Nobody likes being sick. Especially while in the middle of some heavy training. But sometimes I think it's a way for you to tell yourself to slow down and take it easy. Just a couple workouts missed wont kill your season and sometimes it may actually help your muscles recover if you've been putting in some big training blocks.
I was sick at the beginning of last week. Right after I did a three day stretch of big training. I was pretty bummed about it. Even though the first day I was feeling crummy was a planned day off. It's hard, though, to have a good solid recovery day when your body would rather be fighting the bug making you sick instead of repairing muscle damage and replenishing nutrients your pumping into your system.
However, I tried to stay positive about being sick in terms of taking care of myself. I wanted to make sure I was eating right and drinking plenty of fluids. So I got as much sleep as I could, or as much as my 9 month old would let me. I ate well and ate enough. Sometimes eating enough when you're sick is tough. I took in lots of clear fluids and electrolytes to help my body as much as I could.
All in all, I feel like I came out on the positive from the sickness just as strong but having developed better habits I am continuing over now. I didn't put on any extra weight. I feel since I was sick, I wasn't having any beers since I wouldn't wake up well the next morning. And now I just don't feel like it as much
So all in all, like I said in the beginning, maybe being sick helped me get a better perspective on my training and come out in the other side better rested and more prepared to tackle the weeks ahead. Time to start looking at some speed training as the weather turns.
So we're nearly 3 months into the year 2013, and not too far off the start of race season for most of us. At least some early season checks. We're also far enough away from the new year that we can check in how you're doing with your goals. Are you still working at them? Have you achieved any of them?
Now is a perfect time to take a step back, look in the mirror and see how things are going. Are you on schedule? Are you ahead or behind? Are you ahead of where you were last year? Don't be afraid to ask yourself these questions. For most of us, the only person we have to answer them to is ourselves. So, how are you doing?
For me, I've been able to tick a couple goals off my list already. One being my 100 mile ride. I wasn't really planning to get it done on the trainer, but voila! It's over and done. But now I can't wait to get at one outside and really feel the payoff of a long enduro ride.
The other is dropping weight. I've been holding steady under 200lbs for a couple weeks and have dropped a good amount since the New Year. So I'm pretty happy about that. But I've still got a ways to go. My eating habits have been ok so far. But I know I can do much better. I don't reward myself too often, but I really think I can do better than I have been. Which would be one way to tick off a few more pounds over the next month. My weight loss goals don't really have anything to do with vanity. Maybe a little. But most of all with my racing weight. I want to optimize my training and racing potential as much as possible, so being at the right weight is a key part of doing that. Lugging a 200+lb frame around on a bike and run can take a pretty heavy toll.
For me, 2013 has been all over the place so far. I've had some really awesome training weeks, putting in big miles and yards in the pool. While some weeks can fizzle and be frustrating. I try my best to look at my overall gains, rather than that of just the day. Tossing off a bad session on the bike or a shortened session in the pool due to fatigue or a class coming in (I hate that!). Mostly I look at my consistency. Last year that was what I could truly hang my hat on. Getting each specific sport in a few times a week was vital for me to get back into the shape I wanted to be in post-surgery. And now in terms of being fit and having a solid all around racing season, being consistent will pay off huge as well.
So take some time and ask yourself some questions about how you're doing so far this year. Be honest with yourself. Write it down if you have to. Hold yourself accountable for your actions. You don't want to disappoint yourself do you? Reassess if you have to. Re-prioritize as well. If you're having trouble getting in a specific event or training, see what you can do to move things around in your life to make it work. Being an endurance athlete is hard. Ask others how they do it. Family time is key, so don't take away from there. After all, they are your biggest fans. So hopefully they have a great 2013 watching you go out and get after it with PRs and great performances on race day!
Endurance athletes are a strange bunch of people. There's a wide variety of people out there doing it for an even wider variety of reasons. Racing, weight loss, camaraderie, raising money and so on. Whatever it is, that's awesome. You're out there doing your thing. Now usually I like to think about training and listening to your body and what it's telling you to do. But technology has come quite a long way. A very long way. And with the high spirited likeliness of many of us, we get pretty jazzed up about new products. Whether it be a new Garmin watch that does two more things a little better than the previous, or a show with sweet new colors, even though we have 10 pairs in our closet we could easily use for a few hundred more miles collectively. We all geek out a little when new things come out, but never fear, you are not alone!
Whether you're an engineer, a teacher, a marketing professional, salesman or whatever you may do in your professional life (if it's not being an athlete) we are a different breed. Generally more motivated and having a get up and go type of attitude to many situations. Sometimes to a fault. People at work don't understand us getting excited about getting up early on Saturday morning to ride our bikes for miles and miles. "How is that fun?" they'll ask. But they'll never understand until they catch the hook.
The thing is, the more you know and the more you learn about the products and offerings out there for you as an athlete, the better informed you'll be when making a decision about what is best for you. Rather than having someone tell you what is right for you, you can learn the pros and cons of products, read reviews, compare and contrast options, and inevitably make the best decision to suit your situation as a person. Nobody knows you better than you!
This is why I say go ahead and geek out over new products, gear and training tips/tricks. I get it. It's fun to have new things to look forward to and keep you motivated to keep training and getting after it. Even if it's just a new tech tee for running or some sweet new socks. It's the little victories and splurges that make these sports so much fun.
Go out to your local shop, talk products and ask lots of questions about them. Read reviews, do your research, know everything you can about these things. Before long, you'll be the person that everyone is coming to for advice. And odds are, these habits of learning and being proactive in staying on top of things in your personal hobbies will spill over to that of your professional life.
About this time last year, I feel I can remember being outside, running in shorts and long sleeves, enjoying some halfway decently warm weather. Not so much the case this year. It's March 18th, I've been running outside a good amount, but only once or twice have I been able to wear shorts. Actually a month ago I was able to go out in shorts and short sleeves. Today, here in Wisconsin, we're getting an onslaught of snow. We'll be getting another 4" on top of the 6-8" we still have from previous storms. Snow is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but there is something to be said about it still hanging around and not looking like it is going anywhere for at least another week, possibly pushing into April.
In all honesty, it's been somewhat of a blessing in disguise for me. I don't have a treadmill to be on quite yet in my basement, and I hate driving to the gym to get on one. So I end up spending more time on the bike. I planned on doing much more biking this off-season than any season in the past, and this snow, cold weather, and lack of a treadmill has actually helped me get to where I am now.
I don't have the gear to be outside riding, so all of my rides have been on the trainer, slugging away at the workout on the screen in front of me. Listening to the beeps telling me to go harder or slow down. Not to mention many of them are at 5am, so going out and hard when it's pitch black is a little tough.
I feel I've been able to accomplish a lot in my biking this winter. But how is your training going? With the snow still hanging around, or the cold weather, are you still keeping up with your training goals for 2013? Are you losing that weight, getting in that training or whatever you want to get done this year? I hope so! This is one of the toughest times of the year to keep motivated. Most of us don't have any big races in sight quite yet, and the training has been going on for a few months now. It's kind of that in between stages of getting into shape and base training and switching into more race specific training and speed work.
But let's stay motivated and keep getting after it. Winter will pass and we'll be outside training soon enough, complaining about how hot it is, wishing it were cold. Sow when we are back outside, training in the 90+ degree heat, let's remember that it's just nice to be outside, not wrapped up in 5 layers top to bottom.
Ok, triathlons are pretty cool. Better yet, endurance racing is cool. Running is cool. Cycling is cool. Swimming is cool. Generally all sports are pretty rad I guess is what I'm trying to say. But I feel there's something to be said about the long vs. short races we have available. There's a lot of people out there racing. And they're all racing different distances and for different reasons. Who are we to judge right?
So, the more and more I talk to people, the more and more I seem to find people obsessed with going long and longer. While this is good and/or great, I find it hard to swallow sometimes when I talk to these people about my own racing. I get the look, "Oh, you've never done an Ironman?" Yea, it's ok, I haven't. I'm ok with that. I will someday. And yes, triathlon training does consume a large portion of my life. Just ask my wife, she'll tell you. When I'm not training, I'm talking about training, or bikes, or shoes or races. It kind of comes with the territory.
But back to this whole long vs. short. I feel there's too much of a big deal and pressure on the long races. Mostly the marathon and Ironman. You know, those take a LOT of training. Everyone knows it. But you know what else takes a lot of training? Going fast. Very fast. As I mentioned the person giving me the "you've never done and Ironman?" look, I always have to bite my tongue, and NOT ask, "you've never felt what it's like to run a mile under 5 minutes?" Or run any part of any triathlon in a sub 7min/mi pace? Or even a road race or in your training?
Basically what I'm getting at is the stigma of 'endurance racing' and that the mecca of all races are the marathon (or ultra marathons) and the Ironman. I know these are amazing goals and aspirations for people to have. There's such a big difference between training to go long and training to go fast. I feel there are too many people so overly obsessed with the going long, and going long right away. Now, I'm not saying it's not totally awesome that you finished an Ironman. Because you sir (or ma'am) have done something only a very select amount of people have done. But why be satisfied with just surviving and making cutoff times? Why not spend a little more time working on your motor and your 'go' machine?
Let's face it, the long days of training take a huge toll on your body, your family and your social life. You can get some similar benefits long term if you're doing some high intensity training vs going out and putting in 3 hours of running.
Ask yourself, if you're a marathoner or Ironman triathlete, what's your fastest 10k, 5k, mile, 400m? If you start calculating based on your marathon time, please try again. Go out and do them. First of all, I'm sure you're faster than you can calculate based on your marathon time. On top of that, I'm sure you can get even faster without hindering your marathon training. In fact, if you spent some time on speed and power, I'd be willing to bet your Ironman and marathon times would reap the benefits as well. Having that aerobic capacity and muscular development will give you the strength to go faster for longer. On top of those big running days, the short and fast will give you another trick in your bag.
I'm not ragging on people who only race the long races. Hell, I wish I had the time and commitment to train like that and kudos to those of you that do. But mostly I want to get those who race long to drop the act of being better than those who race short(er). There's a lot to be said for those who can break and hour in the 40k ride and 40min in the 10k run of an Olympic distance triathlon race. Probably an even more select group of people than those of 'Ironman Finishers'
Have you ever heard the term 'free speed' before? Did it make you think that there really isn't such a thing as free speed? It's kind of an oxymoron if you ask me. I would like to think that by free, it would mean that you don't have to actually pay for it. You have to work for it, more or less. Well, I guess either way you have to work for it. I would like to sit here and say free speed is just what happens when you get more fit and your body adapts to your training. But that's not really it.
Free speed, in the simplest terms I can think of, is the speed you gain by actually doing no real work at all. You don't train extra, you don't put in harder sessions. It just happens because of gear. Simple as that. Gear gives you free speed. Yea, there are a few other things you can do in terms of technique I suppose that may be considered 'free speed', but for the lack of argument, I'll cover that broad.
First off, and most notorious to find free speed, is the bike. There's a bunch of ways to get free speed on the bike. So here's some of them, which I tend to think are the most important.
Bike Fit - The bike fit is key. They seem rather expensive to have someone look at you and adjust your positioning when, I mean come on, you could do this yourself couldn't you? Well, maybe a little. But a professional bike fitter can put you in the best position to both get the most power out of your pedal stroke based on your range of motion and flexibility. As well as get you the most aerodynamic. Especially if we're talking triathlon/time trial bikes.
Aero Bars - Probably one of the cheapest and easiest ways to go about getting free speed. If you're like me and started with a road bike, there's no need to jump straight to a triathlon bike right away. Try out some aero bars to get the feel of how being in that position actually is for long periods of time.
Aero Helmets - Aero helmets do play a pretty significant role in reducing drag. Now, for more average riders, this may not make that much a difference over a 12 mile sprint distance course. But for the longer races, having that reduced drag can be very beneficial. Less drag, more energy, more power, faster times. However, they don't have the best ventilation, since they are made to deflect air around rather than suck it in to cool you off. If it's a long, hot course, riding in a standard helmet may be a better choice just to keep you cool so you don't over heat. Oh, and they look pretty rad, too.
Wheels - I leave this last, mostly because they are the most expensive and generally do the least to give you faster times. That being said, having lighter, stiffer wheels in general will be better than clunky heavy ones. Once you start getting into have a deep rim, then you start talking money. And that ain't free! I personally still have yet to invest in a set of deep rimmed wheels.
That's it for the bulk of the big gains out there. When it comes to swimming and running, there are a few things you can get that will most likely help you out, but nothing so much as above where there are so many factors that can go for or against you.
Let's take swimming. One of the biggest speed increases is of course form. Being extremely efficient in the water is vital. If you've got the best wetsuit on the market, it's not going to do much for you if you're dragging your feet along the bottom. That being said, wetsuits, if properly fit, can reduce a ton of drag in the water. They are very restricting, so essentially they make you slimmer without actually losing weight. Having less surface area for the water to move over, gives you the ability to move faster with less resistance. There's some talk about goggles out there reducing drag, but I don't think it's worth getting into the minutiae of that.
Running then. Running is a tricky one. Yea, you can buy lighter shoes. But then you can lose comfort and longevity. Running a marathon after swimming and biking forever, I don't think you want shoes that start to lose their cushioning and support after 10 miles. Thes best thing I can think of for running is efficiency. Being an extremely efficient runner is key. Beyond that, this guy can't think of much in terms of free speed from that of the thesis of this post.
So there you go, some free speed for you to go out and buy. Wait, what? Yea.
USA Biathlon Team - Tim Burke 2006 Olympian and a ProLine Sponsored Athlete……Tim fulfilled his life-long dream by making the Olympic Team while winning the Pursuit Format and placing second in two other competitions at the TD Banknorth Festival at Fort Kent.
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