The Year in Training

Looking back over my training year, I'm kind of surprised at how lazy I was. I'd known since January or February that I'd be running in the Branson 70.3, yet somehow I didn't put in enough miles, evidently. Live and learn. If I do that race again in 2012, I now have a better understanding of what I have to do to get ready to have a respectable showing.

But the question becomes, how dedicated do I have to be? And, how dedicated do I want to be.

Here is what I did since January 2011:

Ran 343 miles, more or less.
Rode 386 miles, more or less.
Swam 50,388 yards, plus a few more that didn't get recorded.

Throw in some weight training earlier in the year and that's pretty much it.

I guess the biggest weakness I see is the lack of biking miles, and swimming yards, and probably not enough running either.

So what am I going to do? I don't know yet. I'm back to lifting this week but I've gotten a couple of half decent 5Ks in this week as well.

If you've got a good 70.3 or full Ironman training plan, send me the link. My training plan didn't give me the results I needed. As a coach, I'm fired.

Andy Potts - Pro Triathlete

He wears Asics, I wear Asics. We're the same!

Branson 70.3-Part Two, Being the Second Part

Yesterday I detailed my triathlon up to the bike leg. Today I'll bring it home.

Bike 56 Miles

Let's get it out of the way. I finished the bike in 4 hours and 5 minutes. They tell me that's 13.67 miles per hour. I would have loved 20 MPH, but realistically I was looking for 17 MPH. The Hills kicked mine arse and so 13.67 is what I'm left with.  By comparison, the winner, Ben Hoffman, a pro, did the bike in 2 hours and 24 minutes. That's 23.33 MPH. Another pro, Matt Lieto, also did the bike in 2:24. Mr. Lieto also participated in the 70.3 World Championship race just a week before where he rode the bike in 2:18. Not a big difference, so that blows my theory  that the bike course was especially hard. Dang it!

I'm not going to make any excuses. I didn't train hard enough. More about that tomorrow, maybe. But I am going to re-gear my bike. I already have it taken apart. There were plenty of fellows spinning past me up the inclines while I'm bearing down on the pedals like some kind of skinny bike riding circus bear.

You can't wear headphones during the race, and so you are left with nothing but your thoughts over the entire course, which can be distracting. You have plenty of time to think about how tired your legs are, and oh, BTW, you have a half marathon coming up.

I have a lot of observations, but I'll spare you the details and tell you about one semi-humorous thing I saw. The bike course is primarily on a four lane highway. At one point I'm cranking up one side when I heard someone yelling from across the median. I look over and there is some girl heading down the hill, all alone but yelling something like, "Going down the hill! Mah mah mah wah wah waaaahhhh!" She was having fun.

With about ten miles or so left on the bike, just as I'm leaving the Ozark Mountain Highroad to begin my descent into Branson, the sky began to empty and I got dumped on. It rained hard. A thorough soaking. Not only that, lightening flashed directly overhead and thunderstruck at less than a second later. Oh yeah!

I thought for sure they were going to call the race, but they kept us going. By the time I got to T2 I was shivering and had a little trouble getting my shoes on. Once I started running, however, I was fine.

Here I am at the bike dismount. I asked my wife for the time. She said "12:25. Did you have a flat?" Thank you, babe. I love you, too.

Run 13.1 Miles

I started running in the rain. The course takes you through the shopping area at the Landing, into a residential neighborhood along Lake Taneycomo, and then back along the walk down by the lake and through a park. We had to do four loops. I started out OK (for me) with about an 8 minute pace, but ended up with a 9:38 pace for the entire run. Total time was 2:06.

We ran in the rain for a while, through ankle deep run off and puddles. After my first loop, however, the rain slacked off quite a bit, and by the time I finished the rain stopped. I ought to be given credit for running with soggy shoes.

When it was done I was done. It's been a week and I just today did a work out. I felt sore until Thursday and felt fatigued until Friday.

Oh, and on Wednesday I turned 40! Maybe that's why I was so tired.

Random pics:

My cheering section!

When my five year old saw my finisher medal her eyes got real big and she said, "Daddy, you won!" A little later she told me, "I'm glad you won Daddy." I still haven't told her any different.

Branson 70.3 and 7 Hours

About half way through the bike course at the K-Swiss Branson Ironman 70.3 I thought, "I'm not doing this again." Then when I finished and saw my time of seven hours I thought, "I totally have to redeem myself."

I acknowledge that my time was horrible, and I totally blame my bike.

But let's start at the beginning.

We got to Branson on Saturday the 17th, and it was raining. We checked the weather on our wireless devices, and the apps predicted more rain for the 18th. Not good. I got all checked in and attended the mandatory pre-race meeting. I also enjoyed a reasonably priced latte at the Chateau, the host hotel. We left the Chateau and checked in my bike, in the pouring rain. I also got my body marked. Lucky number 335, 40 years old (at the end of the year), thank you.

We ran over to Wal-Mart to pick up some last minute items, ate at Golden Corral, and then headed back to the hotel for the night. We didn't stay at the host hotel, so I would have to take a shuttle from T2 over to the swim start. Yes, a two transition race. The swim start was at Moonshine Beach, Table Rock Lake. T2 was at Branson Landing.

I left the hotel at 5:30 AM. I wanted to catch the last shuttle at 6:15, and I still had to drop off my run bag at T2. I stood in line for the shuttle, which left a little late, and it was a twenty minute drive over to T1. The drive took us right down Highway 76, which I hadn't been on in years. BTW, in Branson I saw this place where you can ride a Segway on a go-cart track. The sign read, "Segway, Feel the Excitement!" I am totally doing that the next time I'm down there. Anyways, here is a pic of our shuttles:

The shuttle left so late that they were trying to close T1 by the time I got there. So I rushed around getting ready and got out of T1. Then I realized I forgot my goggles, so the volunteers graciously let me back in to retrieve them. I proceeded to put on my wetsuit, and since my wife hadn't arrived yet, I asked some fellow to zip me up. At this point I'm as ready as I'm going to be, but my wave didn't leave until 7:25 AM. Let's do this!

After the Star Spangled Banner and the pro start, I stood around until they called my age group. No warm up swim, no stretching, no nothing but being nervous. I did count the buoys with the idea that I'd count them as I went by, but that didn't work out very well.  The horn sounds, and we're off. A bunch of middle age dudes splashing around. I hung towards the back of the pack and once I was waist deep or so I started swimming.

Swim 1.2 Miles

This was the first real swim I had in my rental wetsuit. I did swim a few laps at the pool the Friday before, but not enough to really get used to it, evidently. I took off swimming at an easy pace, at least that's what I was trying to do. I always feel like I'm going too hard at the beginning of a swim. I counted three buoys, but then lost count somewhere. I'm ashamed to admit, but somewhere before the first turn the thought went through my mind, "I can't do this." I said, "I know, but I'll do it anyways. Now keep swimming!"

I made it to the half way point and tuned back to the beach. Somewhere on this last section I finally found a rhythm and was able to make some better time. I did see a couple of other orange caps (guys in my group), but I'm sure most were finishing already. I got to the beach in 48:04. Honestly, that's only eight minutes over what I hoped to do. I'll take it.

That's me, the one with exposed nipps.

T1

I ran up to T1 and saw my wife and my father-in-law. They were encouraging but I'm sure they thought I'd already drowned.

Like I said, this was a two transition race, and we were instructed to have everything in our bag that we wanted transported back to T2. So we not only had to transition, including removing the wetsuit, we had to pack up.

Before the beginning of the race I wanted to air up my tires, but they were hustling us out of transition. So I'd be riding on tires lower than I wished. Oh well. Time in T1: 7:06.

Bike 56 Miles

This is already too long, so let's finish this up tomorrow. Come back to read the exciting conclusion, including how I finished this 70.3...in a thunderstorm!

But first, a bonus pic of me in my wetsuit!

Branson 70.3

Just a quick note about the race today. I finished in just over 7 hours. It dumped rain and lightening crashed directly overhead. Thankfully Ironman kept the race going, and now we all have a story to tell. Thank the Lord I finished and no one got hurt.

I'll bore you with the details later, I promise.

Sent from my iPhone

This Is It

So I walked into my closet today and wondered why it smelled like a dive locker. Then I saw the wetsuit hanging up that I rented. Yes, I rented a wetsuit and I hope it works for me. I'm a little nervous; it feels a little tight. It's a long sleeved one, and the shoulders feel constricted. My hope is that if there's resistance straightening my arms, then there'll be a snap back effect when I pull.

If you haven't heard, the Branson 70.3 is Sunday. I will be there. I'm bib number 335. I've seen a link on other Ironman races where you can track the racers by name or bib, but I don't see it up yet on the Branson site, or esle I'm just blind.

I will test my wetsuit in the pool tomorrow. I'll do just a few laps to see how it goes. It'll probably look strange swimming in an indoor pool with a wetsuit, but most of the folks there know I'm racing, so maybe they'll understand.

Until afterwards...

One Week to Go

The other day I saw this on my bike ride:

I'm not a herpetologist, but I'm pretty sure that is an anaconda. I was riding along and ran over what I thought was a stick, but then the stick moved. I thought, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the staff became a serpent," or something like that. I thought that was rather odd, but then I observed other cyclists riding over staffs and making them snakes, so it didn't seem like such a big deal, but then my snake ate all of the other snakes.

I did shepherd the snake off of the trail so that he/she (I'm not a herpetologist) didn't get hit by another bike.

One more week before I'm in Branson getting checked in for the 70.3. Am I ready to get this done? Yes, I am. It's not that I'm tired of training or anxious about doing it.  It's more that I feel ready to do it and don't want spend any more time waiting around. Now, when I say "ready" I don't mean ready to win or be competitive with the good racers. I just mean that I feel like I'm at a place where I can finish it. I've blogged before about how I'm in it to finish it. Finishing is the best I can hope for. Finishing, and not coming in last. Surely I can beat at least one person. Oh great, I just amped up the pressure.

Speaking of taking a break from training, I will immediately cease all swimming related activities for a good little while after I get out of the water next Sunday. Last year I ran my last tri of the year in July, and then didn't swim again until February. I know I ought to train in the wet stuff year round, but I'm so lazy. In '10 I swam from March to July. In '11 I've been swimming since February, and I'm ready for a break.

I did rent a wetsuit for Sunday's race. I hope it arrives so that I can get in at least one practice swim wearing it before I wear it to race.

I also hope my left knee doesn't decide to hassle me during the race. It's still a little angry about our run on Monday. It'll be fine, right? From what I understand I should be tapering down now. I never feel like my training is so intense that I need to taper, but taper I will. The Boy and I will take the canoe out today and explore a local river. No training and hopefully no swimming today.

70.3* Weekend

This weekend I completed a 70.3*.

OK, no, the Branson 70.3 is not until September 18, and I did not complete my 70.3* all in one day.

Here's what I did. On Friday morning I got up, went to the pool and swam 1.2 miles. It was not an impressive swim, but I did it, and it took me 53 minutes and 2 seconds. It's not a great time, but it is better than the last time I swam a mile.

On Saturday, day two of 70.3* weekend, we went to El Dorado Springs to visit the in-laws. So my wife dropped me off in Collins, and I headed toward Wheatland on Hwy 54. At Wheatland I turned around and rode the rest of the way in to El Do. Here's where my asterisk comes in. From Collins it's 24 miles to El Do, according to the highway sign. So I rode 16 miles east, which takes you just beyond Wheatland. Riding back to the starting point would be 32 miles, and the 24 into El Do makes a 56 mile bike ride. When I arrived at my in-law's place, though, my Garmin read 54.73 miles.

Given that I was totally out of gas at this point, I called it good. I like riding Hwy 54 into El Do because there's a good number of hills, and there is a nice wide shoulder on the rode, and the rode is not that busy, but someday I'm going to ride it when it's not 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside, which it was. I got sunburned, and I love the biker tan. Bike shorts make for a very clear and delineated tan line on your legs.

Sunday was spent chillaxing with family. I'm not at all equating that with an endurance sport, I'm just saying that's what we did. Actually, we've been celebrating my son's b-day all weekend as well, so I indulged in a cake made out of ice cream sandwiches.

Monday morning I rolled out of bed feeling fine, ready to put the cap on the 70.3*. When I looked at the thermometer I praised our Lord and Savior for the wonderful blessing He bestowed upon me. The temp read 55 degrees F. I didn't know the thermometer went that low anymore. By the time I started running the temp was 59 degrees and it felt great. I basically did a couple of 4.5 mile loops so I could pick up Powerade at my garage as I went by. The last leg ended up being a 3.88 mile out and back. I did the half marathon in 1 hour and 56 minutes.

I felt great on the run energy wise, but I developed a little tendinitis in my left knee, and another little pain in my left hip. I think I'll be OK. Will just need a little rest. I did a half marathon a couple three weeks ago and finished in 2:06 feeling kind of pooped, but no pain. This time I have pain, but otherwise felt fine.

Thirteen more days to go when I have to roll it all into one. Let's do this.

*70.3 was actually only a 69.03.  

The Branson 70.3 is this month! I can't remember exactly when I signed up, but it was months ago. If you look at the official website and review the participants, you'll see my name. That means I have to do it. There's no getting out of it now.

It is not hard to believe that the time is close. It seems like I've been waiting and training for eternity. I'm convinced that the best triathletes in the business are very patient. Of all the attributes that you might assign to a top notch racer, you cannot leave off patience. Sure, there is physical ability, strength, endurance, tactics, nutrition and whatever else you need to win, but don't forget about the ability to train hour after hour, day after day without quitting.

I'm not saying I have that ability. Not at all. So far that has been my biggest weakness. Not that I haven't been faithfully training. I've been pretty consistent, but nothing on the order that will win me the gold. For instance, I'll go out in the evening and ride for an hour or so. That'll give me 18 or 20 miles on the Katy Trail. Or when I run I'll do 5, 6, 7 miles. Not exactly a marathon. Then there's the swimming. Swimming, how dost I hate thee?! It's not that I hate swimming per se, it's that I have to do it on some one else's time, so that means dragging out of bed at 5:30 to swim before work. I'll usually get 1100 to 1500 or so yards in per swim. (Don't worry, I have actually swam 1.2 miles, but more on that tomorrow, maybe.)

At some point during a workout I start having this conversation with myself.

"OK, we've been doing this for a half hour, forty-five minutes, can't we do something else."

"No, I'm sorry, we have a few more laps/miles to go."

"But I'm bored!"

"Well, that's too bad."

"Let's go home!"

"Do you want to finish this 70.3 or not?

"Yes, I guess."

"Then keep swimming/running."

I think I've had that conversation with my kids as well.

So I believe the best racers must posses the patience (and discipline) to stay with their training, even when their "A" race is months away.  If we expect to run today and then run faster/lose weight/have more energy tomorrow, then we are kidding ourselves. It's going to take day after day, sometimes monotonous work in the heat of the day or in the freezing cold of winter before we see any results.

Hey, I'm going to make a DVD and sell that on an infomercial! Work out day after day for months on end and mind your diet and you'll get in shape and lose weight! It's that easy!