I'm just a few short days away from my first ever triathlon. I've never raced in a swimming event nor a biking event, let alone try all three at once. This oughta be interesting! As with most new triathletes, I have my fair share of doubts swirling around in my head. Am I prepared? Did I train enough? Will I remain calm in the water? Etc, etc. I guess all I can hope for is to finish and to finish in one piece. I also can look back at the last 7 months and see that I've biked nearly 850 miles, ran 350, and swam over 60,000 yds.
My overall July numbers were a bit down because of vacation and a minor hip injury in the middle of the month. I was on pace to better June (my best month to date), but I'm not going to complain with how things turned out. My personal goal of averaging 1 hour a day of training was not met either. No bike rides the 2nd half of the month will do that. Stats for July:
Swim: 11,600 yds; 4' 56"
Bike: 114.73 mi; 6' 23"
Run: 77.57 mi.; 10' 29"
Weight (8/2/10): 155# (down from 183.5# on 1/5/10)
I'll write up a race report (hopefully a happy, successful one!) next week. It'll be nice to see the many supporters out on the course and to catch up with others that I have not seen in awhile. By noon on Saturday, I just may be able to call myself a triathlete. We'll see.
It's go time.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
First OWS and Other Lessons Learned
I'm now less than 4 weeks away from my first ever triathlon! My training continues to be really good and I'm already on pace to train more in all 3 sports than I did in June - my best month to date. My weight also continues to drop but not by much. I honestly don't intend to lose anymore; it just happens with tri training.
A lot has happened since my last post. I had a very enjoyable 4th of July weekend with friends and family. Owen had his first experience with fireworks and was excited to see them. We're blessed to have a beautiful home and yard to share with others. It's also nice to have fireworks literally in our backyard so we don't have to deal with traffic!
On Saturday, July 3rd, I did my first legitimate Brick (Bike/Run) workout. I didn't plan it ahead of time so my transition from bike to run was a little slow. My run wasn't very long (just under two miles) but my pace was good: 6:43/mile. Legs felt awkward after the bike but got into running mode after about 3 min.
The heat and humidity around here has been pretty brutal. Tuesday (6th) the a/c in the office wasn't working so the boss let us go home a little early. I took the opportunity to do a long run. Note to self: do not eat a fiber bar 60 min. before a long run on a hot day. It was a very unpleasant run. 'Nuff said.
Saturday, Amanda and I were invited to go boating at the reservoir with some friends. It was a beautiful day and I was excited to get an opportunity to do some open water swimming (OWS). They would 'park' the boat a little ways from shore and I would swim to the shore, take a breather, and then swim back to the boat. It was quite the experience and change from pool swimming. The water was choppy, dirty and dark. I had my massive swim trunks on as well so that didn't help. All in all, I was happy with the chance to do it. I hope to get out to Quaker Lake and do some more OWS before the race.
A lot has happened since my last post. I had a very enjoyable 4th of July weekend with friends and family. Owen had his first experience with fireworks and was excited to see them. We're blessed to have a beautiful home and yard to share with others. It's also nice to have fireworks literally in our backyard so we don't have to deal with traffic!
On Saturday, July 3rd, I did my first legitimate Brick (Bike/Run) workout. I didn't plan it ahead of time so my transition from bike to run was a little slow. My run wasn't very long (just under two miles) but my pace was good: 6:43/mile. Legs felt awkward after the bike but got into running mode after about 3 min.
The heat and humidity around here has been pretty brutal. Tuesday (6th) the a/c in the office wasn't working so the boss let us go home a little early. I took the opportunity to do a long run. Note to self: do not eat a fiber bar 60 min. before a long run on a hot day. It was a very unpleasant run. 'Nuff said.
Saturday, Amanda and I were invited to go boating at the reservoir with some friends. It was a beautiful day and I was excited to get an opportunity to do some open water swimming (OWS). They would 'park' the boat a little ways from shore and I would swim to the shore, take a breather, and then swim back to the boat. It was quite the experience and change from pool swimming. The water was choppy, dirty and dark. I had my massive swim trunks on as well so that didn't help. All in all, I was happy with the chance to do it. I hope to get out to Quaker Lake and do some more OWS before the race.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
2010 so far
It's really hard to believe that 2010 is now at its halfway point. We've had some happy times (Evan's 1st birthday) and some sad (Amanda's grandpa passing). Evan still isn't sleeping through the night and we finally started training Owen to use the potty. (He's doing fairly well I must say) I guess one of the biggest changes for me was the decision I made back on 12/31/09 to run that race on 1/1/10.
It was NYE and a handful of people at the family party we attended were planning on running or walking the 5k race the next day. I decided - what the heck - and signed up and ran. Slow! For not running a step in months, or training consistently for years, I guess it wasn't too bad. However, it was not what I was used to after running in high school and college and a little beyond. Thus began my journey.
Now I must say that my 'journey' has not been all on my own. Naturally, my family is affected in some ways by my new found obsession. I try my best to let it not interfere, but sometimes it just does. Thankfully I have a wife who has been supportive and probably regretting the Christmas gifts she gave me last December: gym shorts, Ipod, and 1 month membership to the YMCA. One month has now turned into indefinitely.
I've kept a pretty good log over the last six months of my activity and I'd like to share it with you. I'll probably update you monthly as a way of holding myself accountable. This will be a good point to show you my half year totals as well.
June 2010: Swim 13,750 yds; 7 hrs 17 min.
Bike 217.57 miles; 12hrs 36 min.
Run 65.78 miles; 8 hrs 32 min.
2010 to date: Swim 46,250 yds; 30 hrs 22 min.
Bike 682.64 miles; 42 hrs
Run 259.97 miles; 36 hrs 29 min.
Considering I did nothing last year - or the 7 years prior - I'm pretty happy with this. It's pretty amazing to look back and see all that has been done. June was my best month in all three sports. The weather has been great for training and I'm still able to get to the pool at least twice a week by 6am. I've set some short term goals and I've already set some goals for next January - June as I train for the Half Ironman in 9/2011. Perhaps the biggest stat of all is this:
Weight 1/1/2010: 183.5#
Weight 6/29/2010: 161.0#
Only downside to the weight loss is the suit I got for Christmas two years ago no longer fits. And I have to wear a belt with everything.
I'm now 5 weeks away from my first ever triathlon. If I'm able to finish it, I'll be able to move the tassle to the other side of my cap and call myself a triathlete. I'm sure as July goes on and I think about the race, my nerves will start to kick in. There's still so much to practice and learn: run off the bike, transitions, open water swimming (yikes!).
"Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure."
Here goes....
It was NYE and a handful of people at the family party we attended were planning on running or walking the 5k race the next day. I decided - what the heck - and signed up and ran. Slow! For not running a step in months, or training consistently for years, I guess it wasn't too bad. However, it was not what I was used to after running in high school and college and a little beyond. Thus began my journey.
Now I must say that my 'journey' has not been all on my own. Naturally, my family is affected in some ways by my new found obsession. I try my best to let it not interfere, but sometimes it just does. Thankfully I have a wife who has been supportive and probably regretting the Christmas gifts she gave me last December: gym shorts, Ipod, and 1 month membership to the YMCA. One month has now turned into indefinitely.
I've kept a pretty good log over the last six months of my activity and I'd like to share it with you. I'll probably update you monthly as a way of holding myself accountable. This will be a good point to show you my half year totals as well.
June 2010: Swim 13,750 yds; 7 hrs 17 min.
Bike 217.57 miles; 12hrs 36 min.
Run 65.78 miles; 8 hrs 32 min.
2010 to date: Swim 46,250 yds; 30 hrs 22 min.
Bike 682.64 miles; 42 hrs
Run 259.97 miles; 36 hrs 29 min.
Considering I did nothing last year - or the 7 years prior - I'm pretty happy with this. It's pretty amazing to look back and see all that has been done. June was my best month in all three sports. The weather has been great for training and I'm still able to get to the pool at least twice a week by 6am. I've set some short term goals and I've already set some goals for next January - June as I train for the Half Ironman in 9/2011. Perhaps the biggest stat of all is this:
Weight 1/1/2010: 183.5#
Weight 6/29/2010: 161.0#
Only downside to the weight loss is the suit I got for Christmas two years ago no longer fits. And I have to wear a belt with everything.
I'm now 5 weeks away from my first ever triathlon. If I'm able to finish it, I'll be able to move the tassle to the other side of my cap and call myself a triathlete. I'm sure as July goes on and I think about the race, my nerves will start to kick in. There's still so much to practice and learn: run off the bike, transitions, open water swimming (yikes!).
"Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure."
Here goes....
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Training Update and Rumble Strips
Hey there. Well, some know that I'm training for a sprint triathlon in August. This will include a 300 yd swim, 15 mile bike and 5k run. Some may find this quite crazy as I only began swimming in January and biking in March. Gotta start somewhere! I've set a long range goal of completing the Half Ironman in Syracuse, NY in September 2011 - hence my blog title. I look at all of my training as a build-up for that one event.
Swimming: I have no form and I am not fast, but I am light years from where I was on 1/26/10. I could not breathe and could not make 25 yds without gasping for air. Thankfully, I could touch the bottom of the pool (even as short as I am) or doggy paddle back to the side. I at least kept the lifeguards awake at 6am with the show I was putting on. I credit swimming to dropping nearly 25# since 1/1.
Biking: Of course I've had a bike in my lifetime, but I've never used it as a training device. I must say I've really enjoyed riding over the last few months and could see biking as something I could do more of if my legs don't hold up to running which is good possibility. I still have a lot to learn on the bike like drafting, cadence, maintenance and repair. It will come in time.
With the nice weather, I've spent my time biking out on the roads of rural McKean County. I must say that there is nothing more annoying and dangerous to cyclists than the white line/berm rumble strips. I understand their purpose for motorists, but they are a cyclists' nightmare. Just last week there was a horrific accident involving a cyclist (training for this summer's triathlon in fact) and motorist. I've traveled this road many times and can't shake the feeling that she had to ride in the road to avoid the rumble strips. The motorist clipped the rider with the side mirror and the result was an unresponsive rider with a fractured skull. I found this bit of information on the Federal Highway Adminstration website (http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/roadway_dept/policy_guide/t504035.cfm):
"Rumble strips or raised pavement markers are not recommended where shoulders are used by bicyclists unless there is a minimum clear path of 0.3 m (1 ft) from the rumble strip to the traveled way, 1.2 m (4 ft) from the rumble strip to the outside edge of paved shoulder, or 1.5 m (5 ft) to adjacent guardrail, curb or other obstacle."
There may be 12 inches from rumble strip to outside edge of paved shoulder and in some places it's much less than that. I have not heard how the cyclist is doing today, but please keep Amy in your thoughts and prayers.
In just over a week the first half of 2010 will be over. Hard to believe. I will post my training totals for you all to see because I know you care. Your encouragement is welcomed. Your comments are welcomed. Thanks for stopping by and we'll talk to you soon.
- Steve
Swimming: I have no form and I am not fast, but I am light years from where I was on 1/26/10. I could not breathe and could not make 25 yds without gasping for air. Thankfully, I could touch the bottom of the pool (even as short as I am) or doggy paddle back to the side. I at least kept the lifeguards awake at 6am with the show I was putting on. I credit swimming to dropping nearly 25# since 1/1.
Biking: Of course I've had a bike in my lifetime, but I've never used it as a training device. I must say I've really enjoyed riding over the last few months and could see biking as something I could do more of if my legs don't hold up to running which is good possibility. I still have a lot to learn on the bike like drafting, cadence, maintenance and repair. It will come in time.
With the nice weather, I've spent my time biking out on the roads of rural McKean County. I must say that there is nothing more annoying and dangerous to cyclists than the white line/berm rumble strips. I understand their purpose for motorists, but they are a cyclists' nightmare. Just last week there was a horrific accident involving a cyclist (training for this summer's triathlon in fact) and motorist. I've traveled this road many times and can't shake the feeling that she had to ride in the road to avoid the rumble strips. The motorist clipped the rider with the side mirror and the result was an unresponsive rider with a fractured skull. I found this bit of information on the Federal Highway Adminstration website (http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/roadway_dept/policy_guide/t504035.cfm):
"Rumble strips or raised pavement markers are not recommended where shoulders are used by bicyclists unless there is a minimum clear path of 0.3 m (1 ft) from the rumble strip to the traveled way, 1.2 m (4 ft) from the rumble strip to the outside edge of paved shoulder, or 1.5 m (5 ft) to adjacent guardrail, curb or other obstacle."
There may be 12 inches from rumble strip to outside edge of paved shoulder and in some places it's much less than that. I have not heard how the cyclist is doing today, but please keep Amy in your thoughts and prayers.
In just over a week the first half of 2010 will be over. Hard to believe. I will post my training totals for you all to see because I know you care. Your encouragement is welcomed. Your comments are welcomed. Thanks for stopping by and we'll talk to you soon.
- Steve
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Blog
Well, I guess I'll give this blogging thing a try. It'll be a way for me to report on all of the things happening in life. Family, work, training....potty training. Not sure any of 'you' will care to read what I have to say. I'm not the best of writers and usually stick to the point so this may be fairly bland. I don't know, maybe I'll surprise myself and make this blog space my chance to be creative and let it all hang out. We'll see.
Thanks for sticking around and your comments are always welcome.
Steve
Thanks for sticking around and your comments are always welcome.
Steve
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
