ProLine Sports, Nutrition and Equipment Blog

Hard and Short vs. Long and Easy

A lot of endurance training is based around doing things for a long time at an easy pace. Training for a marathon requires hours on the road, running along at an easy effort to get your cardio base built up. Heading out on the bike for even longer hours to get ready for a 56 or 112 mile ride, or whatever you're training for. Swimming is a little different, but still, there are long days. Getting that open water swim training in is tough, but going out for 30, 45 or 60 min is good, long training too.

But how do you get faster? How do you get stronger? Yes doing those long, easy training efforts will make going longer easier, but you want to get faster don't you? Then you've got to put yourself in some painful situations.

I've been doing a lot of biking, especially since I went under the knife for my knee surgery, and a lot of it was long slow and fairly easy. For the first month or so post-op, I was doing lots of 1-3 hour rides, generally in my lower heart rate zones. It was good base building work, and amazing for my knee. The range of motion came back quickly and I was doing well with my physical therapy.

But then it came time to face the facts. I wanted to be FASTER. I still want to be faster. It was kind of hard to tell how fast I was going, and how hard I was pushing it on the trainer for a while, but then I got my Garmin Edge 800 as well as a Wahoo Fitness cadence/speed sensor. Having these two tools really helped me to get a better gauge on what I was doing on the bike. Before these, I had no clue what my cadence was, or how 'fast' I was going on my trainer. I could get a good guess on the cadence, but honestly, I really wasn't into counting my rpm's. All I was going on was perceived effort.

Since then, I've become almost obsessive about getting my HR in the proper zones and pushing it. Especially on a controlled ride on my trainer. My favorite rides being a couple videos following along with the Sufferfest video series. Such as a 2x20 and 5x4 session. One getting me working at a TT effort for 20 minutes, twice, and the other getting me into my v02 max range and pushing my limits.

Now the trainer is nice and all to have in a controlled environment, but there's something about getting out on the road and pushing it that isn't the same as being indoors. So I decided to find some big hills near me and go throw down on them for somewhat of a 2x20 workout.

Out near Blue Mound State Park in Wisconsin, there's a big group of huge hills, and a lot of category climbs. I decided to pick two of them and get after it. I took a good warmup of about 20 minutes or so to get around to the start of the first climb. I got my legs to wake up after a few small hills and a nice long downhill stretch pushing upwards of 50 mph and getting my cadence up close to 120 rpms.

I got to the first hill which is rated a Cat3, and knew it was a long steady climb over 4 miles. But the thing is I wanted to get some power out of it. So instead of gearing down and going at it slowly, I kept my cadence a little lower, but tried to keep my speed up. I'm not going to lie, this sucked. But I could feel it was worth it once I reached the summit. It's not a constant uphill, as there's little breaks here and there to catch my breath and grab a sip of water if I needed. Throughout the whole hill I was working at threshold to work on my power as well as my pain tolerance. It took me just under twenty minutes and I got some good power work out of it.

Headed back for round two, I took the flats a little easier and the loop to get to the next hill was a little shorter. However, it was much much harder for me. The average grade being near 7% as compared to 3% on the other longer hill. Whether I wanted to or not, this hill was going to push me. Just to keep myself upright I was working at maximum effort, but sometimes being barely over 6mph. Despite it being shorter in terms of distance, it took so much more out of me than the longer climb. And there are no breaks. It just keeps coming one after another. However, I was able to keep that smirk on my face that I get when I'm doing something that most people find to be stupid. Who would do this to themselves? My answer, is those who want to get faster.

Being able to get through this ride was a huge confidence booster for me. I've been training for a little over a week straight without a full day off, and I was glad to be able to finish this ride and not bonk.

I'm feeling the pain today, but it's a good pain. I know I worked hard, and my muscles are exhausted. No aching pains that I feel need any extra attention other than some rest and recovery. Hopefully the training pays off and I've gained a few more watts of power in my legs. I may be able to find out next weekend.

Until then, it's back on the road, cranking out the miles.

-Dave

Open Water Swimming (OWS)

Since I've been up in Wisconsin, in the Madison area for a little over a month now, I've been trying to find a group (or at least one person) to get out on the water with to do some open water swim training. Going into my first race with none under my belt this season was a little scary, but it turned out ok. Luckily I have had a good amount of experience in open water, so I just played it safe at first, then cut in when I felt comfortable.

This morning was a different story. I finally found a group of people hitting up Lake Monona at the Ironman WI swim start, and joined them. There was a group that went out just ahead of us, followed by our group of six. Two older gentlemen, probably in the later 30's or early 40's age groups, another guy near my age, and two women around my age as well. 

I asked how they usually work this, and they decided on a course a little over a mile. There's a ski jump probably a hundred yards out or so that is a good spotting point on the way back, and down at the far end where the lake starts to turn in, is a bridge and a dock. We swam towards the dock that was estimated at about a half mile, or a little further.

It was about 58 degrees at the time we got into the water, and I was nervous my sleeveless wetsuit wasn't going to keep me warm enough. But it has been unseasonably warm, so the lake wasn't too cold at all. It took me about 4-5 minutes and I was feeling good and warm, and I could still feel my arms!

Being that there were six of us, we wanted to make sure we kept track of each other, so we kind of broke off into groups. The two older guys and I split off early and took off a bit faster than the women. The other guy my age headed out a bit deeper. I think he's probably a much faster swimmer than all of us were, but he was leading the group. After about 400m or so, one of the guys in our group dropped off and headed back in.

The water was a bit choppy and there were some swells coming in, so I assumed he was playing it safe and turned around. Luckily, the way we were swimming, we were only about 75yds from shore, so if something were to go wrong, it was a quick swim into land. 

The other guy and I soldiered on through the waves and made it to the far dock, waited, and looked around for the rest of the crew. After a few minutes, we decided they had either turned back, or we'd hit them on the return trip. 

We ended up never spotting them, so when we got out of the water, we started looking around for the two women and the younger guy. We spotted them about 200m shy of the landing, but pretty close into shore. Neither myself or the other guys I was with thought to look into shore for them on the return trip, so we must have missed them. We were looking ahead as we spotted and out as well. 

Unfortunately it looked like one of the women was having a bad time, and a little bit of panic. It turns out it was her first OWS, and the waves really shook her confidence. As she got out of the water, you could see it on her face that she was petrified. We all gave her some words of encouragement, and that seemed to help a bit. The guy running the group had made his way back in to meet them and was helping her in, so she was in good hands with him and her friend, luckily.

A swim like this just shows how important it is to know your skills and abilities in an open water swim. The winds can change quickly, and if you're not prepared, things can go wrong. For the six of us, we had each other looking out for one another. However, as we exited, we saw a lone soul splashing his way along the shoreline all alone. In my mind, he's an idiot. So many things could go wrong, and nobody would know. We never saw him go out, but luckily saw him coming in. He was out deep, away from the shore, with no cap on. For a boater, he'd be impossible to see. And for others on the water, same story. I lost the guy I was with from time to time and we were never further than 10yds apart due the the swells and timing of our breathing. 

A few things I think of during open water swimming, especially while training, are to keep things simple. It's a training workout, not a race. There's no need to fully exhaust yourself, especially if there's no boat support for you should something happen. So I really try to slow my mental process down and really concentrate on how I'm moving through the water. 

Another thing I think about is my stroke. While a good long stroke catching lots of water and gliding along is great in the pool, it won't do jack on a day like this. You need a more abbreviated stroke and a quicker turnover through the water. If the water is flat, it's not as big of a deal, but with waves and swells, (or other people around you for that matter) you've got to get your arms moving a bit quicker. In the waves like today, I could feel when my stroke was getting too long, as I would go to turn my arm in towards me and pull, sometimes I could feel my hand in the air on the other side of the wave. Meaning I was pulling nothing. But the same holds true in pack swimming. Having that shorter, abbreviated stroke (while still catching as much water as possible), will enable you to maneuver around other athletes easier, and be less likely to be kicked or be grabbing other feet. 

Point being, today was a great training session in the open water and it served as a reminder to me and a learning experience for others. I'm just hoping for some calmer waters next time I hit up the lake so I don't have to work so hard!

-Dave

First Race: Capitol View Recap

Having had my ACL surgery a little over four months ago, and people saying that I wouldn't be able to think about racing/running until the early Fall, I really didn't see myself having any races on my schedule. Especially this early in the season. I had a few mishaps along the way, but if you asked me two months ago, I would have laughed about the possibility of doing a race in early June. But I did.

As soon as I was able to, I was on the bike and in the pool, putting in the miles and laps. The pool I was able to go hard right away, and the bike slowly came on, but it was mostly a lot of base building and range of motion work. 

Finally, about 3 weeks ago, I was able to get out doing some light jogging. Starting with just a mile of walk jogging, and within a week, I was up to nearly five miles. Not fast, but I was feeling good. Once I got up to a 90 minute run and felt no pain after, I knew I was ready to race.

I found the Capitol View Triathlon up here in Madison, only about 20 minutes from home, and knew it was going to be my first race. And yesterday I raced it, and I couldn't be happier with how things turned out.

The morning started early at 4:30am, getting up to eat some breakfast. I like to slowly graze throughout the morning so my stomach is never too full. I grabbed a couple waffles and a banana first off and ate those with a cup of coffee. Then I geared myself up in my tri suit and got my gear ready and loaded up in the car. 

At about 5:15am my wife, dog and I headed over to the course. We got there and I started unloading. When I was putting the rear wheel on the bike, I noticed the brake calipers had shifted and they weren't moving. One side was pressed up against the rim, and wouldn't shift over. So I had a mini panic attack trying to fix it on race morning. I couldn't sort out how to loosen the whole joint, so I brought it over to the bike tech who showed me to take off the wheel and access the brakes from the inside. I never would have thought of that! I can do some stuff on my bike, but this was above me.

Finally having my bike right, body marked and my transition area setup, it was down to the water for some warm up swimming and stretching. The water was fairly warm, around 70-72 degrees. However, the  bottom was really mushy. Not something that's fun to run out of. 

I got my warm up swim in and was ready to go. We listened to the pre-race talk over the PA and they mentioned a good amount of seaweed on the long straight of the 1500m swim. My heat was third after the elites and the 15-24 year old heat. I was hopeful that the first two heats would sweep out a lot of the weeds. I was wrong.

The heat started and I hung out on the outer edge, away from all the kicking and grabbing until the first turn. I found my rhythm early, and it was feeling good. Once I hit the first turn, I was ready to get at it. I found the seaweed, but it wasn't slimy and wasn't in my face, so I tried not to let it bother me. It was mostly just in my hands during my stroke, so I was ok with it. I came across a few floaters, but it's better that than getting kicked in the head. Which I did a few times too. But nothing was malicious. Just me or the other athlete getting off out tracking lines and crossing paths. 

When I got to the finish of the swim, I stood up about 50m from shore and checked my watch. 23:50! But I still had a ways to go to get to the transition pad. I had to trudge through 50m of muck, then run uphill another 75m or so to get to the transition entrance pad to mark my time. Just under 26 minutes for my official time. I couldn't be happier! I was hoping to be in the upper 26 to lower 27 minute range based on how I did last year in my only Olympic, and the amount of training I've put in this off-season. On to the bike.

I got to my bike quickly and my wetsuit came off easily. I hadn't practiced any transitioning, but I got in and out rather quick I think. I never take the time to dry off, except maybe my feet so I can get my socks and shoes on. Those got on quick, and I threw on my helmet and put my sunglasses in my mouth so I could see everything until I got on the bike out of transition. My HR was high, so I kept my cadence quick leaving the park, and knew there was a quick, short uphill right away. I watched a few guys go flying past me. I thought I would see them later. And I did. 

The bike went pretty smooth. Despite the wind on the out portion of the loop, I was cruising along great. I did everything I could to not look at my speed on the way out because I knew I would overwork myself against the wind and fizz out either late in the bike or on the run. Plus, on the way back, I knew there were two steep hills I had to muscle up. 

I found a few guys that passed me out of transition within the first 4-5 miles, then another couple around mile 10. Once I hit the lollipop section of the 24.8 mile route, I hit the gas hard. The first 2 miles of this section are fast, and I knew I could use my knowledge of the course to my advantage so I tore it up. I screamed past 5-6 guys in this section, tearing up the downhill fully tucked around blind corners as others were riding their brakes. I had to yell at a few of them who were hovering in the middle of the road to get out of the way. And they did. 

The way back in was fast. I think the way out I was averaging 16-17mph working against the wind. But the way back, I was cruising in the mid twenties on the flats and higher on the false-flat downhills. It was great. I got passed by a few of the older guys, and that usually happens, because some of them are just so good and have much more experience than me on the bike. I usually catch them on the run.

I came in at 1:14:xx, and was happy with that considering the wind. I got into transition 2, feeling pretty good. I wasn't sure about this run, but I got at it. I started off with a short stride and really tried to feel out my knee. It was feeling good, so I kept it going at a decent pace. Around the 1-mile mark, I noticed the huge hills I was facing, and knew I was in for a tough run. I knocked off a few guys early, some that were passing me on the bike. I'm pretty used to that. The run was hot, humid and hilly. Being all on trails and through some marshy areas, it was extremely muggy on the course. I was happy at this point that I had brought along two water bottles on the bike and drank them all. I played it fairly safe on the run, not pushing the downhills like I usually can, letting my turnover go loose, and kept it easy and under control. Once I got to mile 4, I started letting go and put out what I could. The hills flattened out, and the course got easier. My HR was rising, but I was feeling good. At mile 5, I stopped looking at my watch and just went at it, finishing strong and alone, picking off about a dozen people in the last 400m, but most probably from the sprint distance that started after us.

I came across in 2:32:xx, and was really happy. My swim was above what I expected. My bike was a little slower than I wanted, but had there been no wind, I think I would have been even faster. So I compare my times to the rest of the crowd, instead of against myself. The run was better than I wanted, too. As long as I was under 50 minutes, I'd be happy for only having 3 weeks of run training in, so doing it in 48:52, was icing on the cake.

The course crew was great and everything was marked well. Nothing was over the top like Ironman events or Rev3, but this was one of those events that's run so well that you don't even notice the crew because they're there doing their job. I would highly recommend the race to anyone who's looking for a race in the Madison area. It's not an overly large race, but I think there was close to 1,000 people between the Olympic and Sprint. 

Now it's time for a day off and to get back on the road working on my speed in the run for my next event. I still don't know when it is yet, but I know I'll be ready.

 

-Dave

Starting from Scratch

For those of you who have been reading my blog, you know I had ACL reconstructive surgery back in late January. It's been a little over 4 months since the day of surgery, and I'm happy with the way things have progressed. I was incredibly excited how quickly I was able to get on the bike and start working on my range of motion and keeping my cardio workload up. A week or so after that I was back in the pool and cranking out lap after lap.

A lot has happened since then, but one thing was always on the back of my mind: running. Running had always been my go-t0. I was always able to rely on an extra gear to put myself into at the end of any race to kick it up to another level. Whether it be to pass one more person at the finish line, or hold off someone coming up behind me to do the same. But since I've started real running the past couple weeks, I feel the table has shifted on me, and I have to concentrate on the front end of the race more.

If I want to be competitive at the end of a race now, I need to bury myself in the swim and bike. Not completely, but enough so that the weakness of my run now isn't so much of a handicap. This will be a delicate balance. I have decent speed still, but going sub 7min/mi in a 10k of the Olympic Distance isn't really an option right now as it was what I was shooting for last season.

I feel like I'm starting triathlon all over again, but from a different perspective. I've been pretty confident in my swim, and I think my bike has come a long way, too. However, all of my running, with exception of this Saturday, has been base building and recover style efforts. The good part is that I've never felt I'm going to run out of gas on any length I've gone. The thing is that I just don't feel that extra gear yet. It's like I have a body with six gears, but I've only got the horses to fully utilize the first four. But if I stay in those first four gears, I can go forever.

This past Saturday, I put myself in a bit of pain by pushing my cardiovascular limits, getting up and pushing my VO2 Max in essence on a  6 mile run. I was able to push my HR up into the upper 180's and low 190's. However, I did so on the uphills to ensure I wasn't putting too much load on my still recovering knee. While the pace stayed slow, the effort grew. On a few hills, I was able to drop my pace from what it was on flatland and descending. I tried using the descending portions for recovery and flatland for form and get my feel back for the road and changing conditions.

The true test will come this weekend when I hit up the Capitol View Triathlon up here in Madison. My first race of the season! I've ridden the bike course twice in some longer rides, and I know it's a fairly flat course with a couple short steep bursts of uphills. If the wind holds off, I think I can crank out one of my best bike splits. It will be my first open water swim of the season, so that should be interesting. I'm still looking to find a group to swim with in the area so I don't go out alone. Very unsafe! And this will ultimately test my knee and how I can hold up in the 10k portion of the race.

I have no real expectations in terms of finishing times. I have a few in mind, but I know once I get off the bike, things can completely change based on how I feel with my knee. If it's feeling stiff, I'll go easy and just finish up the race casually. However, if it feels good, I'll push it and see what kind of pace I can crank out. Either way, I'm really looking forward to getting out and racing!

-Dave