Average Ironman

Reason #41 to Love Ironman Triathlon - Sleep!

Everyone knows the training is difficult but did you know that falling asleep is never a problem. Ever! Enough said, Goodnight!!!

Reason #49 - Loving Ironman

Last week I started my weekly posts for 2014 on this blog on the 50 reasons to love the Ironman Triathlon. Now, loving it can be subjective and of course that emotion changes from day to day or event to event but overall there are so many reasons to love this crazy race so I am dedicated to writing about it each week.

Last week was all about the emotions around signing up for a race and today I fast forward to the end when we all cross that finish line and get our medals.

That finish line is an amazing place. It is a place of accomplishment, energy, excitement and relief all in a very small piece of real estate. It is a place you can see from hundreds of yards away, you can feel for miles and you dream of for hours.

In training I often think about that feeling when crossing it, I visualize how I will feel as I approach it and that small sliver of time where a volunteer places that medal around your neck.

I have finished 11 Ironmans in my life and often think about those moments of accomplishment in crossing that line yet I most often reflect on the one time I did not finish an Ironman and missing out on that medal, the congratulations from other athletes and spectators. Somehow that finish line leaves an immense imprint on your memory. If you have never run a race or competed in a triathlon, the finish line is reason #1 to sign up today for a race.

I think my favorite Ironman finish line is Louisville. It is definitely the loudest one due to the "ceiling" on the street. Louisville has this section of downtown where there are restaurants and bars and it is covered and has air conditioning. Kind of cool and the noise really resonates for miles. Definitely an experience that I would highly recommend.

Yesterday I finished the Mississippi Blues Marathon and have attached a picture of that medal. It was a fun race and I had my best time ever at a marathon and for that I am happy. Yet, me and other athletes always discuss the medals with each other. This one is a doozy! It is very unique to the region, huge and quite honestly a little too heavy to wear after the race. Yet, I still wore it back to the hotel. And wore it with a big smile on my face knowing that the finish line was reached and another step closer to an even larger goal. Oh, that finish line.....

I would love to hear your favorite finish line story and what you remember most from it.

The Power of Rest

This past month I have been focusing on running with the help of Eric Neilsen. Eric has given me more focus and structure on my run workouts and I have really experienced the benefit of this.

One key component of Eric's coaching philosophy is getting sufficient rest. This obviously helps your body recover from the workouts but it also helps you prepare for your next training session.

The big surprise for me has been the psychological benefit of the rest. In the past I would rarely take a day off. I would do a shorter workout with no structure. Since this change I have felt so much fresher and more excited to train. This leads to higher quality.

I can't wait to share more on this as I prepare for a marathon in January. After that I head into full Ironman training. Should be fun this time since I will be a little fresher!

Recovery from Ironman

Well, it has been three weeks since I completed Ironman Coeur D'Alene and during that time I have done some travel, eating and a whole lot of resting.

No surprise, right? For me the resting part has been unusual. In the past I would get back right at it in the week following a race but not this time. Two days after the race I was back in Ohio for a fundraiser my brother puts together for the Naval Special Warfare Community. I was working as well so I had a built in excuse not to do much.

I have to say that I did not miss working out at all! Sleeping in and eating pretty much what I wanted was refreshing and evidently much needed. Going forward I will definitely incorporate this post race race as a must do!

I also had more days off leading up to this race which worked too. Thanks to Eric Neilsen for the help and advice there. Eric is a great athlete but is an even better coach. Let me know if you need his contact info.

Thanks for all of the support and I will recap the race and offer a pointer or two with next weeks post. Have fun and train smart!

SuperSEAL Triathlon

Tomorrow is my first Olympic distance race in so long I can't even remember. It is strange to think I will be done by noon. The weird part is that my nerves are centered around trying to go fast. Not trying to finish the distance.

We shall see tomorrow if the upper range of what few gears I have will work.

Speaking of SEALS, tomorrow is the third anniversary of Adam Brown being killed in action. If you don't know his story, I would highly recommend reading Fearless. One of the best books I have ever read.

Masters Swim

Today I worked out with a different masters swim team than I normally do. As expected it was a great group of people. For those of you not familiar with masters swimming it is adult swim team. Every place I have been the coaches are friendly, the swimmers great and it is always fun. All levels are always welcome so get to the pool.

You can find a local program at www.usms.org. Get in the pool and have some fun!

Ironman Texas - Sign up Today

Ironman_Texas_541.jpg (Photo credit: PGHoldsworth)

Ironman Texas has their registration open today.  If you are new to the sport, this one will sell out quickly so sign up today at noon if you want to race.  I did this race in the first year it took place and was blown away on how great the organization was.   The course is not too bad, the weather is the challenge here.  It can be very hot.  It is one of my favorites and I will go back in the coming years.   Sign up!

http://ironman.com/events/ironman/texas/ironman-texas-registration-noon-est-july-11#axzz20K76Jg00

The Old Guy

Swim training 20 (Photo credit: Michael Lokner)

No not me, but a great story about Jesse Thomas who is a great triathlete.   He decided he needed to teach himself an old trick so to speak.  Swimming was an area where he needed improvement so he dove in (pun intended) and started swimming with real swimmers.  OK High school swimmers but a great example of identifying a weakness and choosing an unconventional way to fix it.  I love it.  Read the article here:

http://triathlon.competitor.com/2012/07/training/the-triathlife-whats-the-deal-with-the-old-guy_57052

Taper time

With a race less than a week away it is time for a short taper. This is probably the toughest thing to get right.

Since this is not my "A" race I will only cut back a little this week. For Ironman Louisville it will be about 2.5 weeks.

Tonight was an easy 2800 meters in Coronado. Beautiful weather, a great pool and good friends make it fun.

We shall see how it goes. Stay tuned for more taper strategy.

Mom's lesson

Today I was going to blow off swimming. Just one of the many excuses I came up with was that it was cold.

As I was driving I thought of a time when I was a kid and on the swim team. I was with my sister and we got home later than we were supposed to so I thought I would just skip swim practice. Well, my mom would have none of that - she was a house of fire!

After some yelling we got in the car and drove to the Y. I got to practice with maybe 15 minutes left. After practice my mom let me know that we signed up for this and therefor would be there every day. Well, I have signed up for some races so I need to honor that commitment and my mom. It's that simple.