Vineman training: weeks 3 and 4

Ah, the bloggy has been a bit neglected. I said it to a friend the other day and I'll say it again...dedicated athletes must all be either hermits or monks. Training for an Ironman is hard when you're gainfully full-time employed and coach on the side! So rather than detailing weeks 3 and 4 day by day, I'll hit some of the highlights.

1) Getting hooked up with some coaching through Menlo Masters and Tattersols. Already both have proved very valuable in the form of kickass swim and track workouts. It's good for me to have an experienced coach dishing out the punishment in focused doses. I have no problem getting the volume done on my own, but it is hard to hit any kind of intensity when you are training by yourself. I never knew until last week I was capable of holding a 1:30 to 1:35 pace in the pool for any length of time. I also now know that I'm strong and have good running form, but my cadence sucks and will be the kiss of death at Vineman if I don't improve it soon.

2) A couple great rides with a great group of gals. 40 miles just with Sarah, followed a week later by a headwind-laden 44 miler with Steph, Lynn, Hayley, CJ, Brigitte, Sara, and Meabon. Steph jumped right in and taught everyone how to paceline...thank goodness, who knows if we'd have gotten back by now otherwise!

3) Wildflower practice weekend with the team. This ended up being a great key training weekend for me--I went down early with the gals and pre-rode the long course bike loop on Friday. Saturday I swept the Olympic bike course with CJ, and then on Sunday ran/walked (and partly just ran) the 10k Olympic run course with Steph.

4) A couple of long runs with Sarah before she had her Achilles surgery. It was good to get those in. I can't wait until she can do it again. :-)

Vineman training: week #2

Monday, 3/9: Took an unauthorized recovery day. It was much needed after The previous Sunday's ordeal. Kept it to about 40 minutes of yoga.

Tuesday, 3/10: Spinning at Trek in San Jose. No Lynn and Hayley; as they are going back to work at the pub on Tuesdays for the next month or so. Spin up drill, followed by one short climbing drill, followed by LOTS of sprints. We did 10 sprints, 15" each, in the highest gear possible, building cadence the whole time. 1:45 recovery in between. This was right up my alley...I LOVE fast twitch stuff, really jumping on it. After the first 5, Bill looked at me and asked if I could even feel them. I said yes, but apparently he saw right through me; after that, we had to sprint in the biggest gear we could hold 100+ cadence at. Holy. Crap. Then we did 5 more sprints, only 8" long, with 52" recovery. Legs pretty much died. Then one more short climbing drill and that was it. Probably the most toasted I have ever felt after a spin--it was great.

Wednesday, 3/11: Did about 45 minutes of corrective work on my shoulder, and thenI went to my first-ever Tattersols workout. Tattersols is a all female running and racing team that meets at the Stanford Track every Wednesday evening. I had been kind of nervous about it; CJ had told me they are all really fast, so I was worried I might just get totally smoked. It wasn't bad though, I think I may have been a bit more "middle-of-the-pack." It was a relay-based workout, and I couldn't say how far I ran...just that I ran a lot. It was a lot of fun and a great workout.

Thursday, 3/12: First swim workout of training. I have joined Menlo Masters, but the heater has been broken since I joined, and I am sorry but I am NOT going to swim in a 68-70 degree pool...I don't need the swim time THAT badly. So, I went to Rinconada. It's so peaceful, really one of my favorite places to swim. I went 2300, and the shoulder actually felt pretty good!

Friday, 3/13: Took another recovery day.

Saturday, 3/14: Team workout at 8am. Riding from Edgewood and Canada. It was COLD, and I ended up sweeping the Elites (intermediate) riders on a 20 mile ride. So it was slow, slow, slow...and I was frozen. I think I burned 3 calories riding and about 2000 just trying to stay warm. Afterward, stood around at the intersection for another 2+ hours waiting for everyone else to finish practice. Then went for my own run with Sarah, 6 miles. Felt absolutely shredded but she managed to drag me through it. I pretty much went home and collapsed.

Sunday, 3/15: Rode 40 miles of rollers, again with Sarah, again feeling a bit shredded. At least I wasn't as cold as I was Saturday. Came down Edgewood into Redwood City. Scary. Not sure I am gonna do that again.

So...things I clearly need to figure out are eating a bit better for improved recovery, and fitting in some more resistance training.

Vineman training: week #1

Here's how the past week of training went.

Monday, 3/2: Sign up for full Vineman at 4pm. Immediately start freaking out. Frantically start texting Stephanie, who advises me to sign up for a half-iron distance sometime in May. Sign up for the Auburn Half. Freak out some more.

Tuesday, 3/3: Meet with Stephanie to set up training program. Realize I can probably do this. Go to Bill's spin class at San Jose Trek at 7pm, wherein I find that Lynn and Hayley will now be regular attendees, since Lynn is going to be training with me.

Wednesday, 3/4: Have every intention of going to Tattersols in the evening, but realize that my schedule needs a little reworking for me to make a 630pm track workout for the next 5 months. Opt for a 5 mile run/walk with Sarah.

Thursday, 3/5: Session with Kristi-the-insanely-strong-massage-therapist to reset my dials for some serious training. She spends her time, in order of most important to least important, on right calf, left calf, right IT band, left IT band, and right shoulder. It was so intense I thought I might puke once or twice. Coach track in the evening for TNT.

Friday, 3/6: Everything is still very tender to the touch from Kristi's work of yesterday. No working out.

Saturday, 3/7: Coach swim/bike workout for TNT in early am. Then head out for 5 mile run at the dish (again with Sarah). Kristi has done great work as usual, everything feels great, nothing tightens up...however, in the evening I notice that my IT bands are covered with bruises. Holy mackerel.

Sunday, 3/8: Meet at Piedmont and Sierra to ride Calaveras loop with Lynn, Hayley, Caroline, Brigitte, Denise, and Ivy. About 5 miles up, Ivy falls over while trying to clip out and breaks her ankle...badly. Luckily we are still low enough to get decent cell phone reception, and a couple off-duty police officers stop to help us. The paramedics get her taken care of quickly with stabilization and pain meds, and then transport her and Hayley to the hospital. Now there are 5 chicks with 7 bikes--5.3 miles away from our cars--and nobody feels much like riding anymore. CJ and Brigitte hop a ride down the hill with one of the police officers. They came back up in their cars and somehow we manage to stuff 7 bikes and 5 women into a sedan and an SUV, with a total of 2 actual bike rack slots between them. Pretty amazing. We all meet up at the hospital to see that Ivy is getting good care and that her family is arriving to take care of her. We take off one by one and I head back up the peninsula a little freaked out, but with the pressure of needing to ride another 25 miles in the back of my mind. So I head to Sarah's house, and bless, her she is willing to head out and back with me for 25 miles on Foothill, just for the saddle time. I am shaken but I think it is good that I got back onto my bike right away.

Now, it's Monday...should be a swim day, but I was so tired after yesterday's ordeal that I just wanted to sleep in and ditch the 7am masters workout. Got an email from Ivy, and she was prepped and ready for surgery by 4pm yesterday afternoon; today she has 2 screws and a plate in her ankle, and clearly, she will not be doing Wildflower this year. :-(

This just in...

Wow. A lot has happened since I ventured here.

The long and short of it:

I have signed up for and am now training for Vineman 2009, a full Iron-distance triathlon to take place on August 1st in Santa Rosa, California.

I still have a broken wing, but according to physician, swimming, biking, and running are all still okay. I will probably need shoulder surgery, but I really won't be delaying it that long, if at all...I would probably have scheduled it in August anyway, as that is my slowest month of the year at the gym.

Right now, I am frantically writing a workout schedule and signing up for "tune-up" events leading up to the big day. I have a lot of details to work out. I will post more when I have a bit more of a fence around it.

Oh, my lord. Five short months. What have I done? :-D

broken wing

So...I gotta have shoulder surgery. It hasn't been 100% confirmed yet, but I know it's true. Curse my education. I went in and had it examined last Wednesday. 2+/3 laxity in all directions on both shoulders, and a positive O'Brien's test on the right. What's that mean you say? Well...it's not very good.

Given my age and my long history of shoulder issues, this is probably what I've got.

Cycling, running, and believe it or not, swimming are okay. Probably plenty of yoga, although I've identified a few poses that make me pretty uncomfortable. Aside from that...it'll be lots of superlegs. I've got a 30 minute lower body blitz scheduled with a colleague tomorrow. Oh, yeah...and lots of shoulder pre-hab.

So...no Olympic lifting, limited kettlebells, no pushups, no pullups, and probably no crossfit either. Boo. Hiss.

What really sucks it that it is starting to bug me at work.

I was pretty bummed at the outset, and believe me, I'm still pretty unthrilled...but I just read and article about Dara Torres. Five knee surgeries and three shoulder surgeries.

So someday I can be Supergirl again. :-)

Fun with heart rate monitoring

For several years I have been perched on the edge of the heart rate debate. Train with one or without one? Heart rate based training can be a powerful tool to increase your lactate threshold and enforce periodization...on the other hand, I think many ahtletes become overly dependent on their heart rate monitors. It's important to remember that your heart rate provides only a small picture of what is happening to you physiologically when you train. A number that is a bit "off" that day doesn't necessarily mean a bad workout. The heart is a muscle, too, and just like your quads and hamstrings, it has limits. It can get fatigued. Sometimes it needs a day or two to recover before it can rev back up to 90% of your max.

Anyway, enough of all that. I got one for Christmas, and I've been playing with mine for the past few workouts and having fun:

Sunday: Rode about 30 miles with one significant climb. At a comfortable working pace, it hovered around 144-146. During the hardest efforts of the climb, it got to 162. According to the monitor I burned about 1200 kcals.

Tuesday: Did some yoga in the afternoon. Downward Facing Dog: 75-80. Flank Stretch: Got up to 102. Corpse: 53. All others were about 82-84. Only burned maybe 80 kcals. Then went to my evening spin class: During the spin-up drill: got to 154. During the drill that came after that which was REALLY REALLY hard: got up to 159. During the sprint series: got up to 162. During each 3 minute recovery: got down in the 120's. During the 1 minute recoveries: lucky to get down to the 140's.

Thursday: Quick 2+ mile run. Comfortable working pace: 148-152. Did four 15 second pickups at about 80% effort: got to 159, 160, 161, and 162. Then did shoulder prehab: 120-130. Who knew.

Should pre-hab is another issue entirely, for another post.

interesting

I actually felt my abs all day yesterday after my Tuesday night spin class. Cool!

More posting to come later today. I have much that I am thinking about.

Spin FAIL

I was so excited about making back to Trek to spin last night after week after week of illness and being out of town...it seems anyway. I had a slow leak in my front tire that had needed to be addressed for several weeks (yeah yeah, not riding enough, see previous sentence, okay?) and figured I could just re-inflate it and have it hold well enough for a 90 minute spin...and then just deal with it, um, this weekend.

Yeah, that didn't work. Couldn't get the sucker to hold air, no matter what. Changed the tube. STILL would not hold air. Why? Because the stems on the spare tubes I kept around for Eddie are, as it turns out, to short for the wheels on the new bike. Yeah...those nicer lightweight racing wheels have deeper rims. So I need to replace all my damn spares.

Anyway, at this point it was 655 (spin starts at 7) so I had to throw in the towel. Did an hour of yoga instead.

Then today I ran about 2 COLD miles, and then made up my own little W.O.D.

10 rounds of:
2 pullups
4 knees-to-elbows
8 burpees

When I'm feeling a bit stronger I think I will make it 3/5/7.

no more sick!

I have been down with a nasty cold TWICE since 11/1. Rotten luck. Between that and Turkey Day I have missed 10 days of work since then. even MORE ROTTEN. Ending pity party now.

So today I worked out for the first time in 10 days.

Easy 2 mile run
Scaption/Scap-push/S-man plank/SA squat row to warmup
5 rounds of:
7x jumping pullups + knees to elbows
7x 65# hang cleans

in transition

Fall season has been interesting, to say the least.

The season culminated with Treasure Island and Silverman on Nov 8 and 9. I made it to what I could before crawling home to bed, sick as a dog. By and large, our team was very successful...most participants finished their events happy and empowered. I was very proud of them. A couple wrenches fell into the works, but that's the norm. Tri is complicated enough for an experienced athlete. There are bound to be mishaps in a group of twenty-or-so newbs.

And now, onward. I've been asked (and I've agreed) to join the spring coaching staff for 2009. Looks to be a good lineup again--Dave, Denise, CJ and me so far. Waiting to hear from the others for certain. We're meeting next Monday to set the schedule as well as we can ahead of time.

In the meantime...I'm going to enjoy my Saturdays for a little while. Tuesday spin classes at Trek have started up again. I'm giving serious consideration to joining a masters' swim team to kick start my suffering athleticism and waning enthusiasm for being a cheerleader and spectator. The holidays are upon us all already--and I'm going to give it my best go to avoid picking up any extra lbs. along the way.

this could be love

Thanks to Quoc, our web captain this season, here is a picture of me on one of the first few rides on the new steed. Damn, I look good on that bike. And I go far faster than my current fitness level should dictate. And carbon makes a really cool sound when you coast downhill: rumblerumblerumble.... She is as yet unnamed (though distinctly female) and she far exceeds my skill set when it comes to cycling. Hey, nothing wrong with a bike I can grow into, right?

As far as Eddie...he continues to languish in my dining room, still in search of a new rider. I reposted on craigslist last night, and once again, a new hit within 24 hours. Hooray. Hopefully someone [smaller] will see hime and love him as much as I have.

the verdict is in

After all was said and done, I went back to the guys I trust and who know me best.

I picked up my lovely new Trek Madone the day before yesterday. Ouch...$$$!!! However...I am looking at it as an investment in my health. The cumulative effects of riding a bike too small for me for 2+ years were no longer worth saving the cash... Before I could go 10 miles, my back hurt and my neck hurt. My knees bothered me on climbs. After long rides my traps would be in spasm for days. I just didn't want to ride anymore, and my beautiful [little] Bianchi wasn't doing me or anyone else any good just sitting on the storage rack.

Anyway, I went out yesterday afternoon for my first ride on the new steed. Holy crap. The bike practically rides itself. I cannot WAIT to see what I can make it do when I am back in racing shape. I did not feel my neck or back even once....and the descents! Even though they were pretty mild, I still felt a huge difference. This bike just felt like it rolled lazily along, whereas the little bike always felt too fast, like I was on the verge of losing control. Only downside...on the way back in, I blew a spectacular flat on Woodside Road. Like, a hole ripped in the tire--so a new tube wasn't going to cut it. I managed to rig a MacGuyver style patch from a Fig Newton wrapper that was stable enough to get me back to home base. Headed back into the shop today...Two hard-case Race-Lite puncture resistant tires, two new tubes (running low) and a new CO2 trigger....cha-ching!!!! Oh well. What's another f#$king $100, right? :-{

Meanwhile, Fast Eddie, my lovely little Bianchi, did not even sit on craigslist for 24 hours before somebody inquired about him. I'm showing him off (and possibly saying a sad goodbye) tonight.

test ride #3

Bill called last week to let me know he gotten in a 56 WSD for me to test ride. I had some time to go in a try it out today. I walked in the shop about 1145 and immediately ran into Kelly--we had some trouble locating the bike and he ended up having to call Bill to straighten things out. Turns out he had ordered a 1.5 instead of the Madone 4.5 for me to try, just to get the fit dialed in. I don't blame him--it's a pretty weird size to be ordering a high performance bike in, just for a test ride.

Anyway, Kelly pulled the 1.5 and got me on the trainer for a quick fit. Man...a WAY taller bike than I have ever ridden! Believe it or not, after watching a few pedal revolutions he raised the seat even higher. Felt pretty good. The reach was appropriately short, but I still felt like I had to reach "downhill" to get to the hoods, so he took it upstairs and switched out the stem. Then I was ready to roll.

I headed outside and struck off in the direction of the nearest climb (not far at all). Immediately I noticed how much more upright this bike had me sitting. The ride was pretty responsive, even though it was an aluminum frame. Not very aggressive, but definitely comfy. I even felt upright in the drops. I hit the hill and shifted down (nothing remarkable there--a 1.5 is spec'd with Tiagra, YUCK), then climbed up the ~1/2 mile climb to the top. Felt pretty good--handlebars were wider than I am accustomed to. I cruised around a bit at the top, and then turned around to head down...the true test.

Descending...was pretty good! I felt stable enough that I didn't ride the brakes much at all, and I didn't have to shove my butt way behind the saddle to take pressure off the front wheel.

Despite the fact that it was an aluminum frame spec'd out with lower end components, fit-wise it was possibly the most comfortable bike I've been on.

Two posts in one day!

Just to keep it all straight, while it is fresh in my mind.

Test ride #1 (last weekend): Trek Madone 4.7, standard size 54. It felt weird--my first experience on a full carbon frame. I could feel definite "squishiness" which I am now informed is "vertical compliance." Definitely responsive--I could feel it jump forward when I first hopped on the pedals. Was I in love with it? I'm not sure. Bill looked me over on it pretty thoroughly and then ordered a 56cm WSD for me to try. It just came in yesterday, so I will go back Sunday and see if it sings to me.

Test ride #2 (20 minutes ago): Specialized Roubaix Expert, standard size 52. I was a bit skeptical of the smaller size at first, but it turns out that Specialized geometry is designed to set the rider in a more upright position, conducive to longer rides. I took off on this bike like a shot--it damn near jumped out from under me when I first hit the pedal. I have to admit--this is a damned sexy ride. Light, responsive, crisp shifting. A little more $$$ than the Madone--in fact, way outside my original budget. And I feel a bit guilty--sorta like I'm cheating on the Trek boys with a bike that is younger, hotter, and can go all night (day?). Hmmmmm. Maybe I should have them build/spec out something a little more upscale for me to compare the Roubaix to. Argh.

Argh. Shopping for big expensive toys is fun but it also makes me want to tear out my hair.

finally a blip on the radar...

After a busy summer, I think it's time I re-enter the blog-o-sphere...

Fall season is in full swing and I'm coaching again.

After coasting on WF long course fitness for close to a year, it's finally fizzling out and it's time to recharge to training program. I'm on an extended hiatus from training for any events and from long runs in particular. Instead I'm going to try and bring up my cycling skills a bit.

First...get back to strength training. Started a new 6 week cycle yesterday of single-leg strength and flexiblity.
SS #1: (SL squatx12 each + GH raisex12) x2
SS#2: (12/12x horizontal woodchop + 12x b.board plank) x2
SS#3: (SL HF squatx12 each + 45#GMx12) x2

and, um, ow...my butt totally hurts today. Sigh.

Second...replace my blasted tiny little bike. I must say goodbye to little Eddie. I'm having a potentially sweet ride assembled for me at Trek (turns out I am a funky size, who knew?) and in the meantime will try to test ride a few comparable bikes made by Bianchi, Specialized, Cannondale, and Felt.

Third...ride more. Yeah, need to figure that one out.

today's WOD

X-fit style ripped from Fitness Conduit.

For time:
21 box jumps
21 kettle bell swings (35#)
21 pushups
18 box jumps
18 KB swings
18 pushups
15 box jumps
15 KB swings
15 pushups
12 box jumps
12 KB swings
12 pushups
9 box jumps
9 KB swings
9 pushups
6 box jumps
6 KB swings
6 pushups
3 box jumps
3 KB swings
3 pushups

13:38.

Great for blowing off a little steam in short order.

At last!

I'm done coaching the spring season!

Our last team workout was Saturday morning at Redwood Shores, aka the Green Mile, for a swim and run.

Friday morning 29 members of the team are off to Maui to race King's Trail. I get my first Saturday off since February 1st!

Hooray. :-D

Of course, fall season is just around the corner--and I'm coaching again.

so the countdown begins...

The buzz lately (in my head and amongst a few esteemed colleagues) has been that my beloved Eddie is too small for me. In case there was any lingering doubt, our web captain captured this shot of me last Saturday...

So. One year until I can pony up the funds to trade up...because, let's face it--Eddie IS my entry-level bike. The next one has got to be a step up.

At least maybe I'll be a bit better at descending on a bike that fits me properly...or maybe I'm just destined to go downhill like granny-in-a-skirt. But look at those shoulders! Maybe they won't hurt as often.

look at me...

Today's main set:

10 rounds for time of:
2 pull ups
4 push ups
8 kettlebell swings (16kg)
total: 11:34

...and those pull-ups were unassisted. Every one of them. I surprised myself, big time. Rawr.

lesson learned

Never, ever let someone lean their wheel against your leg while they are inflating the tire up to 100+ psi--especially if they have just changed a tube for the first time.

For just a split second, the thought entered my head "should I have this thing leaning against my--"

Bang. Snakebite. Blew the freakin' tire right off the rim.

My ears felt like they were full of cotton for a full 10 seconds before they started ringing... and I now I have a lovely welt on the side of my leg.

Silly coach.