Triathlon Training: Week 4 - Tuesday

Today's workouts - AM - Long Swim 1500 yd, PM - 4 mile run

Tuesday has in fact become the end of my training week in a way with Wednesday's being my rest day and let me tell you what I look forward to them.

My swim went well, the main set workout was 4x200's with 20 sec rest. I was actually pretty amazed at my splits I was completing them in 3:40 - 3:50 range, I know that's not blazing fast but it was how effortless it felt for me. I wasn't pushing hard, my main focus was to remain constant on each pass in the pool and stay constant in my stroke and kick and I feel like I accomplished that. I am getting more and more comfortable in the pool each time and I'm really starting to enjoy my swim sessions each and every week. Especially right now with running being somewhat laborious and all of my bike sessions have been done on a trainer for the past few months, swimming has really become my favorite workout. It's also new, and that makes it more of a challenge and exciting as well.

After a long day at work with traveling and meetings I got to my home hotel around 6:30 after yet another 2+ hr drive in which I nearly convinced myself to skip my evening run. I don't like running at night, period, end of story. Running is something I have to do first thing, its not like cycling where I can jump on the bike after a long day and knock out the miles. I've never been an evening runner and with triathlon training it is now just something I have to do and I'll do my best to make it work. After procrastinating for minute unpacking I finally said to heck with it and threw on my running clothes and headed out. I would love to say that I had an epic run that felt amazing and I had some kind of break through with running at night, but...I didn't. It hurt, my legs were still pretty sore from the bike session the night before and I was sore from sitting in a car for 2.5 hrs not once but twice today, but I did it and I felt good about the fact that I completed my workouts even though I didn't want to.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 5 - Monday

Today's workout(s) - AM 1300yd swim followed by 45 mins of cardio, PM - 20 mi bike trainer

WOW! Starting my 5th week already, it seems like I just got started with this training. It's really amazing how much has changed in just over 4 weeks. So far I've lost about 8 lbs of the holiday weight I put on, I've gone from barely being able to swim 1 length of the pool to doing 500 yd non stop and I'm routinely getting in nightly bike rides after the boys go to bed. Honestly that last one is the most amazing, training at night is rough, especially when everyone else is already in bed asleep add on to that getting up at 4:30 am and by the time 9pm rolls around it can be very difficult to get on the bike instead of the couch. If I was asked I would say that discipline to work out at night is what I am most proud of so far, balancing my training with my family time and not sacrificing either is very important and I'm glad that so far it is going well, but I'll keep my fingers crossed just in case.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 4 - Saturday

Today's workouts: Weekly long run 7.3 mi 1:12:45, easy recovery swim 1000 yd.

It snowed last night, just a nice dusting, enough to cover the ground. I love to run in the snow, its soft and I love the sound of it crunching under my foot falls. Nothing spectacular about this run, other than I didn't get hit by a car and its the longest run I've had in over a month. Afterwards I came home made some waffles for me and the boys and got ready to head out to the Y for a nice little swim. I love having both of my workouts done and in the books by 8:30am, now I have time to hang out with my boys and I don't have to worry about when I'm going to get my second workout in. We have big plans today, heading to the library to check out some books, yeah I know boring but I love.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 4 - Thursday

Today's workouts - AM - 4.86 mile run, PM - 20 mile trainer ride

So I nearly got hit by a car this morning, and I'm pretty sure the guy/gal behind the wheel did it on purpose. I say this because a) I was wearing my incredibly bright head lamp and reflective running gear and b) They noticeably veered towards me at the very end to nearly hit me. I had to dive out of the way and yank Lucky (my dog) by the collar to avoid him getting splattered all over the road. They got so close to me that even with diving away at the last minute their side view mirror nearly clipped my stomach/side as I twisted out of the way. I really don't understand the need for such an act, its not as if I was running in the middle of the road. I was on the shoulder running in the gravel area, they had to intentionally go out of their way to get that close to me. Of course my natural response was to show them that they were #1 and yell at them what I thought of their incredible driving skill. The funny thing is that I almost completely forgot about the entire incident by the time I finished my run a half hour later. I suppose that just proves the stress relieving properties of exercise, maybe the driver of that car should join me for a run sometime, maybe they'll relax a bit and stop being an a-hole that tries to run an innocent man and his dog over for grins and giggles.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't...like diving for safety from speeding vehicles, just saying, plyometrics may have saved my life today!

Triathlon Training: Week 4 - Monday

Today's workout - 1000 yd swim followed by 45 mins of weight training

Week 4 brings my first rest week, which is not to say I get to sleep in and lay around for a week, HA! I wish, ok not really. It just means a reduced volume and workload for this week, aka less time and miles. This rest week is perfectly timed, 3 straight weeks of hard work and I'm physically worn down. One thing I've learned is that I need to get much more sleep. I need to stop falling asleep watching tv downstairs and start going to bed at a regular time each and every night to help maintain some consistency. Getting up at 4:30 isn't a problem for me, I've grown accustomed to it already but I know I need more sleep because I've found myself being very grumpy lately, especially this past weekend, so the goal this week is to establish a nightly routine and try and get to bed at a decent and consistent time each night.

Today's swim was nothing special, 300 yd warm up then 5x100's and a 200 cool down. I could tell my form was all over the place, did not feel as smooth and comfortable in the water, and I'm sure that had a lot to do with being physically tired. Other than that the swim went really quick for me I was done in under 30 minutes and I headed up stairs for what was supposed to be a low intensity weight workout...ya right!

What can I say, I am a meat-head, I love lifting weights, always have. I especially love doing circuit training where I move quickly from exercise to exercise, this is something I grew to love when I did a lot of MMA training. Don't get me wrong I love to push heavy weight, but the long breaks between endless low rep sets gets extremely boring for me now a days, but string together 4 or 5 or 10 exercises at low weight and a high rep count, that's what gets my blood pumping, literally and figuratively. I started off today and was just going to do some light lifts of some of the more basic exercises in my normal routine like bench press, pull ups, shoulder press, curls etc. but after doing 3 sets of bench press and pull ups I actually was bored and started feeling sluggish, so I ended up designing my own little crossfit WOD. If you've never heard of  CrossFit  it is basically a work out series (and kind of a way of life for some) based around functional movements, plyometrics, gymnastics and olympic style lifts that is used by soldiers, police, combat specialists, house wives and anyone who wants to get in the best shape of their life. Recently I have become enamored with crossfit, I love the workouts or WOD's (workout of the day), it is what I have tailored much of my strength training around lately. Today I ended up doing 3 sets of 500m row, 20 sumo high pulls and 15 box jumps (18" box) with about a minute break between each set. Before that I had done 3 sets of kettle bell overhead swings and dips. I love workouts like these, there fun, high intensity and when you are done you are covered in sweat and breathing hard, basically you know you've done some work, and they are relatively quick workouts to go through so if you are time crunched they are perfect for getting in and getting out of the gym quickly.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 3 - Saturday Swim and Bike

Today's workout 1500 yd easy swim / 35 mile bike

Since I ran successfully yesterday I switched my Sat/Sun workouts. I headed to the Y for an easy 1500 yd swim, didn't really have a plan just did my normal warm up and cool down swims with a combination of of 100 repeats and 50 yd repeats. I really was just looking for some extra time in the pool and I didn't really want to follow a "plan" just get in the water and swim.

The swim went well, nothing spectacular, pool was crowded this morning though. There were 3 young girls, about 10 yrs old, in the lane next to me, and lets just say I got humbled watching these 3 little mermaids fly through the water, reminded me just how awfully slow I am in the water, lol, oh well.

After my swim I headed home had a protein shake and relaxed for about an hour. I was trying to decided whether I should just do my long bike ride before lunch or wait till later in the day to do it. I knew if I waited the chances of me not doing it would go up greatly so I got on the bike and started peddling. About half way through the boys decided they wanted to hang out with me so they built a fort downstairs and watched TV with me as I hammered away the miles, love moments like these!

Fort Campbell

The bike went pretty well, surprised at how my energy level remained up throughout the ride, kept a nice easy pace. Ended up with 35 miles in just under 2 hrs. Looking forward to heading to Habanero's (our favorite Mexican Restaurant) for dinner tonight, I've earned a giant burrito today.

On tap for tomorrow, my first long run in a long while...

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 3 - Friday

Today's workout - Easy run 5 miles 47:48, yeah that's right 5 mile run!!!

So I ended up moving my rest day up yesterday and slept in, over slept in fact. Both boys climbed in to bed with me sometime in the early morning and I snoozed my way through the alarm and actually turned it off at some point. It did make for a rushed morning getting everyone to school and day care but man the extra sleep was worth it. By the evening yesterday it was a struggle though to not jump on the bike and get in 45 minutes to an hour. I decided the prudent thing to do was stick to my rest day and hopefully have a decent, pain free run this morning...and I'm happy I did! I was able to knock out 5 miles with no pain in my knee at all during the run, I have been feeling a little sore off and on through out the day but I think that may have more to do with the cold, seriously 2 weeks ago it was 55, this morning it was like 8 degrees and below 0 with the wind chill. Anyway do to my successful run this morning I'm going to switch up the workouts this weekend and hit the pool in the morning and then get my long bike ride in afterwards or in the afternoon and then I'm going to try and get a decent long run in on Sunday (supposed to be somewhat warmer). Looking forward to running outside again, I know its only been 2 weeks, but it feels like forever, and I'm sure my dog Lucky is itching for a run too.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 3 - Wednesday

Today's workout - AM - 1500 yd swim followed by weights. PM - 10mi bike ride

I'm pretty much out of it today, 3 consecutive days of swimming (and 3 consecutive days of getting up at 4:30am) have left me wiped. It is also my 7th straight day of training without a rest day and I'm really looking forward to one on Friday. Tomorrow I do get to sleep in an hour since I'll be running on my treadmill with the wife out of town. I was hoping to go to bed early tonight but that may not happen since I will be playing the role of "Tooth Fairy" after the boys go to bed. Normally Casey is out within a few minutes but the last time he lost a tooth he was too excited to fall asleep and Deanna had to wait till after 10:30 to slip in the room and he woke up when she did. I'm hoping he goes to sleep right away cause I could use the rest but hey in the grand scheme of things getting to be the "Tooth Fairy" is worth an hour or two of extra sleep.

I am looking forward to tomorrow's run should be a good measure of how my knee is feeling, not going to push if it starts hurting, I'll just jump on the bike instead. I'm hoping it goes well...

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Anyone interested in a free give away...?

One of the blogs that I follow Chasing My Dream, is doing a free giveaway for Chia Seeds. I have been using Chia Seeds for almost 2 years now as part of my nutritional plan, if you are interested in entering for a chance to try them out click on the link.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 3 - Monday Morning Swim

Today's workout 1350 yd swim 45:00 followed by upper body weight lifting 45:00.

Woke up early as always to get my swim in, both boys got up within minutes of each other as I was getting ready in the bathroom. Seeing as how it was 4:45 in the morning I convinced them to head back to bed before I headed out the door for the gym.

Today's workout called for a 300 yd warm up followed by an 800 yd swim and 150 cool down swim. I knew going into this workout I was not going to be able to continuously swim 800 yd my swimming endurance is just not up to that level yet, so I ended up breaking it down to 4x200 yd swims. The pool was packed this morning and I ended up sharing a lane with a regular early morning swimmer that I have talked with briefly a couple times over the last few weeks. Being in the same lane with some one else can make concentrating difficult, I tend to swim all over the place so I was overly concerned about running into him which I think had an effect on my workout. Completing just one 200 was pretty difficult and only confirmed my decision to break up the 800. By my last 200 the pool had cleared out a bit and I moved over to another lane, where I instantly felt more relaxed, I know during a triathlon I'm going to be bunched in like sardines with other swimmers at the start so I'm going to have to get used to swimming with other people but right now I'm more concerned with other aspects of my technique like you know breathing. Just the small amount of wake created by my lane partner made it difficult to breathe in from my right side and I was forced to breathe from both sides during my first 3 200's. It was really good practice and it was much more comfortable and natural feeling today.

After finishing up in the pool I headed upstairs to lift, I ended up doing 3 circuits of bench press, pull ups, push ups, barbell rows, dumbbell curl and press, trunk twists, side bends, walking weighted lunges, and overhead wrap rounds. Afterwards I did 3 x 10 super sets of dead lifts and burpees with chin ups to failure and 3 super sets of clean and press and close grip bench press. The goal of weight workouts is to build total body fitness, hence the compound movements of Olympic lifts with circuits and super sets. My workout is designed to get my heart rate going and help me work on my recovery time. I am going to be fatigued entering the transitions during a triathlon, I'll need to be able to recover in only a couple of minutes and head out for the next discipline. I'm training much the same way I did for MMA, lots of light - moderate weight and high reps. I'm usually pretty much wiped out after 45 minutes but as I continue I will get stronger and my recovery time will increase greatly as well as overall endurance.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Sunday Morning Bike Ride

Today's work out - 25 mile bike ride in 1:21:42, 21.6 mph max 18.2 mph avg

What's that saying about the best laid plans...? My plan was to get up around 6 be on the bike by 6:30, I had a movie on the DVR I've been waiting to watch that would carry me through my scheduled hour and half ride. Well it all started off according to plan, until I got on the bike and started my movie, within 2 minutes my oldest was downstairs, he wanted to watch TV with me, so I found something a little more age appropriate. We ended up watching some Disney movie courtesy of Mediacom's free weekend preview, yeah new movie, it actually wasn't that bad, but it wouldn't have mattered any way. It was just nice getting to spend that time with him while I rode my trainer, these moments are few and far between but I cherish them every time they present themselves. I can always watch my movie some other day, there will be plenty of hours spent on the trainer in the next couple of months, I'll get it in someday I'm sure.

Legs were actually pretty sore after yesterday's adventures in the snow, but they eventually loosened up, kept the ride pretty low key staying in my middle gear on my big ring after my warm up. Got through the first hour pretty well but started to hit the wall after 1:10 I knew I would get to 25 miles (Goal) at or around 1:20 so I decided to that would be the end of the workout, I would have gone to 1:30 had I felt good at the end and picked up the extra mileage but didn't have it in me.

This upcoming week is going to throw the normal routine out since the wife is traveling for work and I'm not. Probably going to end up swimming 3 days in a row since I won't be able to make it to the gym when she's out of town, being flexible is key when trying to get training in around family and work obligations. Looking forward to getting in the pool again tomorrow after yesterday's workout, feeling so much better about my swimming every time out.


Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

What an awesome day

Started my day with a nice workout, ran some errands with the family, shoveled snow and started making a snow fort with the boys. After lunch, played some Wii with the family (by the way I owned my wife in tennis...again!!!) then got ready to go sledding with the cousins. Sledding was awesome, haven't had that much fun playing in the snow in a long time. We were diving in the huge snow drifts on the side of the hill, digging tunnels and having a blast sledding. Afterwards neither me or the wife wanted to go home and make dinner so we decided to go to Osaka Buffet which by the way is awesome. I straight murdered their sushi bar, I ate so much food and I don't even care. Yup it was a pretty good day...can't wait till tomorrow...

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Saturday Swim and Run

Today's workout - 1800 yd swim followed by 2.1 miles on the treadmill.

So I ended up doing another long swim instead of a long run today and I'm really glad that I did. I didn't have a plan going to the pool I just planned on swimming for an hour. I did my normal 300 yd warm up, then started doing 50 yd repeats. I felt really good doing these today and only took 10-15 second rest breaks between, I can definitely notice a huge difference in my swimming endurance over the last 2 weeks. I ended up doing 24 x 50 yd repeats and finished off with a 300 yd cool down swim where I worked on breathing from left side as well as alternating side to side, starting to get a little better at, practice makes perfect.

After I finished up I headed upstairs to run on the treadmill, I new I wasn't going to be able to run long but I just needed to put down a couple miles. Starting out my legs and my knee felt good, I was fatigued for sure but still felt strong after a pretty hard swim workout. About 1 mile into the run my knee started hurting a bit and I knew I was going to have to cut what was going to be a 30 minute run down, happy I was able to get 20 minutes and 2.1 miles in. I'm going to give my knee another down week with minimal running and if its not feeling better I may have to consider seeking professional help, I'm sure total rest would be the best thing for it but its kind of hard for me to quit everything right now, we'll see how it goes...

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Friday Morning Swim

Today's workout 1250 yd in 45 minutes with total body weight circuit workout plus core.

Rode my bike while watching TV last night and then off to bed for another early day of swimming. I am actually starting to get into a nice rhythm with my training after a goofy first week. I can already tell I'm recovering faster from each workout, which is great, I was afraid that the increased volume would cause me to fall ill, which has been an issue in the past during marathon training, but I think the variety and the split workouts are making that an easier transition than expected. Any way today's workout called for

Warm-up of 300 yd

Workout
8 x 100's with 15 sec rest

Cool down - 200yd Easy Swim

I ended up breaking the 100's into 2 sets of 4 with a minute break between, still working on my swimming endurance but it is getting noticeably better. I thought the 100's would kill be seeing as how 100 yd is the longest I've swam continually to date. The fourth 100 of each set was tough but I was able to make it through without drowning...YEAH!!! During my cool down I tried working on breathing off my left side, so far I have only been able to breathing turning my head to the right. I will need to be able to breathe from both sides especially in open water depending on wave conditions, or so I've read. I have more limited range of motion turning my head to the left, probably due to neck injuries, so I always turn right, but I need to work on it. Right now I can barely get my head out of the water when I turn which does make drawing a breath quite difficult, but that is why I am working on it during my cool down when I can go slow and really focus on that and not my swim stroke or kicks. Just one more thing I need to work on in the water.

It was funny today seeing a couple of self-proclaimed body builders in the pool trying out swimming for the first time, I chatted briefly with them, not sure if they are getting into triathlons or just doing it for the cardio. Watching them swim I had to wonder if I looked as bad churning through the water as they did. You could tell that both of them had limited shoulder range of motion which is typical when you have a heavily muscled upper body and your not used to a swimming motion. That is something that I am really aware of when going through the water, trying to extend my arms as far out in front of me and getting a good stretch into the water. After the meat heads left the lifeguard came over to another swimmer in the lane next to me and was chatting about them, one of them had made a funny comment that I didn't catch to the lifeguard. I had just finished my last 100 and I was hanging on the deck talking with them briefly before my cool down, a comment was made about another guy who was big into lifting that had taken up triathlons and turned himself into a pretty good swimmer and I jokingly said "so there is hope for me" the swimmer told me that I actually have pretty decent form, which was awesome to hear. Its one thing to think you are making progress but another to hear it from someone who actually knows what they are talking about, maybe I'm not doing so bad after all and there is hope for my swimming. I feel like I'm making progress and I'm having fun and that is what matters most.

Tomorrow I've pretty much decided to ditch my long run in favor of another day in the pool, knee is feeling good, just don't want to push it too soon. Maybe after my swim I'll run on the treadmill for a couple miles, just to see how it feels.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Thursday Run

Today's workout called for a 7 mile Tempo Run but seeing as how this was my first run in a week I decided to change this up, I ended up doing 4.5 miles in 44:48.

Warm up - 2 mile @ 6 mph
Workout - 3x800m @ 7-7.5 mph w/400m recovery jog
Cool down - .5 mile

I was nervous starting off not knowing how my knee would feel or hold up, but during the warm up it felt okay, I did have some minor pain, but I am usually a little creaky in my first couple of miles. Once I finished the warm up I had made the decision to change up my workout, first and foremost I was on a treadmill, which I dread doing any kind of long run on, it's so boring. Secondly I knew I didn't have 7 miles in me, my legs were still a little sore from Monday's workout and I did not want to push my knee, so I did 3x800m intervals at my half marathon pace with a 400m jog in between. By the third one my knee was starting to feel a little sore so after the workout I made sure to stretch thoroughly. I am cautiously optimistic about my knee, although it did start hurting it was not the excruciating pain that I felt last Thursday that forced me to stop and walk. I am not sure whether I should skip Saturday's long run in favor of another pool session or not yet I suppose I will make that decision some time tomorrow. Replacing a couple runs over the next few weeks with swims might be the smart thing to do, just to help my knee heal up and assist me in my weakest area, the swim, we'll see how it goes.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Tuesday Long Swim

Today's workout called for 1500 yd but I added 250 to my cool down so I ended up with 1750 yd in 1:10.

Today was the first time doing an actual structured workout, the workout called for:

Warm up swim - 300 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim
Workout - 16x50 yd with 10 second rest in between
Cool down - 200 yd easy swim

I actually ended up breaking up the workout into 4 sets of 4x50 with 15 second rest and minute in between sets, my endurance isn't up to par yet but its getting much better.

Overall this was a great workout that actually left me wanting more which is why I added the extra 250 yd at the cool down. I feel more more comfortable in the pool each time out which is nice, my breathing is becoming more natural and I'm not hyperventilating myself constantly.

Tonight I'll try to do 30-45 minutes on the elliptical at the hotel and then tomorrow is a much needed rest day, I am looking forward to sleeping in till 6 or 6:30 after 2 straight days of getting up at 4:30 am. Originally I didn't like the idea of taking a whole day off for rest but after a couple of days of double workouts I'll most definitely need it.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Monday Evening Bike

Second workout for the day - 45 min bike ride, 14.1 miles (18.8/mph avg.)

I finally got my bike computer working, okay the bike mechanic at the Trek Store got it working, I don't know why I keep trying to do mechanical stuff my ability is limited to putting together Lego's and Transformers...anyway I'm glad I did seems I've been slightly underestimating my trainer rides, not by much maybe a mile or 2 per hour, the best thing is actually being able to see my cadence and mph kinda helps with the motivation.

Legs felt great during the ride and my achy left knee didn't give me any issues, glad I finally decided to get myself to the chiro and get an adjustment. Seems my hips were out of alignment, Dr. advised to skip tomorrow night's run and opt for the elliptical machine instead and then if everything feels good he gave me the green light for my Thursday morning run, keeping my fingers crossed. Running is my true passion, I like biking and swimming but running will always be my favorite.

Well time for bed, got my long swim workout in the morning.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 2 - Monday Swim

Today's workout - 1350 yd in 55 min, 30 minutes total body weight workout + core.

It felt good to get back in the water and gym today after taking Friday and Saturday off due to illness and my troublesome left knee. I was able to get an hour bike ride on Sunday morning which was good, I was worried that my knee might not allow it but it felt just fine, I was a little sore afterwards and I made sure to ice it.

Today I mixed things up just a little, did a couple of kick drills 3x50 throughout the workout. Also was able to do a couple of complete 100 yd swims without a break, still need to work on my breathing, keeping hyperventilating myself or going to long in between breathes and sucking water. James and Courtney showed up this morning, which definitely made the workout more enjoyable, not as easy to socialize during a swim workout but seeing as how we all require ample breaks between laps there was a fair amount of chatter between us. It will be nice to have people to train with throughout this process, generally I don't mind working out alone, but with the amount of hours a week I'll be putting in, being able to share a few of them will be nice and a welcome change. Tomorrow calls for another swim, this will be my long swim for the week since I won't lift afterwards and that will probably be the routine going forward.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 1 Day 4 - Tempo Run

Today's workout 4 mile tempo run in 35:58 (8:58/pace)

I felt like crap last night after work, I think I'm starting to get a head cold, this workout was in doubt when I went to sleep last night. Luckily when I woke up I felt better, I still considered skipping and going back to bed for another hour but after a quick check of the weather and realizing it was 32* outside with no wind (my ideal running conditions are 32-45*) I couldn't justify skipping yet another workout this week, so I got dressed, downed a Power Gel and headed out.

Starting out the plan was to do 6 miles, but within the first mile I realized that was not going to happen. My left knee starting bothering me right away and by 1.5 miles I had to stop and walk it out a bit. Once I got going again I knew I was going to have to cut the run short. The final 2 miles where a bit of a mental struggle for me, not because of the pain in my knee but because my head started to fill with thoughts of injury and what am I going to do if I can't run for awhile. How will this affect my goals for this year, I'm only 4 days into my training and I'm facing what could be a big set back already. My mind has a way of getting away from me when I run and usually that is a good thing, I get lost in thought and the miles seem to just tick on by, but when I'm lost in thought on a potential injury and/or set back I'm all to painfully aware of every aching step.

By the time I returned to the hotel, the pain had subsided a little and I made sure to stretch out my legs thoroughly (I don't typically stretch very much). I drew a cold water bath to soak my legs (I would have had an ice bath but every ice machine in the hotel was broke, hmm odd) and hopefully reduce some of the obvious swelling in my knee. While sitting in the tub I had the opportunity to reflect more on my situation and try and see the upside, if in fact I do need to take some time off from running that just means I can spend more time swimming and perfecting that aspect of my training.

I'm going to try and get to my Chiropractor tomorrow and have him take a look at my knee, I'm hoping that I'm just out of alignment and there is nothing structurally wrong. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but regardless of what's wrong I'm going to stay positive and continue to work diligently at whatever I'm able and capable of doing.

Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 1 Day 3 - Easy Run

Today's workout - Easy Run 4 miles in 37:43 and finished up with 45 minutes of upper body weight lifting and core exercises.

Technically this workout was supposed to be last night but I arrived late to the hotel after work (lame excuse) and really didn't feel like doing it so I moved it to this morning. I do have to be careful over the next couple of weeks not to increase my total training volume too much too fast. Prior to the holidays I was getting anywhere from 7 - 11 hours of total training in for the 5 weeks between the Wildcat 50k and the week of Christmas, so I really need to keep it somewhere around 8 this week and then start building from there as I work back into the swing of things. I certainly don't want to burn out in the first month or 2 of training.

Today was the first run I've done in over a week and it went about as well as could be expected. Legs were a little more sore from swimming than I anticipated and I felt like I was laboring entirely too much for the speed and distance. I probably should have backed it down a little but what can I say hind sight is 20/20 right. My left knee started bothering me towards the end of the run which concerns me, this is something that has flared up from time to time over the last few years but recently it has been more often. I was hoping that the week off from running and cycling would have given it some well deserved rest but maybe not enough. I will have to keep an eye on that developing situation and possibly adjust my training to limit the amount of running for the time being. The extra time in the pool certainly wouldn't hurt either and once again running is the one discipline of the 3 that I'm least concerned about, as long as the legs are healthy and strong I know I can cover any distance. I will get another crack at running tomorrow when I do my weekly tempo run so hopefully it goes better.

Until next time...

Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 1 Day 2 - Swim...again

Today's workout 1500 yd swim in 55 min

Back in the pool again today.

Shoulders felt sore this morning which is probably a combination of swimming and lifting weights, nothing terrible not the painful kind of sore but the I did some work yesterday kind. I kind of missed driving to the gym for a workout, that 5-10 minute drive really sets the tone for me, helps me wake up a little and get in the right frame of mind for the work that needs to be done.

My plan this morning was to just repeat yesterday, swim 20 laps working on coordinating my breathing, stroke and kick then do 30-45 min of lower body lifts like squats, leg press, hamstring curl etc. The swim went great, I felt much more comfortable in the water today and I was doing much better on my breathing at the beginning. Towards the end of the workout when I started to fatigue I could tell my form was going to hell and I missed some breaths and actually sucked in water a couple of times. After my 20 laps I decided to ditch the leg workout and spend the extra time in the pool and ended up swimming a total of 30 laps for 1500 yd in approximately 55 min. Overall I felt like this was a much better workout, I was able to swim 2 lengths of the pool with out a break a number of times, just got to keep progressing till I can knock out multiple laps with out a break. It will come, eventually.

Until next time...

Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

2012 Goals and a 2011 recap

Okay here it is, the official goals of 2012 but first a quick recap of 2011.

2011 was an amazing year for me in my training, racing and fitness goals, first and most important I hit the century mark in weight loss, yes 100 lbs lost and I got to see a 1 at the beginning of my weight for the first time in nearly 20 years. Now I do have to follow that up with the fact that I have put on 10-15 pounds since my last race of the season and my second biggest accomplishment of the year, running my first Ultra event, the Wildcat Den 50k on Nov. 13th and the last time I was at or under 200 lbs. I have been taking it easy with training and been pretty relaxed as far as my diet goes but I am going to be on track and more disciplined than ever with my diet this year and hopefully I will see a transformation like I never thought imaginable.

Other highlights include:
- Racing in 11 events and setting or beating a PR in all 11
- Running my first 5k and taking 4th in my age group (yeah I know I ran a marathon before a 5k but running fast scares me more than running long)
- Going under 4 hrs in the marathon (3:54:15)
- Going under 2 hrs in the half marathon (1:51:25)
- Racing my first multi sport event, Du State Duathlon
- Running 1569 miles for the year (my original goal was 1800 and I would have made that easily but I started biking 3-4 times a week for cross training in July and that affected my mileage but greatly helped my running)
- Biking 1852 miles since July, I really expect to double that for this year.
- Taking 1st place in my age division at the Silvis Family Run 10k
- Getting involved with Live Uncommon which represents the values and dedication to family and fitness that I gave truly come to cherish.
- And I continued to grow the seed of living a healthy lifestyle with my 2 boys, they have both asked me to run marathons this year (any race to them means marathon) and I can't wait till they do.


So on to 2012... I have big plans to take my fitness to new levels, some even scare me a little just thinking about typing them out.

- Run a spring Marathon and/or 50k
- Run a fall Marathon and/or 50k
- Run a 50 miler??? (Yikes!!!)
- Run a half marathon with my sister in law
- Enter the world of Triathlon (already signed up for the QC Triathlon, Sprint Distance, in June)
- Do an Olympic Distance Triathlon (Hy-Vee Tri in Sept)
- Do a 70.3 - Yes I want to do a Half Ironman this year, I originally was going to put this off till 2013 goals but some friends have been talking about doing one and my own personal drive are leading me to try for it this year.
- Run more obstacle races like Spartan Race, Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder. These are insanely fun and challenging races that truly test your overall fitness, and besides who doesn't like playing in the mud?

Reading a friends blog this morning about their 2012 goals, I was inspired to set some personal goals as well, so here are some things I want to accomplish as a person, father and husband.

- Keep a better record of my life through this blog, not only in my training but my thoughts, feelings and ideas. Sharing my life through this blog is incredibly therapeutic for me at times and I really need to take advantage of that. I also have a goal of taking this blog to bigger and better things, I would like to review products for companies (okay selfishly I really want free training gear) and maybe even be able to make some money some how from that.

- My long term goal in life right now is to become a certified personal trainer and possibly make a living from my passion for fitness. The old saying goes "Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life" well I love working out, helping people work out and find a passion for fitness and talking about exercise so sounds like I need to be personal trainer. This year I would like to try and become a certified personal trainer.

- Live a more minimal life. I have been on a minimalist kick lately not only with my choice of footwear but in the way I live my life. I have grown tired of living a life centered around accumulating "stuff" I want to start minimizing my life down to the bear essentials of what I need to survive like food, clothing and shelter. This is going to be incredibly difficult as I have grown very accustomed to certain things over my 34 years but I have identified some things I can limit down or even live without, like multiple pairs of running shoes, drawers and drawers full of so many clothes that I couldn't possibly wear them all and spending hours in front of the TV. Spending less time in front of the TV will not only give me more time to train and sleep but will also help me accomplish my last personal goal...

- Spend more quality time with friends and family. And NO Facebook does not count as quality time. I was recently reminded of how I have neglected certain personal relationships when I finally visited an old friend and their family after 12+ years. Too often I have passed on playing with my kids to veg-out in front of the TV or declined to hang out with friends because I had a long run in the morning, which can be wise at times when it would be detrimental to my health but when I'm doing nothing better than wasting time in a hotel room watching TV instead of spending time with people it's really sad.

2012 is going to be an amazing year and not because of any race I run, but because I am going to be living my life, doing what I love and I have a passion for something that drives me out of bed every morning, LIVING!!!

so...

Until next time...

Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.

Triathlon Training: Week 1 Day 1 - First Swim

Today's workout - Swim 1000 yd, 40-45 min + 45 min upper body lifts.

So today officially starts my 2012 training routine and my first official day of triathlon training with my first ever swim workout. I have been off for the last 4 days with zero activity, that is unless stuffing my face, sitting on the couch and watching football yesterday constitutes activity? No, well than we'll go with zero activity. The mini break was nice but I was ready to get back after it and I was excited to see where I was at in the swimming department. I was excited and incredibly nervous about this workout, swimming is the one reservation I have had about making the transition to triathlons. I'm confident in my running ability after 3 solid years of training and racing and my cycling is coming along since picking it up last summer, but I haven't swam, like actual laps, in over 15 years. I will say that I was actually surprised by how well I did, I completed 20 total laps for 1000 yd in about 40-45 min. At first I just went 25 yd at a time, just to get my stroke, kick and breathing down, I was like a fish out of water in the beginning, but once I got everything coordinated I actually felt pretty smooth. I did a few 50 yd repeats with about 30 seconds rest in between once I felt confident I could do a full lap without drowning. Right now I'm not worried about doing any drills or specialty workouts, I'm just concentrating on swimming laps, learning to kick and breathe and once I feel confident in the water I'll start working on drills. This is a lot like 3 years ago when I started running (0r should I say walking) at first I couldn't run at all, I'd jog/walk as much as I could, I remember the first mile I did took me 20 minutes. My mentality back then was to go as hard and as far as I could on that day, then the next time out try to go a little farther, than go a little faster and so on and so forth. I have never been one for following special running workouts, with the exception of Tempo Runs (and even those I don't do conventionally) and Long Runs, I usually either run short and fast or long and slow and that is about as technical as I get. I know with swimming I will have to do some drills eventually, but like I said right now I'm just swimming laps going as far as I can each time building that base endurance. I have 5 1/2 months till the QC Triathlon to learn to swim about 600 yd continuously and still have enough energy to bike 15 miles and run 3.1 after leaving the water so...

Until next time...

Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.