KSH
05-01-2008, 07:53 AM
Ironman Kentucky Training Month 4 of 8!
Ah, half way there! I can’t believe it. The months are just flying by.
This is going to be a different kind of summary of my month. Overall I felt like I had a good month. Unfortunately the numbers don’t really show that.
Rest days:
March- 7 days off out of 31.
April- 8 days off out of 30.
Cycling:
March- 430 miles.
April- 384 miles.
Swimming:
March- 12,500 yards.
April- 10,000 yards.
Running:
March- 75 miles.
April- 67 miles.
Yep, across the board less training completed in April.
I did have a few break through sessions. I had some fast bike averages on some of my rides and some fast running as well.
Time to look to the future.
January-April was really just the dress rehearsal for the REAL IRONMAN TRAINING.
Met with my coach and a huge focus of mine is dialing in my nutrition. I have to consume 250 calories and 40-60 grams of carbs every long ride I do. I have a bad habit of losing track of time and then trying to load calories at the end.
You see, with Ironman… If you eat too little you don’t have energy for the marathon. If you eat too much and load up your stomach, your stomach can’t process it and you are left bloated with GI issues for the run. The key is finding exactly the right amount of calories to consume, that your body can process enough calories carbs to keep you going.
I’m experimenting with Infinit liquid nutrition right now. You basically go online, and create a custom formula for your racing needs. I have gotten two batches now. It takes… YUCK! I compare it to vomit. Not the full spewing vomit, but the “in the back of your throat” vomit. Delicious! I’m going to experiment mixing it with Gatorade to see if that makes it better.
Otherwise, starting in May, I am going from 10 hours a week of training to roughly 15 hours a week.
Here is my general schedule for May:
Monday- AM/40 minute swim. PM/1 hour bike
Tuesday- PM/1 hour run
Wednesday- AM/1 hour swim. PM/1 hour+ bike
Thursday- AM/1 hour run. PM/1:20+ bike
Friday- Off or 1 hour swim
Saturday- 5-6 hour bike ride
Sunday- 2:20 to 2:40 run (For me that's 12-14 miles)
It doesn't look that bad on paper... but factor in drive times, packing/unpacking all your stuff for the next workout, getting ready in the morning before you can head to work, trying to keep up with your life outside of training... and working 40 hours a week. It's hard. At least for me it's going to be.
For the next 4 months my house is going to be a wreck, and I'll be lucky if I have clean clothes. I'll be exhausted and running on very little sleep.
Honestly, I’m not sure HOW I’m going to survive. It’s going to be rough on me. VERY ROUGH.
For example, tomorrow I have to wake up at 4:45 AM for a 5:15 AM run. If you know me, you know I don’t like getting up that early. Especially NOT for running.
I keep telling myself, “One day at a time”. Just look at the next day and do what I need to do that day. Don’t think about all the other workouts… just tomorrow.
OH! In April I got to go to Arizona to watch my cousin, Jim, race in Ironman Arizona. Dad was there… along with my Uncle, and Beverly (Jim’s wife). WOW! It was an experience.
I even bought a cheerleading outfit especially for the occasion! As you can see in the attached pictures, the top has KSH on it.
Jim had a very rough day out there. Along with many of the athletes. The heat was a killer. Typical temperate for that day is 84 degrees. An all time high was 98 degrees. It was 94 degrees. Due to the heat, 1 out of 5 people did not finish the race that day.
Jim only finished because he is truly amazing and tough beyond belief! He expected to only race for 12 hours. At mile 82 on the bike (the race is 140.6 miles)… he started to vomit. Continued to vomit until the crossed the finish line in 16 hours and 45 minutes. The cut off for Ironman is 17 hours. We were all worried about him, but all knew that unless they physically took him off the course against his will, he WOULD finish.
Watching that… scared me. If someone as strong as Jim (he is a much better athlete than I am) could get sick and have such a rough day, what chance do I have? I’m slow. I’m not great. I’m mediocre at best.
Then I remind myself to trust in my training. It was an odd day out there for a lot of people. It wasn’t typical. I’m training and I’m training hard. My coach knows what I need to do to cross the finish line. I just need to train and follow the plan.
Someone told me recently that endurance racing was ALL MENTAL. That’s the truth. And I guess until you actually cross the finish line… it’s a mental rollercoaster.
Ever since I paid for this Ironman back in August 2007… and started training for it… it’s been a mental job.
One day I feel perfectly calm and confident in my decision to race. The next day I’m wondering what the hell I was thinking. Then I feel excited just thinking about the finish line… there are many times when I envision it while training and I get tears in my eyes.
That was a lot of writing! HA!
Well, my Ironsherpa (Jonny) is still hanging strong. He has been great tolerating my training. He also knows it’s about to get a lot worse. Of course, he already asked, “If you don’t cross the finish line, you aren’t going to sign up for another one… ARE YOU?” HHhhhhuummmm. Probably not. I guess I just better cross the finish line so I don’t have to find out if I need a redo!
In closing… here is something I typed up the other day… some of you might get a giggle out of it.
What it takes to become an Ironman...
* Membership to 2 tri clubs (Texas Triple Threat and Dallas Sports University)
* Membership to 1 gym (24 Hour Fitness)
* Membership with a swimming group (Irving Swimmers)
* Tri coach
* Membership to Beginner Triathlete
* One racewalking clinic in Austin, TX
* 1 Garmin Forerunner 305
* 1 Polar HR monitor (for treadmill runs)
* 2 bikes (1 roadie, 1 tri)
* 1 wetsuit
* 1 I-Pod
* 3 Speedo bathing suits
* 1 Racewalking Clinic in Austin, TX
* Hundres of gallons in gas going to bike rallies
* Paying for said bike rallies
* Gels
* Infinit (liquid nutrition)
* Cordless straightening iron
* 1 Ironsherpa who is willing to put up with all of it
* 1 bike trainer- free- from a wonderful Ironsherpa
Ah, half way there! I can’t believe it. The months are just flying by.
This is going to be a different kind of summary of my month. Overall I felt like I had a good month. Unfortunately the numbers don’t really show that.
Rest days:
March- 7 days off out of 31.
April- 8 days off out of 30.
Cycling:
March- 430 miles.
April- 384 miles.
Swimming:
March- 12,500 yards.
April- 10,000 yards.
Running:
March- 75 miles.
April- 67 miles.
Yep, across the board less training completed in April.
I did have a few break through sessions. I had some fast bike averages on some of my rides and some fast running as well.
Time to look to the future.
January-April was really just the dress rehearsal for the REAL IRONMAN TRAINING.
Met with my coach and a huge focus of mine is dialing in my nutrition. I have to consume 250 calories and 40-60 grams of carbs every long ride I do. I have a bad habit of losing track of time and then trying to load calories at the end.
You see, with Ironman… If you eat too little you don’t have energy for the marathon. If you eat too much and load up your stomach, your stomach can’t process it and you are left bloated with GI issues for the run. The key is finding exactly the right amount of calories to consume, that your body can process enough calories carbs to keep you going.
I’m experimenting with Infinit liquid nutrition right now. You basically go online, and create a custom formula for your racing needs. I have gotten two batches now. It takes… YUCK! I compare it to vomit. Not the full spewing vomit, but the “in the back of your throat” vomit. Delicious! I’m going to experiment mixing it with Gatorade to see if that makes it better.
Otherwise, starting in May, I am going from 10 hours a week of training to roughly 15 hours a week.
Here is my general schedule for May:
Monday- AM/40 minute swim. PM/1 hour bike
Tuesday- PM/1 hour run
Wednesday- AM/1 hour swim. PM/1 hour+ bike
Thursday- AM/1 hour run. PM/1:20+ bike
Friday- Off or 1 hour swim
Saturday- 5-6 hour bike ride
Sunday- 2:20 to 2:40 run (For me that's 12-14 miles)
It doesn't look that bad on paper... but factor in drive times, packing/unpacking all your stuff for the next workout, getting ready in the morning before you can head to work, trying to keep up with your life outside of training... and working 40 hours a week. It's hard. At least for me it's going to be.
For the next 4 months my house is going to be a wreck, and I'll be lucky if I have clean clothes. I'll be exhausted and running on very little sleep.
Honestly, I’m not sure HOW I’m going to survive. It’s going to be rough on me. VERY ROUGH.
For example, tomorrow I have to wake up at 4:45 AM for a 5:15 AM run. If you know me, you know I don’t like getting up that early. Especially NOT for running.
I keep telling myself, “One day at a time”. Just look at the next day and do what I need to do that day. Don’t think about all the other workouts… just tomorrow.
OH! In April I got to go to Arizona to watch my cousin, Jim, race in Ironman Arizona. Dad was there… along with my Uncle, and Beverly (Jim’s wife). WOW! It was an experience.
I even bought a cheerleading outfit especially for the occasion! As you can see in the attached pictures, the top has KSH on it.
Jim had a very rough day out there. Along with many of the athletes. The heat was a killer. Typical temperate for that day is 84 degrees. An all time high was 98 degrees. It was 94 degrees. Due to the heat, 1 out of 5 people did not finish the race that day.
Jim only finished because he is truly amazing and tough beyond belief! He expected to only race for 12 hours. At mile 82 on the bike (the race is 140.6 miles)… he started to vomit. Continued to vomit until the crossed the finish line in 16 hours and 45 minutes. The cut off for Ironman is 17 hours. We were all worried about him, but all knew that unless they physically took him off the course against his will, he WOULD finish.
Watching that… scared me. If someone as strong as Jim (he is a much better athlete than I am) could get sick and have such a rough day, what chance do I have? I’m slow. I’m not great. I’m mediocre at best.
Then I remind myself to trust in my training. It was an odd day out there for a lot of people. It wasn’t typical. I’m training and I’m training hard. My coach knows what I need to do to cross the finish line. I just need to train and follow the plan.
Someone told me recently that endurance racing was ALL MENTAL. That’s the truth. And I guess until you actually cross the finish line… it’s a mental rollercoaster.
Ever since I paid for this Ironman back in August 2007… and started training for it… it’s been a mental job.
One day I feel perfectly calm and confident in my decision to race. The next day I’m wondering what the hell I was thinking. Then I feel excited just thinking about the finish line… there are many times when I envision it while training and I get tears in my eyes.
That was a lot of writing! HA!
Well, my Ironsherpa (Jonny) is still hanging strong. He has been great tolerating my training. He also knows it’s about to get a lot worse. Of course, he already asked, “If you don’t cross the finish line, you aren’t going to sign up for another one… ARE YOU?” HHhhhhuummmm. Probably not. I guess I just better cross the finish line so I don’t have to find out if I need a redo!
In closing… here is something I typed up the other day… some of you might get a giggle out of it.
What it takes to become an Ironman...
* Membership to 2 tri clubs (Texas Triple Threat and Dallas Sports University)
* Membership to 1 gym (24 Hour Fitness)
* Membership with a swimming group (Irving Swimmers)
* Tri coach
* Membership to Beginner Triathlete
* One racewalking clinic in Austin, TX
* 1 Garmin Forerunner 305
* 1 Polar HR monitor (for treadmill runs)
* 2 bikes (1 roadie, 1 tri)
* 1 wetsuit
* 1 I-Pod
* 3 Speedo bathing suits
* 1 Racewalking Clinic in Austin, TX
* Hundres of gallons in gas going to bike rallies
* Paying for said bike rallies
* Gels
* Infinit (liquid nutrition)
* Cordless straightening iron
* 1 Ironsherpa who is willing to put up with all of it
* 1 bike trainer- free- from a wonderful Ironsherpa