Road to Ironman Arizona (8/31-9/06/09)

Monday 1:30 hours long hill climb bike session (7x5 min hill climbs); Supposed to also do a swim session but the recreation center is still closed. It reopens 9/08 after being closed an additional week than originally planned.

Tuesday 44 minute lactate interval run session (12x1 min at VO2max intensity w/ 1 min active recovery)- Completed this session on the treadmill. On any interval sessions I’m striving to raise my speed throughout the workout. This makes for a tough workout but I can tell the difference it’s making in my easier workouts. I’m negative splitting every discipline at this point.

Wednesday Bike/run brick (1:30 hours on bike followed immediately by 30 min run). May have been my best brick workout of the year. Thanks to cooler morning temperatures, I ran 3.4 miles in 30 minutes (8:49 pace) after 30 miles on the bike. My form stayed strong and everything felt easy. And the best part is that I was holding back. I did this with my heart rate well below LT at a nice moderate pace. If I can only feel like that on race day!

Thursday Day off for a business trip to McAllen, TX. Left the house at 5am and returned at 8pm.

Friday 1:30 hours steady state bike. Again supposed to do a swim session but I couldn’t get into another pool. This has frustrated me a bit. I’ve missed thousands of yards in swim training over the past two weeks. Hoping to make up for that as my pool reopens this coming week.

Saturday 4:00 long bike ride- Was supposed to do 4:30 hours but a flat at about the 3:30 hours mark caused me to change the workout. I had only one CO2 cartridge and had it not been for a couple of good Samaritan fellow riders out on the road who donated part of their CO2, I would have been stranded several miles from home. It was good training in changing a tire, however, since I’d not had a flat in nearly two years. When you do as much indoor training as I’m forced to do, you don’t experience flats as often. I was still able to get over 70 miles in and did so at an average 123 heart rate. I was even able to get in some big chain ring riding without fatiguing my legs. I was pushing 23 mph and feeling easy.

Sunday 2:20 hours long run on the Brushy Creek Lake Trail. I continue to do 10 minutes run/1 min walk and it is really working well for me. I maintained a 153 average heart rate but the final 1:30 hours were spent in heart rate levels 4 and 5, with a max of 175. I really need to max out around 168 and spend less time in those higher heart rate zones. The weather was so nice that I probably pushed the pace a little too much in the beginning. That said, I felt great throughout; the best I’ve felt on a long run in several weeks. My community pool was not being used, so I was able to get 3200 yards in on my way home. I got a cramp in each calf which caused me to take two breaks of at least two minutes each. Guess I should be glad the swim comes before and not after the run. My arms were really heavy and fatigued to start, but after about 1000 meters, I got into a nice tempo. Once again, another example of the importance of staying patient and consistent in endurance athletics. Of the 8850 yards I was supposed to swim this week, I completed only this 3200 yards.

I’m looking forward to today’s day off from both training and work. A true rest day is hard to come by, so I’m cherishing this one.

Next Sunday is the Prairie Man half-Ironman distance race in Grand Prairie, TX. Mark and I are both signed up to participate. Since I don’t plan a full race taper for this “training” race, I will continue training up to race day but at a reduced quantity. With nearly 14 hours of scheduled training for this week and given that the race will take me around 6 hours, I plan to train 8 hours this week with today’s rest day and a Saturday rest day. In effect, that will provide me a taper but allow me to still get the required training hours in. And given the increased intensity of race day, I will get a greater workout week in than originally scheduled.

I’m looking forward to testing my pacing and nutrition given what I’ve learned since my last (and first) half Ironman race. This will be my first triathlon race since the CapTex Olympic distance earlier this spring. In that race, my swimming was average, my bike was strong, and my run was awful. I hope to have a more consistent/even race this time around. Without a wet suit swim and with the larger distances, I must be more consistent to have a good day.

My congrats to Claude on his year-ending triathlon in Bowling Green. Congrats to Mark on completing the Hotter n Hell 100 under tough circumstances and still having a great race. Best wishes to Dino on his nuptials. Kudos to Jeremy for joining a gym and embarking on a new training regimen. And my best to all of you in your personal and professional lives. Hope to hear from all of you on our blog in the days and weeks to come.

Kia Kaha!