Heal, Boy, Heal... Good Boy.

This has been a good week. I haven't set any personal best times, haven't once climbed onto my bike (although I have at the gym), and I've avoided the pool.

But, man, oh man, do I feel good.

When Matt Fitzgerald wrote his "training bible" that distance athletes the world over swear by, it's fair to say he never recommended taking a week off from heavy training, especially in the build phase. But he did contemplate being severely injured or sick -- and has said that the time off should be seen as an opportunity rather than a failure. You don't have to tell me twice!

You see the ear infection and back injury of the last few weeks reached their crest last Friday night -- shortly after my last blog entry, in fact. My eardrum perforated and my back tweaked one last time as I sat at the urgent care center at 6:30 am on Saturday morning.

Five days of antibiotics later, I'm not even sure I could point to the spot in my back that hurt (although every once in awhile I know EXACTLY where it is) and, while it seems slow, I know my ear is healing. But what has happened is I have been banned from the pool (obviously) and, taken in combination with my wife's four month move three hours north (yes, the kids are staying with me -- at least until the Princess is out of school), I basically took the week off. The entire family has a trip up to Alaska from tomorrow morning through Monday to see family and then I'll hit the ground running on Tuesday.

The best part is that I feel fresh, fresh, fresh. I have hit the gym bike for a couple of hour-long workouts and I feel like I have a new set of legs. An hour is not seven, to be sure, but all the muscles are healed and ready to attack. The swim? Well, as I have said, I was ahead of pace in terms of conditioning there, so I trust I could hop back in next week and feel my Wheaties there as well -- if not, I still have 14 weeks, not to mention another week off (heal, part II!) as the Lovely Wife and I head to New Zealand in late May for a long anticipated vacation alone as a couple. The two uncompromising months that are to come (June and July) will be there -- I've built a base, and will continue to, and then I'll work myself out to a silly degree.

Sound good? I'm glad you're convinced -- I'm right there with you... I think. :-)

To $*&% and Back... In One Week.

When last I left you, I was just over a cold and ready for a challenging weekend pair of workouts -- 3000 yards in the water and 3:30 (60+ miles) on the bike.

I did it.

The swim went really, really well to be honest. It was a cold (by San Diego standards -- 55?), rainy day and, in keeping with trying to simulate race day, I decided to wear my wetsuit for the swim. Sure I gave off the appearance of a sea lion as I slinked into the water wrapped in neoprene, but the amount of confidence it gives you to cover significant distances in a wetsuit is immeasurable.

To be honest, swimming in a wetsuit is a double-edged sword. Sure, the 77 degree water feels that much warmer and you fatigue a bit quicker -- not to mention that your arms feel just a touch leaden after awhile of pulling such a thick surface through the water over and over. But it's also VERY buoyant, slick, and the rubber actually serves to restore energy to tired leg muscles -- or so they say.

In this particular instance, I believe them -- after all, I swam the 3000 yards in just under an hour. For me, that is Michael Phelps fast! Considering my goal all along is to be changed, on my bike, and pedaling into the 112 mile bike leg no later than 1:45 into the race, being on pace for a swim under 1:30 makes that a delightfully real possibility. Sure, a pool is not a river and conditions are not accounted for, but I still think with 16 more weeks of training ahead of me, it's a very good possibility that I'll hit my target.

The next day on the bike also had its encouraging moments, most significantly all of the hill climbing I did and without having to overexert or get out of the saddle, a traditionally energy sapping maneuver. What I did do, though, was learn a tough lesson about nutrition. It was Easter morning (yes, it was a heretical decision to ride) so rather than set myself up correctly with energy drink, gels, etc., I spent more time getting the Easter basket ready, basking in my beautiful kids, and then slipping out with an eye to having lunch with them when I got back. The problem is that a bowl of oat bran flakes, a banana, a granola bar and one gel pack is just not enough to fuel nearly four hours of riding on a warm day over hilly terrain. More scientifically, those items are about 600 calories and a rider of my size (over 200 pounds) needs more like 300-400 calories an HOUR. Considering I also didn't replace my electrolytes adequately, by the time I rolled into Del Mar, only about two miles from home but with a SERIOUS half-mile climb at some 25% grade, I was done. My quads seized up, presumably from all of the lactic acid, and I started to feel light headed. There I was, having rolled 60 some miles, covering much of North San Diego county amongst the flowers, ocean communities, rolling hills, etc. (it truly was God's morning, irrespective of your religious preference), and I couldn't get home. In fact, I couldn't even walk the hill -- believe me, I tried and it nearly brought me to tears.

So, I pulled the emergency cord, called the Lovely Wife and (a bit embarrassingly) took the three minute ride home.

It certainly taught me an important lesson about nutrition -- not only do you need pure calories, you also need a good mix of carbohydrate energy and electrolyte replacement. Needless to say, I have spent the better part of this week sorting that out and hope not to be left hitting the wall again any time soon.

But that was just the start of my week -- actually, Sunday night into Monday I felt FANTASTIC. I felt good just a few minutes after returning home, actually. I took a shower, put on comfortable clothes and went to lunch with my family. I enjoyed the evening with my wife, watching the Amazing Race among other things, and then flew off to Seattle Monday morning to help a friend gain her citizenship. By the time I flew back Monday evening, settling into a free first-class upgrade, I was ready for a beer.

Then, shoe number two dropped. I woke up about two in the morning Tuesday with a splitting headache, a sore throat, and more sinus congestion than you could shake a stick at. The morning wasn't much better, but by noon I had a fever, incredible fatigue and, you guessed it, I removed my lunch from my system. A couple more of those later, and with fever ache that was radiating up into my kidneys and I overreacted a bit -- I called the Lovely Wife, dropped the kids off with the neighbors, and headed to the emergency room.

Long story short, I was mostly just a victim of a virus, but I also took in two bags of saline (the doctor said I was more electrolyte depleted than dehydrated) and made sure my bloodwork was okay -- which, thankfully, it was.

It's Friday now, and I think I have an ear infection, but I've been able to ride and swim this week -- I've taken it easy, mostly, but I thought it important to get back on the proverbial horse. For the second time in as many weeks, I was derailed by the compromise that Ironman training does on your immune system -- especially if you don't treat it with appropriate care. Sure enough, when I brought the Princess to preschool today, several kids were out with a virus that sounds just like mine -- so I'm not alone and it's not just the training. It's frustrating nonetheless.

I've also managed to order all of the necessary nutrition products this week. I've got glucose polymers to add to the energy drink I already had. I have liquid shots of carbohydrates and electrolytes (potassium, sodium, and sodium bicarbonate to stave off lactic acid buildup), as well as a couple of leads on tasty solid foods and gels to top it all off. I won't head out unprepared again, I can tell you that.

So, with all of that in tow, it's time for another "brick" workout on Sunday -- 2000 yards in the pool, jump out and ride for about 20 miles. Should seem relatively easy compared to last weekend and with a weekend trip to Alaska to visit my cousins planned for the following weekend, I think it will be a couple of weeks before I go 60+ miles again. I've got lots of time, I'm still nursing a back injury (somass muscle?), and my confidence is heading back in the right direction. I'll let you know if things change. :-)

Babyin' the Old Corpus

So, I've returned to the world of the healthy -- well, sort of. After testing my "chest" with a serious set of sprint workouts on the bike yesterday, I feel like I've got the ol' wind back.

If only I could say the same for this pesky muscle on the right side of my back. I really ought to take a look at a muscle chart, because it doesn't feel like my back and it's a touch too high to be my gluteous. But, about fifteen times a day taking a step with my right foot feels like someone is pushing my hip bone right into the back of my ribcage. I think it is a back muscle of sorts, but what I know is that it's one of the few debilitating muscle injuries I've had in recent memory.

So, how does one accomplish an ironman length training program when he's walking like he just had hip surgery? Very carefully... in the case of today, by taking the day off from a swim workout and focusing on the fact that tomorrow was already a natural day off and two days' rest ought to make it possible to complete the long weekend workouts.

Eyes on the prize, I say -- and in the case of serious muscle issues, that means rest to as close to healing as you can before you push forward. I WILL be swimming my 2800 yards on Saturday -- that is non-negotiable. Until then? Slap on some back pads, keep the seat heater going in the car and stay off my feet... ahh, the things we do for sport. :-)

What a Difference a Cold (and Two Weeks) Makes

When I last posted, I think I can honestly say I was feeling at the peak of early training performance. I had just knocked off consecutive back to back workout days, accomplishing full training bikes and swims, and I felt as if I was 18 years old.

This is not the case now. After a quick three-day trip to the UK, which gave me not only a sore ankle (I stepped off of a curb walking back to my hotel), but a head-cold, I have had a heck of a time getting back into the groove. The first week back, I did accomplish all of my midweek workouts, but right as I was to hit the weekend longer workouts my cold hit full stride. Having already experienced in preparation for previous races the negative effects of working out during a cold, and thanks to the kindness of the Lovely Wife, I spent longer than normal nights in bed nursing my symptoms. While I felt a bit better on Monday (yesterday), all that time on my back left me with a tweak that is more than just a bit of a nuisance. Not to mention that in both my first bike workout since and my first pool workout since (yesterday and today, respectively), I have had to avoid the high intensity workouts that were meant to being this week. Rather than push myself in the first week of what is the "build" phase of the training program, I simply endured through by slogging out the 1:30 on the bike and the 2000 yards on the swim. I shudder to think how slow I was, but it is what it is and I hope to live to see another day.

Isn't it amazing how cyclical you start to feel as you get older? For those of you who know me, you know that I am fanatical about the Minnesota Twins baseball team. Their 37 year old catcher, Mike Redmond, tweaked his groin in the team's opener yesterday and lamented the fact, admitting: 1) that he couldn't remember his last muscle pull, and 2) that, as of last night, he couldn't imagine this one healing very fast. I feel the same way about my back at the moment. While the chiropractor, who I am grateful to for seeing me yesterday, says there is nothing to be concerned about with my back soreness, it certainly doesn't help that every stroke, whether on the pedal or in the pool is accompanied by a persistent jabbing sensation just above my right buttocks. It can only serve to distract and, when the workouts are measured in hours, not minutes, it is a form of Chinese water torture.

But I'll make it. In fact, I confirmed another event on my schedule this weekend -- I am now signed up to do a half-ironman, run and all(!), on September 13 in my hometown of Stillwater, MN. I haven't done a tri in Minnesota in five years and, if it means I can see my parents (and wife and kids -- the Lovely Wife says she might do the mid-distance race the day before) when finishing, it will all be worth it.

So, I'll persist. I just have to get to the weekend where a 3000 yard swim and 3:30 bike ride await me - if I can finish those, and I'd damned well better, the struggles of the last ten days or so will be behind me and the weeks ahead will fall like dominoes. That's the difference a week can make.

Two-A-Days

A staple of the triathlon diet is the BRICK workout. Anecdotally described as "bike, run, ick," it's the workout that trains the body to get off of the bike and start running -- something easier said than done, frankly, considering many of the muscles used in running have spent hours atrophying while on the bike.

For me, the brick workout is not part of the current plan. In fact, my body is quite enjoying not doing any running at all at the moment as I prepare for a swim/bike ironman length event this year before the full ironman in 2010. Nonetheless, it is important for me to tackle the getting out of the water and onto a bike dynamic, which is why I took Saturday off this week and scheduled a swim/bike dual workout for Sunday morning.

Sunday

It started with a pool swim of 1500 yards -- not coincidentally, the distances I was going to cover (1500 yd swim/25 mi bike) are the swim and bike distances for the Olympic level triathlon, a race significantly shorter than the Ironman but still long enough to test yourself six weeks into a 24-week program.

I felt good in the pool -- pacing myself in a steady, almost methodical fashion, I was pleased with my pace. Coming out of the pool in around 35 minutes (a time any real swimmer or triathlete would scoff at) was, for me, a sign that the training had been going well. At approximately seven minutes for every 3:00, that puts me at about a 1:40 pace for the 4224 yard ironman length swim. When put in the context of the 2:30 that one is required to complete it in, I give myself lots of time to spare. To be fair, that is what the swim is about for me -- get in, get out, have something left in my legs and endure the coming several hours on the bike.

With that bit of confidence in tow, I jogged into the locker room and put on my bike gear. This particular bike was going to be done inside due to the questionable spring weather outside (rainy in the 50's, which actually served me quite well in the pool). And so it went... you may recall that a few weeks ago I swam and biked and found myself unable to muster real quality minutes on the bike due to complete and utter leg fatigue. On this day, my better pacing in the pool and my intentional overreliance on my arm pulls saved me something in my legs. Whereas I had budgeted 1:40 for the bike, which would be slow, I beat that by a full seven minutes, accomplishing the 25 mile equivalent in 93 minutes. Yes, it was on a stationary bike and didn't have the elemental factors that a ride outside would, but it was a serious improvement on just a few weeks prior.

The best part was how I felt afterward. All the soreness was the kind of good soreness I spoke about earlier -- there was no "pain" to speak of and I felt duly fatigued as if I had accomplished something.... and accomplished something I had. While the conditions were pristine compared to what exists swimming out and back on the Russian River and cycling through Sonoma wine country, I had finished at a pace that would bring me home in 8:25, WELL clear of the 10:30 deadline. We'll see if I can hold the same pace for 112 miles, but having two hours of time to play with can only bring a smile to your face.

Monday

I felt so good, in fact, that it was with a huge smile on my face that I walked into my chiropractic appointment on Monday morning. With a half-hour massage focused primarily on my tight lower back and lactic acid drowned hamstrings (I told her I had cycled hard!) followed by some ultrasound treatment on my shoulder that had been giving me trouble in the swim but didn't bother me on Sunday, I was ready to hit the gym for my standard Monday workout of hills on the bike. On this day, the plan was for 1:15 with a series of ten short hills -- with the equipment available at the gym, I decided to push myself and try to do three loops of a seven mile stretch full of rolling hills. 21 miles in 1:15 is generally a bit ambitious (16.8mph), but I wanted to give it a shot.

As I closed in on one loop finished, I was in good shape... crossing the finish line at 24:38, I had averaged 16.9mph and had a 22 second cushion to work with. Then I hit the sweet spot. If you have never cycled, you may not know the phenomenon I am referring to, but suffice to say that it is a good thing. Scientists and physiologists have described it as some release of hormones or pheremones which are released in repetetive motion exercises such as cycling or running which permit you to continue to "hammer" forward and increase your rate, all the while feeling wonderful from a mental standpoint. Needless to say, my pace quickened, I added a gear or two, literally and figuratively, and I was closing in on a 23 minute(!) seven mile cycle on the second leg. I just missed it, coming in a 47:59, but still I had averaged well over 17mph for the section and was a full two minutes up on the required pace.

Now I was motivated. My legs were starting to feel it, albeit more fatigue from the 40+ miles over two days rather than anything more sinister, but my heart and brain were most definitely in it. I pushed, pushed, and pushed some more and managed a 17.9mph final leg, coming in nearly four full minutes ahead of schedule. I was absolutely drenched with sweat, had consumed about a quart of water, but man, oh man, did I feel good.

How good? Well, I'm glad you asked. So good that when the Princess and the Pea refused to nap later that afternoon, I decided to hit the pool for one of the fartlek workouts I would probably miss due to a business trip scheduled for Thursday through Sunday. 1150 yards later, having accomplished my second double workout in as many days and at a high intensity all throughout, I was well and truly feeling my oats -- the race is some 18 or 19 weeks off, but I am really up for it now... time to keep it going.

Week Six: Splitting Hairs on Pain

One week on and it's fair to say that all is indeed on when it comes to high volume training. Since last we spoke, I have had three strong swim workouts, three bike workouts of varying difficulties, and a day off once again rung in with bizarre waves of soreness which don't seem to translate to any particular swim or bike overuse.

With that in mind, though, I think it's important to discuss this issue of pain. Twice this week, I have had to cut workouts short due to pain issues -- this is quite normal in a high volume training regimen, and, in fact, the results of pulling off of the reins just a smidge seem to have had immediate results.

For those who have trained as part of a regular routine, whether on a team or individually, you'll likely understand exactly what I mean when I compare pain to soreness. Soreness is expected and, frankly, you live with it through the entirety of the process. If I'm being 100% honest, soreness is also quite nice -- sure the actual discomfort and inflammation can have negative results, but usually an Ibuprofen or four will take care of them each night before you hit the hay. On balance, soreness is like fatigue -- you know you feel it, but you also know you've done something to "earn" it, for better or for worse. When it comes to doing a workout burning anywhere from 600-1200 calories, generally I like to think of that as better.

The flipside of the coin, however, is pain. Certain things happen when you swim 7000 yards and bike five hours in a week -- first of all, your ironman coach (which I don't have, save for the book) will tell you that you need to "pick it up a notch." In seriousness, though, certain muscles are being worked more than others and the potential for balance inequities are significant. In addition, there are simple issues of overworking from time to time. Throw in the effects on some cross-training, which in my case means the odd run-out for a softball, soccer, or basketball game... or maybe a hike... and you can experience real acute pain.

For the experts, experiencing pain is not something that should shut you down altogether, but rather something that you smartly manage. Look, you're not going to tax your body to this degree for 24+ weeks and not tweak something. As an example, I give you my left knee. In the hill workout I did late last week, I clearly left my bike in two high of a gear and left the ligaments in my left knee a bit out of whack. When I hopped on the bike on Saturday for a long ride, intending it to be 2:45, the pain began to grow and grow and grow until with about 1:30 under my belt I decided to call it quits.

The reasoning for this is as simple as the cause for the pain -- if you take a part of your body that is under duress, as opposed to experience soreness, and you continue to push it, you are only extending the recovery time. The 1:15 on the bike at the gym will NOT make or break your Ironman effort. The six weeks off recovering from a ligament strain most surely will.

The same thing happened later in the week during a high-effort swim workout, one in which I was supposed to do "sprints," defined as literally swimming as hard as one can, for 600 yards. About 200 yards into it, I realized that my anterior deltoid muscle and surrounding tendons, which I have had treated recently, were screaming out with something more than general soreness. It wasn't until I had hit the showers afterwards that I gleefully recalled throwing a runner out at home plate from deep center field the night before, but clearly that is why I was having a sore shoulder day -- swimming the rest of my set at a slow, building pace rather than chopping down on the water like a weightlifter was exactly what the doctor ordered. With a brick workout combining the disciplines right around the corner (Sunday), I hardly think that reducing the intensity of a swim for less than 1000 yards will have anything more than a nominal impact on my training.

Which is not to say it was a week where I was constantly pulling out of the tough assignments -- far from it. In fact, my swim on Sunday was my longest swim set since I was in college -- 2600 yards, or a little over a mile and three-quarters. I accomplished a few things on that day -- first and foremost, I managed to get it in under one hour. Considering it's nearly 2/3 of my race day total and I've always said I'd be happy to be on my bike within two hours of the race gun, that's a great thing for my confidence. Okay, it's in a pool and not in a mass start in the Russian river, but still, I left myself a good 20-minute cushion there at worst. I also managed to continue to stretch my mental preparedness for the marathon 2.4 mile swim that awaits on the day of the race. Every time I burst through a new distance hurdle, it's amazing to me that it's not THAT much more difficult than the previous high, which was generally a couple hundred yards shorter. In getting out of the pool on Sunday -- and don't get me wrong, I FELT it -- I was convinced I could have swam the remainder of the Ironman length right then and there. Could I have ridden 112 miles afterwards? Hmm... are there rabid dogs behind me? But, I'm getting there.

The final thing it taught me is that this training is working. Both parts of it are paying off when it comes to the swim. First, the long weekend swims and overall volume of swimming are making me more and more comfortable in the pool for long stretches of time. It's boring, to be honest, and mental acuity improves with every long swim. Second, the sprints and fartlek workouts do make a standard race-speed swim feel relatively easy.

As for the bike, it was another week of building endurance. It's slower than with the swim, but that's probably because while I'm looking at a 90-120 minute swim during the race, the bike will be my home for upwards of seven hours. It's awful hard to do a seven hour training swim with a wife and two kids -- it can only happen on the weekend and, even then, to do a ride that long takes more recovery time than one has. So, the long rides tend to max out at about three to four hours and the weekday workouts need to be intense -- which they have been. I am a virtual fountain of sweat when I hit the bike for my weekday workouts, keeping the wattage needle pinned at 180-220 watts of output. That's high, much higher than I can keep on my bike outside, but it all drives towards the goal of endurance on raceday. With the knee issue reminding me that volume should be done a comfortable gear level that allows for spinning rather than "pushing," it's easy to get into a rhythm as well -- and I have of late, feeling good, strong, if not a little tired after each ride. On Sunday it's 1750 in the pool and 25miles on my bike if time and weather permits. I'll let you know how that goes as it will be a good measure of how things are going. I'm confident it will go well and the recovery week next week (which is moved up a week because of my travel to the UK next weekend) will let it all soak in.

Until then...

Sore For No Apparent Reason

It's time for me to be honest -- due to a million factors ranging from the Princess' preschool schedule to the Pea's ear infection, to wanting to catch my beloved Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Big Ten tournament, week five has been a spotty one. As it turns out, all three of those reasons reared their ugly head on Thursday, which meant I was heading into Friday still not having ridden a good workout in about a week.

On Friday, with the Princess at preschool for a three hour block, I hit the bike...

75 min Hill Interval Ride

The specific guidance from the training guide told me to do eight hill intervals of one minute in length. The specific ability of the bike I rode on (admittedly, the one that was in front of the college hoops) was slightly different, but, after choosing the "Alpine Pass" program and inputting 75 minutes, I was challenged nonetheless.

The crazy thing about the workout today was how sore I had woken up. Not having worked out yesterday, having had a very nice massage and a non-impact swim in the days prior, why was I sore from my hamstrings to my ribs to my shoulders. It really made no sense whatsoever -- let's just say that nothing I did outside of the gym on Thursday would have done that. It's one of life's great mysteries, but one you come to expect when training for a distance race. So, I hurt, it hurt to ride the bike, but when all was said and done I had kept my wattage up and, at least according to the bike I was on, had covered a good 22 miles in my 75-80 minutes. To be honest, I remain skeptical of that figure, but I was well pleased with how I pushed myself on the hills and kept up the pace ahead of a long (2:45) bike ride on Sunday and a long swim (2000ish) tomorrow. The Gophers on the other hand? They laid an egg and left everything in the hands of the NCAA Selection Committee -- NEVER a good idea.

Too Strong (and Too Much Information)

1200yd Base and Sprint Swim

If you were anywhere around my family these past few days, you would likely assume that this post would have everything to do with the Princess and her "little problem." Specifically, her newfound love of peeing anywhere but in the potty despite having been toilet trained some four or five months ago.

Nonetheless, with a challenging swim set on the menu for Tuesday, I decided to trust her and the Pea to the gym daycare for a bit and take to the pool. I made sure to have her use the potty, which she did, and also brought spare clothes -- I was set!

Upon entering the pool area, I realized it was not only her being prone to accidents that would rush me on Tuesday, it was the fact that I was suddenly out of sunscreen! Suddenly, what was supposed to be a 1650 yard set, complete with 800 yards of base swim and five 50 yard sprint intervals was going to be those and only a 100 yard warm up and cool down. At 10am in March, the sun was already too strong in San Diego and a vicious sunburn was going to result if I went even a few moments too long. As it is, I am writing this with a bit too much pink on my shoulders and back, thankful that I got out when I did.

I did complete the base swim, however, although I experienced a bizarre physical phenomenon of feeling "too strong," or, more accurately, "too bound by muscle." To be sure, I had swum more yards in the last week than I had prior, and this set was one in which I intended, and did, really push myself, but it felt as if my shoulder muscles were not allowing me to extend. I brought this up with my chiropractor on Wednesday and he confirmed the problem was too many "internal pushing exercises" and not enough of the reverse, pulling style motions. It's true, over the course of these first few weeks, my ability to lay my arms flat with palms up was being challenged. I noticed this especially on my loooong (14+ hours) plane flights, when I couldn't just lay my arms on my side to sleep -- the result is that my arms are rotating inward due to the overuse of the muscles used for internal rotation. There are, apparently, a couple of muscles in the shoulder (primarily) used for external rotation which are inherently underused and my swim sets, without proper correction, was making it even worse. The prescription? A week of doing the backstroke as my primary swim stroke AND a good regimen of external rotation exercises using resistance tubing. I was used to that from rehabbing my rotator cuff in college, so I had the stuff I needed and am happy to oblige.

Needless to say, the "short-arming" didn't help my times any, but as I finished the base set and headed to the sprints, it became less about form (unfortunately) and more about aerobic capacity and lactic threshold. I did complete the five sets, but recovered with deep, gulping breaths after each. It feels good to really push yourself, but not so good to feel how much work is left to come -- but that's why I'm out there!

The coup de grace for the day? As I literally swam my last few strokes, the child care helper was there and asked if I had extra clothes for the Princess. Assuming she had gone potty in her pants again, I sighed and asked for more details -- no "pee," it turns out... no way. She had instead dropped trow and... well, you know. Ahh, parenting combined with an Ironman -- brilliant stuff... ;-)

One Night in Bangkok

I'll have to ask you to excuse the intermittent posting of the last week -- just as I'll have to ask myself to excuse the odd workouts missed. You see, as I mentioned previously, work took me to Thailand this past week. Amazing, really, as in a span of four days I went from San Diego and back again. Thankfully, my cousin has a condo in Bangkok, so in addition to a "posh" place to stay in a city which, despite all of the wonderful culture, can overwhelm you with its "grit," I also had a beautiful pool in which I was able to complete a good workout. There was a workout room as well that had a stationary bike, but I decided to let my body rest from and for two 24-hour travel stints and just focus on a nice, long, partly recuperative (from the 90+ degree heat anyway) swim.

2000yd Base Swim

Stepping out onto the sixth floor pool deck from my cousin's Bangkok condo was inspirational enough. A very modern city these days (as opposed to 20 years ago), the skyline sat on the horizon. Plus, it was one of those "horizon" pools where you look across water level and it just "falls off" into infinity. A little unnerving, understanding how high I was, but there's no real risk of floating off into the abyss.

What there is in one of those pools, interesting enough, is a bit of a current. You see the pool is fed from a gorgeous fountain on the left side, and the water travels across to the right, where it runs over the edge onto a filter which pumps it (presumably) back to the fountain. The water traveling left to right actually created a bit of a surface current and complementary undercurrent. Nothing a moderate swimmer like me couldn't swim through, but a bit of an added challenge for a long set nonetheless.

I also needed to keep in touch with the outside world during this swim. I had traveled to Bangkok for a US Embassy appointment, but due to extreme heat and a problem with the Embassy's air conditioning, attorneys were told to stay out and only permitted to discuss matters post-interview. So, I had to keep my phone (and internet) close by. This resulted in a 5x400 yard swim, checking my phone quickly after every 200 yards and the phone and internet after every 400. I did get a few messages, and even a text from the Lovely Wife who was home enduring a deposition at the time, but thankfully the client matter didn't need me until after the swim.

All that being taken into account, the swim was fairly uneventful. The pool was only 20 yards long (as opposed to the typical 25yd pool in America), so I had to turn more often, but that was basically immaterial. The short rbreaks every 400 yards left me feeling refreshed as I started every new set, and the current forced me to pull hard through the pool while at the same time focusing on technique so that I could keep my pace for two kilometers. One solid sunburn and a soak in the air conditioned internet room next door for a few hours and my mission of getting a workout in before my 24hour flight back home was accomplished.

90min Foundation Bike

Despite every intention of working out the day after I returned home, life got in the way. Not fatigue or jet lag so much -- in fact, I was blessed with what amounted to basically no jet lag on my return -- but more crap that needed to be done that had been put off for two weeks of travel to Asia and Europe.

On Saturday, however, an opening appeared for me to get in the "long ride" of this, week four. Thankfully, every fourth week is a recovery week, so that ride was only 90 minutes long. An easy ride to accomplish on the bike at the gym -- when done on a Saturday afternoon, there's also plenty on the attached television to take your mind off of the slogging.

And slog I did. Finishing the ride fairly strong, averaging approximately 16mph (23+ miles completed) and 155 watts (not great, but not bad considering I was off of the bike for a week), I was happy to have completed the ride. At least a dozen times my mind tried to convince me to go less than the full 90 but, frankly, knowing I'd have to admit my transgression to the poor souls who read my blog kept me plugging. Plus, the USA/Canada baseball game was a pretty good one, even though Justin Morneau stranded the winning run on second base to essentially end the game for Canada. As the USA celebrated its victory, the clock struck 90 and I headed home feeling as if I was ready to get back on the horse for week five.

1800yd Base Swim

Having accomplished the long ride of recovery week four, now I needed to focus and try and accomplish the 1800 yard weekend base swim. The Lovely Wife provided good motivation on that front as she wanted to swim as well. The kids seemed to be over their colds, which had ravaged the whole two weeks I was traveling, so the gym day care would suffice.

For a little over 40 minutes, I reintroduced myself to the gym pool, the sun of San Diego (as intense, but significantly less hot than that in Bangkok), and the muscles which had been beaten up first by a 24-hour flight, and then by a 90 minute plod on the bike the day before. To be honest, the damage was minimal. I had a little wrist pain partway through (the result of my vigorous 90 minute muscle massage in Thailand?), but all in all, the 1800 yards felt significant but hardly insurmountable. In fact, I commented to my wife that I think I could comfortably swim it again, closing in on the 2.4 miles needed in August for the race. Now riding a bike 112 miles afterwards? That's presently a different matter, but God knows there's plenty of time.

See you next week for a new twist on the baseline work, now that the recovery week is concluded. The bikes will incorporate more hills and the swims more sprint work. Both have the effect of making me gulp for air, but then that's a good thing, right? See you soon... ;-)

Trying Not to Rush Things

It's 7:40 in the morning and the day is already behind schedule. You see, the Princess has Spanish preschool at 9:30 am, I have a roughly 90 minute workout schedule (travel time and shower included) ahead of me, and they haven't even eaten breakfast yet.

Throw in that both of them have noses running at an alarming rate (at least for anyone who shares childcare facilities with them) and there is quite a decision to make. You see, I'm leaving for Thailand (yeah, not helpful) on Saturday night and I need no excuses not to work out. I've run through the "getting all of the workouts in" scenarios in my head and, needless to say, taking a day off to wipe runny noses was not in the plan.

Having convinced myself that they aren't sick, only waking up, I pack the car and, around 8, hit the road. I'm to the pool by about 8:15 and, after the obligatory poolside wait for a lane to open, I'm in the pool around 8:30.

1300yd Fartlek Intervals

The nice part about doing a Fartlek set is that it might actually finish in a reasonable period of time. As opposed to a "one hour" bike set, which cannot be hurried no matter how you slice it, swimming hard through an interval workout means that I am a bit in control of my own time (sort of).

The flipside risk is that form goes all to @$%$ -- it's amazing when I feel like I am putting in maximum effort versus when I relax and really focus on my form. Long story short? They result in basically the same level of performance. Which is exactly why today I focused on form and found myself at a pretty good pace.

300 yards in the Fartlek intervals commenced. The length of each interval is increasing over time (this is the third week), but the intensity still allows for me to grow into my stroke. At the moment they are 150yds long, alternating 50 easy with 25 hard. Out of curiosity, I counted my strokes on the easy set versus the hard sets -- similar to what I had thought, I was only saving two strokes per length, but yet the hard sets were causing me to gulp for air. So, with about four of the six interval sets left, I tried to maintain form during the hard lengths as well. Lo and behold, I was suddenly moving and moving well. Sure, as we closed in on the final couple of sets I was losing steam, but I've got time to build endurance -- this was about confidence.

A quick 100yd cooldown, picked up the kids, and made it to "la escuela" by 9:35. All told a good morning -- I'm ready for that 2000yd swim on Saturday and the rest of my swim season.

Back on the Horse

I'm not sure if a study has ever been commissioned which sought to determine the effects of 48 hours of travel and about fifteen pints of quality lager on the human body -- but after my last week, I can tell you there is no need. It causes fatigue and lots of it.

With a five day trip to Munich and London, with a good friend of 30+ years traveling with me to boot, I wanted to be sure to bookend my trip with the workouts called for in the third week of my training program. I had hit the bike and pool hard in the first two weeks and while week three would be split over two weeks, I didn't want to lose any momentum.

Monday, February 16

1:20 Bike, with 8 x :20 Power Intervals

Writing this some ten days hence, I just remember that I felt really good after a solid weekend swim and challenged myself to maintain the 200 watt pace that I had been able to accomplish on the power intervals the first two weeks. As with other rides, the presence of a ghost rider made it really easy to get motivated (not to mention the week off staring me in the face) and I rode REALLY hard. In fact, not only did I leave the 200 watt pacer in my wake, I also beat my ghost rider by several minutes. Cruising into the completion of a challenging 21 mile course ahead of the 1:20, I also eclipsed the 17mph marker, one which seemed unlikely just two weeks earlier.

I felt real good and I was ready to attack the break.

Not too ready, though, as I managed to do absolutely nothing until my return on the 24th. In fact, my friend busted out a pretty good 48 minute run on a beautiful Saturday in London -- while I sat watching rugby on the couch with another friend who also pooh-poohed the exercise.

Tuesday, February 24

800 Yard Base Swim

Funny I should use the word "poo," as that is exactly what I felt like as I hit the pool on Tuesday morning. First of all, the fates were not in my corner in even allowing me to do the swim -- as I made my way to my standard pool, the entire facility was closed due to a water main break. Never fear, I thought, as the "alternate gym" about three miles away was equipped with a lap pool -- not my first choice, but it would do in a pinch. Only just.

You see, I jumped in and started to swim my base sets, which were supposed to be 1450 yards, even with my modifications, and I trudged along slowly. Slow and steady, to be sure, but slow nonetheless. I was happy to be back working out, but also feeling as if the last few nights of drinking, not to mention the 22.5 hours of flying the day before was well and truly doing me in.

Then came the reprieve. I don't wish to make it seem like it was welcome, as I had actually hit a rhythm when the maintenance crew announced that they needed to "vacuum the pool." Vaccum the pool?? Seriously? It's a 24 hour fitness facility - is 10:30 on a Tuesday the right time?

Maybe it was kizmet as I pulled myself out after a hard final length, sat in the jacuzzi for another ten, and "eased" myself into the rest of my training. Did I mention I would be heading to Bangkok on Saturday? At least there my cousin's pad has a pool and gym, but it does without saying that I was eagerly anticipating a couple weeks off when I could put my head down and hammer out my workouts -- not to mention spend a bit more time with my kids.

Wednesday, February 25

1hr Foundation Bike

If Tuesday was my day to rediscover my sea legs, Wednesday served that purpose for the bike. For the first time, I was heading to the gym by my daughter's school -- no fancy course on the screen, only the depressing news on CNBC, and fewer stats, but a good hard spin bike that would let me churn out an hour at a reasonable pace and absorb the good weeks I had put in already in February.

Unfortunately, even that interval ride last week seemed a million miles ago, at least at first. Lactic acid was the winner on this day as I could feel the heavy, thick stuff filling my thighs and calves from minute one. I didn't quit, which I would like to think is an improvement on where I was early in my half-Ironman training in 2007, but I didn't impress either. I rolled along at about 150-160 watts, getting in a good 15 miles and breaking a solid sweat, but the 170-185 heartrate I had been getting to the first couple weeks was replaced by a decent, but uninspiring 145-155. It still felt like hard work and it all has value -- there is a reason, after all, that it's called a foundation bike -- I'm laying the ground work for some serious efforts to come. I'm happy to have stuck with it and happy to check another workout off of the list (still not having missed one!) -- another ride sits there for me on Friday, not to mention a challenging swim tomorrow, so I'll keep on plugging.

The Test Before the Rest

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Sorry I didn't post yesterday (thanks for noticing!), but it was one of those days. Actually, it was the typical "boil your workout down to the essentials" kind of day due to the occasional time constraints that kids and life put on you. I had about 90 minutes to get back and forth to the Princess' preschool and also get my workout in, but manage something I did.

1100 Fartlek Swim Set

If I'm remembering correctly, the assigned set here is some 1900 yards. To get it down to 1100 (oops!), I lopped off two 200 yard drill/kick sets and another 200 yards off of each of the warmup and cool down. Not a long term strategy for success, for sure, but one that is sometimes necessary in life. What did I do? The "meat and potatoes" of the swim set -- specifically, 6 x 150 yard Fartlek swim intervals in a 50 yard build and a 25 yard descend pattern. I continue to struggle with what build means in swimming -- especially, as I seem to have about a half-dozen speeds and all I do is switch from one to the next to the next until I'm sprinting and then, not surprisingly, descend to a sluggish crawl more slowly on the backside. But, either way, I felt it, and that remains the key at this early stage. With only ten seconds between sets, I didn't really have time to fully catch my breath, which is a good thing -- all the more work on improving my VO2 max, which is, in layman's terms, the body's threshold level for exerting and still using oxygen efficiently. The more you work on your lung's resistance, the more they can take down the road, just like anything else.

Plus, I also wasn't concerned about trimming this workout because I knew I had a swim/bike brick planned for the next morning. For those not familiar with triathlon terminology, a "brick" workout is one which combines disciplines, similar to and often in the same order as you would in a race. In my case, where I'm eschewing the run for now, my brick workouts will almost always be swim/bike. In terms of what I was trying to do Saturday, it was my full long-swim workout as prescribed for the weekend, followed closely by a hard 45-minute bike ride. I planned on putting in maximum effort, knowing that I would be taking Sunday off, doing one power interval set on the bike on Monday, and then leaving town for a week. Considering the travel is international and there's no guarantee I'll see any exercise until the following Monday, this brick workout was meant to be intense... It did not disappoint.

1300 yard swim/45 minute bike

I got to the pool about 9:30 on Saturday morning, only to observe a crowd there as large as I've ever seen -- not normally a good thing, especially if you're planning on putting in a good 45-50 minute swim in one of the eight available lanes. The good news is that no one was in the pool yet. The bad? At 10am, an "indoor" triathlon was going to get underway and the pool was going to close. Yikes! Needless to say, I stripped down to my suit, jumped in with my goggles half-off and started swimming as hard as I could. My goal for the day was 1800 yards, but that simply wasn't going to happen in 25-30 minutes (when they would kick me out). A strong (read: not me) triathlon swimmer covers a mile (1750 yards) in 25 minutes. I am more like 35 when I'm really laying the wood.

The good part about the time pressure is that I discarded the pleasantries and I swam HARD. I kicked hard and long, stretched and pulled with all my might, and completely ignored the maelstrom going on around me as they readied the pool for the upcoming race. After about 1200 strong yards, I noticed that they were starting to empty the pool. I managed another 100 yards, bringing me to 1300 in about 27 minutes (which I am pleased as punch about). It wasn't a bad effort, and I probably burned close to as many calories and built up as much lactic acid as if I had gone 1800 at my normal pace, so the effect was roughly the same.

With timing being everything, I passed by a childcare worker on the way in who notified me about a needed diaper change -- I changed quickly into my bike gear, freshened up the Pea with a new set of drawers, and headed for the bike.

Man, is doing the disciplines in combination a different world. I mean I have felt STRONG on the bike these last couple of weeks. I know I got my bum kicked by myself from last spring, but still, I completed every workout as planned, went up and down hills with aggression, and hit all of my speed milestones. Today I nearly passed out after about 15 minutes -- no joke.

First of all, it was quite apparent how hard I swam -- when I mentioned lactic acid earlier, I meant it. My hamstrings and thighs felt like molasses, slogging through all of the pedaling rotations and struggling to make it up even the smallest hill. At least three different times, during the most challenging of inclines, I nearly came to a complete stop. I'm not going to lie -- writing this blog kept me going at least once. I am determined to admit when I cut workouts short on here, and I just didn't want to do that today. I have a week off (sort of -- I have one more ride on Monday) and this was the first time I had combined the swim with the bike. I'm allowed to struggle through it a bit, but I didn't want to allow myself to stop before my prescribed 45 minutes, even if that meant I rode at 14-15mph (a full 2-3mph slower than on Thursday). Thankfully, as I recall from many races, my legs started to get back under me by about 10-15 minutes in and, while I remained slower than my bike-only sets, I got to a good 15mph average seven miles in and finished the 12 mile set averaging 16mph in the 45-minutes of time I had allotted. I was completely spent, soaked to the bone, and literally sat on the bike seat draining a 16 oz water bottle, but I did it and now I have Valentine's Day with my family and a day off on Sunday. I trust further that it did my body and my preparedness some good. At least I certainly hope so...

Kicking My Own Backside

Today proved to be quite a comical exercise in how the brain works. In talking with my friend Peter, we discussed why it is that some days seem easier to work out and others harder. Peter posited that perhaps it's more mental than anything else -- seems to make sense, after all, especially when you've had similar rest, food, training, etc. I guess I was a bit skeptical, but not anymore...

1 Hour Foundation Bike Ride

You see, I hopped on the bike this morning with what has to be the wrong mindset. When I see the words foundation bike ride, my mind goes off to some park with a cruiser bike and streamers hanging off of the handlebars. Thankfully, I have the power meter to keep me a bit honest, but even if I set that to 180, we're talking about a heart rate in the 150's (hardly high exertion), a comfortable 15-16mph, and an hour later I'm hitting the showers feeling accomplished but not fatigued.

My company on the bikes didn't help any either. The woman next to me was seriously wearing a headband circa 1975 with a head of hair that resembled Will Farrell in that terrible basketball movie he did last year. She hardly seemed to be pedaling and a quick peek at her screen told me that she had covered 9 miles in over an hour and had an average heartrate of 94. Now, don't get me wrong, I understand that Lance Armstrong probably has a 94 heading up the Alp D'Huez, but this was not because of supreme fitness -- she simply was going for a stroll. Not that I mean to criticize -- I, of all people, understand that people do their own thing, but it didn't do a lot to pump me up as I pedaled along halfheartedly at the start.

Then I caught a glimpse at my own screen. Turns out that while I was keeping the pacer in my rearview mirror, there was a "ghost rider" who was taking me to the woodshed. In my first five minutes of riding, he had already created a one-minute lead on me. Who was this ghost rider? A little more research let me know that it was myself just nine months earlier... Guess what -- I had my jackrabbit.

For the next fifty-five minutes, I pedaled at a rate that barely would have allowed me to carry a conversation. This particular route had a couple of very steep (40-50%) inclines and I attacked them with all the energy I could muster. Believe it or not, I never gained any ground on myself and ended up "losing" by nearly a minute and a half. Nonetheless, on a day when an hour of pedaling alone would have done, I ended up averaging nearly 18mph (a full two better than I had done on Tuesday during my power ride) and probably lost about four pounds of water weight.

I am now as convinced as ever that your body will do what you ask of it on most occasions -- even on days when you seem sluggish, it might be in your mind and not your legs. Sitting here five hours later, I can tell you that I feel strong, I feel (truly) accomplished and I feel wonderfully motivated. I wonder how I felt nine months ago when I kicked my own #$% -- hopefully, I'll be back there soon.

Mind Over Muscle

It's 10 o'clock, the Princess is at preschool and I've driven 20 miles to put the Pea into the gym childcare, wander out into a 48-degree, albeit sunny, day and jump into a presumably heated pool. I am certain that some people would say I am nuts to swim outdoors on a day like today -- God bless those people, but I love it. For one, the pool is empty. Two, it was in fact heated and, in combination with the sun, it felt glorious. Three, there are some long swims to come in the months of June and July -- months when the mercury flirts with triple digits and the sun in Southern California is capable of inflicting tremendous discomfort. I'll take February and a chill in the air any day. Mind over matter, I say -- and then jump in.

1350yd Base Interval Swim

If there's anything unfortunate about my February swim sets, is that there isn't enough distance to truly take advantage of the more comfortable weather. Unlike the 3000m+ sets forthcoming, the February sets continue to be about building a solid base. A warmup, some drills, a reasonably sized base interval set (7 x 100yd this time around), then some kicks and a cooldown. All this means, besides that I shouldn't have any trouble keeping strong throughout, is that I have plenty of opportunity to work on the myriad of issues with my stroke.

For example, my kick remains a bit of a joke. As my wife said and I mentioned in an earlier post, it needs to be more like dribbling a basketball than an outboard motor. So, today I decide to work on it as I start my warmup -- piece of cake, I think, as I lengthen my kick, stretch my torso, rotate my body with each stroke (the second of three significant issues with my stroke) and really reach for the wall. In fact, I fully complete my 300yd warmup feeling that I gave it my all to achieve the right form. Throw in drill sets which are designed to hold good form, and I've complete more than 40% of my daily workout trying to retrain my brain to do things right. For the record, I've even worked on the third problem area, which is lengthening my breathing -- while I'm still only breathing to the left, I'm making it a priority to get more strokes in per breath, something that I can only do at a relatively tame pace and never at a race-level output.

Then I hit the base intervals... you see, these are meant to be performed at a considerably more intense pace than the warmup (obviously). So, once I get into the flow (and swimming really is quite monotonous, without any challenges of terrain, incline, visual distraction, etc.), I start to push myself a bit. What happens? The stroke all falls to... well, you know. Once I "muscle up" and really get into the stroke, the focus changes to exertion level and the muscle memory kicks in to "overkick" and "under-rotate." When I realize it and start to correct? My stroke gets thrown off and things get uncomfortable -- unless I slow down my pace.

Just shows you how incredibly hard it is to retrain yourself on something you've done your whole life. Just try eating with the opposite hand, for example, or sitting on a stationary bike and pedaling backwards for an hour. Our brain has trained our muscles to identify the action and do it in the way it has "always done." Intuitively and intellectually, I know I'd be faster and more efficient if I altered my stroke, but I now question whether I can do it when I am focused on maintaining a certain pace, not to mention when there are 1000 people kicking and splashing around me and I'm desperately trying to complete a 4000+ yard course. Fuhgeddaboudit.

So, after bits and pieces of good form and a whole lot of just slogging through the water, I completed my set and hopped out of the pool. It was one of those good days -- where my biorhythm made it seem like I could've swam for hours -- but it wasn't yet called for. I'm still building my base and only one day a week will I be doing Fartlek work that will really tax my stamina (Friday this week) -- at only 30% of the race swim length and a dozen more breaks than will be afforded at the event, it hardly seems to prepare me for anything. But it will -- I trust that much. Now if only mind over matter (or muscle, in this case) could be extended to more than just the weather, all would be even that much better

The Hard Work Begins

Waking up Monday morning, it was immediately apparent that the first week is a lot easier than the second. Sure, the volume of training will increase ever so slightly (and generally does, not withstanding that every fourth week is a "recovery" week), but it wasn't so much that as the general fatigue that a week's worth of hard work had caused.

With the mercury dipping below 40 for the waking hours (and snow visible in the mountains!), part of the malaise was the bit of chill in the house, but another part of it was remembering exactly how energized I was just one week earlier as I headed to do my first workout of this long road to the Ironman.

Today I was tired. Physically more than mentally -- it had only been a week after all -- but tired, nonetheless. However, having a semblance of routine helps one fight through that and I packed up the kids and headed to the gym.

1:10 Bike, with 7 x :20 power intervals

Having inadvertently skipped 15 minutes of cool down on the power intervals one week ago, this high intensity workout represented an increase of 25 minutes. At the pace that I intend to keep on these power intervals, that increase would be significantly noticeable.

Having budgeted myself half an hour of warmup time at a power level that exceeded the weekend's longer ride, I chose a long course on the Expresso bike. My goal is to be at about 16mph on a hilly course just at the moment. With an hour and ten minutes, the math says that I should seek a course of roughly 19 miles in length. Unfortunately, the only one that fit was not only quite hilly from the start, but also had silly space-station graphics that looked like the superhighway in the Jetsons. After pausing out of wanting to find something more interesting, I realized exactly how good a fit (and challenging, with the hills) the course was and went ahead with it.

Rather than simply warming up for half an hour, like the workout called for, the combination of hilly course and the ridiculous pace kept by the guy seated on the bike next to me caused me to pedal a little harder than I probably should have. When I started the power intervals (in a particularly hilly part of the course, which was NOT helpful), I had already established a minute lead on my pacer.

I pushed through the power intervals, about 15 minutes in length when combined with the active recoveries, and lost seemingly three gallons of sweat. My legs were quite sore, although more like I had lifted weights than performed a cardio workout, but it was (and is) a good sore. The "candy" on the other side, as I thought of it, was that I now needed to get back to the starting altitude from the heights I had climbed to. I needed to do so with some urgency, as well, if I was going to match my 16mph goal. Even with extensive power intervals, my climbing speed was still well under that. Motivated by my desire to hit 16mph (and to represent my team well in the bike time trial I have coming at the end of the month), I powered down the four miles of hill, came in JUST under the gun (I averaged exactly 16mph!) at slightly under 1:10 and spent the next five minutes toweling off the bike feeling sorry for whomever was to follow. This was a hard, slogging workout and with legs that didn't have the fire in them they'd had the week prior. But perhaps that's why it felt so good in the shower afterwards -- I trust I'll get my legs back under me soon, especially with a week long business trip coming up, and working out with fresh legs isn't what prepares you for an Ironman anyway. For now, it's day by day and workout by workout -- for many, many days to come.

Smelling the Roses

As Monday morning approached under wet, windy weather, I was thankful to have the day off. Not completely off, mind you, as I was anxiously anticipating my first chiropractor/massage therapy session of my new training program, but the first day in seven without some form of swim and/or bike workout.

In order to facilitate a life that includes a business, a wife who puts in significant hours, and two small children, it's imperative that at the beginning of each week I analyze my schedule and find space for six workouts (preferably without pulling double duty), a day off, and, if I'm lucky, a date with the chiropractor and massage table -- in a perfect world, and this first week did go pretty much according to plan, the day off and the massage are the same day so I can heal up fully for the next six workouts.

Today, the massage was typically wonderful. My fantastic doctor, "Dr. B.," worked through my set of goals for this new six month period, as always gave me a clean bill of health (not to mention confidence) to go ahead and do the race in August, and helped stretch and loosen me up. All with the Pea sitting right there in his stroller sipping a bottle. Actually, the Pea was at his absolute best for this hour-long visit, even wooing Junior Seau (my doctor co-owns a sports medicine clinic commonly used by NFL players) by crawling up to him and smiling at him.

Then I hit the massage table and my absolute favorite massage therapist, "Mel." Mel was thorough, as always, talking through my goals with me, working on my problem areas (hamstrings, trapezius/rhomboid connectors, and lower back). For anyone interested in a prolonged training regimen, if you can afford a weekly or twice monthly sports massage, it's absolutely irreplaceable. It's essentially preventative maintenance for your body and I can attest to the fact that it works.

It does leave you sore, however -- especially at the beginning of a training schedule. My neck, which gets abused both when I'm upright on a bike for hours AND when I rotate to breathe while swimming, will be sore for a day or two. My lower trapezius muscles (above the shoulder blades) are sore as if I lifted weights for an hour. Nonetheless, it's all worth it for the restorative effect it has on tired and sore muscles, which are as constant in my world as the sunrise and sunset. Come morning, I will be able to do things again pain-free which had become uncomfortable by the end of my last week of training. Magic!

Small Dose of Spousal Reality

As ridiculous as it sounds, the Princess and the Pea actually gave me an opportunity to sleep in until seven a.m. this morning. Don't get me wrong, due to the efforts of my Lovely Wife, I was able to sleep in until nearly eight yesterday, but today it was a (relatively) late awakening for the Princess that allowed us both to have a few extra minutes of shuteye. Actually, I shouldn't speak for my wife, as the Pea woke up around six and got fed before allowing her back to sleep, but for me, it wasn't too bad getting up.

And wake up we did -- to another night of rainfall in one of the driest cities in America. You see, San Diego averages around four inches of rainfall per year and I think we've gotten nearly that many since I started this week of training. Not that I mind -- it has allowed me to eschew the sunscreen, feel strong (sometimes the sun down here just zaps the energy right out of you), and even bring my dog to the gym (the shade and cool temperatures means she can sleep in the back of the car while I swim). Plus, the 45-50 degree weather keeps the masses from the pool, which is where I headed this morning.

Another benefit to having a good night's sleep is that the Lovely Wife was motivated herself to get out and swim with me -- yeah! It's always a nice weekend morning when we both jump in the pool and do our workouts together -- both kids were up for the childcare (the Pea slept at least half of it), I had someone else to foist the inevitable diaper change on (the weekend is a long swim and it's nearly impossible for the Pea to not need at least one change), and then there's the obvious... you see, the Lovely Wife can swim. Fast. So fast, in fact, that as she was simply doing kicksets letting her arms hang at her side, she was still stretching her lead on moi.

But, it's actually a good thing. Sure, I get in the pool at first and I'm a little grumpy that a woman who just had a baby six months ago, works 50-60 hours a week, and hasn't swam since Halloween is lapping me, but after I let go of my angst a few laps in, I realize that it's nice to be at a point in our lives where we both can jump in the pool and be strong swimmers -- even if only one of us is fast.

1700 yard (approx. one mile) Base Swim

Before I oversell the night's sleep, there was one moment which could have derailed this entire project, at least for a week or two, but thankfully didn't. When I got up at around 1am to use the facilities, I stupidly walked into the door frame of the bathroom with my right foot. Oh man, did it hurt - a lot. As I sat down, I felt all of my toes and convinced myself that nothing was broken.

Then I sort of forgot about it until I pushed off of the wall at the pool on my first lap (of 34) this morning. OUCH! Turns out that the pain was more on the top of my foot (metatarsal bone?) than in my toes, but yowzer, that hurt. Without trying to sound like some sort of superman (which I clearly am not), I couldn't let it derail me -- to be fair, it clearly wasn't a broken bone or anything more than some Class five soreness, but it is the sort of thing that when you are in the wrong mindset might cause one to say "we'll take a couple of days off." I know deep down that I cannot allow anything short of actual physical injuries (as opposed to soreness or bruising) to get me off of the plan. There will be unplanned days off, to be sure, caused by such things as business travel, the common cold, sick kids, etc. and this was not going to be one of them. It is a beautiful morning (to swim, anyway, even if not by the subjective "warm and sunny" standard), your wife is kicking your backside in the lane next to you, both kids are happily playing, sleeping, or watching the Wiggles, and at least three people are going to read about whether you decided to slink out of the pool or swim your damned mile like you're supposed to. So, once again, thanks for reading my blog -- you really do help me push through the little setbacks that a year or two ago might have led to a few days of lazing around with the remote instead of finishing strong.

So, swim a mile I did. It wasn't completely comfortable, it was pretty slow, and now both the Lovely Wife and I both need some caffeine -- but I swam my first long, uninterrupted weekend swim of many to come and it feels pretty darn good. So what if my wife lapped me (repeatedly) -- I wouldn't want it any other way... and if I keep working at it, maybe I can catch up. Besides, tomorrow I have a date with a massage table -- ahhhhhhh...

The Real Thing, Take One

There has been a lot written recently about the fact that endurance athletes need not kill themselves six days a week to get peak performance -- when it was once believed that only miles upon miles upon miles of base training would get you there, now it is understood that the body's physiology prefers a series of short "interval" style high impact workouts followed by a longer workout to absorb the training. In my case, almost all of the interval style workouts will be done in the cozy confines of a gym, complete with towels, drinking fountains, etc.

The same cannot be said for what will become a staple, the weekend bike ride. While it is indeed true that I live in San Diego, and, to be fair, the challenges of outdoor riding are not the same that I faced when I lived in the likes of Minneapolis, Washington, DC, or New York, there is just something different about hopping on the oh-so-skinny saddle, strapping on helmet and bike shoes and actually hitting the pavement.

1:45 Foundation Bike Ride

Over the course of my training for the Aquabike, I think it will vary as to whether I swim or bike on Saturday morning. The morning does provide a bit of a childcare challenge as the Princess and the Lovely Wife head off to ballet class every Saturday at 9am. The Princess loves it, and I wouldn't think of ever preempting it -- but, as you can imagine, this means that the Pea needs care... and while it would be easy to do the bike ride at the gym, bringing him to day care, that is just NOT what I need to get in proper shape for my goals.

On this day, the Princess and her mother headed to ballet, she did wonderfully well (and was thus treated with a chocolate-milk outing as a result), and they rolled back in around 10:15. The Princess was over the moon to see my "bike, bike shoes, bike gloves, and helmet" spread out and started to dress daddy for his ride. It's not a fast process when a two year old is in charge, but the sheer joy on her face as she sipped on my water bottles and helped me strap on my helmet simply cannot be matched. So, it was a little after 10:30 when I hit the road.

It was a little after 10:31 when it started raining. I know, I know, I live in San Diego and this isn't supposed to happen. Well, you're right -- all the while they were at ballet the sun had beaten back the rain clouds from the evening before and it looked gorgeous. I had put on only a t-shirt, slathered on sun screen and... by 10:33 I was soaked and some nice woman literally said to me "ohh, poor guy..."

But, alas, the sun did peek out as I carried on and by 11:00 the weather was once again gorgeous, I was drying off, and as I hit the typical mile-long 4-5% grade climbs that typify my part of San Diego county I was feeling bad for the other riders wearing far too much clothing.

All in all, it was a good ride -- but as I said when I started, wow is it different from the gym. Not to overdo it with the statistical analysis, but at the gym you are deluged with numbers and you are able to respond accordingly with your muscles. In the real world, for better or for worse (and I tend to think for better), riding a bike can be beautiful. There were birds out, the sprinkling of rain had opened up flowers in only a few minutes, there were vistas of mountains and streams that may not have had water in them only 12 hours earlier -- it was a nice day to be taking a "real bike ride" for the first time since before the holidays.

What I mean to say is that I was slow -- very slow. Whereas I had pumped and pumped at the gym and was able to conquer 13+ miles in 45 minutes, I got a bit lackadaisical in the schizophrenic weather and nice scenery and kind of coasted at around 15mph for nearly the whole ride. I did do a lot of hills, and I did have some highly aerobic moments, but let's just say that I was not the taskmaster I was at the gym twice this week. If I had a power meter on my bike, and I don't because they cost a few hundred dollars(!), I'm guessing I would have averaged around 150. Not good enough, and I know that, but I was getting used to the bike again. Getting used to smashing my sit bones onto a small seat, getting used to a real climb with pebbles and dirt, and getting used to being distracted by the world.

I did put in 25 miles and the training was as it should be -- and all remains right in the world.

Four Days -- and I Feel Fine (sort of)

It's very difficult to describe the first few days of training for something as grotesque (for lack of a better word) as an Ironman length race. Each of the three disciplines within the race represent as far as any normal human would like to swim, bike, or run. It causes people who go regularly to the gym, stay in good shape, and like exercise as a complement to their lives, not as the focal point of their lives to ask "why," and with good reason.

But back to the difficulty in describing the first few days -- the problem is, to be honest, that they are in some ways the easiest and the hardest. They are the easiest because they actually ARE the easiest -- they are the shortest in length and the lightest in intensity of the entire six month training period. Yet, they are often the hardest for the body to absorb and assimilate, especially if, like me, you kind of eased into the training period following an enjoyable holiday season, football playoffs, and Super Bowl. They're also a challenge in terms of other components of your life -- from diet, to sleep, to figuring out which workout routine works best for family -- in my case, specifically, the daily routines of my daughter and son who stay home with me during the day.

So, here I am four days in and, while I feel good and relatively strong and fresh, I'm also tired -- and I'm typing away in a pair of sweatpants that smell of chlorine... or is that my hair? There's laundry to be put away, some to be done (and I cannot describe the urgency of laundry when you train for an Ironman and you sweat as much as I do!), and also work to be done. Let's just say I hope none of my clients ever get wind of this blog.

DAY ONE: 45 Minute bike, with 6 x :20 power intervals

I think the key to starting any workout routine is to do your damnedest to complete the desired tasks without cheating, compromising, or skipping. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm following a specific 24-week ritual composed by Matt Fitzgerald, accomplished triathlete and Triathlete magazine contributor. In it, it calls for "power intervals" on the bike. Specifically, 20 second bursts in the highest, most difficult gear, with two minute active (meaning you couldn't carry a conversation) intervals in between. For the math whizzes out there, the first workout, calling for six such power intervals, takes 12 minutes. Considering the whole thing is supposed to take 45 minutes, that means 33 minutes of warmup and cool-down.

Like all of the other bike workouts done during the work week (Day One was a Tuesday), I'll be doing it at the gym. At the Frogs Fitness in Solana Beach, CA, they have a cool bike which allows you to cycle specific routes, watching the scenery go by, while also monitoring all of your stats. For those of you who don't know me, I do have a certain obsession with stats -- in terms of bike stats, there are three very specific ones I like to pay attention to. First, the speed -- it's kind of obvious, isn't it? We all like to know how fast we are going. The second is the elevation or grade of the road -- man, oh man, would I like to have this information when riding around hilly San Diego. When the road is heading uphill, you can adjust your gear downward -- downhill, the opposite. The final stat, and this one has recently gained a lot of attention in the athletic community, is the "power" or "wattage." This, like it says, specifically measures the wattage that you are putting out at the moment you are cycling. For the best of the best (Lance Armstrong), 400 watts is a reasonable goal for a sustained ride. For the likes of me, 200-250 is when I really start to feel it and the sweat starts to run like Niagara.

So, after dropping the Princess and the Pea off at the childcare (and how wonderful are those lovely people who watch my children while I workout), I head to the bike and decide that my legs will never be fresher -- and off I go! Rather than do a comfortable, recovery pace (think easy ride in the country) ride, I decide to go for it and to try and average 200 watts for the 15 minutes or so before I start my intervals. The screen allows for a pacer to be placed at whatever wattage output you choose, so I set my pacer at 200 and go for it.

To be honest, I was extremely well pleased with the result. I had spent about 15 minutes on a bike, actual or exercise, since Thanksgiving and yet I was able to comfortably rip off about 20 minutes at 204 watt average, heading into my power intervals. For those intervals, I chose the highest possible gear, rode them out (they felt more like lifting weights than riding a bike), and kept my active levels in between. Needless to say, 12 minutes and an entire 16 oz. water bottle later, I felt rubber-legged, but good. I finished the course, which meant that I had ridden about 46 minutes, so one minute more than the prescribed distance, waddled back to the showers (my legs were tired, but in a good way), picked up the kids and was off about my day.

I felt so accomplished that I took the Princess not only for a slice of pizza (c'mon, I just burned 680 calories!) but a cupcake as well. I think she wants me to do this more often! The Pea? He was tired and was glad to hit the hay when we got home.

That night, it all came rushing back. The feeling of adrenaline still coursing through your muscles, which had been relatively dormant to that point, causing them to feel anxious and restless, like when your limbs won't fall asleep at night. The soreness and squeakiness of 36 year old joints and cartilage. It was all there, but it all felt good -- I was right at home with it and glad to be back on the horse.

DAY TWO: 1600 yard swim (more or less)

Okay, so as I opened the book to see what I was supposed to swim on Wednesday, imagine my horror when I realize that I was supposed to ride for an hour the day before and not just 45 minutes. Considering what I had said about completing everything, it was a bit of a disappointment, but at the same time I had really redlined that ride, leaving my pacer minutes behind me -- in addition, I had completed the most important part, the 6 power intervals and active recoveries in between. Let's just say my frustration turned pretty quickly into "oh, well." After all, I'll be putting plenty of miles in -- it's my lungs that need the shock just at the moment.

All of this is a prelude to an honest discussion about swim sets. Each prescribed swim set in the 24 week training program is specifically designed to allow you to swim hard and strong for well over 4000 yards come race day. To accomplish that, some of each set is warm up and cool down (presumably to help avoid injury), some is technique (drill sets, kick sets, etc.) and some is flat-out swimming as fast as you can for specified lengths. You see, unlike biking or running, swim workouts are described in terms of distances, not time length... but more on that later.

So, today's swim set started out, as they almost all will, with a 300 yard warm up. For those who are not familiar, your typical junior high pool is 25 yards long. So that means 12 lengths, or six laps. The warm up, like the cool down, is really meant to be a relaxed swim, working on rotating your torso, stretching out your arms and shoulders -- if I were as zen as a yoga instructor, I would speak to becoming one with your body for the workout to come. I understand and appreciate all of that, and agree to a significant extent, but for me it's also just yards and yards of swimming -- in many respects, that is what I will need to finish the race. So, I enjoy the warmup, but like anything, I hope to get it done and out of the way because it's more work than it is fun.

In the early days of the training program, the warmup is followed by 200 yards of drill sets. There are all kinds of drills, intended primarily to get you to rotate your torso and "catch" water with your entering hand. For me, it would probably also be good to work on breathing out of both sides (I only breathe to the left, which has potential ramifications for neck and back soreness), but I don't. I don't know why -- it's just not comfortable to breathe looking right.

After the drills, and I'm sure I'll describe them someday, it's the meat of the first set. Pretty simple stuff, actually. Six 100-yard intervals at a moderate aerobic (actually, swimming is anaerobic, like lifting weights, but you know what I mean) pace. Again, like the warmup, these are fairly monotonous. I actually find swimming at a moderate pace very contemplative. Not only do I think about work, about my day or my week, but also about how much I love my family -- all the while wondering whether one of them will have a diaper to change or a potty accident which forces the childcare people to come interrupt my workout. It didn't happen on this day, but I'm sure it will soon enough!

With the six intervals completed, this is where I "cheat," so to speak. The next 200 yards are meant to be "kick sets" with a kickboard. Let me just say this right now -- I'm never going to do more than 50 yards of kick sets. Is my kick that good? No. In fact, I seem to be the slowest kicker who's ever swam at the pool I work out in. It's a combination of things. The first is that I'm sitting in the bright sunshine (I'm fair enough skinned to be concerned about such things) in Southern California kicking like I'm in an 8-year old's swim class. I know how to kick and I'm also smart enough to be able to work on my kick while actually SWIMMING! But more than that, it's that if I'm going to cycle 112 miles and then run another 26+, I'm actually intending to do a lot more work with my arms in the swim than with my legs. If, when I'm swimming, I treat my legs as if I was dribbling a basketball, as opposed to kicking like an outboard motor on a boat, I think it will bode much better for the hours upon hours I'm about to sit on a bike. Plus, the Princess and the Pea are waiting for me (I promised the Princess some time in the pool when I'm done!) So, there you have it -- I'm never doing more than 50 yards of kicking, even though nearly every workout will call for 200. Suddenly a 1600 yard workout becomes 1450.

Or, even worse...

See, then there's the 300 yard cool down. This one, I just don't get. I have a fairly athletic background, mind you. I have played all manner of sports for many, many years. I understand the concepts of warming up, of stretching, and of allowing muscles to cool. I also understand that when you are as slow as I am in the pool, you don't need 12 more lengths to cool down your muscles -- what you need is to get out of the damned pool (and go rescue your kids from childcare! ;-) All that being said, I respect the idea, and also know that it's an opportunity to work on technique. So, I decide that I will do a 100-yard cool down, which takes me about two minutes (accomplished swimmers laugh). As the swim set lengths get longer, and the Pea is in child-care for longer, this will become important. I have two hours from the time I drop him off to get changed, get in the pool, swim, shower, and pick him up. It will become important to assess where I can save some time during the inevitably long swim sets of the months to come. The cool down seems an optimal place.

So, that is in a nutshell how you pare the first swim workout down from 1600 yards to 1250. But I don't mind, and neither did my legs, tortured from the first bike workout. I'll swim plenty and I'll finish the race -- the time spent with the Princess diving after diving rings is much more valuable.

DAY THREE: 45 Minute "Foundation" Bike

In most training programs, a set period of your training is dedicated to just getting your base level of fitness up to snuff. In this particular 24-week plan, the first twelve weeks are just that -- your "base period." During that time, many of the bike workouts are called Foundation workouts. What that means is just what it sounds like. Imagine you get on a bike, ride hard but steady as if you were out for the exercise, and then coast home after the set period of time.

On Thursday, the third day of my training, a ride of 45-minutes under those conditions was called for. Thursdays are a bit tricky in my world, and might well become swim days going forward. You see the Princess goes to "la escuela" or her Spanish-language preschool for two hours every Thursday morning. So, I have two hours from the time I drop her off, which invariably includes a few minutes for pleasantries for the teacher, other parents, etc., to be back at the school to pick her up. While I am a member of the gym literally across the parking lot from the school, I don't have any experience either with their equipment or their child care. So, while I'm sure I will end up there eventually, I much prefer to drive a couple of miles back to Frogs in Solana Beach, where the childcare people love when I drop off the Pea and where I can get back on the Expresso (that's what it's called!) bike with all of the stats. Call me weird, but I do prefer the stats and fake scenery to Oprah, or the View, or whatever those people on the regular exercise bikes are watching.

Given that I mastered the 200-watt threshold on Tuesday and that I could feel my leg's on Wednesday's swim, I decided "foundation" meant for me a 180-watt pace and that 45 minutes meant 14 miles. If I was quicker or slower in covering the miles, that would be either my reward or penance. I had just agreed to cycle the 16-mile leg of a triathlon relay with a couple of friends in three week's time, so I needed to focus on riding hard for about this length.

Let's just say that my legs disagreed -- at least initially. I had a hard, hard time keeping the 180-watt pace (what a difference two days makes!). After about four miles, and already drinking my entire water bottle, I hopped off of the bike just seconds ahead of my pacer (who kept going while I went to refill). I got back on a minute behind him, frustrated with myself and recommitted myself to the pace. I caught him with a few miles to go and then held him off while the course finished downhill (it's actually difficult to get your power numbers up when going downhill because of all of the work done by gravity -- so I had to put it in a VERY high gear and pedal at a high number of revolutions per minute to pull it off). It helped that the Expresso "radio station" was playing some good tempo music -- stuff like Livin' La Vida Loca and Sweet Home Alabama that would not otherwise be resident on my IPod, had I brought it. Anyway, as I went to pick up the Pea and drive back to la escuela (which means "school" in Spanish, for those that I have confused), my legs were clearly very taxed -- even more so than two days earlier despite the ten percent less level of exertion.

DAY FOUR: 1600 yard (erm... 1250 yard) swim set

The second swim set of a week often looks very much like the first. The third is a base swim of defined length in most weeks (the swim version of the Foundation bike, if you will), but the first two have many components.

Like Wednesday, the swim started with a 300 yard warmup and a 200 yard set of drills. I had once again forgotten my pull paddles (to help with the catch of your hand), but I found the right drills to do. Friday was an interesting day in San Diego, as well, as I had dropped the Princess of at preschool (she goes M/W/F in most weeks) in a torrential downpour. In actual fact, I was looking forward to a swim in the rain -- much of the stress involved in my swim training concerns sun protection, and this would not require any sunscreen. Considering I had already seen some level of sunburn (despite wearing SPF 30) on day one -- in FEBRUARY(!) -- it was a good thing.

Actually, the 500 yard combination of warmup and drills were remarkable in that I felt very, very good. I have come to believe that swimming, and more specifically how you feel doing it, is as biorhythmic as anything else. Some days you can go for miles and miles and it feels like nothing. Other days, 500 yards in you feel like you are going to die. Well, for me, that is. I'm sure for Michael Phelps, it's not really an issue. Or for my Lovely Wife, for that matter, for whom swimming is second nature. Now she would never skip a cool-down and they would be the entire length of one of my workouts!

So, it was with confidence that I entered the weighty portion of my swim workout -- on this day, it was 6 x 100 yard "Fartlek" intervals. Now, I don't know who this unfortunately named Fartlek was, but he is responsible for a lot of pain (and, to be fair, performance) of endurance athletes. The concept is to alternate ultra-high intensity exertion with recovery time, similar to the power intervals on the bike. The theory is that it builds your VO2 max, or the threshold level of exertion that your body is able utilize oxygen efficiently (I know that definition is incorrect in some way), thereby allowing you to exert at a higher level for longer. I don't know what level gets you to 17 hours, but I'll try and do what I'm told.

So, for these Fartlek intervals, it's 6 x 100 yards (four lengths of the pool), alternating maximum effort with easy effort. After every 100 yards, you only get ten seconds off before the next set. In theory, they work really well to build your endurance. In practice, if done right, they make you feel like you're going to hurl. In fact, this is the first of many instances before I cross the finish line in Florianopolis some 15-months from now where I hope to feel that way -- it's a good thing, right? It means you are making progress and taking your body somewhere new! Anyway, even under the clouds and as confident as I was feeling (and as relatively short as these sets were -- check in with me in a few months!), they were tough. I nearly swallowed half the pool doing a turn in set five, I think I turned ten seconds into fifteen at least twice (the poolside clock was broken!), and let me just tell you hoowwww sllooooowwww my "easy sets" were. I think another swimmer completed her entire workout during one of them.

Anyway, before you know it they were done -- that's the beauty of defined and short sets like that, as opposed to sets like "swim 3000 meters. Then I skipped all but 50 yards of my kick set (see above), did a 100 yard cool down -- quite happily, I might add -- and picked up the Pea from childcare. That's two straight swim workouts without the interruption of a diaper change and he seemed pleased as punch to be hanging out with Monika working on sitting up by himself. I was happy to see him, though, as we hopped in the car, drove back to the Princess' preschool (even early enough to have lunch with her) and eventually drove home.

So, there you have it. Four days in and I am a little sore. Add the soreness I feel now from having typed for 40 minutes (although I also feel the joy of having had the house cleaned today and the fact that they are both napping -- whoo hoo!), and I'll soon be ready for bed. Ironically, all this working out can make it hard to sleep. Certain muscles continue to have that restless feeling and they can unnerve you right out of a good sleeping pattern (and, for me, force me onto my side, which is bad for my shoulder). But, I know it's all good for my body in the short and long runs and I'm happy once again to be going forward toward a goal.

On to the weekend... and there is the boy waking up, as if on cue.

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog. My name is Cory and I am a work-from-home dad with two kids, ages 2 and six months (as of Feb 2009). I'm also an aspiring Ironman. This is my story of how to balance work, parenting, and multisport athletics. It's also a way for me to remember this wonderful time in the lives of my children, regardless of how the races end up.

Generally speaking, Ironman length races require about 24 weeks, or six months of training. For the uninitiated, a full Ironman length is a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike, and a full 26.2 marathon run, in that order. For the best in the world, a mark around eight to nine hours is the goal. For me, the goal is to run (or walk) across the finish line before they shut down the course, some 17 hours after it all begins. If I'm really having a good day, I may beat Scott Rigsby's 2007 time of 16:42:48. Then again, I have two more legs than the impressive Mr. Rigsby, a double amputee.

While I am not an unaccomplished triathlete, what I have accomplished needs to be viewed in the light of participation, maintaining fitness, and achieving one's goals. In every race I've ever done, there are people done before I even start the run. There are people who's entire race is completed in less time than it takes me to do the bike. There are even people who are running before I am even out of the water (after completing their swim and their bike!) But I have finished well over a dozen races, some with times that I am proud of because they represent improvements and overcoming obstacles, be they man made or physical -- in other words, life or my 30-something body threw me curveballs along the way. Nothing too dramatic, mind you, but the kinds of things one prefers not to have when attempting to train for triathlons.

So, that's where we are today. Maybe I'm an obsessive planner, but my goal is to find peak fitness and complete the Ironman triathlon in lovely Florianopolis, Brazil in some 15 months time (May 2010). I hope to have my wife, my kids, and maybe even parents and my sister there when I cross the finish line -- even if that means keeping them up well past their bedtime. But finish I will -- or at least that's the goal.

To get there requires taking things in a very formulaic manner, or at least I'm told. To start, I find that months upon months upon months of running (as opposed to swimming and cycling) takes a significant toll on my body. I am 36 years old, I weight about 235 lbs, and I live in very hilly San Diego. My knees are fine (knock on wood), but the pounding training for a marathon is something other parts of my body can only endure for limited periods -- let's just say 15 months straight won't cut it. So, the first item on the agenda is to compete in what's called an Aquabike race at the Ironman distance. Specifically, it's what it sounds like -- an Ironman length swim (2.4 miles), followed immediately by the Ironman length 112 mile bike. The goal is to get to swim and bike fitness, then gradually bring in the run for the Spring of 2010. It's not that I cannot run -- I did complete the Long Beach Half-Marathon in the fall -- I just know better than to do so for 15 months straight without already having the bike and swim fitness in my hip pocket. Too many injuries and too much fatigue waylay the entire regiment, and I'm smart enough to now know my limitations.

Because Aquabike races are limited in number (even though I could just do a regular race and leave after the bike, it's nice to complete an actual race course and not just slink off like some petty thief or worse, quitter!), there is one that stands out in my area. The Vineman race in Sonoma County, California, the largest independent Ironman length race in the country, has held an Aquabike category for years -- as an iconic race in a lovely part of the state, it seems a no-brainer.

August 1, 2009 -- that's the date of the Aquabike. As I mentioned, generally one plans about 24 weeks of preparation for an Ironman length race. What I didn't mention is that my job -- I have run my own immigration law firm since 2002 -- requires a fair bit of travel. As a result, I'm giving myself 26 weeks, knowing that I'll need to take a few days off here and there as required. I intend to train three days a week on each of the bike and swim sections, presumably on alternating days. There will be two weekly workouts in each discipline of under two hours, so as to fit with available child-care options and one longer workout in each, probably when my wife is available on the weekends. Once the run gets incorporated into my workout come the fall, I'll need to reassess, but for now I think the schedule I have in my head should work out fine. As far as how to work out, or what form they take, here's where I need to plug Triathlete magazine contributor and author Matt Fitzgerald. His book of Triathlon workouts, published in conjunction with Triathlete magazine, has been my workout bible for a few years now. Matt has a specified 24-week Ironman length plan in his book -- actually, he has a dozen, and I am choosing option three (the third lightest workload -- intended for those who want to finish and still hold down a job). I'm simply removing the run portion (for now) and hammering out the swims and bikes.

So now you must be wondering what I'm blogging about. Well, other than providing myself an opportunity to journal my routine, thereby forcing myself to be honest and keep it up (not to mention a great record for posterity), I'm also going to relate how it all fits in to the wonderful lives of my children, who for privacy's sake I'll simply refer to as the "Princess" (my daughter who will turn three late this Spring) and the "Pea" (my son born in Summer of 2008). Oh, and my lovely wife -- shall we call her "Lovely Wife?" It will also provide me an opportunity to thank the dozens of people who make such an effort possible, most notably in-laws, neighbors (who put up with the barking dog when I'm off to the gym), child care professionals and preschool teachers, and any number of other people who I'm sure I'm forgetting. To all of them, let me start by saying thank you.

But most importantly, let me start... and so it begins.