IRONMAN Boulder. Figuring out what happened and the plan moving forward.

IRONMAN BOULDER

It took me nearly a month to recharge from what happened on June 10th and put words together to describe it. It was by far one of the toughest days I've had to endure through racing. I poured everything into the preparation and crossed the finish line feeling a whole host of emotions. At the top of the list I was defeated, confused and upset. I was well aware that my first IRONMAN would be forging into unchartered territory but my result was not even in the range of what I thought possible. 

I was 2nd out of the water and moved backwards from there over the course of my 9 hours on course ultimately crossing the finish line in 13th place, having walked/ shuffled almost 10 miles of the marathon. 

Despite the race not going the way I had visualized, I was proud to FINSH. That was always goal #1 and completing 140.6 miles is an accomplishment in itself (not to mention in the extreme 90-100 degree temperatures on race day). 

After the race I was broken down. Boulder was the stamp on what has felt like a season already gone and lost. Kropelnicki and I spoke for hours trying to break down the mistakes we made in the preparation. My fitness was at lifetime best but as I have matured and grown, my body's response to training and racing has changed. This was our first stab at the full distance and we both took ownership of not getting it right. I invested a lot in this race to end up having it be a learning experience but we took away critical information that we will use moving forward for the next Ironman (and half distance races). 

So, what went wrong?

Contrary to popular belief, we believe I was actually UNDER trained going into Boulder (at least in the final 2-weeks). Let me explain... 

I did a massive training block and then started tapering about 17 days out. I took multiple complete days off training, backed off on the intensity and backed off on the volume. All of which sounds like standard procedure heading into an Ironman, especially with the 3-week overload I did just before taking the rest. But one thing that Jesse and I have found in my training is that I get stronger and stronger as training blocks go on and I accumulate more "fatigue." I generally have my best/ fastest sessions when on paper I should be the most tired. 

When I am training a lot, my aerobic system (heart and lungs) are very connected to my peripheral system (arms and legs). I have good blood flow, optimal oxygen transfer and low heart rate. When I take complete rest, everything goes haywire. My aerobic system can't communicate with my peripheral system leaving me with heavy legs, high heart rate and generally feeling unlike myself. 

Having the idea of one performance and having the outcome be the polar opposite is challenging and as I mentioned, I was confused. I questioned many things in addition to the training like my overall health and happiness. I got blood work done and analyzed my mental state- both of which I did not feel were factors in my performance. Both Jesse and I are confident that the physiological responses here are the cause for me not FEELING good on race day. At this point, it is beyond results for me. I just want to feel good during a race. 

Now what?

Post-race I immediately went into panic planning mode trying to organize a quick next move in order to redeem myself. I did that before going through the training with Jesse, before doing the blood work and before looking after my mental state. I nearly booked a 4-week trip to Europe in the 72 hours post race and right on the edge of it being too late, realized it was a mistake and took a step back. 

I took a day to recharge. It came down to having a conversation with Jeanni for me to see things clearly. After what was almost two weeks of total confusion and indecisiveness, it all came clear within about 5 minutes. First up a low stress half distance race in Challenge San Gil (July 8) and then another crack at the full distance in Ironman Canada (July 29). 

So that's the plan. I'm in San Gil now and look forward to racing this event again (I raced back in 2015). We are using this weekend as a "test" to try out a new taper. I do not care about the result here one bit. I just want to be able to push my body to the absolute limit and feel like myself again. If I can do that, it will be a win. 

Thanks for tuning in.

Justin