The key word for the day is PAIN! My legs are screaming! Computrainer this morning was freakin hard...the kind of black out, puke up your cereal, see stars, light-headed kind of pain that I had. It's wierd though, because I felt that pain through the first set and a half...and then I settled in. Here was the set:
15 minute warm up
2 x through the following with a 5 minute break in the middle:
10 x
30 seconds @ 150% (450 watts)
1 minute recovery
Cool Down
I had seen the workout yesterday, and for some reason on paper it didn't look that tough, must have been a mental lapse on my part I guess...those things can happen. I discovered that if I spun up with a higher cadence, and then kept that cadence high it was easier to keep the power high. It was more taxing on my heart and lungs, although they can handle it much better than my muscles can. It was great to have an effort like that today, so thanks Ron!
Yesterday I went out for a run when I got home. It was beautiful outside, sunny, 50's, dry...as good as it gets in March. So the dogs and I headed out, I felt great! We ended up running 7 miles at a 6:35 pace, and the cool thing is that I could have gone harder! This seemed easy. Funny thing though is that Roxy decided to jump up on the grass to run behind Winther at some point...well Winther was kicking up a steady spray of water...so Roxy was getting blasted in the face from the mud Winther was kicking up. I wish I would have had a camera on the run to take a picture of it. She also doesn't like to run that far, and it's no secret to me! At about the 5 mile mark she has had enough and starts to lag behind, where Winther decides that's time to push the pace...yea he's not right in the head, kind of like his owner. I also had an easy spin on the trainer last night, it was good to get the legs going, and lucky for me there was a hockey game on...not the Blackhawks but hockey none the less. I ran across this quote in one of the books I just finished, "He who suffers, remembers." I forget the book, but I like it...and thought of it this morning as I was suffering.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Goals and Structure
I find that I work well when I am working towards a goal. I also work well on a schedule, and I have realized what is too much (my body has told me that), and I realize what is too little (my mind has helped me there). So I have a new plan that I'm going to try to follow. My base is very solid right now, so I'm happy with that. Coaching starts today, so I need to be more useful with the time that I have, and in saying that I have a pretty good idea of the schedule that I want to keep which will have a nice mix of intensity/volume/recovery.
The weather has been getting a bit warmer, which I'm pumped about! I have done all of my running in March so far in shorts. At times during my runs I have hit some pretty quick paces as well, and the nice thing is that I feel as if I can hold that pace for longer than what I am. Since it's March and I race for the first time in a little over 2 months it's time to start hitting up the speed work. Once a week should suffice. And also seeing as that first race is Galena some hill work should be in order as well. I will probably need to drive to get to the hills that I want to run, but I am thinking that what I might do is to just tack on some hill work at the end of some runs I do on Fridays.
I picked up the Vibram Five Fingers yesterday, so I'm going to have to start breaking my feet in slowly. Probably 10 minutes a day for 2 weeks, then 15 minutes for 2 weeks, and so on and so forth. They feel pretty cool, and I would probably rock them around town if I wasn't concerned that people may try to convince me to admit myself to the crazy ward. Oh well, most people already know I'm nuts...at least the people who read this know that.
The weather has been getting a bit warmer, which I'm pumped about! I have done all of my running in March so far in shorts. At times during my runs I have hit some pretty quick paces as well, and the nice thing is that I feel as if I can hold that pace for longer than what I am. Since it's March and I race for the first time in a little over 2 months it's time to start hitting up the speed work. Once a week should suffice. And also seeing as that first race is Galena some hill work should be in order as well. I will probably need to drive to get to the hills that I want to run, but I am thinking that what I might do is to just tack on some hill work at the end of some runs I do on Fridays.
I picked up the Vibram Five Fingers yesterday, so I'm going to have to start breaking my feet in slowly. Probably 10 minutes a day for 2 weeks, then 15 minutes for 2 weeks, and so on and so forth. They feel pretty cool, and I would probably rock them around town if I wasn't concerned that people may try to convince me to admit myself to the crazy ward. Oh well, most people already know I'm nuts...at least the people who read this know that.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Team Speed aka Winther
Yesterday was awesome! The sun was out, it was around 40 degrees, and did I mention that the sun was out? I led class at Endure It once again early yesterday morning, and the crew had a tough set to complete!
Warm Up
Main Set:
4 x 9 minutes as follows:
1' @ 80%
1' @ 90%
4' @ AT
1' @ 110%
2' @ 70%
Cool Down
I am proud because I actually used my brain and decided it would be better for me to ride at a tempo pace yesterday as opposed to doing the workout. I rode hard on Tuesday morning, so I just stayed in the 80%-85% range for the duration of the time yesterday as I tried to encourage everyone to hit their numbers. Everyone really did a great job...it was a tough workout!!
Since it was so nice out yesterday I decided to run home from school, get the dogs, and run back to pick up the car. I hammered the run, didn't mean to, but it was nice out, I had shorts on and Winther decided to race a freight train from Clarendon Hills to Hinsdale. So Roxy and I were along for the ride. He took us through about a mile and a half at a ridiculously fast pace, but the good thing is that I felt good throughout! I felt like I was running a tempo pace, and I had more left in the tank to go faster. I'm going to have to keep this up for sure, I think a combination of things are helping this...consistency, proper recovery (thanks Zensah), rolling on the Grid from TP Therapy, and nutrition! I've been solid with my nutrition.
Anyway if you want an awesome tempo run let me know, maybe I'll let you borrow my coach...Winther...who sets a wicked pace!
This morning we had a good class at Endure It! I rode hard once again, and on paper it looked a lot harder than what it felt. Here was the set:
Warm Up
Main Set:
4 x 10 minutes as follows:
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
2' RI
Cool Down
I was over 110% for the duration of the workout, maybe my body is ready to jump up in numbers again...who knows.
I am getting a free Vitamin D test today, thanks to Brian Keating! I'm thinking I'm alright with where my levels are, but I'll also get a free Vitamin D supplement from USANA, which Keating says is just awesome. I'll give it a try to see what the results are. I have a quick 5 miles to do after getting tested and before swimming tonight. Masters could be interesting!
Warm Up
Main Set:
4 x 9 minutes as follows:
1' @ 80%
1' @ 90%
4' @ AT
1' @ 110%
2' @ 70%
Cool Down
I am proud because I actually used my brain and decided it would be better for me to ride at a tempo pace yesterday as opposed to doing the workout. I rode hard on Tuesday morning, so I just stayed in the 80%-85% range for the duration of the time yesterday as I tried to encourage everyone to hit their numbers. Everyone really did a great job...it was a tough workout!!
Since it was so nice out yesterday I decided to run home from school, get the dogs, and run back to pick up the car. I hammered the run, didn't mean to, but it was nice out, I had shorts on and Winther decided to race a freight train from Clarendon Hills to Hinsdale. So Roxy and I were along for the ride. He took us through about a mile and a half at a ridiculously fast pace, but the good thing is that I felt good throughout! I felt like I was running a tempo pace, and I had more left in the tank to go faster. I'm going to have to keep this up for sure, I think a combination of things are helping this...consistency, proper recovery (thanks Zensah), rolling on the Grid from TP Therapy, and nutrition! I've been solid with my nutrition.
Anyway if you want an awesome tempo run let me know, maybe I'll let you borrow my coach...Winther...who sets a wicked pace!
This morning we had a good class at Endure It! I rode hard once again, and on paper it looked a lot harder than what it felt. Here was the set:
Warm Up
Main Set:
4 x 10 minutes as follows:
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
45 sec RI
1' @ 110%
2' RI
Cool Down
I was over 110% for the duration of the workout, maybe my body is ready to jump up in numbers again...who knows.
I am getting a free Vitamin D test today, thanks to Brian Keating! I'm thinking I'm alright with where my levels are, but I'll also get a free Vitamin D supplement from USANA, which Keating says is just awesome. I'll give it a try to see what the results are. I have a quick 5 miles to do after getting tested and before swimming tonight. Masters could be interesting!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Staying Fresh...
...well I'm open to suggestions on how to feel fresh. Here is what I've been doing so far: compression gear from Zensah, staying hydrated with water and GU Brew, rolling on my "Grid" from Trigger Point Therapy, eating clean and organic (that's been going well), sleep (I need to work on that a bit), "refueling" immediately after workouts with either organic chocolate soy milk, GU Brew Recovery (which is awesome!), or a whey protein smoothie, which is then quickly followed up with a meal when I get home, or to school (depending on the time of my workout). I do need to take more ice baths...but as you can imagine it's not the easiest thing to talk yourself into! I have some gift cards to get a massage, which I need to use once or twice a month. What other ideas do you have? I feel like I'm hitting pretty much everything...and I even took Sunday off of training.
Since I had taken Sunday off I felt great yesterday! Not that I felt bad before that, but it was a good time for a day off and I'm glad I did. I finished February with some solid totals and I'm happy with that. I started March off with an hour and a half on the trainer and 4200 yards in the pool, oh yea and I hit the weights again! I'm going to be in the weight room 3 times per week from here out. I know this will pay off in the long run and I love the way I feel when I'm done. At masters last night the coach had us swim a "timed" mile. Since I was swimming with Daryl and Todd (and we're all triathletes) she let us "paceline" for the mile where we each pulled 200 yards hard and then drafted the rest of the time. The draft helped, but we only came in 10 seconds faster at the 1000 checkpoint than what I could swim on my own, and honestly the time fell off a bit from there. We ended up swimming a 24:45 for 1650 yards, which ends up being a 1:30 pace. I'm alright with this right now, but I do want to improve upon it! I want to be in the low 1:20's by July, that's going to mean a lot of swimming between now and then!
Due to the time we swam there I did come up with a new goal for my half ironman swim time. I want to break 29:59 for the swim portion of the race. I figure by putting it out there someone here (probably Hillard and Chad) will taunt me until I hit that time.
This morning I was lucky enough to lead the computrainer class at Endure It because most of the crew is out in California for a training camp in Solvang. I'm jealous, but seeing as I can't leave for a week during this time of the year I'll have to have my own "training camp" here in Chicago. We had a motivated crew this morning, and had a nice workout:
Warm Up
Main Set:
5' @ 80%
2' @ 70%
4' @ 90%
1' @ 70%
3' @ AT
1' @ 70%
1' @ 110%
1' @ 70%
3' @ AT
1' @ 70%
4' @ 90%
2' @ 70%
5' @ 80%
Cool Down
The workout was solid, and rolling on the Trigger Point Therapy Grid after did wonders for my legs! Tomorrow's workout is going to be brutal. I'll try to post it tomorrow, but looking at it on paper...brutal!
Since I had taken Sunday off I felt great yesterday! Not that I felt bad before that, but it was a good time for a day off and I'm glad I did. I finished February with some solid totals and I'm happy with that. I started March off with an hour and a half on the trainer and 4200 yards in the pool, oh yea and I hit the weights again! I'm going to be in the weight room 3 times per week from here out. I know this will pay off in the long run and I love the way I feel when I'm done. At masters last night the coach had us swim a "timed" mile. Since I was swimming with Daryl and Todd (and we're all triathletes) she let us "paceline" for the mile where we each pulled 200 yards hard and then drafted the rest of the time. The draft helped, but we only came in 10 seconds faster at the 1000 checkpoint than what I could swim on my own, and honestly the time fell off a bit from there. We ended up swimming a 24:45 for 1650 yards, which ends up being a 1:30 pace. I'm alright with this right now, but I do want to improve upon it! I want to be in the low 1:20's by July, that's going to mean a lot of swimming between now and then!
Due to the time we swam there I did come up with a new goal for my half ironman swim time. I want to break 29:59 for the swim portion of the race. I figure by putting it out there someone here (probably Hillard and Chad) will taunt me until I hit that time.
This morning I was lucky enough to lead the computrainer class at Endure It because most of the crew is out in California for a training camp in Solvang. I'm jealous, but seeing as I can't leave for a week during this time of the year I'll have to have my own "training camp" here in Chicago. We had a motivated crew this morning, and had a nice workout:
Warm Up
Main Set:
5' @ 80%
2' @ 70%
4' @ 90%
1' @ 70%
3' @ AT
1' @ 70%
1' @ 110%
1' @ 70%
3' @ AT
1' @ 70%
4' @ 90%
2' @ 70%
5' @ 80%
Cool Down
The workout was solid, and rolling on the Trigger Point Therapy Grid after did wonders for my legs! Tomorrow's workout is going to be brutal. I'll try to post it tomorrow, but looking at it on paper...brutal!
Monday, March 1, 2010
Lululemon Tri Clinic Recap & Training Update
I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived at the Lululemon Oak Brook Store last night. On the window the awesome staff had written, "Will you be our new ambassador Rick?" I'm extremely excited to be working with Lululemon, and it was a really cool welcome!
We hosted a Triathlon 101 clinic last night and had a good time doing so. There were some great questions, and I think some people who are very excited about living a more active lifestyle.
On the training front February ended yesterday with my first day off in a long time. I was planning on getting some running in, but started working on things around the house, and before I knew it the hockey game was on. My body was feeling tired and worn down, so I decided to take the day off. I finished the month with over 52,000 yards swimming, over 21 hours biking, and I ran more than 120 miles. That's a solid base that I'm happy with right now. My swimming is coming along nicely, and most importantly I've been consistent with it! In terms of riding my numbers are there, although I don't feel like I'm where I should be. It's wierd because from a power stand point I'm beyond where I was last year, but I still am not satisfied. I'm thinking it's a good thing that I'm not satisfied though...hopefully that will help me to push more! My run is solid, I haven't done any speed work yet, but held a 5:40 pace for about a half of a mile on Saturday after a hard computrainer session. Holding that pace wasn't difficult either, I was just rolling, and didn't realize I was going that fast. I'm going to continue to base build for a couple of more weeks before hitting my first speed session of the year. It's not far off though, and I have to sit down to figure out some times to hit on the track.
March is the month of the bike challenge. This should give my cycling a good kick start, hopefully we'll be able to get outside some this month too!
We hosted a Triathlon 101 clinic last night and had a good time doing so. There were some great questions, and I think some people who are very excited about living a more active lifestyle.
On the training front February ended yesterday with my first day off in a long time. I was planning on getting some running in, but started working on things around the house, and before I knew it the hockey game was on. My body was feeling tired and worn down, so I decided to take the day off. I finished the month with over 52,000 yards swimming, over 21 hours biking, and I ran more than 120 miles. That's a solid base that I'm happy with right now. My swimming is coming along nicely, and most importantly I've been consistent with it! In terms of riding my numbers are there, although I don't feel like I'm where I should be. It's wierd because from a power stand point I'm beyond where I was last year, but I still am not satisfied. I'm thinking it's a good thing that I'm not satisfied though...hopefully that will help me to push more! My run is solid, I haven't done any speed work yet, but held a 5:40 pace for about a half of a mile on Saturday after a hard computrainer session. Holding that pace wasn't difficult either, I was just rolling, and didn't realize I was going that fast. I'm going to continue to base build for a couple of more weeks before hitting my first speed session of the year. It's not far off though, and I have to sit down to figure out some times to hit on the track.
March is the month of the bike challenge. This should give my cycling a good kick start, hopefully we'll be able to get outside some this month too!
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