Alrighty, I actually get to do an end of week wrap-up!
The plan is to do this on a regular basis on Sunday evenings. If I am working Sunday evening that becomes a lot harder, but I will try to be consistent! Muahahaha, well, that is the plan after all isn't it? Consistency is key!
Right after my last blog post, I went for a test ride on my trainer. Fiddled around with a few things and found a setup that works well for my room, but barely! Yoga mat on the ground, second computer monitor in a drawer in my dresser, put on The Transporter and just spun for 30 minutes to get the feel for it. I need to manually measure my tire circumference because I seem to be going pretty damn fast...and I am not that strong of a rider! I guess having zero wind resistance helps, but still...it's a 700 X 23C Continental Hometrainer tire, and Garmin has a value for 23C tires on their site, but I am going to measure it. Man oh man I got sweaty. In addition to wind slowing you down, I see how well it works at cooling you as well. Oh yeah, my glutes were hurting the next day!
Wednesday was pretty uneventful, went for my run in the morning, went well and felt good. went to work, then met my family for dinner. I cut it kind of close on eating before swim class though and was worried. I finished my meal at roughly 10 after 7 giving me 1 hour and 20 minutes before getting into the pool for a very hard 1+ hour swim and was really worried about cramping. I threw a Nuun tablet into my water bottle and the swim session went pretty well. We had the same 32 lap warm-up (4 x 100 free, kick, pull, choice) x 2, then she got us working on T-pace stuff. she wanted us going at 2:45 ish, but I happened to forget my watch..doh! Couldn't see the pace clock, so I was relying on a buddy. That really bothered me, and he wasn't giving us info. I have a habit(already) of getting to the end of a set and telling my little swim group how long it was. Not having my watch felt so debilitating. Luckily I didn't need my watch for the next part, we took all the lanes out and swam counter clockwise like we were in a race and making turns. I was going right to the corners and then turning and I got really annoyed because people were going so far to the inside! It wasn't fair, I swam so much more than everyone else. Wrapped-up practice and we got reminded by out instructor that the pool will be under maintenance next week. We have been invited to join another location for the sessions on the same nights, but they are on the other end of the city, so that's not going to work out for me. I could go on the Wednesday night, but I have a friend who wrote a play and is directing it, so I will likely do a swim right after work and go to the show!
I have been having goggle issues. I need to find some new goggles because the ones that I have have been causing me issues. I am not sure if they are too tight and it's deforming them so they leak, if they are not tight enough, or if they just don't fit my face well. I pulled them really tight, to the point where it was uncomfortable and they didn't leak, but I didn't enjoy it. I have a few recommendations, so I just need free time to go check that out.
So I have decided to move my long runs to Friday and this week my long run was 7k(not long, I know, but that's the point) I worked 12 hours on Thursday and 10 hours on Friday. I was going to go for my run on my break, but my left side of my hip was really bothering me. all that being on my feet for mass amounts of time working did me in. I had a really tough decision to make. Do I just run anyways to make sure I maintain my mileage goals and stick to my plan and run when sore, or do I give it a day(work another 12 hour the next day) and see how it feels? I decided to be smart about it and give my body a bit of time instead of risking causing more problems. Instead of being healthy, I went drinking! I got home at about 4am, and waking-up at 8 was not fun! When I finished my shift at 10pm and went home I was feeling ready to rock! Went-out and blasted out 7.5k. I always enjoy running at strange times. I ran past a pile of bars with people all dressed-up and outside smoking, and sitting on patios drinking beers. I wonder what goes through their heads, probably something like "What the fuck is this guy doing at 11:00 on a Saturday?" Well, I have no life, so running is what I do! My right shoulder did hurt at about the 6k mark though, so I clearly need to put more work into my physio.
Sunday rolled around and I went to work(of course). But today was just a day shift, meaning that I have time to do whatever I want for a while! So naturally I came home, set-up my trainer and watched a livestream while I spun for 45 mins. It's very interesting, with a bike that fits me well, I have way more muscles activating when I ride now. I can feel my calves kicking in, and my glutes a bit as well, I need to start doing form drills when spinning as well, but I think I may just do another week of basic spinning before I start to mix it up. I think 2 days a week on the bike is good for now until I see how my body deals with the extra load. My left calf did tighten-up a bit when on the bike, but nothing unbearable. I have issues around using electrolytes when on the bike for only like 45 minutes or an hour because if I always use them, it will get really expensive really fast. . maybe I should pop a Saltstick at the start of rides like that. Lets see. Nuun is $8ish for 12 tablets, Skratch labs was 23 for 20 servings. Saltsticks were 29 for 100 caps. That seems to be the most cost effective per serving that I currently have, However, despite all these numbers, I shouldn't need electrolytes if I am only on the bike for 45 minutes and not pushing extremely hard right? And I digress... Today's spin went well, so I BBQ'd a burger, made a salad and enjoyed the rest of my evening off!
I'm pretty happy with my week, but I need to work on making my physio more consistent, I wasn't nearly as good at that as I was with my running and swimming, definitely something to take away from this week, lots of positives, but a few things on work on. I especially need to get to the gym from time to time to do strengthening stuff. Core, my different kinds of squats and supermans and some rowing. I think I can use a band to get my working in, but I need to work on that.
I start class this week, so I am on my new work schedule starting on Tuesday, so that's exciting. It looks like I can get into a proper routine which is oddly very exciting for me!
Speaking of physio, I need to do that right now, more later!
Sunday 28 September 2014
Tuesday 23 September 2014
Second week of swim class.
This week started off well so far. Its only Tuesday so hey, we have lots of week left. But lets focus on the positives. Monday is Swim class as well as being a run day. I had originally planned for Monday to be my long run day, but after my first swim class I quickly nixed that. I figured that I could for sure put in a long run, relax a bit, eat dinner then go swim. Well she told us that we are going to do lots of kicking. And there is no way that I can do long runs then be able to kick hard for an hour. Short runs are fine after my swim for now. They are not going to be more than 10k. The long ones are going to be in the 20k ish range. So if I get home at 10:00, an hour would be alright, but 2 is pushing it. Long run day looks like it will have to be moved to Fridays. So back to where I was! Swim went very well. Warm-up 32 lengths. 100 freestyle, 100 kick, 100 pull, 100 choice and repeat. Then we did. A set of 800 with pull buoys and hand paddles. Holy crap hand paddles are crazy! If you mess-up your stroke, they let you know. If you don't pull correctly, they let you know. I was just expecting more resistance. Man was I wrong! A very interesting experience to say the least. Next was another set of 800 but with a build every 100. I have never tried that and it was hard, but I did a decent job. Then the practice was over. Some things to take from that was that I need to move my head faster when I breathe. I also don't go deep enough on my catch. Also, my hands are entering the water flat instead of digging in and stretching out under the water. I decided to use electrolytes this time instead of just water. I think it was a good decision, and things are only going to get more hardcore as time goes on. Rode my bike home and ran my 6k course. Stopped to walk for a bit to see if I can program my Garmin to vibrate when my HR goes over 165. Couldn't figure it out so I continued on my way. Went home stretched down and did my physio, then it was bed time.
When I woke-up and my neck was hurting(all that fast head turning I suspect. Went to work then went rock climbing, yay! Then I did a little 30 minute spin testing out my speed/cadence sensor by Garmin. everything worked well, but I think I need to re-calibrate my wheel size. I went with what the wheel said, but I want to measure myself. I feel like I went too fast. I went to Enduro Sport and grabbed Saltsticks, a saltstick dispenser and Skratch Labs Raspberry on the way home. I have been having cramps when riding at high output for long periods. When I say long, I don't mean LONG like I will eventually be doing, but I mean serious output for anything over an hour and I start having problems. I did TTF a 40k TT and I had major major cramping issues. When I did Barrie Triathlon, I mistakenly put way too much electrolyte(nuun) into my bottle. I put enough for 50ml in it and only had like 250ml of water in it. The concoction was pretty brutall and salty and almost more than my stomach could take, but I didn't have any problems with cramps at all. My last race was Toronto Island Triathlon everything went well, but I started to cramp-up in the last kilometer. I think the amount of salt I took in during Barrie played a major role in that, so I need to work on replicating that. So now that I have my new bike which is properly fitted to me, I plan on doing several Time Trials to see what happens to my body over 40k and see what helps with cramping.
40k by itself shouldn't require any caloric intake so I'm going to not bother with added calories.
One with just water
One with Nuun
One with eLoad
One with Skratch Labs
One with Saltsticks every half hour and water
I need to nail down how much salt I need and if none of those are sufficient, I will start using one electrolytes as well as saltsticks.
I figure a trainer on the same cog with the same amount of effort is as close as I can get to lab testing. This is going to be a bit of a process though, so it will not be over any time soon. I figure one test per week.
More later, not I am going to go do my physio for my shoulder, oh yeah, my shoulder HURTS! Nothing too bad, but I can tell its there!
When I woke-up and my neck was hurting(all that fast head turning I suspect. Went to work then went rock climbing, yay! Then I did a little 30 minute spin testing out my speed/cadence sensor by Garmin. everything worked well, but I think I need to re-calibrate my wheel size. I went with what the wheel said, but I want to measure myself. I feel like I went too fast. I went to Enduro Sport and grabbed Saltsticks, a saltstick dispenser and Skratch Labs Raspberry on the way home. I have been having cramps when riding at high output for long periods. When I say long, I don't mean LONG like I will eventually be doing, but I mean serious output for anything over an hour and I start having problems. I did TTF a 40k TT and I had major major cramping issues. When I did Barrie Triathlon, I mistakenly put way too much electrolyte(nuun) into my bottle. I put enough for 50ml in it and only had like 250ml of water in it. The concoction was pretty brutall and salty and almost more than my stomach could take, but I didn't have any problems with cramps at all. My last race was Toronto Island Triathlon everything went well, but I started to cramp-up in the last kilometer. I think the amount of salt I took in during Barrie played a major role in that, so I need to work on replicating that. So now that I have my new bike which is properly fitted to me, I plan on doing several Time Trials to see what happens to my body over 40k and see what helps with cramping.
40k by itself shouldn't require any caloric intake so I'm going to not bother with added calories.
One with just water
One with Nuun
One with eLoad
One with Skratch Labs
One with Saltsticks every half hour and water
I need to nail down how much salt I need and if none of those are sufficient, I will start using one electrolytes as well as saltsticks.
I figure a trainer on the same cog with the same amount of effort is as close as I can get to lab testing. This is going to be a bit of a process though, so it will not be over any time soon. I figure one test per week.
More later, not I am going to go do my physio for my shoulder, oh yeah, my shoulder HURTS! Nothing too bad, but I can tell its there!
Monday 22 September 2014
The beginning!
So I have decided to start a training blog. The idea is that I want to post weekly. I still don't know what day will work best for me. However, I want to post weekly training reports, how I was feeling, what went well and didn't. The plan is for this also to keep me accountable. I want to be consistent.
Consistency is something that has eluded me for the majority of my life. I have never done a solo training plan and stuck it through. I have never done a base and built it and I have no idea what I am capable of. If I can do that well with minimal training,what the hell will happen with a full year behind me?
Where do I stand?
Swimming:
My swimming is at a point where I feel okay with what I can do. I can actually swim the distances that I need to, but now I need to get faster. I swam my first 750m swim in just over 16 minutes. The people who were being competitive were swimming it in just over 12 minutes. It was my first sprint triathlon, so I just wanted to get through it without burning out my arms. I came out of the water still feeling good, my arms were getting tired, but were not completely toasted. I felt like I could have gone faster, but was happy with my performance.
Bike:
When I bought my bike in Febuary 2013, I bought it because I wanted to do a Triathlon. I rode a little bit and enjoyed being on the bike, but I didn't put any serious training in. When it came time for my Try-a-tri, I hadn't been on the bike for like 2 weeks. I was riding my commuter mountain bike lots, but was definitely not as comfortable on my road bike as I should have been. The ride went well, my time wasn't nearly as fast as I was hoping it would be,. I figured that hey, I have big legs, I should be fast. I joined The Darkhorse Flyers this year, and man oh man those guys are awesome. Joining the Flyers this year made me realize just how much I needed to train to be a serious threat on the bike. where I started, I was a joke. I had no idea how many factors there were, that cramping thins...I still need to get that under wraps! After putting in lots of rides with he flyers, I am inspired to get faster and have more fun on the bike. I have some serious peers out there who are super helpful, extremely motivational and I want to go ride with them more. My races this year showed that I was putting in work on the bike. I put in a 1:16 40k TT for TTF duathlon, but experienced some serious cramps near the end of the ride. Barrie Triathlon went very well for me, I came in with a 36 minute 20K TT and was happy with where I was on the bike. The next race was Toronto Island Triathlon. I came in with a 34 minute 20k TT and was extremely happy! After taking my bike for a fit check-up I found that I was likely having problems and major cramping due to the size of the bike. $3000 later and a new bike means that next season will only get better!
Run.
So I really enjoy running, but running and I have had some ups and downs. I started running in 2011. I went to the Running Room with my father who had run a few marathons and got checked for my stride, my arches and overall to see what kind of shoe I should be running in. Prior to this I had hated running. I had problems with my back getting all compacted and just not enjoying myself at all! These new shoes allowed me to actually go out and run and enjoy myself! I started slow and kinda just kept it like that. I had no idea about hill running and intervals, no idea about trying to hit paces, I just went out and ran! I soon discovered an app that really helped me. It was called Sportstracker. It used GPS to figure out how fast you were going, and it would map out where you were going along the way. you could even set it to talk to you at preset intervals. I had mine set to tell me the distance I had ran, the time it took, my average pace and current pace at 1km intervals. I started to figure out what was too fast and what my body could handle for different runs. I wanted to do the Scotiabank Waterfront Half Marathon in 2011. i almost did the full marathon but was advised against it. I had done a bunch of 10k's and was pretty happy with my times, usually coming in at 50ish minutes. so I figured hell yeah, lets do a half marathon. I did not subscribe to any training plan, I did not keep consistent, I would go for one run at some point in the week and another run(this one much longer) whenever my day-off happened to be. I had no idea at this time about stretching, nutrition, sodium intake...all of that stuff was not even in my world. I ended-up having some IT band issues at km 18 of my half marathon. After talking to a friend of mine, he informed me that it was probably mt IT band and that I should invest in a foam roller(I didn't even know what an IT band was) so after much Google searching and a trip to sport check I started my first ever foam rolling session on my IT band. I screamed SO loud that my roommate thought I had injured myself. I did finish my half marathon though, my time was somewhere around 1:54 and I was still pretty happy! Through the winter I ran a good amount on treadmills, and even through the summer I ran a lot. I was planning to do the full marathon the next time around in 2012. However, while running down some stairs in regular every day life in July I ended-up slipping off a step, so in order to avoid bailing and landing on my face, I jumped down the last 4 of 5 steps, landing a very strange way and rolling my left ankle. it hurt like hell and I tried putting pressure on it to talk but that just plain wasn't happening. after sitting for a while, i limped home and iced it. It was swollen, but nothing crazy. I limped through the next few weeks at work and then did Tough Mudder. It wasn't hurting as much, but definitely hurt when I ran, so I had stopped running in order to give it a rest. The day of Tough Mudder I felt alright. The event started and I had so much adrenaline that nothing hurt for the first 10k. A few kilometers later though, it started to hurt. Nothing I couldn't handle though, just a dull throbbing, so I soldiered on.
The few days after that it hurt a lot more, but no spikes of pain, and getting off my ankle for long periods made being on it alright. I barely ran much that winder. I would try and run...it would hurt so I would stop and limp home. It only hurt when I would run or do long shifts at work(10hrs+) Finally in February I went to talk to my Doctor. He sent me for X-rays and then referred me to a sports Doctor. The X rays confirmed the suspicions of a break. I had fractured my fibula...and didn't go to a hospital. I had run and trained and ran Tough Mudder with it broken the whole time. Oops.
Enter my Physiotherapist.
No running
No long shifts
Lots of Physiotherapy.
She did wonders for me. As a a triathlete she was and still is a great inspiration to me. she came into my life at the time when I was starting swimming lessons for my first Triathlon. I was able to bounce tons of questions off her while at the same time learning how to run again. I ran a decent amount through the spring and summer of 2014, but nothing concrete like a plan and I still put down a 44 minute 10k, my personal best by a large chunk. this came from simply seeing how fast I could go. Now that I have bench marks set, I want to see how fast I can go with real training.
That seems to be a good enough intro for now, so until next time!
The Inconsistent Triathlete
Consistency is something that has eluded me for the majority of my life. I have never done a solo training plan and stuck it through. I have never done a base and built it and I have no idea what I am capable of. If I can do that well with minimal training,what the hell will happen with a full year behind me?
Where do I stand?
Swimming:
My swimming is at a point where I feel okay with what I can do. I can actually swim the distances that I need to, but now I need to get faster. I swam my first 750m swim in just over 16 minutes. The people who were being competitive were swimming it in just over 12 minutes. It was my first sprint triathlon, so I just wanted to get through it without burning out my arms. I came out of the water still feeling good, my arms were getting tired, but were not completely toasted. I felt like I could have gone faster, but was happy with my performance.
Bike:
When I bought my bike in Febuary 2013, I bought it because I wanted to do a Triathlon. I rode a little bit and enjoyed being on the bike, but I didn't put any serious training in. When it came time for my Try-a-tri, I hadn't been on the bike for like 2 weeks. I was riding my commuter mountain bike lots, but was definitely not as comfortable on my road bike as I should have been. The ride went well, my time wasn't nearly as fast as I was hoping it would be,. I figured that hey, I have big legs, I should be fast. I joined The Darkhorse Flyers this year, and man oh man those guys are awesome. Joining the Flyers this year made me realize just how much I needed to train to be a serious threat on the bike. where I started, I was a joke. I had no idea how many factors there were, that cramping thins...I still need to get that under wraps! After putting in lots of rides with he flyers, I am inspired to get faster and have more fun on the bike. I have some serious peers out there who are super helpful, extremely motivational and I want to go ride with them more. My races this year showed that I was putting in work on the bike. I put in a 1:16 40k TT for TTF duathlon, but experienced some serious cramps near the end of the ride. Barrie Triathlon went very well for me, I came in with a 36 minute 20K TT and was happy with where I was on the bike. The next race was Toronto Island Triathlon. I came in with a 34 minute 20k TT and was extremely happy! After taking my bike for a fit check-up I found that I was likely having problems and major cramping due to the size of the bike. $3000 later and a new bike means that next season will only get better!
Run.
So I really enjoy running, but running and I have had some ups and downs. I started running in 2011. I went to the Running Room with my father who had run a few marathons and got checked for my stride, my arches and overall to see what kind of shoe I should be running in. Prior to this I had hated running. I had problems with my back getting all compacted and just not enjoying myself at all! These new shoes allowed me to actually go out and run and enjoy myself! I started slow and kinda just kept it like that. I had no idea about hill running and intervals, no idea about trying to hit paces, I just went out and ran! I soon discovered an app that really helped me. It was called Sportstracker. It used GPS to figure out how fast you were going, and it would map out where you were going along the way. you could even set it to talk to you at preset intervals. I had mine set to tell me the distance I had ran, the time it took, my average pace and current pace at 1km intervals. I started to figure out what was too fast and what my body could handle for different runs. I wanted to do the Scotiabank Waterfront Half Marathon in 2011. i almost did the full marathon but was advised against it. I had done a bunch of 10k's and was pretty happy with my times, usually coming in at 50ish minutes. so I figured hell yeah, lets do a half marathon. I did not subscribe to any training plan, I did not keep consistent, I would go for one run at some point in the week and another run(this one much longer) whenever my day-off happened to be. I had no idea at this time about stretching, nutrition, sodium intake...all of that stuff was not even in my world. I ended-up having some IT band issues at km 18 of my half marathon. After talking to a friend of mine, he informed me that it was probably mt IT band and that I should invest in a foam roller(I didn't even know what an IT band was) so after much Google searching and a trip to sport check I started my first ever foam rolling session on my IT band. I screamed SO loud that my roommate thought I had injured myself. I did finish my half marathon though, my time was somewhere around 1:54 and I was still pretty happy! Through the winter I ran a good amount on treadmills, and even through the summer I ran a lot. I was planning to do the full marathon the next time around in 2012. However, while running down some stairs in regular every day life in July I ended-up slipping off a step, so in order to avoid bailing and landing on my face, I jumped down the last 4 of 5 steps, landing a very strange way and rolling my left ankle. it hurt like hell and I tried putting pressure on it to talk but that just plain wasn't happening. after sitting for a while, i limped home and iced it. It was swollen, but nothing crazy. I limped through the next few weeks at work and then did Tough Mudder. It wasn't hurting as much, but definitely hurt when I ran, so I had stopped running in order to give it a rest. The day of Tough Mudder I felt alright. The event started and I had so much adrenaline that nothing hurt for the first 10k. A few kilometers later though, it started to hurt. Nothing I couldn't handle though, just a dull throbbing, so I soldiered on.
The few days after that it hurt a lot more, but no spikes of pain, and getting off my ankle for long periods made being on it alright. I barely ran much that winder. I would try and run...it would hurt so I would stop and limp home. It only hurt when I would run or do long shifts at work(10hrs+) Finally in February I went to talk to my Doctor. He sent me for X-rays and then referred me to a sports Doctor. The X rays confirmed the suspicions of a break. I had fractured my fibula...and didn't go to a hospital. I had run and trained and ran Tough Mudder with it broken the whole time. Oops.
Enter my Physiotherapist.
No running
No long shifts
Lots of Physiotherapy.
She did wonders for me. As a a triathlete she was and still is a great inspiration to me. she came into my life at the time when I was starting swimming lessons for my first Triathlon. I was able to bounce tons of questions off her while at the same time learning how to run again. I ran a decent amount through the spring and summer of 2014, but nothing concrete like a plan and I still put down a 44 minute 10k, my personal best by a large chunk. this came from simply seeing how fast I could go. Now that I have bench marks set, I want to see how fast I can go with real training.
That seems to be a good enough intro for now, so until next time!
The Inconsistent Triathlete
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