The lunch-time treadmill

I managed to get a run in at lunch today at the gym. Scheduling conflicts in both the morning and evening meant that either today's workout was going to be skipped, or it was going to be during my lunch hour. I haven't used the treadmill for running since last winter, and it didn't take me long to remember now much I dislike it. Also not a big fan of the lunch-hour workout thing. You could say I'm a bit of a heavy sweating guy, and trying to get back to work on time by trying to get showered and cooled off as quickly as possible just leads to more sweating for me. Outdoor running will always be the way to go.

Update... about nothing very important

And who doesn't like to read about that? Off-season update: I'm starting to become more emotionally involved in the workouts. That kind of sounds weird, but it's the only way I could think to describe it. I remember this time last year I was just kind of going through the motions of each workout, whether it was treadmill, trainer, or pool. It took me some time to get into it and start doing it with a purpose. It probably wasn't until January that I started looking at it differently... instead of just looking at the upcoming workout and then doing it, I would think about why I was doing it, especially right as it was happening -- if I work the big chainring hard on these intervals, then that hill in the Owen Sound Olympic will seem a lot smaller next August -- that kind of thing. I did my first triathlon in 2005, but 2007/08 was really the first off-season I did any kind of regular workouts. Before that I just kind of assumed that playing hockey a few times a week would keep me in shape. Yeah... how'd that work out, big fella? So, it's really only my second off-season, and I'm taking it as a good sign that I'm already approaching the workouts this way now, several months ahead of last year. I have no doubt that more experienced triathletes are pretty much always focused that way, but at least I'm going in the right direction. I think. Of course, even though it's only November, I find myself wishing it was next May and that the spring races were already here. And yes, if it was suddenly May and not November, then it goes without saying that I would have put in all the work over the off-season and have made massive fitness gains since last year. Ah, yes. The dream never dies, just the dreamer. On another note, I would like to say thank-you to Eric for leaving the words of encouragement on my Muskoka 70.3 race report (and mentioning this blog in a post!). My frame of mind when writing this stuff is basically that no one will ever read it. That someone actually did (and took the time to comment) is in itself very encouraging.

Remember

Having to rely on movies and photographs to tell me what it was like in the trenches... what it was like to literally look into the face of death every day. Unless we've been there, we will never truly know what they went through so that we could continue to have things the way we do. This says it better than I ever could... I HAVE NOT FOUGHT THE BATTLES OF THE PAST OR PRESENT. I WAS NOT ASKED TO GIVE OF MYSELF OR OF MY LIFE. I HAVE SEEN THE IMAGES OF THE HORROR, AND DESTRUCTION. I HAVE READ THE NAMES OF THOSE WHO DID NOT RETURN. I NOW GAZE OVER THE MARKERS OF THOSE WHO DIED FOR ALL. I LISTEN TO THE WORDS OF THOSE WHO FOUGHT, BUT THESE WORDS CONTAIN NO GLORY. I WILL REMEMBER, I DO SHED TEARS, I WILL BE SILENT. I WILL NEVER FORGET, WE SHALL NEVER FORGET. - author unknown

Don't mess with her

I read this Associated Press story on Flatman's Blog. This chick is tough! Jogger runs for aid with rabid fox biting arm Associated Press - November 5, 2008 2:43 PM ET PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) - Authorities in Arizona say a jogger attacked by a rabid fox ran a mile with the animal's jaws clamped on her arm and then drove herself to a hospital.The Yavapai (YA'-vuh-py) County sheriff's office says the woman told deputies she was on a trail near Prescott on Monday when the fox attacked and bit her foot.She said she grabbed the fox by the neck when it went for her leg but it bit her arm.The woman wanted the animal tested for rabies so she ran a mile to her car with the fox still biting her arm, then pried it off and tossed it in her trunk and drove to the Prescott hospital.The sheriff's office says the fox later bit an animal control officer. He and the woman are both receiving rabies vaccinations. No one will ever tell this woman to HTFU!

A potential flip-flop

Before even beginning to train (or even sign up) for it, I'm already having second thoughts about a marathon in May/09. On the one hand, I think training for and running it would improve my overall running fitness in a huge way. This would obviously carry over into the triathlons I'll be doing next year as well. But on the other hand, I'm worried that my biking and swimming would suffer as a result. It's not as though I kick ass in either one - I can't just rely my on base fitness to pull me through. If I was to focus on running 3 or 4 times a week and use the other days for swimming or biking as cross training (instead of detailed training workouts), I don't think I would really be improving my abilities in those areas. Plus I just added weight training to my schedule - I don't want to back off on it because my running mileage (and thus recovery time) is increasing from week to week. Now I'm thinking that a half marathon would be the better way to go. I would still have to focus a little extra on running, but obviously not in the same way as a full marathon. It's a distance I know I can do and recover from relatively quickly... this past spring I did a half marathon on a Sunday and then a duathlon a week later, with no pain or troubles to speak of. There is another reason (and maybe the REAL reason) I think I might be better off keeping it at the half marathon distance... in the past, with some races I've bitten off a little more than I could chew. Case in point: Muskoka 70.3. Going in, I hardly thought it would be a walk in the park, but I never dreamed for one second that it would be as tough as it was. And now, somehow I have let it creep into my head that it wouldn't be all that tough to run a full marathon... you know, just slowly increase mileage every week, blah, blah, blah... piece of cake, right? Ya, right. Hearing some marathon stories from athletes with much more experience (ie - in way better shape) than me has led me to believe that there is a good chance that I would probably take the preparation too lightly... even though it wouldn't be on purpose (if that makes any sense). I'd do all the workouts, but maybe not with as much intensity as I should... or something like that, I'm not really sure. Something caused me to bomb the 70.3, maybe it was that. I guess the short version of all that is... a marathon scares the hell out of me right now. I think I might be better off if I was to focus on improving what I already have, as far as base-fitness goes. I'd really like to increase my strength & power on the bike, and I don't know how much I could do that if I was focused on running a marathon. Or maybe I'm just making excuses because of the bad 70.3 experience... I don't know. And maybe I'm wrong, but I think the improvements I could gain on both the bike and run by not doing the marathon would outweigh what I could gain in running only if I was to do the marathon. I haven't fully decided yet, but as usual, time will tell.

10k race report

Unless something suddenly comes up, this will be the final race report of 2008... and it's not the "go out with a bang" type of report I was hoping to file. On Sunday the 26th I ran in a local 10k. The weather forecast was sketchy at best - calling for rain and cold temps - but I wanted to see how my fitness was holding up. I have been doing some unstructured running and swimming 4 or 5 times a week since Muskoka, but no speed or tempo work at all... just out for jogs, basically. My most recent 10k race was mid-April when I ran a 51:35, which had been a 2 1/2 minute improvement over a fall '07 race, and a 6 minute improvement over spring '07. Of course, I arrived at the race site later than I wanted to, and was limited to a warm-up of less than 5 minutes. It was chilly, but after jogging a little I decided on a short-sleeved T, instead of the long one I was wearing at the time. I also opted to wear gloves, as dorky as that probably looked with the shorts & T-shirt. This is a 2-loop course around a park and is a very nice place to run, as long as the geese stay out of your way when you're passing by the river. Getting chased by a pissed-off goose may not seem like much, but when they stretch their little heads out and run at you, their beaks are pretty much right at crotch level. And truthfully, I have no desire to get pecked in the junk by a territorial bird. Also, not to be rude, but their poop is really slippery. I can just picture myself slipping in goose poop and pulling a groin as my legs fly up and I go down on my back like I'm on an icy sidewalk, and then getting my eyes poked out while I roll around on the ground with a psycho version of Mother Goose on top of me. Bad times. So yeah, I tend to keep an eye out along the riverbanks. The horn went, and right away I felt sluggish and slow... no spring in my step at all. The first km seemed to go by quickly, and a glance at my watch showed just over 4 1/2 minutes. A little quick for me, but not too bad, seeing as how I was hoping for a time in the 47 to 48 minute range. In early September I ran a 5k to the tune of 22:07, which is screaming fast for me. The Daniels running calculator says based on my 5k time, I should be able to knock off a 10k in 45:51. Two words: not likely. During my Dan-world-record setting 5k run of 22:07, I was in "all out" mode for the entire race, and despite being only 5k I was totally spent at the end. I think I would have to be in full-on giv'er mode for the full 10k to go sub-46, and I don't know if I could make it that far in that gear without running out of steam. At the time of the 5k I was one week away from the 70.3, so I was pretty much in my best shape of the year. But lately, with the relaxed running schedule, it would seem I've lost any speed that I may have had. So I managed to run past the chute the first time by in almost exactly 24 minutes. Not a good sign. Running sub-48 pretty much went out the window right there, since this past year proved that "negative split" is not a phrase that is part of my racing vocabulary. Yet. So I focused on my start-of-season goal of running a 10k under 50 minutes... something I still wanted to accomplish, but now seeming kind of pedestrian compared to my new 5k best. The hills on the second lap seemed a little steeper and longer - not sure how they managed that. The wind was killer in some spots, while other areas had hardly any with all the trees. I tried to pick up the pace with about 2k to go, and while my effort certainly increased, I can't guarantee that my pace did the same. I crossed in 49:47... achieving my goal from the start of the season, but I didn't feel fast during any part of the race. So now it's time for the off-season. I'm going to do a more detailed post of my plans and goals, but it goes something like:

• 12 weeks (now until mid-January) of 6 workouts per week (2,2,2), plus 3 weight room sessions. The 6 will increase to 9 by the end of the 12 weeks. My goal is to gain strength and power while continuing to improve my fitness base.
• 16 weeks (mid-January until Mother's Day) for a marathon training program, using swimming, biking, and weights as cross training days. It would be my first marathon.

As mentioned, that takes me to Mother's Day. The season starts one week later with a duathlon on May 18th. I won't be signing up for it until I can assess how well (or how poorly) I've recovered from the marathon. If I feel it's too soon, then my first race will be the Milton Triathlon (750, 30k, 7.5k) on May 31. Looking forward to it already.

Official off-season coming up

Ever since the brutal experience known to me only as Muskoka, I've been taking it pretty easy. I've generally been swimming and running 2 and 3 times a week, respectively. I've mostly been doing it without a watch or HRM... just trying to get out there and enjoy it. I've read similar things from other people many times, and it is definitely true: just being able to relax and really enjoy the exercise is quite nice. Not having to worry about HR, lap times, zones, or any other junk like that. Of course, there is the minor issue of not having been on the Kuota since the 70.3 (over 5 weeks now). I do miss her a little, but I'm still plagued by memories of intense physical pain the last time I was in the saddle. We'll have lots of time to work out our differences on the trainer this winter. I am looking forward to having what I hope will be a kick-ass off-season, though. I'm likely going to race in one more 10k this Sunday, and then it's set to officially start next week. Last year on the bike trainer I did mostly base building stuff over the winter. I plan on doing more of that, but I will be adding some intense big-chainring workouts to that as well. For the first time since I took up triathlon I will be strength training 2 or 3 times a week, too. I'm hoping to really improve my core strength and work on previously neglected areas, like hip flexors, for one. That's it for now. There might be a race report coming after the weekend, but the weather around here on the weekend is supposed to be quite sucky... so if it's only a few degrees above freezing and raining, I might not make it to the starting line. As usual, time will tell.