Changes = Challenges

Just when I was getting back in the groove after being sick, the gym at Progressive is closed for 6 weeks for renovations. That, coupled with the weather getting colder makes training a bit tougher. So I have to adapt a bit.

I hate running outside in the cold but am coming to grips with the fact that I must. I am hoping for twice a week in the winter along with one indoor run at the T-burg fitness center. That should get me through. I also finally put my bike on the trainer (I think it's been a month since I said I was going to!) and rode it the other night. I hope to do that 3-4 times a week and even get up before work once in a while to ride. And, there is always swimming.

Ohio winters suck!

Ding Dong the cough is gone!

I was finally able to run today for the first time in about a month without having a coughing attack at some point during or immediately after the run. And, while I was at it I ran a 4.5 mile PR of 36:18. I may yet become a runner.

It's been just over 3 months since I decided to do the race and started training. When I began I weighed 210 pounds and couldn't even run 3 consecutive 9 minute miles. Today I weigh 186 pounds and (as noted above) can string together 4+ miles at just over 8 minutes a mile. Not nearly world class, but a lot of progress for me.

I haven't yet set any concrete goals for the race but the improvements I've made so far make me think I should be fine with my goal of breaking 13 hours total. I swam again yesterday and felt strong and was also pretty fast. Based on what I was repeating for 200 meter intervals in the pool I am pretty confident I'll be able to go under an hour in the swim for the race. I am also thinking I will be racing at less than 180 pounds so that will help a lot on the bike and run. Who knows, I may get delusional and start thinking about breaking 12 hours! After all, you've got to set goals.

Still Couging

It's gotten to the point that I hardly even notice the cough any more. It has become normal, sort of like breathing, so I am ignoring it. It's not a bad cough, it just won't go away.

In spite of the cough I did my first Saturday morning triple workout over the weekend. I did a spinning class first, then I swam 2000 meters, then I went to Bootcamp where ironically enough we ran! Sort of a mini triathlon only out of order. I hope to do more of these in the coming weeks/months. I can't this Saturday because we are helping Janet move but I may try to at least do spinning before we go.

The swim was surprisingly easy, especially since I haven't been in the pool in months. Before I started I hoped to get at least 1000 meters in but I felt really good so I kept going. I did start to get fatigued at the end, but it's a good sign.

And finally, yesterday I went out for my first run over 5 miles in about 3 weeks (6.5). I felt pretty good and held a decent pace but I definitely could tell I've lost a little bit. I am sure this will not be the only bump in the training road between now and next September, but I hope there aren't too many or that any of them is too tough. We'll see.

Returning to normal

It's been 2 weeks to the day since I started coughing. I am not 100% percent yet, but I am resuming normal activity. With any luck I'll be completely over the cough by early next week.

I ran 5 at work yesterday and my pace was pretty decent. I started strong and held it for most of the run. I didn't feel as tired at the end as I did on Monday either so that's a good sign. We then ran another couple miles at Bootcamp and I felt pretty good there too. I only had a couple minor coughing fits.

Today I'll ride the bike and lift at work and then have Bootcamp tonight at the fitness center. Hoping for circuits today. I don't really want to run.

Never thought I'd say this...

...but I missed running. The minor setback turned into 10+ days of coughing and wheezing and I wasn't able to do much cardio. Not for a lack of trying though. I headed out to run on at least 3 different occasions but was turned back each time. Today I broke through.

It started Saturday after Bootcamp when Carol made me stay after and run 2 miles with her. Thanks Carol!! That got me jump started and today I went out for 4.5 at work. It was a bit slow and I was fatigued at the end but it felt really good to get back out there. It's amazing how quickly the stamina fades when you can't run, but I am confident I'll get it back pretty quickly too. Just in time for winter. Yeah!!

Minor Setback

Last Thursday I developed a cough and by evening had a fever to go along with it. I have been fighting something (maybe the flu) ever since. The fever went away by Saturday morning but the aches and cough/cold symptoms linger. I didn't bother with the doctor since it hasn't gotten any worse and everyone else I know who is sick has been advised by their doctors not to come in unless it gets worse (medical advice by proxy I guess). So, I don't know what I had/have but it sucks!

The good news is I am finally starting to feel a little better. The bad news is I haven't been able to work out since Thursday. Yuck! I really want to get back into it but am trying to be smart so this doesn't turn into a 2 or 3 week ordeal. I did finally lift weights a bit today and seem to be OK and I plan to run tomorrow so that will be the real test. I can't wait to see how much stamina I've lost (not). I was really rolling too. Oh well. $h!t happens.

Maybe I should stop training (not)

After a weekend trip to Niagara with Susan and the kids where I did almost nothing for three days and ate like a pig I came home today and ran a PR on the 6.5 mile loop at work and discovered I lost another 1/2 pound. At that rate if I do nothing and eat poorly until next September I should be able to run a sub 9 hour race!

Seriously though, it's nice to see that the work I've already put in is paying off even when I can't (don't) train and eat the right foods. The lean muscle I've added is burning calories even when I'm off for a couple days. Another sign that I continue to head in the right direction. There is hope for me yet!

And now for something completely different...

Saturday morning Susan and I ran in a 5k Bootcamp challenge at the Twinsburg fitness center. Many of our bootcamp friends were there along with some new faces (about 35 people total). It was a blast!

Mike (the Bootcamp instructor) put the course together around the fitness center and some of the school and park facilities nearby. It consisted of a 5K run sprinkled with obstacles and challenges. We had to do lunges, squat lifts, sand bag carries, hurdles, cones, pushups, medicine ball throws and LOTS of low crawls under nets. Mike is a Marine after all so the low crawls were not that big of a surprise. It truly was a challenge and we had a good time.

I didn't get chicked (see Josh's blog here: http://gettinchicked.blogspot.com/ if you don't know what that means) and I was fifth or sixth overall. I had already done a spinning class earlier in the morning so I was a little fatigued at the end. Otherwise I would have caught Dwayne who finished just ahead of me (at least that's what I'm telling myself). I may have held back a bit too because I didn't want to make him feel bad. He's a lot younger than me and I didn't want to bruise his ego.

As a bonus, after the race we realized that everyone who finished ahead of us had taken a couple of wrong turns and didn't run the entire course. As a result Dwayne and I decided we were really first and second! Congrats Dwayne! Let me know when you get your trophy because I'm sure mine won't be far behind.

T-1

T-1 is shorthand for the first transition in a triathlon, from the swim to the bike. Since I'm sort of at the first transition between phases of my training the title seemed to fit for this post. I'm obviously not transitioning from swimming to biking but there is definitely change in the air.

After almost 2 full months of nothing but running I am starting to add biking to my routine and swimming will soon follow. I had predicted this wouldn't happen until November, but there are several reasons for the change. First, I have gotten better at running much sooner than I thought I would and my runs are getting longer so I don't want to run every day any more. It's easy to go every day when it's 3 miles, not so much when it's 6. Second, I have lost weight more quickly than I thought I would (18 pounds so far!) so I can ease up on the activity (running) that makes me lose the most. Third, I was getting bored running every day. The stationary bike is not my favorite either but at least it's different and the pool will add even more variety. Fourth, the weather is changing and not every day is conducive to running. I know the hard core runners would disagree, but there are some days I just can't go outside. Finally, it is a triathlon I'm training for so I do need to do all three sports.

I feel pretty strong on the bike already. It's probably a result of all the running but so far I've just ridden the stationary bike in the fitness center at work. The real test will be when I get on the tri-bike on my trainer at home. I'll let you know how that goes. Maybe this weekend.

A Blustery Day in the 100 Acre Woods

Josh and I ran 4.5 today in 25-30 mph winds with gusts in the 40's. I didn't PR but we were fast given the conditions. We also sort of blew up Josh's recovery run. Oh well, on the occasions when I feel fast I want to take advantage.

My legs felt strong and my cardio was good. After last week's series of miserable runs it was nice. It may have something to do with me carb loading for the past 3 days. There is nothing like the Donato's pizza on High Street before an Ohio State game and I took full advantage. And, I didn't gain any weight over the weekend either. This week is looking up already!

Worst. Run. Ever.

Today I was feeling pretty good and thinking I would have a good run. That lasted all of about 3/4 mile. The heat and humidity were as high as I can remember and I ran out of gas f-a-s-t!! The ONLY good thing was I finished without walking. I kept telling myself this was a positive because it's practice for gutting it out on race day. That may be true, but it didn't make it any more fun. Baby steps.

No, I didn't die.

But I could have. I spent this past weekend in West Virginia white water rafting for Josh's bachelor party. I guess it could count as swim training because we did a fair amount of that. Plus, swimming in a Class V rapid is a tad tougher than the pool or Lake Erie. In addition to the gear weighing you down the water takes you where it wants, you have very little control (none) over where you go once you are out of the boat. I thought I was a strong swimmer until I met the Gauley River.

For those of you curious types here are a few links you might want to explore:

This first one is a generic series of videos about the river and the rapids. If you go the Upper Gauley links and check out Sweet's Falls there is a section at the bottom of the rapid called Box Canyon (it's near the end of the video). We went in there and our boat got wedged and flipped by the water. We all got tossed and I got driven to the bottom of the river then came up under the boat. I was probably only under water for 10-15 seconds but it felt a lot longer. When I came up I was at the mercy of the water. It took a few minutes but another boat fished me out and took me to my boat. It took about 15 minutes to gather everyone back up and get moving again. We got dumped a few other times, but that was the most exciting (scary?) one.
http://www.gauleyriverrapids.com/index.htm

This link is to the photos of our actual trip. If you click you can choose between Upper or Lower Gualey and the trip time (you need to give an e-mail address but there is no sign up or registration required). We were on the Lower at 12:00 on the 19th and the Upper at 9:00 on the 20th. Our photos are the first ones in the Upper series, and start at number 39 in the series for the Lower. Unless you know one of us real well it may be hard to find us. I was in the back right of the boat just in front of the guide and had on sun glasses.
http://www.leisuresportsphoto.com/mp_client/pictures.asp?eventid=0&categories=no&keywords2=no&groupid=64

Finally, if you google for videos of the Gauley river and Box Canyon I am sure you can find some good ones of people flipping in there. That may give you an idea of our adventure.

All in all a great weekend. Now it's back to reality and to training. It seems like it has been a month since my last run (a 4.5 miler Friday morning).

Less than one year...

We have passed under the one year banner in the race to the race. Saturday was the actual "unniversary" of the event but I forgot to post. I hope I don't forget to race next year!

So, it's been just over 5 weeks since I decided to give this a go and I continue to make progress. Last week was tough with the holiday and a full day of golf (Progressive scramble event Thursday) but I made it through. I only ran 4 times but I had some good long runs so it works out OK. I have worked up to the point where 4 miles is my short day. That's pretty good (for me) considering it was tough to do 3 a little over a month ago.

My plan is to continue almost exclusively building my running base for the next 4-6 weeks. After that I will get back in the pool and back on the bike trainer. It's tough not doing any biking right now, especially since the weather has been so nice, but I know I need the running base and I need to make good decisions with my time. Plus, any outdoor biking I do right now won't make much difference next spring. I'll just hit the trainer really hard over the winter and get going outdoors when the snow melts (hopefully before May).

4 Days

It's a good thing not every weekend is a holiday weekend. If it was I'd never even sniff the starting line next year.

The good news is I ran 3 of the 4 days and all 3 runs were good ones; 5 miles Friday morning, a quick 3 1/2 on Saturday, and a little over 4 on Monday. The bad news is I ate like I was carb loading for the race. I'm no nutrition expert but I'll bet carb loading for 12 months is not a good idea. I'm glad to get back to work before it's too late. A couple more days and I may not have recovered from the food coma. Salad anyone?

Eye opener

In the 3 1/2 weeks since I made the final decision to do this I have been running pretty consistently. And, that running has made me aware of how lazy I've been over the last several years. Maybe not lazy, but it has definitely opened my eyes to what I can accomplish when I really try.

I was in decent condition when I started, but over the last 3 weeks I have already posted a course best time in the 4 mile route at work and am within about 25 seconds of my best 3 mile time. If that was possible all along what have I been doing? Making excuses, that's what.

Today I had a really good 3 mile run even though I planned to take it a little easy and I didn't feel that strong. That's a good sign because there will be a whole boatload of not feeling all that strong at the end of the triathlon. I'll need lots of runs like today to draw on when it gets down to it.

Finally, my friends Josh and Katie have also entered the race. My conversations with Josh were actually the biggest motivation to do this. We said we were going to and next thing you know we were dumb enough to sign up. Anyhow, Josh started his own blog if any of you are interested. Here is the link: http://gettinchicked.blogspot.com/ By the way, Katie is by far a better triathlete than me and Josh isn't kidding when he says she'll probably beat him too. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

No turning back

Well, the die has been cast. I just completed registration for the race. Up to this point it's all been speculation, now I'm in. I was nervous last night thinking about it as I fell asleep, but this morning I am excited.

As silly as it sounds it really helps that I had a good run yesterday. I had a bad one on Sunday and was doubting whether I should do this. If this is any indication of the roller coaster I'm in for it will be interesting. It doesn't matter though now.

On with the training....

Really?

Is it possible to have second thoughts before I've even signed up for the race? It occurred to me today as I was struggling through a 3 mile run (I attribute that to my double workout yesterday, at least I hope that's it) that it will probably be 3 or 4 more weeks before I have a WEEKLY total equal to what I'll need in the race. Yikes!

So far I've done weeks of 12 and 13 and am on pace for 18-20 this week. I am trying to work up about 10% per week (thanks Josh for the tip) and I am sure there will be weeks where I actually do less. So, even under good conditions it will be a while before I hit 26. It's a good thing this race is over a year away.

Good news is I lost a little more weight. Soon I'll be under 200 pounds for the first time in about 3 years. I hope to race at about 180 which for me will feel light as a feather. That should help with my running.

In the beginning...

After talking about it for over three years I decided I'm going to man up and train for a full distance triathlon (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run = 140.6). This blog will serve as my training diary and will provide updates for the 3 or 4 people who want to follow my progress. Hi Mom!!

I am planning to do the Rev3 full distance triathlon at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio on September 12, 2010. Here is their web site http://www.rev3tri.com/. They can't call it an "Ironman" triathlon because that is a trademarked term, but it's the same distance. If (when) I cross the finish line I will consider myself to be an Ironman.

For me this is a huge step. It's not overly impressive to the thousands of people who have done the same thing before and I certainly don't expect to challenge for any medals, but I want to reach this goal. I did a half-Ironman distance tri a few years ago, almost on a whim, and didn't fare so well. I did quite well in the swim (the only person without a wet suit) and held my own in the bike but I bonked on the run. My half-marathon time was close to 3 hours. Ouch!

My biggest fear in this race, and all races, is the run. I am not a good runner and I am especially not a good runner after swimming and biking. So, I am going to spend the next several months building a running base and trying to lose weight. In fact, I started doing just that about 2 weeks ago. I started slow (both literally and figuratively) and will build distance and speed over time.

Check back often to see how things are going. I hope to update frequently.