Wednesday - AM Session

Ride: 2.5-3hrs @ easy pace in big ring and 15 min stretch

Route: Redcliffe Loop

Session Reflections:

• Liking these 3 hour rides...the Km's in the legs are paying off...but more is required.
• The time to complete this loop in less than last time it was completed.

Tuesday - PM Session

Rest...that's all folks!

Tuesday - AM Session

Ride: 2.5-3hrs @ easy pace in big ring and 15 min stretch

These stats are a little inaccurate as I stopped the watch when we stopped for a refill at Bald Hills and forgot to re start the clock. In fact by the time I had got home I had completed 84.6km in about 3hrs.

Session Reflections:

• This morning I had company; Rich, Craig, Rusty, Chris & Sophie. Its good to have a bit of chat throughout the ride.
• I found that the first part of the ride (Lets say the first 20km) a bit of struggle to get into a rhythm but then after about this point I started to 'hit my stride'.
• The hills on this loops are getting less challenging and I am finding that the strength in my legs is increasing.
• I am still getting lower back pain at about the 40km mark but not as bad as it has been in the past. I am able to work through the inconvenience without too much interference to my performance.

Monday - PM Session

Core & Flexibility: 10 push ups; 30 sec prone hold; 20 sec squat hold x 15

Oh...hmmm...can tell I haven't done these for a while!

Monday - AM Session

Rest

An opportunity for a bit of a sleep in..............10 hrs sleep last night.

One thing I have learnt of the past 18months of increased levels of time and intensity with my training is that sleep is very important...and diet...that's my next challenge to overcome...getting the everyday eating right needs A LOT of work!

Sunday - PM Session

Stretching Session (15min)

The stretching is also a big part of being able to over come these frustrating niggles.

Sunday - AM Session

Ride: 2.5-3hrs @ easy pace in big ring and 15 min stretch

Session Reflection:

• The ride was in conditions of light rain and obviously wet roads for the full duration of the ride.
• A good strength ride plenty of hills at least for the first 50k's
• Found that towards the later part of the ride, legs were feeling quite fatigued.
• Nutrition and hydration worked well throughout the ride
• About 40km into the ride the lower back/hip pain that I encountered in the Canberra HIM reoccurred but through some 'on the bike' stretching it seem to improve and there was little inconvenience from this for the rest of the ride.

Saturday - PM Session

Core Strength and Stretching Session

The core strength was a session I added to this workout. It was something a little different to assist with the development of my core which I believe after talking with a number of people is a contributing factor in the number of 'little niggles' I have been having over the last couple of months.

The workout I devised involves a 40sec cycle (including change over between activity)

1. Alternate Elbow/Knee Crunches
2. Skipping
3. Medicine ball rotations sitting with the body upper at 45degrees to the ground

Initially I did this workout for 15min. Each activity needed some further development. Particularly the skipping.

The 15min stretching was so good....agained worked through the normal routine.

Saturday - AM Session

Ride: 2.5-3hrs @ easy pace in big ring and 15 min stretch

Friday - PM Session

Run: 45-60 min easy through Chermside Hills

The Stats Review:

HR/Pace Chart:

Elevation Chart:

Session Reflections:

• This session was to be an easy run...the HR was not in the easy zone in fact it averaged 146bpm for the run...considering that the course is very hilly.

Friday - AM Session

Ride: 2.5-3hrs @ easy pace in big ring and 15 min stretch

Still recovering from Christmas Day and had visitors early...unfortunately there was no cycling this morning

Christmas Day

Day off this morning - just physically couldn't get any training done.

It is confirmed.......

I have finally put my entry in for the 2009 Australian Ironman.....I'm IN....time to get serious....the goal is 10hrs 50min.

Time to focus....

Time to work on the 'little' things.....

Time to get serious about the training....

Time to 'harden up'.....

Time to Achieve the 2009 IM Challenge!!!!
(The blogs begin!)

Tuesday - AM Session

This morning the Ironman participants did drills whilst the rest of the squad work on a speed session with 200m at 80-90% then 200m recovery for 8-10laps.

The drills that we participated in were:

1. Bum flicks
2. Single foot ladder
3. Straight leg
4. Double foot from the side (Ladder)
5. Hard strides

These were done in a circuit and worked on about 1m30sec cycle.

I found the drills whilst a little tedious are very worthwhile in improving your running technique and therefore your overall efficiency.

Monday - PM Session

Aqua Circuit

This is a great session.
Warm Up - 400m

We had 4 lanes - in each lane we did a different drill/activity for a period of 5min

1. 25m swim (dive start) getting out then 5 push ups and run back along pool deck
2. 50m hard swim
3. 25m water running
4. 25m band around ankles

This was a great challenge and something different that breaks the training up.

Monday - AM Session

Today was back into it.....I was 'privilideged' to recieve my program for the next two weeks yesterday......

This morning was the second of the Computrainer session. The session this morning invloved:

1. 10km TT
2. 4 x 5min intervals with 5 min recover. Throughout this set I had to maintain the average wattage that was determined in the 10k TT. For me it was 251watts.

This was a hard session but very satisfying.

Session reflections:

• Great workout this morning...very pure type of cycling.
• To maintain the 251 watts throughout the 4 x 5min was a real challenge...particularly trying to maintain it on the down hill section of the course.

Week of Rest (15 Dec to 21 Dec)

This week is one to recover and get some treatment on the niggle I encountered throughout the run on the weekend.

Two physio appointments assisted in improving the muscle strain/tightness and spasms that were occurring within that area.

Canberra HIM - Race Report

The Canberra HIM is the race that I'm using to validate my entry to the 2009 Australian Ironman. The goal is therefore to just finish and have that done. I would like to complete the Canberra HIM in about 5:10 to 5:20. But the first thing is just to finish the race and get that validation!

We flew down to Canberra on the Friday morning. This time we were flying with Qantas and was hoping that flying with them wouldn't be as costly as with Jetstar (with a bike box) And true to that, it didn't cost us anything extra to fly me, Karen and the bike down to Canberra. However, in saying that I think it is a real advantage when you are flying with someone else who isn't competing. I could use all the baggage allowance for the bike and the rest of my clothes and gear were a part of Karen's baggage allowance. (and who could possibly use the whole 32kg for clothes.....hmmm)

We arrived into Canberra about 12.00pm their time. The weather conditions were the best...in fact they were quite miserable.....rain...cold (13degrees)...windy! Picked up the car (Kluger...very nice...we were actually expecting a Hyundai Getz) We arrived at the Hotel...checked in...then I spent an hour putting the bike back together which I have to disassemble into a couple of hundred part (well maybe not that many) to fit into the bike box. That's what I get for having a large frame bike. Anyway the bike went together fine....no concerns...no extra parts.

For the rest of the afternoon we spent indoor......ah...our room...a shoe box is what I would describe it as...this is another story for another time...but to fit a bike, hard case bike box and 2 people was getting very tight. In fact there was more room on the 'deck' area of the room than the room itself.

Saturday morning was upon us and I used this opportunity for a good nights rest and didn't get up until about 9.00am which gave me about 10/11 hours sleep...very nice. The next agenda item was breakfast.

Weather report (Saturday) - Showers, winds 35-45km/hr winds

About 12.00pm I went out for a 20min spin on the bike to check how the bike was operating after assembling it. All went well. However, the wind was very uncomfortable, at times it was not easy just staying on the bike.

After the ride I went for a 10-15min run just to loosen the legs up as they hadn't done a lot over the past couple of days.

About 2.00pm I went down to transitions to register and check my bike in. The registration was simple and not very busy at all. Race number was 408. Then took my bike into the transition area. The position of our bikes were marked by labels on the bike racks. (Similar to that of Bribie). The wind was whipping through the transition area and the bikes were sliding along the racks. It was recommended that we rack our bikes initially using the handle bars and then on race day to turn the bike around.

Dinner was a small pasta/pizza restaurant in Dickson....very nice and filled the spot. We had dinner at about 5.30-6.00pm.
Hydration has been ongoing since Thursday. The hydration focus always begins on the Thursday before the race and involves limited soft drink etc. and really working on the intake of water and sports drinks.
Got back to the Hotel and organised the gear for the race...the checklist was utilised in ensuring that I had all the gear I needed.

The nutrition/hydration strategy was as outlined below:
The Bike

• 1 before the race
• a gel every 30min on the bike. Therefore it would mean that I would have a gel at 30min/1h30m/2h30m.
• On the hour (1hr/2hr) I planned to have a portion of a powerbar to take on something more substantial.

The Run

• A gel every 30min
• Drinking 15min
• After 11km Drinking cola every 15min.

In bed about 9.00pm and the plan was to be up at 4.00am and down in transition by about 5.15am

Breakfast was 1 banana, 1 sports drink. With my wave being at 7.00am it is planned that I have another banana down at transition about 6.00am and continue with the water throughout this time.

The weather conditions: fine, windy (25-30km/h) and cold (13degrees)

Arriving at transitions at about 5:20am I went into transition to set up my bike. It was quite cold this morning and I was certainly 'rugged' up for the occasion. In the back of my mind was that if I am cold now what am I going to be like during the race, wet coming out of the water and then onto the bike with the wind blowing...it would have been interesting knowing the wind chill factor? With this thought I left a running shirt with my gear in transition 'just in case'.

At 6.45am I got into the water....had about a 10min warm up. It was warmer in the water then out of it. The water was relatively choppy about 40cm chop.

7.00am the Gun went off and we were off...the 35-39 age group was the second biggest in the race. The swim in the lake was relatively simple to navigate as it was a rectangular shaped course and there were plenty of landmarks to assist with navigating. The first 700m leg wasn't too bad, it was about trying to get into a rhythm in the chop. At times throughout the swim I felt as I was swimming alone...everyone was so spread out...that was good in that you weren't running into people all the time but a negative in that you had no one to draft off. The one thing I found about the chop was that it knock you off your race line and I need to check more often to ensure I was going in the right direction

The 2nd leg of the swim was only 175m and I was swimming with the chop coming in from the right hand side and therefore found that I was only breathing to the left for most of this leg as when I tried to breath to the left I would often get a mouthful of water.

The 3rd leg of the swim was the toughest...swimming directly into the chop and against a little bit of a current...at time it felt like I was going no where. I preserved and finally got to the last buoy before turning for home. It was hard to get into a rhythm as the chop would cut your stroke short a lot of the time.

I finally got to the swim exit and looked at my watch...35min wow...it was a struggle...maybe a touch long...that could be also related to swimming a little further than I had too...but not much could be done now. I now endured a 350m run from swim exit to my bike....it was a little hard on the feet...they were quite tender from the cold.

T1 - Arghhh Transitions.....this where I need to spend some time just practicing....had an issue with getting my wet suit off this time...it just wouldn't come off my right foot...that was with a healthy amount of body glide being applied before the race...I just don't seem to be able to get it 'right' consistently.

Onto the bike.....

This was a real challenge. The wind was blowing....probably used a little more energy on the swim then I usually do....As soon as I left transition the wind was directly into your face and stayed like that for about the next 10km of the 30km loop after that for the next 15km it varied from a head wind to a cross wind. To add to this it wasn't the flattest course going around...

The first lap was completed in about 58min and the second about the same the 3rd was a little slower (1h02min). On the 3rd lap I spent a little more time at a higher cadence to try and resurrect my legs a bit more for a good run. The nutrition and hydration worked relatively well throughout however around the 2hr mark I begun to get a stomach cramp and therefore backed off the gels, sports drink and powerbar for about 30min just drank water for that time. To add to this was a sudden urge to go to the toilet...too much water maybe? I persevered and mentally worked through the discomfort, about the 2h40m mark I began to 'come good'. But would still love to find a toilet...I didn't really see any 'potaloos' on the ride course at all. The ride leg was completed in a time of 3h03min (including T1 and T2)

The legs were a little more fatigued that I have experienced in the past. The focus was now..just to finish... the 5h10m to 5h20m goal was going to be a fairly difficult task to achieve...It was now about ticking the boxes.

Out onto the run I was in search for a toilet....there wasn't one in transition and there wasn't one within the first couple of Km's....a tree sufficed....the run leg was relatively flat and initially I didn't go out to fast. The running surface was mixed between, cement, bitumen, gravel and grass. The first 4 km were at a pace to find my legs and hydrate and get some food into the body. Just after the 5k mark I felt a little stiff in the left quad and stopped to stretch it and ended up cramping (very painfully) in the left hamstring....I then spent a little bit of time trying to get that left leg functioning a better. Eventually I was on my way again. However, at about the 7km mark I began to feel a niggle in the left hip/ lower back by the 8km it was that painful that I couldn't run any longer and walked for about 200-300m...throughout this time I was thinking that I needed to finish and I still had 13km to go and if I don't get going again it could be a long trip to finish. The power of positive thinking kick in and I began to get going again with a shuffle and slowly as it warmed up my stride began to free up a little more and by about the 10/11km mark I was in full stride again; however, was in quite a bit of pain..I was determined that this was not going to beat me...the positive thinking and was working overtime and I was getting through it. Around this mark (10k) I took on some sports drink to bring up my electrolyte levels which I thought may help the cramping and hip/back pain. At the 11km I began to use the cola as my form of hydration, along with the sports drink. The way in which they delivered the water and sports drink at the aid stations was very good...very easy to take the liquid into the body..it was in plastic sealed bags (picture below) The last 10km of the run was a lot quicker then the first 11km and I felt a lot better. The time for the run was about 1hr57m.

I passed through the finish in a time of 5h41m21s

Canberra HIM Preparation

Finally the Competitors booklet has become available and I am now able to study the race organisation/details in detail.

The swim looks like this:



The Bike look like this:



The bike profile...interesting dip in the middle there.....hmmmm.....BRING IT ON!

The run looks like this: (Nice and Flat!!!)

Monday - PM Session

Rest session - no core strength

Did do 15min stretching this afternoon.

Outside of left calf was quite sore throughout the day....trying to work the tightness out of a few areas.

Monday - AM Session

This morning was the first of the Computrainer sessions.

On my program I had a rest, however, went along to the computrainer session to get to know the ropes.

These sessions are going to be a real asset to those who are doing IM in 09. It is a real pure form of cycling...there is no hiding...you can't just free wheel down hills...you have to pedal or you will get left behind.

Session Reflections:

• Only half a session for me this morning
• Legs were very heavy this morning
• Mind was not really on the 'game'
• Can really see how my cycling could improve with these sessions
• In one of the sets I did with the other folks, I noticed that my HR was quite low compared to everyone else...mine @ 120 everyone else 160+. You could read a number of things into this I really wasn't exerting myself, still tired after a good couple of days training etc

Sunday - Bribie Triathlon

Race Report: Bribie Triathlon (Race 2)

A week out from the Canberra HIM it was timely that I had a bit of a race to clean the 'cob webs out' in terms of a bit of race practice.

Saturday afternoon I travelled up to Bribie. This I believe is a great idea as it doesn't leave me rushed on race morning to get to the venue and prepare. It saves about an hour, that I can use sleeping instead of travelling.

Race Morning:

Up at 5.00am.

Breakfast: Banana and a serve of sports drink.

5.15am rode down to transitions. This is a good warm up, it is only about a 10min ride but it serves the legs well to get them moving.

5.30am moved on to numbering

5.35am into transition to setup - Bribie is relatively unique in that they label your racking position...you just can't rack your bike anywhere. My position for this race was about 15m from the Bike exit/entry and about 50m from the swim/run exit/entry. This positioning is where I prefer, it means that I am not running a long way with the bike and in my case in bike shoes....ooops ;-)

The tide was going out and therefore it was a walk to the northern end of the passage for the start.

15min before the start had a gel and washed it down with some water.

The 35-39 age group was the 7th wave. Reasonably large Field of about 50 I would guess.

Before we knew it we were off.......................beach start and I didn't hold back...got in amongst the other lads in the wave.

The swim needs some thought as you have to remember that the tide is running from left to right. (in the image above) The first turn was was marked by a couple of reasonably large boats. If you didn't allow for the tidal drift you would end up swimming into these boats.

By the turn I had got into a comfortable rhythm, however, halfway along the 2nd leg it became too shallow to swim. This therefore stifled the rhythm and I found that it was not very efficient or quick to run through these shallow parts and end up porpoising through these sections. This shallow area was about 50m in length and I found that the porpoising took a bit of energy out of me that I wouldn't normally expend in the swim leg. Once through the shallow section it was back to establishing that rhythm, it didn't take too long and once again I found myself moving through the field and the waves that had started before me.

Arrived at the last buoy and again made some adjustments in my swim line to allow for the tidal drift. The shore was in front of me and soon enough I was standing up and began my 100-150m run to the bike. I found that the swim had not taken much out of me and felt relatively fresh. I pushed it a little in the run to the bike and passed a number of lads.

There I was....at my bike...then began to transition. I still struggle a little to efficiently and effectively get in and out of transition. Today saw me struggle to get my number belt clipped together....took a few breaths and slowed down a little and it came together. I was out of transition in a flash!

I got to the mount line then had an issue went to put my left foot in the pedal and it slipped straight out when I put my weight on it. I do need to get a pair of new cleats...they are very worm...especially the left one!

After that I was off...I had forgotten to put the bike computer magnet on the front wheel of my race wheels and therefore had no speed or distance on my bike computer. Just had cadence on the bike leg to give me a guide as to how I was going....did have my Suunto HR Monitor on but it was not work properly and is very unreliable. Throughout the ride I kept the cadence around 95rpm. I also concentrated on trying to keep my upper body stiller than it normally is and stay in the aero position to gain a better efficiency from the aero helmet.

The bike was 4laps of a 7km course. Felt comfortable throughout the ride and didn't push it too hard I find working at that cadence serves me well for the run. I went by how I was feeling and it seemed to achieve a good outcome as this was a PB on the bike for this course. I have previously completed this course on 4 other times and this is my best performance on the bike and that's with the couple of issues I had.

T2 was a lot more successful than T1.....a lot quicker.


The run was to be all about feel! Just going on what is known as my 'perceived effort'. Well it was a success....that's 2 races in a row that running by 'feel' has been successful....hmmmm....gadgets...maybe they are a little over rated....DID I say that! OMG!

Today was a win to me...the little voice....the arch enemy was defeated!

I think this was the first run in a long time that I had run at a consistent pace. And I achieved a PB out of it: 35min59sec!

Overall the time was 1:38:38......I'm wrapped....perfect preparation for next weekend!

The motivation and enthusiasm has returned....I am hungry for the challenges that triathlon dishes out...I am looking forward to training so much more lately....bring on Canberra!

Friday - PM Session

Afternoon of rest and cross training...mowing the lawn!

Tomorrow is an important day for all Aussies..it is where we get revenge on the Kiwi's and the ROTW!

Friday - AM Session

The morning session was a return to the 'stationary' cycle trainer....gee...how formal is that. This session also has me coaching the 1st session as well.....the challenge.....looked forward to it really.

The session consisted of the following:

Warm-up: 10-15min (including some drills)

MS: 1min @ Max then 2min recovery repeated 15 times

Warm down: Easy Spin

The Stats Review:

Session Reflections:

• Firstly this morning the gadget just were not going to happen for me....I have 2 devices that give me cadence and neither of them were working. Not a bad thing as it meant that I need to work by 'feel'. This is something that I am finding more and more beneficial to work with rather than an electronic device......WOW....I don't believe I just said that....no...I'm not shaking or having any other ill effects...what has come over me......Hmmmmm :-)
• This was a very beneficial session...really trigged that leg muscles into action and made me really focus on the efficiency of my pedal stroke.
• The session was one of a mental battle....one that I was able to win.