i am iron.
11 hours 38 minutes 54 seconds.
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
*Iron Training - Week 20 - Race Week*
It is Wednesday, October 22nd. My race is in 3-days. I had my last home run and bike yesterday and will get in my last swim in the next hour or so. Dango. The work is almost complete. Tomorrow morning we leave to make the 14-hour trek to North Carolina. Friday I will get in a light run, get my equipment set-up and then hopefully just chill out a bit. The race begins Saturday morning at 7:30 am.
I am very excited for this race and feel that I have worked hard and prepared well. I pray for toughness, endurance, patience, and safety. I have planned my race... it is time to race my plan...
I am very excited for this race and feel that I have worked hard and prepared well. I pray for toughness, endurance, patience, and safety. I have planned my race... it is time to race my plan...
*Iron Training - Week 19*
So this past week was a good one. As I am in full taper, none of my workouts was very long, but all were pretty good and served a purpose.
Swim: 3 x 2000-yards, all swum in my usual non-stop, alternate breathing style.
Bike: 60, 60, and 120-minutes, each at a solid effort level with a higher cadence.
Run: 6, 3, and 9.5-miles, each at an easy pace with some strides thrown in the mix.
The race is in a week and I am feeling fairly calm and optimistic. The swim is my biggest unknown (which for me equals nervous). I know I am going to be really jacked-up at the start of the race. Hopefully I can keep myself calm and just focus on swimming. Staying clear of the mosh pit is going to be key for me - I still haven't figured out the best way to do that.
Swim: 3 x 2000-yards, all swum in my usual non-stop, alternate breathing style.
Bike: 60, 60, and 120-minutes, each at a solid effort level with a higher cadence.
Run: 6, 3, and 9.5-miles, each at an easy pace with some strides thrown in the mix.
The race is in a week and I am feeling fairly calm and optimistic. The swim is my biggest unknown (which for me equals nervous). I know I am going to be really jacked-up at the start of the race. Hopefully I can keep myself calm and just focus on swimming. Staying clear of the mosh pit is going to be key for me - I still haven't figured out the best way to do that.
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
*Iron Training - Week 18*
So this past week was my first taper week and I think it went pretty well. I executed 9-workouts, but they were relatively short in duration:
Swim: I swam 3 x 2000-yards. Each swim was an "all out" effort, swum straight, and alternating breathing to each side. The goal of this was to do some yardage with a jacked-up heart rate as that is going to be my reality for at least the first 1/2-mile of my race.
Bike: 1 x 90-minutes, 1 x 30-minutes (bricked with run), and 1 x 3-hours. The shorter two rides were at an elevated effort (the shortest ride was executed very hard). The 3-hour ride was probably right at race pace - so steady and quick, but no hammering.
Run: 1 x 8-miles, 1 x 3-miles, and 1 x 14-miles. I ran the 8-miler fairly easy with a few short strides mixed in. The 3-miler was run pretty hard - about 90-seconds per mile faster than "easy" pace. It was bricked with a short but hard bike ride. The 14-miler was run at a "comfortable" pace which ended up being about 15-seconds per mile faster than my typical "easy" pace. I negative split the run, but only by 5-seconds per mile or so. Overall, it was a good run executed with race day nutrition.
Week 19 will step back the distances even more (except the swim). I have been trying to get some rest and focus on hydrating throughout the day. My legs are still a long way from feeling fresh, but I am optimistic that they will get there. Unfortunately, my kids have all decided to get sick and I feel my body fighting to keep their germs at bay - that takes some energy too. Better now than 3-days before the race I guess...
Swim: I swam 3 x 2000-yards. Each swim was an "all out" effort, swum straight, and alternating breathing to each side. The goal of this was to do some yardage with a jacked-up heart rate as that is going to be my reality for at least the first 1/2-mile of my race.
Bike: 1 x 90-minutes, 1 x 30-minutes (bricked with run), and 1 x 3-hours. The shorter two rides were at an elevated effort (the shortest ride was executed very hard). The 3-hour ride was probably right at race pace - so steady and quick, but no hammering.
Run: 1 x 8-miles, 1 x 3-miles, and 1 x 14-miles. I ran the 8-miler fairly easy with a few short strides mixed in. The 3-miler was run pretty hard - about 90-seconds per mile faster than "easy" pace. It was bricked with a short but hard bike ride. The 14-miler was run at a "comfortable" pace which ended up being about 15-seconds per mile faster than my typical "easy" pace. I negative split the run, but only by 5-seconds per mile or so. Overall, it was a good run executed with race day nutrition.
Week 19 will step back the distances even more (except the swim). I have been trying to get some rest and focus on hydrating throughout the day. My legs are still a long way from feeling fresh, but I am optimistic that they will get there. Unfortunately, my kids have all decided to get sick and I feel my body fighting to keep their germs at bay - that takes some energy too. Better now than 3-days before the race I guess...
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
*Iron Training - Week 17*
Hmm. Yes, yes - an interesting week this past week. I had a couple good sessions that I am glad to have done and also glad to be done with:)
My long run was 18-miles. That's a fair distance. It took me 2:40 which is an 8:54 average pace. My fastest mile was 8:47 and my slowest was 8:59 so I was very consistent (which is good). My legs were certainly achy when I was done but not too bad. My nutrition was right on I think. Overall, it left me feeling optimistic.
My short run for the week was 10-miles which I ran at a good clip. I was supposed to have done a little 5-miler over the weekend, but actually decided to bag it and just put my feet up instead.
My long bike ride was 4-hours on the trainer. This was paired with two, 1 1/2-hour rides (both ridden pretty hard). The long ride went well - certainly there was some booty discomfort at various points, but the time went by quickly. I tried to ride a fair bit harder than my race pace and as a result, my legs were feeling a bit achy at the end.
My swim was a straight 3000-yards which I swam as fast (slow) as I am able.
This coming week starts my taper, although there are still some "long" workouts. I feel like the real taper begins the following week. Either way, things are starting to feel real now. I am nervous, anxious, excited, and scared. It should be a heck of an adventure.
My long run was 18-miles. That's a fair distance. It took me 2:40 which is an 8:54 average pace. My fastest mile was 8:47 and my slowest was 8:59 so I was very consistent (which is good). My legs were certainly achy when I was done but not too bad. My nutrition was right on I think. Overall, it left me feeling optimistic.
My short run for the week was 10-miles which I ran at a good clip. I was supposed to have done a little 5-miler over the weekend, but actually decided to bag it and just put my feet up instead.
My long bike ride was 4-hours on the trainer. This was paired with two, 1 1/2-hour rides (both ridden pretty hard). The long ride went well - certainly there was some booty discomfort at various points, but the time went by quickly. I tried to ride a fair bit harder than my race pace and as a result, my legs were feeling a bit achy at the end.
My swim was a straight 3000-yards which I swam as fast (slow) as I am able.
This coming week starts my taper, although there are still some "long" workouts. I feel like the real taper begins the following week. Either way, things are starting to feel real now. I am nervous, anxious, excited, and scared. It should be a heck of an adventure.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
*Iron Training - Week 16*
This post is tardy as it is already Thursday of week 17. Oh well. Here is what I did last week:
The swim: 2000, 2000, and 3000-yards
My swims were a bit short this week but I swam them as fast as I could (which for me isn't really very fast). It felt kind of good to push myself but the reality is that the slightly faster speed is not worth the significant extra effort. My swim come race day will be nice, steady, and relaxed.
The bike: 90, 90, 45, and 180-minutes
My rides were good. Here too, I tried to push my effort level beyond a steady pace. I really hammered the 45-minute ride and immediately followed it with a 5-mile run. The 3-hour ride was pretty good as well - my effort was greater than I will exert on race day for sure.
The run: 10, 5, and 12-miles
My 10-miler was strong and run with a negative split. The 5-miler was at an easy pace after a hard ride. The 12-miler was a good, quality run that started with 6.5-miles at about 8:50 pace. At that point I integrated 3x 1-miles at about 7:30 pace, each with a half mile of easier pace between. I ended the run at the same 8:50 pace that I started. I really enjoyed this run and it went by in a flash. I must admit that my legs were a bit tired in the days following as I really haven't done much in the way of speed work.
Overall, it was a pretty decent week. Next week the workouts return to longer distances - with an 18-mile run and 5-hour ride. Then, it is on to my taper and final preparations for my race...
The swim: 2000, 2000, and 3000-yards
My swims were a bit short this week but I swam them as fast as I could (which for me isn't really very fast). It felt kind of good to push myself but the reality is that the slightly faster speed is not worth the significant extra effort. My swim come race day will be nice, steady, and relaxed.
The bike: 90, 90, 45, and 180-minutes
My rides were good. Here too, I tried to push my effort level beyond a steady pace. I really hammered the 45-minute ride and immediately followed it with a 5-mile run. The 3-hour ride was pretty good as well - my effort was greater than I will exert on race day for sure.
The run: 10, 5, and 12-miles
My 10-miler was strong and run with a negative split. The 5-miler was at an easy pace after a hard ride. The 12-miler was a good, quality run that started with 6.5-miles at about 8:50 pace. At that point I integrated 3x 1-miles at about 7:30 pace, each with a half mile of easier pace between. I ended the run at the same 8:50 pace that I started. I really enjoyed this run and it went by in a flash. I must admit that my legs were a bit tired in the days following as I really haven't done much in the way of speed work.
Overall, it was a pretty decent week. Next week the workouts return to longer distances - with an 18-mile run and 5-hour ride. Then, it is on to my taper and final preparations for my race...
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