Plans for the 2011 Event Season

And now for a momentary interruption in the ongoing chapter story: It's April and the season is approaching - I've been very busy planning so here are some thoughts that occurred to me about that in a quick lunchtime post.

As much as I enjoy the workouts, and as many benefits I've gotten already from the training, ultimately it's about the events. In the Northeast, the event season starts in May and

Part 7: Training, Getting Started

I was introduced to one new workout concept that just bowled me over: the recovery run. It goes like this: you run your ass off one day. Wake up the next morning all creaky and sore, and go right out for another run! And afterward, you feel much better! To me, it defied the basic laws of the universe. But then it was explained to me: the easy run you do the day afterward essentially massages the muscles enough to circulate more blood to them than if you were just sitting around. This helps them to rejuvenate more quickly. It really works.

The new workout schedule kept me pretty busy. It was a lot of work – even outside the workouts, scheduling them into my already busy days. With this much time being spent on workouts, I had to get one in early-morning (5:30 or 6:30am) just about every day to keep up. Michael had me doing different things every day,

Part 6: Training, Really

Holy crap - this was going to be my new workout plan? 

More than 10 hours of workouts in the first week. 5 hours of cycling, 3-1/2 hours of running, and more than 3 hours of swimming. Was this guy crazy? He had me scheduled for two workouts a day on some days. What had I gotten myself into?

But I was still excited. I figured that since I had shared my workout logs for the previous three months with him, he knew what I should be able to do, so I shouldn't get into too much trouble.

After the first two weeks, I could not believe I was keeping up with the schedule, for the most part, without any injuries or major complaints. Sure, I dropped a few, like you would if someone suddenly put you up on stage and started tossing you flaming clubs to juggle. I jumped in and got started,

Part 5: The Trainer

After a lengthy phone conversation in which we covered what my goals were, what my previous training consisted of, how Michael works with his athletes (Wow, was I going to be referred to as an "athlete"? This was getting really wild.) and other things, I hired Michael to be my virtual coach.

He would lay out a workout schedule for me each week. I would report after each workout using Michael's coaching web site. We would chat by phone once a week or so.

He suggested a few pieces of equipment, one of which was a workout "watch" with embedded GPS that could be used for running and cycling. All the "data" including heart rate, bicycle cadence, speed, route and altitude are recorded and uploaded to the website after each workout so he would be able to analyze it. Pretty slick.

After looking at my previous three months of workout logs, Michael observed that

Part 4: "Preparation" vs. "Training"

So, the first event was really fun. Afterwards, I thought if I was going to do any more, in the interest of survival and dignity, I should really "get in better shape". Even the way I thought about training at that point was rudimentary.

"Preparation"
For the next two months, I swam, biked and ran regularly, each about once a week. Toward the middle of November, I was pretty impressed with my level of activity. I was swimming a mile in a little more than 30 minutes. I was cycling, usually solo, anywhere from 10 to 30 miles with average speeds into the 17mph range. I had built up my run from two to four miles at about a 10 minute mile pace. During that eight weeks, I swam 8 miles, biked 280, and ran 40.

But I began to wonder if my methods and volume of "training" was going to make me any faster. Perhaps because I had begun to realize

Part 3: Event Day

We arrive at Compo Beach in Westport, Connecticut at 6:20am. Lots of early morning action. Fellow competitors pulling gear out of the backs of their cars. Everyone stretching and suiting up. Sign-in at the registration tent. The atmosphere was calm with a pervasive background buzz.

I had to mount a new tire right before the race because I had blown the one the night before - bad luck. With the organizers shouting instructions over a loudspeaker, we strapped on our timing chips, set up our bikes in the transition area, zipped up our wet suits and began a parade with 200 other competitors down the beach to the swim start. Spectators joined the 7:30am parade toward the sun rising over the Sound,

Part 2: The First Triathlon

Right around that time, September, 2010, I agreed to a bet with Matt and another friend, Nick, to compete in a Mini Triathlon in Westport, Connecticut. I would never have agreed to this, except I learned that it was only a 1/2 mile swim, a 5.5 mile bike ride and a 2.2 mile run. I figured even I could complete that event, and I had already prepared for the Lighthouse Race, so what the hell. I also figured that most triathletes hate the swimming part, and since that would be my strongest part, I might be able to gain some advantage there.

With two weeks to go, I had plenty of time to grab the bike out of the garage, dust it off, maybe get the local bike shop to give it a once-over. Hell, I even had time to go for a few rides. I had always loved to ride

The Backstory: Part 1

For every challenge, there's a back story. Here's mine...


Part 1: Slippery Slope

It's all about fun, so I hope to have some laughs along the way, but since I haven't taken on the challenge of the Triathlon lightly, I thought I would share how I came to take it on and what I've been doing to prepare.

First of all, I have to say, competitive personal sports was never my thing. I swam competitively in high school, and I was a lifeguard in college, but that's about it. I was not a runner, or a cyclist, not a football player or anything else. Over the years, I've made a weak to moderate effort to stay in shape by going to the gym and swimming regularly, but I frowned on running as a fast path to knee surgery, and at 6'3" and 220 pounds,