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. :-)