Two days training

With IMLou fast approaching (13 weeks!), it's time to get a bit more focused with training. From now until that race, I'll likely be updating the blog more often and including summaries of my daily training. If you like numbers and are curious to see what type of training it takes to be toward the front of the amateur group at an IM, you may find this interesting. Otherwise, it'll mostly be boring.

My goal is to go under 9 hours, assuming good weather. Last year's weather at IMLou was ideal, so that will be tough to top. Still, I think if conditions are good and I continue to make progress, sub 9 hours is a realistic goal. Potentially the biggest obstacle for me is ensuring I can get enough training time in over the summer. In the past I've been able do 20+ hour weeks in my IM build ups, but I might not be able to do that this summer. We'll see...

May 26
(1) 1:30 run w/ 70 minutes at 145 bpm
With that introduction now behind us, on Wed. I did a 1:30 run around Wash Park. I selected Wash Park because the goal was to use a repeatable route, and it's (1) not too far from my apt., (2) dirt surfaced, (3) not completely flat (though some bigger hills would be appreciated), and (4) stocked with porta-pots, drinking fountains, etc.

The "meat" of the workout was 70 minutes at 145 bpm. I made it about three and a half 2.6 mile loops. Here's the stats:
Loop 1: 19:44; 7:41/mile; 146 bpm
Loop 2: 20:06; 7:53/mile; 147 bpm
Loop 3: 20:31; 7:60/mile (yes, that's what Garmin says); 147 bpm
Loop 4: 10:01; 8:19/mile; 148 bpm

The weather was great -- high 70s and overcast with a very brief thunder storm with a bit of hail. Perceived exertion was low, maybe 6 out of 10. I have trouble slowing down to 145 bpm. My tendancy is to run at 150 bpm or so, as that pace is easy yet natural feeling. I've got to watch it up hills, as that's where my HR pops up. I cannot maintain my stride, and instead must consciously drop the pace a notch to keep the HR down when heading uphill.

(2) 1 hour spin
No data. Just an hour easy. I rode at night and it was fun, even though my headlight was dead from the get go. There were lots of other riders out, which is great to see. My pictures turned out very poorly:




(The pictures make it look darker than it really was. Don't worry, mom, I could see fine and was not in any danger.)

May 27
(1) 2 hour spin w/ Tabata sprints and 6 x 1 min one-leg drills (per leg)
It was very hot here -- 100 degrees according to my computer. Here's the stats for the Tabata sprints:
500 W
438 W
418 W
432 W
437 W
517 W (computer froze after the prior effort; I took a minute or two break to reset it)
396 W
408 W
374 W (d'oh! one too many)

I think in the future I'll stick to the trainer for these, unless I am in Boulder and can do the whole set uphill. It's too difficult to get in a good sprint on level ground on a tri bike because of location of the shifters. Plus inside I can work a bit harder without worrying about crashing. My wattage isn't good for this set (compared to this random set performed inside last year).

(2) 1 hour swim (~3000 hards)
Pull focused swim. 1500y of pulling. I focused on keeping my head down and rotating my hand relative to my elbow the entire stroke, as that is the sensation required for me to avoid pulled backward with my elbow when my hand isn't yet vertical.

I felt best when I did a very deep pull -- I tried to push my hand nearly straight down in front of me, windmill style. I'll try to get some video of this so I can ensure that my stroke is okay when I do this. I have a bit of a bent elbow at the beginning to try to get an okay catch.

Oh, and I worked on keeping my head down and feeling my bum and heels out of the water. That's the feeling I'll keep in mind for body positioning.