Pinch me

3 days into my stay in Kona. Have hit Lava Java, rode into Hawi, swam at Dig Me Beach, and enjoyed (?) the heat.






My brother and I outside Hawi




Morning at the Pier



I always have time for my fans...



Gulp


(And made fun of the Europeans!)

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Do these spandex make me look fat?

Got together with some folks from the Boston Triathlon Team for a happy hour on Wednesday. Those that recognized me said I looked gaunt - that I was obviously training well.

Some didn't recognize me I've lost so much weight.

My weight - despite cramming everything into my maul that I can reach - continues to fall. Plummet. Tank worse than the Euro.


On the plus side: not feeling guilty about the ice cream.


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How's it going?

The most common question I get these days is "How's the training going?"

My answer? Better than expected, but not as much as I hoped for.

I was talking to a 2x Kona finisher; he said it's that way for everyone. Life tends to get in the way; the longer-than-expected day at work; family obligations; being absolutely exhausted from the cumulative stress of everything. But the day gets closer, the training is getting done. I look at the charts and graphs of my power output, pacing and such - and there is definite improvement. It is no longer 'if', but 'in what time'.

So how's it going? I'd say pretty well.



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Do I Know You?

Was just starting my brick run today (very fast, with beautiful form, of course) when a truck pulled up next to me and asked if I was the guy training for Hawaii.

Huh?

Having no clue who this guy was, I approached his car, hoping for some candy. Or a Powerbar Gel.

He had seen the article in a local paper had about me going to Kona; he's been twice and wanted to offer any help, information and a training partner. Since I have started this adventure, it has amazed me (though it shouldn't) the people who have offered help - teammates, former pros, bike shop owners, and complete strangers. Just goes to show what a great community and support network triathlon can be.



Photo compliments of finisherpix.com


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Bring It

A few weeks back, my training scheudle included a day of 3.5k swim, 5 hour bike and a brick run. I looked at it and thought my coach was crazy. Tehre was no way I was going to be able to fit that in one day! Maybe a shorter swim or bike, maybe I'd just skip the brick run.

I ended up doing it all, just as prescribed.

Yesterday, same thing. I orginally had a 4k swim and a 5 hour bike planned; he added in a brick run for good measure.

"How am I going to fit this all in?" was my response. Maybe I could cut this corner; shorter swim or bike or......

Wait. I'm getting ready for THE IRONMAN. October 13 is going to go longer than what I did yesterday. But I'll never make it to the finish line if I don't do the hard yards (Kilometers? Miles?) now. It's also giving me time to practice nutrition/hydration, as well as developing the mental strategies for a long day.

Just looked at my schedule - looks like next week I have another day like yesterday. My repsonse?

BRING IT.



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Motivation

The final race instructions from the first Ironman, 1978:

 

"Swim 2.4 miles! Bike 112 miles! Run 26.2 miles! Brag for the rest of your life!” - Navy Commander John Collins

 

 That goes along with the joke of, "How do you tell a triathlete?  You don't; they tell you."

Will finishing Kona give me the opportunity to get a few free beers, tell some tales, and so on?  Sure; it's going to be a great accomplishment.  More than that, though, I hope to raise awareness and a few bucks for La Casa de Fe in Shell, Ecuador.  

When we were in Ecuador, on the edge of the Amazon, we happened upon La Casa de Fe.  We were welcomed in, and I had the most wonderful time just playing with the kids.  Some used me as their personal jungle gym, others just wanted my arm to help them give up their walker for a few minutes and go around the courtyard.  This is an amazing place; Patti Sue, the chief cook and bottle washer, started this orphanage in rural Ecuador several years ago; she currently takes care of 50+ children with no government support.  And with no medical background, she takes care of children with multiple, complex medical conditions that would make most pediatricians nervous; instead of spending their life in a hospital hooked up to machines, these kids are in the fresh air, playing with others, and getting the most out of life.  Her kids know they are loved; they know where their next meal is; they are given an education; they are given a chance when many of them would normally be left to die in the Amazon by their tribe.

Check out the work she does, and help her meet her current needs:

http://lacasadefe.org

I'll be carrying la Casa de Fe in my heart on the hard miles, thinking of that afternoon, and having my legs feel lighter with a smile on my face.

Fantasy Camp

Why Ironman?

"Because marathons have been ruined by people who think it’s fine to walk. Because life is too easy and Everest is too far away" Elizabeth Weil

Like many people, I've always wanted to do Ironman. Not an Ironman, though; just the Ironman. You know, the big one in Kona. The World Championships. But, as a middle-of-the-pack guy, my chance of qualifying for Kona is about as likely as me dunking in the NBA championships. So, I dream, I watch TV coverage, and I keep doing my little sprints and olympics. Life is good.

Oh yeah - and I enter the Ironman Lottery.

And I win.

So, the guy who has never done a tri longer than an Olympic; has run one marathon 15 years ago; last rode a century bike ride during Clinton's presidency (the FIRST term), and who times his OWS with a tide table, is going to Kona.

I equate this to going to Fantasy Camp - you know, where you pay big bucks to go pretend you're a big league ball player, or you drive a race car for a living.

While this has been public knowledge for a while, until I had a lot of logistics in place and I did my validation race (Providence 70.3 a few weeks back), I didn't want to say much. With this all being in place, I'm going to invite everyone along for the ride. For the next 75 days (holy crap - less than 11 weeks!), I'll be keeping everyone updated on my training, my progress, and my general freaking-out. Maybe daily, maybe every-other day, maybe just a few lines. But we are going to have some fun!



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With Adversity Comes - Great Results?

Back in February and March, I had a few kicks-in-the-teeth with my bike.  First was a local indoor time trial, where I was the Lantern Rouge in my heat - by several minutes.  I could blame it on my first time doing an ITT, but whatever the reason, it was a very poor performance.

A few days later, I went out on my road bike and had one of my best rides ever.  Great effort, great MPH average.  Where did THAT come from?

Then a few weeks later, I did a lactate threshold test on the bike.  I had one done last year by the same person, and had great hopes for this year. 

So much for hopes.

My wattage only went up by about 5% from last year - although I should point out, my weight went down by about 10% from last year, so my watts/kg was a huge improvement.

And then I went out a few days alter, and had an even better bike ride han that stellar one after the ITT.

Not sure what happened, or why after these disappointing performances I had great efforts.  But my bike performance has definitely improved since the ITT, and keeps getting better.

Even if I do get lost on my rides.

"I may be lost, but I'm making great time!"

New Treatment for Obesity

This headline (from many sources) this week struck me:

"FDA Panel Backs Approval for Obesity Pill"

Umm.....

The best treatment for obesity is not FDA approved; it's available without a prescription; and it costs you nothing.

IT'S DIET AND EXERICSE, PEOPLE!

Weight loss is actually simple - you can even boil it down to an easy formula:

Calorie Intake < Calorie Expenditure

That's it.  Burn more than you take in.  Sure, a bunch of different ways to do it - exercise more, eat less, eat cleanly, cut out carbs/fats/protein/sweets/milk/soda/you get the idea.  Most people would never need a pill if they just followed the equation above.

But as a friend pointed out, that takes effort and self control; american consumers will never go for it.

40 is the new....Championship Age?

A few (20+) years ago, I remember listening to Jimmy Buffett sing about how he was an over 40 victim of fate - and 40 seemed like it was so far away.

Now I'm 40, and it seems really young!

And look at a few recent examples of how young 40-ish can be:

--  The last 2 guys to win Kona - Macca and Crowie -  were the oldest ever to win (38+).
--  Lance Armstrong takes second in Panama 70.3 at 40 after 20 years away from triathlon.
--  And it's not just the blokes:  Dara Torres won 3 silvers in swimming at 41, and is talking about going back to the olympics in 2012 - at 45 - and Janet Evans at 40 is booked in the Olympic Trials this summer.

And just so you think it's only about 40 - this guy decided at 100 he was going to do something fun - like set a record in cycling http://nyti.ms/xI9jmm

Gives hope for those of us who used to think that 40 was old...

Australia, mate!

Just got back from a few weeks Down Under - going back to where I lived for 3.5 years. It still amazes me how clean the capital cities (Sydney, Adelaide) are. In Sydney, it seemed like there were a lot more bike lanes then when I was last there 7 years ago, and a lot of commuters using them. In Adelaide (where I lived), the cycling culture seems to have really picked up. People of all shapes and sizes, some cruising, some hard core; more bike shops than I recall, too. I wonder if this is an effect of the Tour Down Under becoming more prominent on the Pro Tour.

While I didn't get a chance to bike, I did some running and swimming in; tried to find a tri or running race to jump into, but no luck.

Oh well - I guess sometimes a vacation can be just for fun...


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Australia, Mate!

Just got back from a few weeks Down Under - going back to where I lived for 3.5 years.  It still amazes me how clean the capital cities (Sydney, Adelaide) are.  In Sydney, it seemed like there were a lot more bike lanes then when I was last there 7 years ago, and a lot of commuters using them.  In Adelaide (where I lived), the cycling culture seems to have really picked up.  People of all shapes and sizes, some cruising, some hard core; more bike shops than I recall, too.  I wonder if this is an effect of the Tour Down Under becoming more prominent on the Pro Tour.

While I didn't get a chance to bike, I did some running and swimming in; tried to find a tri or running race to jump into, but no luck.

Oh well - I guess sometimes a vacation can be just for fun...

Feeling Dry?

Like many, I picked up what I'll politely call the stomach bug that's been going around.  One of the joys of working in the ER is I'm exposed to all kinds of yuckiness; despite copious Purell and soap, I do occasionally 'take my work home'.

Gruesome details:  Projectile vomiting for about 5 minutes.

After that, I noticed my heart was POUNDING.  I felt very tachycardic; when I checked, my heart rate was between 90-100.  I laughed to myself - my fast is some other peoples' normal - but it led me to two thoughts.

1.  When you're in decent shape (read: middle of the pack) and your resting heart rate is low 50's, 90 feels miserable when you're sitting there.

2.  I must be borderline dehydrated at any given time.  This isn't good. 

While I try to keep up on my fluids, and I do pretty well before a race, my day-to-day hydration must be suspect.  5 minutes of hurling should not throw me into a dehydration that 2 liters of IV fluid couldn't fix.  I had mutliple signs of dehydration - heart rate, sucken eyes, pale - the diagnosis wasn't in question to anyone who saw me.  How is this affecting my performance and - more importantly - my health?  I've often said that good hydration will fix a lot of bad habits, but what if I'm dehydrated WITH those bad habits?

It really opened my eyes.  Despite attempts to stay hydrated, it stands there with training, rest and nutrition as something I need to keep track of as I am obviously falling behind.  So I'll ask:  how's your hydration?

Off to the water cooler...

If It Was Easy

If it was easy - everyone would do it.

If it was easy - we wouldn't have bumper stickers.

If it was easy - we wouldn't have medals.

If it was easy - no one would be impressed.

If it were easy - we wouldn't be admired.

If it were easy -

If it were easy - we wouldn't celebrate the finish.

How goes the Resolution?

So, we're a week-and-some-change into the new year.  The gym is still busy, but getting better; the health food store looks busy, but not as bad as a week ago.

And for you:  How goes the resolutions?  Still intact?

If not, don't wait another 354 days to start over!  Re-adjust, re-evaluate, and reset the goals!  Don't take it as a failure, take it as an opportunity to learn, make changes in your approach, and then go towards your goals.  Next year, you'll wish you had started today...

And pick out your races!

2012

Vision without action is a daydream; action without vision is a nightmare - Japanese proverb It's now 2012: time to make your dreams into your goals. Write 'em down. Every step needs to be planned out; everything you do needs to be in the direction of achieving your goal. There will be setbacks. It happens to everyone. Accept them as they come, learn from them, then forget the setbacks and move on. And start today. Waiting until tomorrow is a day that is lost. Happy New Year!


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