Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 64 - 56 Days to go

I'm with the family on vacation and taking a short break from the blog as well. My exercise continues at a lesser pace, as this is my recovery week. It's a great time to spend with my family being active and enjoying this health we have. The last couple of days have included a lot of pool time. Taking a break, slowing down and relaxing is something important that I'm working on this week.

When I get back home, training gets focused on endurance.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 65 Days to go

The morning started with a great run of 4.5 miles. I felt strong and starting to see that the 13.1 is possible. I head out on vacation on Saturday, so I'm looking at my training schedule. I'm going to have a bit easier schedule next week on the training and enjoy a recovery week. I'll still be exercising each day but doing a bit less distance and pull back on the intensity.

In the afternoon, I did a 900M swim. Why that number? I don't know... It was kinda random but was a good swim at a good time. I did that swim at 20:30, which is an event time pace of 43:16. I'm thinking at this point that under 40 minutes on the swim is a strong possibility, which would be great!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 66 Days to go

Mellow day with a walk this morning and 1000M swim this afternoon. The swim was really nice and I went to the pool with the boys. They did laps after mine and did great. One of the adults was quite amazed that they could swim 150M without stopping.

We signed the boys up for their first triathlon on August 15th. It's called the TriToCure and benefits leukemia research. The next day, August 16th, I'll be doing a the Greenville Sprint Triathlon. We'll make a triathlon weekend of it with a special dinner, preparing the bikes and transition areas, etc. It should be a lot of fun!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 67 Days to go

Great day... Started off w/ a 23 km bike ride in the early morning mist. It was cool, quiet, and pretty as the sun began to rise. This afternoon, I went for a swim and did 1900M, which is the 1.2 Mile distance of the Ironman Augusta 70.3. I did it in 45:23, which translates to a 1000M time of 23:54. My time is consistently improving bit by bit.

I've been thinking a bit about my first triathlon and thought I'd share some about that. I was 21 years old and the year was 1984. At my Mom's encouragement, I had gotten into bicycling and was spending a lot of time at OutSpokin' Bicycle Shop in Columbia, SC. OutSpokin' is a great shop and would sponsor some cool riders to come into town. Anyway, John Howard was visiting and the 1984 Summer Olympics were on. I have some faint memories of us watching some of the Olympics with him and he had a funny look on his face during the televised cycling. He'd competed in the Olympics in 1968, 1972, 1976, and had made the 1980 team which didn't get to compete due to the boycott of the Moscow games. He had won the Hawaii Ironman in 1981 and would go on to set a world speed record of 152 MPH on a bike in 1985.

Anyway, that weekend a group of us were going to do a sprint triathlon. It was the "Lake City Tobacco Festival Triathlon"! Isn't that classic? We went down the day before the race, carbo loaded with spagetti, and attended the pre-race meeting. Isn't that funny they had a pre-race meeting for a sprint? Remember, these triathlon things were pretty new, especially in the countryside of South Carolina. John Howard decided to do it for fun but not compete for the prizes.

Saturday morning, I was in the next to last heat to hit the pool. I came out last in my heat and headed out to my bike. It was an old Raleigh racing frame from the late sixties that I had configured with parts from the used parts bin at OutSpokin'. I was quickly passed by the last heat racers and started my run as the last competitor running the course. As a safety measure, the race organizers had an ambulance following the field and it was right on my heels. Several times I wanted to stop during the run and walk for a minute but I was sure that the ambulance guys would make me hop in... so I kept running. As I saw the crowds and the finish line a few hundred yards ahead, a funny thought crossed my mind and I picked up a couple of tobacco leaves from the side of the road where they had fallen off the tobacco trucks. I raised them high as I crossed the finish line of the Lake City Tobacco Festival Triathlon and the crowd cheered me like I'd won. John Howard was there. He had finished first but didn't let it count. He and the official winner greeted me and if I remember right there was some cold Coors beer for us all.

Over the years I moved away from fitness and gained pounds. By 44 years old, I had ballooned to 359 pounds. When I started losing the weight, my first goal was to run a triathlon again. Eight months later I weighed 244 pounds and organized a sprint triathlon in Chiang Rai, Thailand, where I was living. There were eleven of us racing and I came in 6th... It's my best finish yet!

On September 27th, at 46 years old, I'll jump in the water with 3200+ other competitors to run the Ironman Augusta 70.3. I'll celebrate the weight lost and the fitness gained. I'll celebrate health and triathlon. I'll celebrate life.

It's great to be back in the game!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 68 Days to go

I started off this morning with a 4.4 mile run. My knee was hurting a bit and I was careful not to push too hard. Worked up a great sweat and I'm pleased with the effort. This afternoon, after work, I went to the neighborhood pool with the kids to do my laps. When I go to the SportsClub, I wear my tri shorts to swim in, which are slick and cling to my body. I was a bit too self conscious to wear that to the neighborhood swim pool so I wore my surfing jams type bathing suit. It was AMAZING how different the swim was with a regular suit. It felt like I was pulling a parachute through the water because the drag was so huge. I did 1000M in 26:40, which considering the drag was a pretty good time.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 69 Days to go

69 days to go is amazing. When I started this journey, I had 104 days until the Ironman 70.3... Now it's just a couple of months away! Yesterday, when I was on my bike ride, I was amazed at some of the smells that you come across when you're out on a ride. When I was out in the countryside, I passed a produce distribution center that smelled like a HUGE cantaloupe. When I was almost home, I passed a local diner and it smelled just like a hot funnelcake stand. I'm guessing the waffles and pancakes were being cooked up like crazy on a Saturday morning.

This morning I got up and headed out for my run but then everything fell apart. Without going into detail, I had to head home quickly and spent the morning on the toilet and feeling nauseous. Needless today, that short time this morning became my training time today. As the day has progressed, I'm feeling better and wonder what happened? I hate being sick and am not often, but when I'm training hard I seem to get hit more than when I'm just exercising normally. I don't like it because I really do enjoy the hard training and pushing myself to new limits.

I'm thinking tomorrow AM I'll pick back up with the run and then swim after work. Should work like a charm. I'm definitely going to bed early!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 70 Days to go

This morning I got up and rode over to Riverwalk, about 5 miles away, to meet with a group of cyclists that were heading out for a ride. I left the house at 5:30 to meet them by 6am. As I was cycling over to the meeting point, the cresent moon had wispy clouds all around it with one bright and shining star in the sky. It was beautiful.

When I got to Riverwalk, there were 3 other cyclists, all with very nice road bikes. I love my bike but it is a mountain bike that's come all the way here from Thailand. It's traveled well and is tough but isn't a speed bike like they had. I was worried that I would not be keeping up with them but as we headed down the road, my worries came to nothing. I rode at a 10% faster pace then I normally do. I'm guessing that's just do to having others to pace with. We headed out about 20 kms and then they turned to head back. At that point I kept going, exploring some and when I hit 35 km, turned around. The picture is at the turn around point, out in the countryside.



The total ride ended up being 75 km (45 miles) and I was home at 9:15 am! It was great to get the workout done so early in the day and spend some time with the family. Cindy and I rode on the motorbike this afternoon, visited vegetable stands, and generally just had fun together.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 71 Days to go

A day off! I slept late (5:30 am), drank coffee, had lunch with Cindy, saw Ice Age - Dinosaurs with the boys, had some pizza and going to bed early. It was a great day off and it's going to make the weekend long ride and long run a lot more doable, I expect.

I've been thinking a lot about the fact that I'm at 71 days until the event. It's incredible that it's so close already. That's not much more than 2 months away! Tomorrow morning I'm cycling with a group here in Simpsonville. It's my first time cycling with a group in years, so it's going to be interesting...

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 72 Days to go

 

What a day! Started off with a 5k run, then off to work. After work the afternoon got away from me with an important call and trying on the wetsuit from wetsuitrentals.com

This one fits pretty well, though I might try one size smaller. Tonight after dinner I headed to the pool to try it on. It's wild! You float on top of the water like a bobber and it makes your swimming much faster! I expect the 2000M with the wetsuit on will be under 40 minutes, and just a few days ago that was my dream goal! It was really an interesting feeling gliding through the water so quickly.

Tomorrow I'll write up my review and thoughts about the suit for wetsuitrentals.com. I do have to give them the highest kudos. If you EVER need a wetsuit, or want to try before you buy... they're the ones to contact.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 73 Days to go

The day started with a wonderful walk with my wife. Not intense, just relaxed with fun conversation and great company.

After work I came home and did a 36km bike ride (22 miles). It was a great ride and far more comfortable than my ride last weekend. Typically, cyclist use padded shorts but I find that "tri" shorts, which skip the thick padding are much more comfortable for me. I've ordered a couple from Sierra Trading Post and looking forward to their arrival. Because of the loss of padding, these shorts can be used for all three aspects of the triathlon, swim, bike, and run!

I'm excited about the loop that I've found that comprised the 22 mile trip. It's going to be a regular route I'm thinking.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 74 Days to go

Sprints seem to be the name of the game this week. Today was sprints for my run. I'd walk a bit sprint until my lungs were about to burst, then walk again until I'd gotten out of panic mode and gotten my breath back. This is getting me WAY out of my comfort zone but I definitely see where this will begin the actual progress on my speed. Even with the walking I did a 10 minute mile for one of the miles, which is very fast for me. If I can get to a point where I run the faster speed throughout, I'll be at 8 minute miles or something wild!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 75 Days to go

This morning I did a series of "sprints" in the pool to work on my speed. It was incredibly challenging in a different way than my long swims. My long swims prove to me that I can do it and that it's a surmountable obstacle. The sprints prove a whole different point, that it can be done much faster. When I combined my sprint times over the 1000M, I got a time of 21:40, which is much less than my previous record of 25:12. Now it's just a matter of doing that speed throughout the full 2000M length of the 1/2 Ironman.

It was exciting to see what's possible and that by the time of the event, I could be sub 40 minutes on the 2000M swim. That would be awesome!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 76 Days to go

Today I started out slow, slept in late, cooked breakfast, and headed out to church. After church I headed out on the bike for a long ride. I was originally planning on doing the full 90 km (56 miles) but with limited time before the boys swim team meeting, I got in 73 km (45 miles). It was a great ride but MY GOODNESS, my bum hurt. I've definitely got to get used to hours in the saddle. I did the 45 miles in 3.5 hrs, which isn't a great time but reasonable considering all the hills around here.

I've been getting used to wearing a heartrate monitor. For me, if I stay between 130 and 140, I'm good. If I'm over 140, I start overheating and move into pain. Under 130 and I don't feel like I'm working hard enough. It's really helpful to have the heartrate monitor to give feedback.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 77 Days to go

Today my knee was still hurting and I was really discouraged. I had work this morning then swim meet with the boys in the early afternoon. It was 3 o'clock before I was home and ready to go exercise. I got on the bike and started up the street and turned around. Too much knee pain and that wasn't going to work. I drove on to the gym and on the way out, Cindy said "Knock out 2000M!" I went thinking of doing 1000M or maybe 2000M. During the swim to 2000M, I realized I was feeling good and could do more. Decided then I would do 3000M or maybe even 4000M, which is an Ironman distance. I kept going and finished 4000M (2.5 miles) in 1 hour 43 minutes and 27 seconds. It's the first time I've done a full Ironman distance in the swim, bike, or run and I felt good. I could have gotten on the bike (if my knee didn't hurt). My training friend Ann is going to tell me about a new therapy she's been getting on her knee which has helped a lot.

I'm just proud of taking a frustrating day and turning it into a positive. If you've kept up with these, you may notice that there's no P90X today. I'm coming to the realization that, as wonderful as P90X is and has worked for me, the triathlon workouts need to come first. I'm thinking I'll pick back up on P90X week 6 when my triathlon is finished in September.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 78 Days to go

wetsuitrentals.com sent out two wetsuits for me to try out today. It's going to be great to get them. If I have them by next Wednesday, I'm going to head out to the open water swim at Clemson to try them out.

Today I did an hour of legs and back P90X. I'm having knee problems this afternoon and am going to nurse it with some ibuprofen, ice, and drink lots of water. Hopefully it will be better tomorrow for some swimming or biking. I'm postponing a run that I'd scheduled for tomorrow morning. It's funny, yesterday afternoon, while I was running, I was thinking that my knees weren't giving me problems anymore... Oh well.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 79 Days to go

I've been wanting to get a wetsuit in enough time to practice in it before the Ironman Augusta 70.3 event. The problem is that I'm taller than most suits allow and weigh more also. I'm still a big guy and most triathlon wetsuits are not made for guys my size. In my search for a wetsuit that would work, I contacted wetsuitrentals.com about my dilemma, sent some pictures and measurements, and hoped for the best. I was very happy when Kristina contacted me and said they just got a new suit in that might work and she would check on it. Later she emailed and said that they'd love me to test the suit for them and would rent it to me for the practice time and event for just the single rental fee. I'm going to help them determine the proper sizing for a guy my height/weight and blog about the experience.

I've got to tell you, I am totally blown away by their personal attention to my search and their care and concern for triathletes everywhere. They've been searching longer and harder for a suit that would work because they HATE turning away customers who are changing their lives and getting healthy. How cool is that! A company that cares deeply about their customer base...

Workout today went well. Did 1.5 hrs of P90X Yoga this morning and an hour of running after work. I did NOT want to do any more exercise this afternoon but went and changed into my workout clothes. Once that happened, I was out the door. If you ever don't feel like working out, at least change into your workout clothes. Once you do that, somehow, you're committed!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 80 Days to go

80 Days! You can travel around the world in 80 days, or train for a 1/2 Ironman. Both are pretty cool. Today I did the P90X Biceps and Back. It was a tough workout and my arms were pretty wiped. I wanted to swim right afterwards but the pool was PACKED at 6 am, so I came home, had a great cup of coffee and headed to the pool after work. I'm working on technique using a book called Total Immersion. I swam 1000M but slowly and working on form. The second 500 M was 12 minutes which would lead to a faster time. It's something that's going to take awhile to master but I'm really pleased with my improvements.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 81 Days to go

Time keeps flying by. 81 days to go! Today I did P90X Plyometrics which were awesome and sweat was pouring off me. My workout friend slipped on all his sweat and ended up "smack" on the floor. After work I went for some cycling and got a workout in two events, cycling and tire changing. I was able to change not only one, but two tires today (one was the flat from the other day). I'm MUCH more proficient at tire changing than I was last Saturday. That could be an important skill, as you don't want to spend 100+ days training for a race and get knocked out by a flat tire.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 82 Days to go

Woke up this morning feeling sick. I had slept poorly and was tired, but worse than that I had nausea and diarrhea. Not a great way to start the day, so I did what I can't remember doing in years... called in sick.

I finally got out of bed at 2 pm feeling moderately human. I kept wanting to go swim or do my P90X or SOMETHING... but decided that a full day off was what the doctor ordered. My stomach problems seem to have sorted itself out and I got some great reading done today. I'm proud of myself for carving out some time that I needed to heal. Usually I'm the guy that pushes through it all.

Tomorrow is P90X in the morning and then we'll see from there. Ideally, I'd like to do at least one extra workout.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 83 Days to go

Started off the day with 90 minutes of P90X Yoga and that's all I got done. Sunday... day of rest... visitors... meal for 13... All came together to guarantee a lighter workout day. It was really nice though and we had a great dinner with friends. Tomorrow it's back to multi-workouts.

On another note, the other day I was at the SportsClub and saw Paul Tedder. He let me share his lane in the pool and I just wanted to give him a big shoutout. Paul just finished his first triathlon and already has his eyes set on the next one!

Here's a link to his page about the triathlon: http://paultedder.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-first-sprint-triathlon-blow-by-blow.html

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 84 Days to go

Started off the day with P90X Core Synergistics. YOW! I was sweating all over the living room floor... I gotta get a yoga mat to act as a barrier between me and the floor when I'm doing that at home. Cindy and I then went out for a great bike ride. I went 20km and she went 25km because I got a flat and then promptly blew out the spare because I'd never changed a tire on the road before. I'd bought one of those CO2 cartridges thinking of how handy and small it is. Problem is that it was hard to control, I didn't have the tube properly seated, and it blew it out.

My daughter Emily came to my rescue and we ended up arriving back home as Cindy pulled into the driveway. Tonight after dinner I went swimming with the boys and did 500M while they played. Then I played too, jumping off the diving board while trying to hold onto a spiderman ball. Great core workout as well and fun!

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 85 Days to go

Tomorrow is the close of registration for the Ironman Augusta 70.3. I checked yesterday and as of July 1st, I'll be racing against 3100+ other competitors. They were originally going to close registration at 2000, which I'm glad they didn't because I joined in at the 2400 mark, or so. It's hard to imagine a triathlon with over 3000 participants. The logistics have got to be incredible!

Today I had a great series of workouts. It was a day off work for the 4th of July Holiday weekend, so lots of time. Started off the day with a 1 hr walk with Cindy around Simpsonville Park several times. It was great getting out with her and tomorrow we're going to cycle together. Then after breakfast and an episode of "I survived a Japanese Gameshow", I did the P90X stretch with Cindy. It was WONDERFUL to spend an hour just working on flexibility and stretching. After lunch and some rest, I rode 10K to the gym and put in a 1000M swim. I hit a new record time of 25:12, which is pretty sweet. It keeps dropping. Unfortunately, I strained my left hamstring and the bike ride home was a bit slowed.

I'm very excited about the Ironman Augusta 70.3. I'm having a hard time imagining all the changes I'm going to see after another 85 days of training. I'm down about 12 lbs so far and firming up quite a bit. Tonight is date night with Cindy, which is going to be great. She's an amazing lady and I really appreciate the support and encouragement that she gives me in my training and goals.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 86 Days to go

Started the day with 4 miles of sprint/walk sprint/jog as my workout. It was really good and challenging. Mile 3 I did a 10 minute mile pace, which I was quite psyched about. Took a break from P90X today and going to use this as my rest day this week. Normally my break day is Sunday, but I'll do P90X through Sunday this week and be caught up on Monday. It was a light day today but good... The run was great.

Tomorrow is a day off work and I'm excited about spending some time exercising and spending time with the family.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 - 87 Days to go

Remember that old ad "Sometimes you feel like a nut... sometimes you don't"? Well, sometimes you feel motivated to workout and sometimes you don't. I did not feel the vibe today and almost took the day off after my P90X workout this morning (which ended 15 minutes short due to technical difficulties).

Instead, I peeled myself off the couch and away from the computer and headed for the sports club. THEN, I had to drive back home because I forgot my goggles. Went back to the sports club, put on my swimsuit and jumped in. I thought... I'll just knock out as many laps as I feel like, maybe stop at 500M. Well, within a couple of laps I'm starting to feel stronger, then the impulse to consider stroke and improve my timing, then 500M had arrived and I wasn't about to stop. I did 1000M today and hit a new record of 25:58. Isn't that ironic? Then I weighed on my way back into the locker room and I had to adjust the scale down several pounds from where I thought I'd be. At the lowest weight since I started P90X and training for the Ironman Augusta 70.3.

I believe that when you do those workouts you really don't wanna do, that's where character is built. You need that more than the muscles! It's character that helps you stick with a program. It's character that helps you pick yourself up when life deals you a tough blow.

I'm really happy that I got in the car and headed for the swimming pool, twice. It was worth the trip both times!