Twitter so a few friends can better monitor when I write a post.

It appears that I did create a Twitter account almost a year ago. But I can say without hesitation that I did nothing to it.

I have a simple approach - you can't win the lottery unless you have a ticket.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

It's all about the small stuff

Definitions of persistence on the web:

* continuity: the property of a continuous and connected period of time
* doggedness: persistent determination
* perseverance: the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior; "his perseveration continued to the point where it was no longer appropriate"

Today I smashed through the 90-minute mark on a half marathon, an effort that dates back more than a decade but for which I've kept records for the last seven years.

To be honest, crossing the finish line was a bit anti-climatic. Though I ran as hard as I could the last two miles.

I knew that I had to run at least 6.52 minute miles from start to finish on the course, the First Half 1/2 marathon in Vancouver. And while I decided ahead of the race to try to focus more on how I felt and my running cadence, I glanced at my watch for my mile splits - most of the way.

Unlike last month's 10km splits, which had me running super slow and then super fast, I was a beacon of consistency today.

6.48 - 6.51 - 6.43 - 6.45 - 6.40 - 6.49 - 6.47 - 6.59 - 6.52 - 6.53 - 7.02 - 6.50 - 6.33 and then 29 more seconds for 1.29.06

No, I haven't become a threat to anyone in particular. For me though the race was a huge step forward. It also represents a more than one minute PB on the distance. I am very happy with the effort and the result.

I did as my K-oach instructed, starting out moderate and accelerating to a hard effort, with a particular focus on my cadence. Exactly as we have been working on in training.

As past posts have noted, I've been engaged a treadmill to help increase my run cadence and I believe that I'm making great strides. Ha!

That said, I do need to work on my focus. As my times indicate, my mind wandered during the 7th and 8th miles and my cadence drifted too.

Six seconds from a sub 89 performance ... Margreet's household standard was never in any danger.

Each day brings a new challenge and each success needs to be acknowledged. I've worked hard and am working hard. It's a great way to start the week. In my case, it is all about the small stuff.

** I was 18th in my age group. To have broken the top 10, I would have had to have run 1.24.23. To have broken the top five, 1.16.08. And to have won: 1.11.51.

***********

2002 Lake Macquarie 1:31:21 4:21/km

2003 Sydney (Homebush) 1:31:17 4:20.9/km

2005 Sydney ½ marathon 1:32:48 4:25.2/km

2005 Sydney (Opera House) 1:32:57 4:25.7/km

2006 Sydney (Sep 1:30:15 4:17.9/km

2006 Sydney 1:33:19 4:26.7/km

2006 Lake Mac 1:30.25 4:18.4/km

2007 Sydney (May) 1:31:39 4:21.9/km

2008 Gibsons (April) 1.31.06

2008 Vancouver (June) 1.30.17

2009 Vancouver First Half 1.29.06

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Whitfield on the move

Triathlete Magazine Online

http://triathlon.competitor.com/features/whitfield-on-the-move.html

"I don't know how many years I have left at this, but I'm resentful of the fact that I don't have an infinite number left," he says.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Ahhhh - Macca

Macca's blog

"Last year winning the European Title in Germany in another sub 8 hour performance was a real highlight, but not being able to unleash 15 weeks worth of build into a Hawaii campiagn was devastating. I just cant wait to get back on the Island and attack that race course. It's all I think about."
...

"My aim is to really set up a solid bike ride in Kona and put together another run under 2:43. If you can't run under this time in Kona in 2009, you will not be winning this race."
...

"My strength is my ability to run faster than anyone else in the world if the bike is tough. The damage is done along Alhi Drive on the run in the first 10 miles.Weak cyclsits struggle along here and then may find their legs later in the run if anything is left. Our focus will be to make Alhi Drive stupidly fast."

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Pedals with wolves

It's going to be months .. two or three at the least before I will venture outside for a ride.

Now, there's a range of adjectives to describe my willingness to ride outdoors during winter and early spring after all I am a Canadian and I was born in Toronto and would play shiny outside until dragged off the ice. But that was then.

Having `adjusted' to an Aussie winter, it's been a challenge accepting what's on offer here.

In any event, the fact is that I am going to ride indoors because it's more comfortable and it's safer. I never see any need to be on a bike outside when visibility isn't at its best. And while the Sea to Sky Highway is fast improving, it's still narrow in many places and few drivers keep to the posted speed limits. I am hopeful the road will be in much better condition in a few more months.

Til then, my focus is on spinning indoors and my approach has changed dramatically from when I was training for Ironman New Zealand several years ago and we found ourselves in Victoria, British Columbia during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

In Victoria, Margreet and I both completed several multi-hour indoor rides including each completing epic six hour ones. I'm not eager to repeat that feat.

At the moment, I'm up to a three-hour spin on Saturdays. I suppose longer ones are on the horizon.

Today Dances with wolves distracted me enough to keep spinning when I was ready to stop.

Next week it might have to be The Pedal Identity, The Pedal Supremacy or The Pedal Ultimatum! Bring it on!!!!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Paddles

The great thing about using paddles in the pool is how it helps clear out my lane - perhaps I'm just scaring people!

In any event, I was swimming my 30 x 100m set today and this one guy dove in about 2/3 of the way through my set in the next lane. It was as if he was determined to accelerate off the wall each time I turned. It was weird.

I caught myself accelerating to smash him .. but I caught myself because the idea of the set wasn't to smash myself!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Words of hope

From Barack Obama's inauguration speech:

.. we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path toward prosperity and freedom.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Monday, January 19, 2009

Speed returning

I've now started my 10th week of training in the current phase and I had my first objective measure of whether I'm making any progress - and I am.

At the Chilly Chase 10km race on Sunday, I ran my fastest 10k time is more than 2 1/2 years. I stopped the clock is 40.26.

What made the difference?

I think there were several reasons. The first is my new training regime. There's no doubt that my fitness level is higher now than it has been for more than a year. I feel more fit.

Second, I have been working hard on the treadmill to accelerate my run cadence. I'm not there yet but I am moving forward.

One aspect of racing that I've often struggled with is pacing. I attribute it to a fear of hitting the wall far too early, and so I think I hold back. Sometimes I'm conscious of it; others not.

During yesterday's race, my km splits were all over the mark - 4:34 through 2:59 .. now I know I've never run a 2:59 on the track and while I'm fit, I don't think I'm that fast - yet.

I was trying my best to focus on my foot turnover. The 96 strike rate feels awkward at this point though I made a very conscious effort to shorten my stride to assist is speeding up my cadence. I think it worked. I was aware of the times during the race when my mind wandered a bit and I fell back into my normal longer stride.

Recent 10k times

April 2006 Sporting Life (Toronto) 38:55 3:53.5/km

May 2007 North Head (Sydney) 41:23 4:08.3/km

June 2007 Mini Mos (Sydney) 40:40 4:04/km

Jan 2008 Chilly Chase (Langley) 41:34 4:09.4/km

March 2008 Popeye (Coquitlam) 40:44 4:04.4/km

Aug 2008 Flatlands (Richamond) 41.39 4.10

Jan 2009 Chilly Chase (Langley) 40.24 4.03 (3rd in age group!)

Thursday, January 15, 2009

A few interesting sites


*I"m not sure who took this photo or whether it's part of an ad campaign so apologies for not providing proper credit.

The photo is from the Olympics men's tri final in August in Beijing with Simon Whitfield at the back of the lead pack.

Simon Whitfield http://simonwhitfield.blogspot.com/

Joel Filliol http://joelfilliol.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Effort

It's all about the effort and not being capped or destroyed by a number.

That's the simple advice from Kristian when I told him that I was struggling a bit with trying to reach the appropriate level of effort in some sessions.

As an example, I have one run session which starts out easy, then goes to moderate, then comfortable uncomfortable and then hard.

I can't help but get caught up - when on the treadmill - of trying to run faster from session to session. Watching specific speeds and the corresponding mile per minute pace. I'm a triathlete after all!

What was confusing me was falling back onto the numbers - instead of trusting myself.

I'm still thinking a lot in terms of heart rate because that's how I trained and raced for most of the last decade. And I do think there is great value is using a heart rate monitor, especially for novice athletes.

``The Method does not discourage the use of heart rate monitors or power meters - whatever context best conveys the desired training level to you is the context that will help you best achieve your goals."

I'm trying not to overthink the numbers.

Here's a bit more of what Kristian reminded me about:

"Honestly you know what EASY is ... sometimes athletes confuse EASY with pseudo easy...
but in essence easy is warming up pace to get the blood flowing and your body to release all the enzymes needed to use fat as a fuel source. Then if the whole session is easy that's the effort.

Moderate could be a bit slower than marathon pace on the run - say sustainable for 4hrs on run, a pace that would be sustainable for up to 7hrs on the bike

Comfortable uncomfortable is "it feels hard, but i could keep going" 1/2 mara pace

Hard is Hard > 10k run pace is hard

ALL out is everything you have."

And so the journey continues:

Adjust to feel and do not define your session by speed or pace.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

2009 Race Sked

Decisions mostly made. Details to follow later today. Dingo get ready!

Friday, January 2, 2009

Swimming Fast-er

I clocked a 3:04 for 200m at the pool earlier today - the first of three 200m repetitions and I couldn't believe it. My previous best was 3:14.

I have no illusions of being able to maintain that 3:04 pace for 3.8km - at least not today! But if I could, WOW.

As always with the holidays, there are some sleep and nutrition challenges, and here we've also been battling some weather issues too. See the photos from the previous posts. We had found some great running trails but they now are snow covered.

The past two weeks of training have been a bit of a struggle. Solid sessions but nothing stellar. Like everyone, I like to see and feel that I'm improving day by day.

Charlotte's new look

If you haven't had a look recently, take a look at Charlotte Paul's revamped blog.

Here

Thursday, January 1, 2009

New Year

The start of a year is always a time for setting new targets and I find myself renewed and energized too.

Coach Kristian showed me this link which added some perspective on what lies ahead:

One more step