Racine 70.3

Well, it's Monday night and I made it out alive.  That is pretty much what this race came down to for me.  Surviving and making it across that finish line.  I had put my time, effort and dedication into this race.  I was going to give it every last bit of energy I had inside of me.

The day started off with a 4:30 AM wake up call and a full breakfast to prepare for what was soon to come.  We then packed up our gear and headed down to the race site.  I was in good spirits and the body felt prepared.  I was only nervous about one thing, the heat.  I was watching the news the night before and they advised people to seek air conditioning, there was a national heat advisory in effect.  I then wondered if it would not be the best plan to run a half Ironman.... but it was too late now, I was going for it no matter the conditions.

We made the 1.5 mile walk down the beach to the swim start.  I warmed up in the calm waters of North Beach and then got ready to go.  The gun went off at 7:40 AM.

I missed the first group of swimmers, they were a lead pack of three.  I ended up being the leader of the chase pack behind them.  I was confident in my swim and just took it in stride.  I focused on staying calm and working hard.  I came out of the water in 28:47, in fourth place. A good place to be at this point in the race.

I got out of the water and ran onto the bike.  While running into the transition area I felt a slight cramp coming on in my right hamstring.  I brushed it off and kept going, took some salt tablets when I got rolling on the bike and forgot about it.

The bike ride was flawless. My nutrition plan and pace were both right on point.  I was at mile 50, preparing myself for the run with a 3+ min lead over my original plan.  I was ecstatic.  I knew that if I kept my head and raced smart, I could break my goal of 4:30.

Well, mile 55 came around and I was still cruising along until I felt that hamstring again.  I downed some salt and some electrolyte drink.  It then really started to seize up, 1 mile away from the transition area.  It was locked up and I could not get my foot clipped back into the pedal.

I was forced to stop my bike completely to rub it out.  Once I stopped, my abductor and VMO tightened up as well.  And after two minutes of getting in all of the fluids I had on me, I made it back to T2.  Still with a very solid bike time of 2:31:12.

The first two miles of the run I dealt with the same exact thing. Cramps and tight legs.  There was nothing I could do.  I had had a great swim and a mostly great bike.  I needed to figure out a way to get the cramps under control.  I decided to take the remainder of my salt tablets in the first two miles of the run in addition to some sports drink and coke at the first aid station.  Finally, the cramps subsided.  I clicked off 6 miles at a sub 7 pace.  At this point I was aiming to break 4:40 and I was on pace to do it.

Then mile 8 came.  The cramps came back and I was done.  I had no control over my leg muscles and it seemed as if they were in a sustained cramped state. I walk/ ran the back 5 miles but pushed through to a 1:49:29 run split and a 4:53:10 finish time. I was 8th in my age group 18-24 and 106th overall.

Originally, I was disappointed. But looking back on my race I did the best I could with the conditions.  I also believe that my cramping problems were caused by my overhydration in the days leading up to the race.  I was over consuming water trying to prevent cramps on race day but I ended up flooding my cells. It is called hyponatremia. It is funny to think that I could have possible given the cramps to myself.

Still, it was a great learning experience and I learned a lot about myself that day.  I know I can suffer and I know I am tough. I also learned that I need to improve my running cadence!

I have a lot of motivation and determination going into the end of the season.  I want to ramp up my speed and work on getting some quickness.  It is only short stuff from here on out and I want to prove myself at this distance. 70.3's can wait until 2012 :)

48 Hours

Well, we are 48 hours away from the most anticipated race of my 2011 season thus far.  My nerves and excitement are both unexplainable. The bike is cleaned up and the race wheels are on.  The nutrition plan is set and all of my training is done.  I will take the entire day off from training today in order to fully let my body prepare for what is to come on Sunday.

The race takes place on the North Beach of Racine, Wisconsin.  It is a beautiful backdrop to a day that will prove to be flat, fast and hot. Temperatures are predicted to be nearing the 90's with little cloud cover.  The race may come down to who is the smartest athlete, not necessarily the most fit on race day. The nutrition plan will be crucial as will keeping up my hydration during the race.

The swim is a 1.2 mile point to point that parallels the shore line and ends near the transition area.  The waters should be between 65 and 70 degrees, but it is Lake Michigan, you really have to plan for anything. I will be starting in wave 10, at 7:40 AM.

The bike course is notoriously flat and fast but in actuality has some rolling hills that keep the athletes honest.  The challenge of the course come in form of the patches of rough and bumpy concrete in addition to potholes and crevices in the ground that are filled with tar.  The tar become hot under the sun and can be very sticky if you roll into one. Being smart and paying attention to the terrain will both be important moves to keep in mind throughout the 56 mile trek.

The run is a 2 loop 13.1 mile course that is completely flat with one tough hill on each loop.  It will be hot on the course by the time I get out there so it will be important to find as much tree cover and shade as possible. I am going to keep my nutrition plan in mind and try to fly on that run course. I want to leave it all out there.

My mind and body are in sync today.  I am ready.  I am dying to get out there and compete.  My fitness is better than ever and I have never been so focused in my entire triathlon career.

Wish me luck on Sunday.  I'm just going to go out there and do what I do best.  And hopefully have some fun in the process.

Week 6.

This was a great week of training as I wrapped up before one of the biggest races of my life, Racine 70.3! After Monday off I was back at it Tuesday morning with a great 30 mile tempo bike ride and then a nice transition run.  Wednesday was my last hard day before the race, a 16 mile run with a fast finish then a tough 4k swim in the pool.  I felt great on both of these workouts and I have some serious confidence going into the race this weekend. The rest of the week was pretty uneventful, just some fine tuning. Saturday was a nice brick workout with the team and Sunday was a solo tempo bike ride and a HOT 7 mile run. 

I am going to keep this post short as I am putting most of my energy into getting prepared for the race.  I am looking to ace my pre-race preparation and fuel plan in hopes of getting my body in the best position possible to perform.  This race has a special place in my season because I will be returning for the second time.  I raced this course in 2008 when it was the "Spirit of Racine" half distance and then was unable to race last year because it was bought by the Ironman label and the age requirement was changed to 18.  In addition, I want to go back to prove to everyone that I am a contender on the Olympic distance level and on the 70.3 level.  In a tough age division, 18-24, I will be happy with top 5 but a bid to the World Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada would really be amazing.  I have worked very hard, I have put in the time and the effort, and I have made the sacrifices necessary to succeed. I have missed parties, late nights and time with my friends but it is all going to be worth it on race day. 

6 days away. I can not wait.

Weekly totals: 14:53:04 total hours
Swim- 9400 yards
Bike- 112.53 miles
Run- 38.58 8miles
Lift- 1:35:00

Week 5.

I am feeling good on a nice 4th of July rest day. Today is a full day off from training and I definitely need it! After a great showing at the Bigfoot Olympic triathlon last Sunday, I was right back into the swing of things Tuesday morning. This was a key week in my training program and I worked very hard to hopefully set myself up well for Racine 70.3, only a few weeks away.

5AM Tuesday morning I was up for the Sunrise ride with a good group of riders. The workout was on the customary loop and we added some longer race pace tempo efforts. A killer workout that felt really good. My legs felt surprisingly fresh after the hilly race course on Sunday but I just rolled with the workout and was very pleased. I ran a 10k tempo effort off the bike that also felt great and gave me an opportunity to test my nutrition plan out.  I finished off the day with a good lifting session and some much needed rest!

Wednesday has been switched too my long run day due to the tweaking of my schedule after the foot injury. So I headed out for an early morning long run on the Green Bay trail.  It was a solid and smooth 13.1 miles. It was my longest run back and I was happy with a 7:30 pace effort.  I finished up the afternoon with 4000 yards in the pool with some longer efforts.

Thursday was an exciting day as I had a bike speed workout on the trainer! I love these workouts because they are so effective and efficient. It was a shorter workout, just an hour and fifteen minutes but each part of the workout had a purpose.  Later in the afternoon I had a good lifting session and was off for the Maroon 5 concert!

Pretty good day for a hard workout by the pool!

Friday morning I had a killer tempo run workout. 3 longer efforts at 8k pace. I felt very consistent and smooth. I was happy to get out there and feel really great with a few harder runs done earlier in the week.  Also I was pretty pleased to be able to jump in the lake for a cool down post run. I had a longer 4200 yard swim set in the afternoon which felt good as well. Friday night the week caught up with me a little bit. I need some sleep to prepare for tomorrow! I am pretty sure it was an 8-10pm nap on the couch and then right back to bed for the night :)

Saturday morning I had a ride with a good friend starting in Deerfield and heading out to Lake Barrington.
We hit some good hills and put in a good effort. We added some tempos on the back end and flew home.  We also put in a short 3 mile transition run off the bike. It was almost 100 degrees with the heat index so I finished the session drenched. I definitely lost over 5 pounds in that workout and took in 6 bottles. It was a good session that should translate well to good work in the next few weeks. I also made dinner for my girlfriend that night. I think chef is in the cards for a back up profession!



Grilled chicken sandwiches and broccoli floret/ sun dried tomato pasta salad. Home made from yours truly!



Stopping at a gas station for some much needed hydration.

Sunday I woke up with some heavy legs from the week but worked through to have a good run session.  I had some mile repeats on the track that felt strong for the first few but really hurt on the last one. I got in a good effort and that was the point of the workout.  After some brunch around 10 and lunch at 12 I had a 2500 easy swim session in the afternoon. The week was done and it was time for some rest.

Ready for the mile repeats.

Weekly totals: 16:21:54 total hours
Swim- 10750 yards
Bike- 96.31 miles, 2:20:00 hours on the trainer
Run- 44.53 miles
Strength- 1 hour total, 2 30:00 sessions (30:00 warm up on the bike per lift)