Bad day

Not a good day today. No workout.

Summary and 2007 IMFL

Above, an overview graphic of my training, season by season. Report for race in 2007:

IMFL 2007
I look back at 2007 and can't believe I even finished that race with so little preparation. That '07 race was definitely an exercise in pain management, especially since it was my very first triathlon altogether.

Totals for 13 weeks:
Swim 21 miles (36,950 yards). Bike 638 miles. Run 114 miles.

Swim
13 weeks before the race, I couldn't even swim two laps in the pool (100 yards) without being completely winded. Clearly I was not raised as a fish. I had taken a stroke technique class earlier that year, but we never covered breathing technique. So after reading a bunch of articles and watching some swimming technique videos, I finally figured out a better breathing pattern that allowed me to lengthen my swim workouts. My longest workout was 3200 yards (~1.8 miles) swum in a pool.

Then there's also a big difference between swimming in a pool and swimming in the ocean. So before heading to the race, I bought a wetsuit and made a trip up to Walden Pond in Concord, MA for my first open water swim. Still didn't replicate the waves in the Gulf of Mexico, but made me realize how hard it is to swim in a straight line without that stripe at the bottom of the pool. Ugh, I zig-zagged through the whole 2.4 mile course.

Bike
About 7 weeks before the race, I got a new bike. Switching from a road bike to tri-bike with aero bars, it didn't take long to get used to riding in the aero position. Brian at Fast Splits in Newton, MA fit me on the bike; great guy, great shop. Clearly though I didn't spend enough time training on the new ride. My longest ride was only 72 miles. In the race I was ok through about that same distance, but the last 40 miles I averaged 2 mph slower. I had little left in my legs, ouch.

Run
My longest run prior to the race was only 13 miles, which I only ran a week prior to race day. Not a wise idea. My legs felt lead-filled for the first few miles. Eventually I was reduced to a combination of running and walking to get through the course, though I think I was able to pull it together to run that final mile through to the finish line.

Rear tire went flat

Last minute morning ride today put together by my buddy Parth - good company, good ride, er, except that my rear tire went flat about 10 miles into it. Bummer man. But in the spirit of preparation, I reached into my pack for my spare tube and nifty inflator, fixed the flat, and we were back in motion in just a few minutes. I guess it's good to get some "field practice" fixing flats in case it happens in a race.

Discipline and Preparation

Discipline in general has not been my strongest suit. Maybe I'm being a bit too hard on myself by saying that, but really it's the truth. I haven't paid every bill on-time, I let dishes pile up in the sink, I wait until the last minute to buy a hallmark card on the way to a friend's wedding and fill out the card right there in CVS, decked out in my suit and tie. (And there are worse things that I've been lucky to come out unscathed for the most part.) Some of these things you can get away with without anyone ever really knowing and no major impact. But when doing Ironman there's no hiding one's discipline in having prepared for the event.

There are cut-off times for each segment of the race. You miss the cut-off, you're done for the day. (Thankfully I've made all the cut-offs without any trouble.) There are spectators and fellow participants watching each athlete's effort which over the distance can morph into a struggle at anytime; a freestyle stroke turns into a breathstroke; a hammering on the bike in the aero tuck position switches to sitting up and spinning because your back is tired; and a triumphant stride turns into a limping saunter on the run course towards the final miles of the day. I've experienced each of these transformations in my races due to lack a preparation, a lack of discipline in my training.

So this is the main point here: discipline and preparation are key. Leading up to my first two races, I did enough training to get from start to finish, but I hadn't done my best. Over this weekend, I'll post retrospectives of my 2007 and 2008 races to provide an overview of how much (how little!) training I did leading up to each of those races. Further on then will be a stark comparison of the training I'm doing this year. Will the third time be a charm?

Chase Corporate Challenge - Race Report (brief)

Good run today. Much warmer than it's been in the past couple weeks (70s and sunny vs. low 60s and drizzle). No worries though, gotta be able to run in all conditions, even if it's gorgeous out there ;^) Ran the 3.5 mile course in 28:00, which is 8 min/mi. Had a bit left in the tank, but didn't want to risk injury. Am perfectly happy with this time, though not my best by far. The best part was hanging out over at Silvertone after the race. Good night.

Chase Corporate Challenge

Argh. Didn't make it out this morning for my early ride - got up in time, but too many emails already in the work queue (darn those European counterparts of mine). Anyway, I will try to avoid ranting about work...

This evening is the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge, a 3.5 mile road race through the Back Bay streets of Boston. I've done this race for about 11 years now, missed one due to our company being acquired which left us no funding that year. I should actually say that I've organized my company team's participation in this race for all these years. Back in the hey-day, I assembled a team of ~34 runners; this year we're a bit low with a team of 12. Anyway, just trying to bring people together to be healthy and social - pluses are that some of the entry fees go to local charities (this and last year to Camp Harbor View) and we get a free t-shirt from the company, who doesn't want one of those!? Anyway, it really is a social run for the most part - 12,000 runners tightly crammed in at the start makes it hard to get running in proper stride for awhile, and then it's always a constant obstacle course swerving in between folks (e.g. walkers) that seeded themselves too close to the start. Anyway, yeah, it's all about the t-shirt and post-race festivities...

Can a Night Owl transform into an Early Bird?

Have any of you out there made this transformation? I'm not sure I'll be able to do it, I just can't give up my late nights yet, but somehow I've still been getting up early now and then to fit in morning workouts. I have to say I prefer morning workouts since I get the exercise out of the way. Many mornings of 6am bike rides with friend Ashley and riding to work at 7am with colleague Bjorn are conditioning me to get up and go. Nothing like the motivation of knowing that a friend will be left standing out in the early morning chill waiting for you if you don't rise and shine that one morning. This Thursday morning I have an 8am work conference call with some European colleagues to discuss a multi-million dollar deal (the source of a tad bit of stress) that I've been working on since January. I'm hoping to get out by 5:30am for a ride to make sure I get back in time for my call which I'll take from home. It's now 1:30am...hmmm...best I get to sleep then, eh?

too verbose for Twitter

Right now I'm feeling too verbose for Twitter (same profile name over there), so I'll stick to the blog format, though may still post short blog entries now and then.... but few will be <= 140char.

Sprinkly run and riding with Bjorn on his fixie

Had a nice run home last night from work, it sprinkled the whole way, but not obnoxiously enough to make the run unpleasant. Didn't have to stop and stretch the hamstrings like the last long run I had; they're still a bit tight, so I've been taking extra care not to exert them overly much. [13 mi/1h57m]

Though my legs were a bit tired from my run the prior evening, today's ride to work was smooth. I've been riding with my colleague Bjorn. This week he decided to ride his "fixie" - a fixed gear bike (no bailout gears; and if the bike is moving, the pedals are moving). He rode like a champ, having to stand on the pedals the whole way up the couple hills (along Fellsway East / Lynn Fells Pkwy for you locals), and then take his feet completely off the pedals as the bike was spinning out on a long downhill. Imagine truckin' down a long downhill going ~30mph with your legs off the pedals as they spin furiously unsure whether the crossing traffic will yield - a bit scary - I'll stick to my road bike, thank you very much. But kudos to Bjorn! [14 mi/54m]

My new work commute

So my company just shuffled me and several colleagues out of our sweet office in Kendall Sq., Cambridge. I'll miss the beautiful views overlooking the Charles River, the Boston Skyline (including the Zakim Bridge, John Hancock and Prudential buildings, Fenway Park...) and other landmarks. I'll miss the daytime allure of Kendall Sq. and all the lunching options. I'll also very much miss the commute: a mere 15 minute walk from home in Back Bay/Boston - passing through the beautiful Public Garden and over the scenic Longfellow Bridge. With that commute, I was able to manage the flexibility of my work schedule and thereby my workout schedule, either getting up early for a run or bike ride while still getting to the office at a reasonable time, or getting home quickly after work for my workout. But no longer.

I now commute from Back Bay to Wakefield, MA - about 13 miles due north of Boston. And while I was initially pretty bummed and skeptical about this commute, after last week (my first week in the new office), I think I've found a glimmer of silver lining in this new arrangement...

I'll use my new work commute as an opportunity to train. While I could drive, I have no interest sitting in traffic and listening to morning talk radio these days. Been there, done that. Instead, in my first week, I managed to take the T (subway) and a company shuttle a couple times, work from home one day, but also run home one afternoon (13 miles), and bike to/from work another day (~30 mi round trip). My goal through the summer is to run home once a week and to bike out/back at least once a week.

It takes me roughly 1h15m to get to the new office via public transportation. In comparison, it takes me about 2h to run home (hesitating at traffic lights, negotiating cars on the side of the road and obstacles on sidewalks, etc.) and even better, only about 58m on the bike. Even with a quick shower and some freshening up at the office, it's my "no-brainer-trainer-commute"!

Intro

Here I am 20 weeks prior to the 2009 Ironman Florida triathlon (aka IMFL) - which will be my third Ironman - on November 7th. In the posts to come, I'll describe my training this year, review my prior year's races, and touch upon other tidbits...

The Ironman triathlon is comprised of the following: 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run (a marathon). The race I'll be doing is in Panama City Beach, Florida (http://www.ironmanflorida.com).

Thanks for reading, please stay tuned...