Well, kids, for the heck of it, I sent in some photos and a short bio. I honestly wouldn't expect them to want a 50-YO (airbrushed, of course!) in their swimsuit issue, but you never know.
If you are interested in submitting yourself, go here: http://www.triathletemag.com/story.cfm?story_id=12331&publicationID=92&pageID=1705
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Monday, August 21, 2006
DSB
I have read many books by or about endurance athletes. Sure I have read the technical stuff about how to train, but the stuff I really enjoy reading and pondering about is what is going through our heads when we are training and racing. In the past few years, I have added to this readings of spiritual texts, since I find a lot of commonality between the two endeavors.
I'm not talking about people who run 2-3 miles 3-4 times per week. I am talking about people who routinely train 10+ hours per week. You know who you are. The reason I chose the number 10 is that before I began running seriously and then branched out into triathlon, I would log about 7-9 hours a week between weights, aerobics classes, and recreational running, and I found that to be an easy schedule--one where most workouts were over and done with in an hour, and where apparently I still had plenty of time to party regularly.
What I find interesting when reading about other endurance athletes in this category is how we go through similar thought processes at one point or another. If you keep this stuff up for long enough, you find out that the doing of the very thing becomes your path, and that the rest of your life gets fit into that framework. Sure, you hear different people with different life circumstances claim they are more balanced towards this or that outside of their athletics, but fundamentally, living the life of an athlete first is a very conscious choice. This is what makes the first time training for an Ironman such a wake-up call to many people. You need to become an athlete, even if you weren't before. Some people become the athlete much more quickly than others, as it can be all-consuming. But eventually, assuming a person wants to truly master a sport (or anything else for that matter), you need to become that which you seek.
"Being" an athlete doesn't mean just showing up and doing workouts. It means thinking about them before, during and after they occur. It means thinking about how everything else in your life is going to affect those workouts before, during and after they occur. It doesn't mean just thinking about the mechanics of the workouts (how many repeats at what intensity with what amount of rest) ; it means anticipating how the workout will feel, watching mindfully during the workout, and contemplating and evaluating the workout afterwards. At least that's how it goes for me.
But sometimes we have mental leaks during the anticipation, mindful watching and contemplation/evaluation processes that prevent us from doing each activity in the way for it to be most beneficial to our minds and bodies.
When we anticipate, we should anticipate with JOY and WONDER. Looking forward to our workout or race as an opportunity for new experience, becoming stronger, or conquering. But sometimes we fall prey, instead, to FEAR. Fear that we won't be able to complete it, fear of the sensations of discomfort or weather or even our own silly lack of planning. I have found that respect for a new distance or intensity is a good thing, although sometimes I talk about it as being "afraid." I have learned to channel this into more of a sense of excitement, even if I'm about to do a workout I've done many times, since it is never the same experience!
When we are in the workout or race, our ability to be mindful and watch ourselves and our reactions is something we come to only with focused practice. To the extent we anticipate with joy and wonder rather than fear, we are able to free ourselves to be mindful. When we are afraid, we are a victim of our own negative thoughts; when we are joyful and focused, negative thoughts are able to come and go and we can just watch them and let them be. But oh, the range of thoughts that come and go! It is the same as meditation, so if you're not comfortable just letting your thoughts come and go without evaluation, you are not going to enjoy really pushing yourself in training or in a race. Most thoughts that you have will come and go in a flash as long as you keep your mind relaxed and free. And your body! In order to go fast, you need to be relaxed. Sounds like an paradox, right? It isn't. Muscles need to be able to contract AND relax effectively in order to maximize their potential. This is the paradox of speed. You gotta relax to go fast! Sometimes I find that just by making myself smile when the heat is on and I'm putting out a good effort, that it induces me to relax my muscles, freeing them to do their thing as best they can!
The mindfulness we cultivate while training and racing is, I think, the hardest part of being an athlete. Why? Because it's easy to plan (look forward) and evaluate (look backwards), but it can be difficult to just be in the moment. If we aren't used to doing it in our daily lives (and face it, most people aren't, otherwise we'd all be happy, healthy and free of mental suffering, right?) but then we try and become an athlete, we are forced into a position where either we pay attention and "get it" or else we fail. It is difficult to ignore the sensations coming from your muscles when you are pushing them to go long or hard or both. They are screaming at you PAY ATTENTION NOW! Which is why many of us are attracted to endurance sports to begin with. We enjoy having everything boiled down to such a simple concept as paying attention to our muscles and breathing and technique. We think it is allowing our minds to go on autopilot--to tune out, or "veg," if you will. But in reality our minds are being given a gift care of our muscles. MOVE OR DIE AND LEARN TO DISPENSE WITH ANY UNPRODUCTIVE THOUGHTS OR ELSE WE WILL SLOW DOWN OR QUIT.
Think about someone you know who you consider a "successful" athlete. I'm not talking about professional athletes. I'm talking about Jane and John Doe. People who live the life of an athlete. Maybe they talk about it, maybe they don't. Maybe it seems like they care too much about the sport, maybe not. Sure it's fun to ask them about their workouts or training regimen, how they eat or how they stretch or whatever. But what's really neat is getting them to talk about what's inside their head as they do this. Or why they are so excited about their workouts or races. Or maybe sometimes you are surprised to hear what comes out of their mouths (or goes onto paper--real or virtual). Are those people successful because they are physically gifted? That certainly helps (especially the right parents). Are they successful because they train hard? Sure. But none of them are successful if they haven't gotten the mind thing down.
See, many people, I believe, waste their mental powers on the whole post-training/racing evaluation, or they spend far too much time at it. Sure it's good to do a little reflection and just state the facts: "I swam x:xx/100 yds., I biked xMPH and I ran x:xx per mile." It's also fun to correlate your speed to particulars of the day--weather, nutrition, etc. That stuff is pretty much determined for you ahead of time, right? You practice your pacing, you practice your nutrition, you learn how to make adjustments for the weather or other things that spin out of control in a race. But what about your ability to relax, focus and be in the moment? How did that go for you? What are you bringing back from that experience that will enhance your future training sessions and life in general? For if you are doing it in your "life," then so it will be easy to do it in your training/racing. But if you figured it out first in your training/racing, then hopefully you are trying to expand that to the rest of your life.
When you say you had fun, what is it that you were describing? For me, I don't think of fun so much as of being right there every moment and doing what I'm there to do. So I don't much think about training or racing as "fun things to do." They are challenges and opportunities for me to practice mindfulness. At one point yesterday, I thought, "I am here to put in a good effort and continue my streak of lots of biking." It was as simple as that. I wasn't there to pick off other riders or blab about how much riding I am doing. This is not to say I couldn't appreciate the beauty of nature or the gift of my health. But those things are best enjoyed in the moment, too :) Sure I had plenty of time to chat with people and thank all the volunteers and such, but it was simple to just be focused on the one thing, the thing that in unison with my heart, lungs and legs, kept driving me to keep going.
Now, I am like any other endurance athlete in that sometimes I have negative or catty thoughts about myself or others. Like people who wear Ironman stuff that haven't done an Ironman. Maybe the wearing gives them special feelings that help motivate them. Who cares? Or people who have and/or wear ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that says Ironman on it. Got an inferiority complex? Tattoos! I need to shout to the world that I do this! (OK, I am shouting I guess since I have a blog.) How about people who will spend thousands on gear that is not going to make them faster or that they don't know how to use effectively, but then "can't afford" a coach? What about people who race to a sexy bike split but then can't pull off a decent run afterwards? How about people who are constantly injured because they won't rest their body? Or who waggle their fingers at moi for my lack of rest days? Or who claim they are working on their body composition but just can't seem to make progress? Or who can't let go of whatever their past was (it's done, no?) and move forward? Or who live in the past (back when I did my one triathlon) and are experts to this day? Or who keep raising the stakes on the events they do (oops, that's me!)? Or who say "I am just having fun?" (maybe that is the definition of true Nirvana)? Or who post racy pics of their bodyparts as if to say, "Look at me I'm awesome!" (also me)? Or people with coaches who don't pay attention to them or think the coach will magically "fix" them? Or the people who think they can self-coach by reading blogs? Come on, I am interested to hear what rant categories I fall into. Throw it at me! Vent! Tell me all the negative thoughts you've had about me and other people. We deserve to know! Sometimes I think I'd rather read blogs where everyone openly talked about everyone else. The good with the bad. I was actually happy when Spandex-King told me to get a life. I thought, "Gee, this guy is brave and honest." Then he has to go and apologize. Dude, it wasn't necessary.
If I were perfectly free of judgment and 100% mindful then I would have achieved Nirvana, but that ain't happening anytime soon. I am merely using my time as an athlete to train myself for the larger objective which is to be a vibrant, energetic, compassionate body and mind of energy. I cannot control nor do I wish to what others think of me. I can only try to be present during what is happening right now. Most days it works beautifully, but occasionally I fall victim (remember, victim behavior is a direct result of fear) to judging others or thinking I suck or that the world is a terrible place. Sometimes I ask myself why do I do all of this? But then I realize it is just my way to seek excellence at whatever I attempt, and also that I happen to like moving around (and the subsequent tiredness afterwards!). Does it really need to be more than that? I don't think so.
We are all way more alike than we think, and it is our desire to think we are different and separate from others that gets us into trouble (can you say war?). Maybe we think we are DSB (different than, separate from and better than) because we are endurance athletes. Or that we are ultrarunners. Or that we are triathletes. Or that we are Ironman triathletes. Or that we have done X Ironman races. Or that our best Ironman time is whatever. Or that we are juggling more non-athletic stuff in our lives and yet we still do this. Or we are trying to prove that we aren't just (insert one): mothers, wives, husbands, fathers, providers, students. Or popular on podcasts. Or have Y number of people reading our blogs. Or have read literature or studied on a topic. When we try to quantify or qualify others' behaviors or actions, it is also an act of DSB.
I fall into DSB mode every so often, and I know I need to make some changes when that is happening. The first thing I do is refocus--I am not an athlete to be DSB--I just enjoy training. I enjoy the anticipation, the mindful watching and the necessary evaluation of my efforts. Doesn't make any difference to me whether it's a race or not. How do I reconcile that with a competitive nature? Being/getting faster is just that. FASTER. Fast is not a judgment. It just IS. At least that's my explanation today :)
DSB is the antithesis to humility. Sometimes we are even trying to DSB ourselves. Isn't that sad?
I'm not talking about people who run 2-3 miles 3-4 times per week. I am talking about people who routinely train 10+ hours per week. You know who you are. The reason I chose the number 10 is that before I began running seriously and then branched out into triathlon, I would log about 7-9 hours a week between weights, aerobics classes, and recreational running, and I found that to be an easy schedule--one where most workouts were over and done with in an hour, and where apparently I still had plenty of time to party regularly.
What I find interesting when reading about other endurance athletes in this category is how we go through similar thought processes at one point or another. If you keep this stuff up for long enough, you find out that the doing of the very thing becomes your path, and that the rest of your life gets fit into that framework. Sure, you hear different people with different life circumstances claim they are more balanced towards this or that outside of their athletics, but fundamentally, living the life of an athlete first is a very conscious choice. This is what makes the first time training for an Ironman such a wake-up call to many people. You need to become an athlete, even if you weren't before. Some people become the athlete much more quickly than others, as it can be all-consuming. But eventually, assuming a person wants to truly master a sport (or anything else for that matter), you need to become that which you seek.
"Being" an athlete doesn't mean just showing up and doing workouts. It means thinking about them before, during and after they occur. It means thinking about how everything else in your life is going to affect those workouts before, during and after they occur. It doesn't mean just thinking about the mechanics of the workouts (how many repeats at what intensity with what amount of rest) ; it means anticipating how the workout will feel, watching mindfully during the workout, and contemplating and evaluating the workout afterwards. At least that's how it goes for me.
But sometimes we have mental leaks during the anticipation, mindful watching and contemplation/evaluation processes that prevent us from doing each activity in the way for it to be most beneficial to our minds and bodies.
When we anticipate, we should anticipate with JOY and WONDER. Looking forward to our workout or race as an opportunity for new experience, becoming stronger, or conquering. But sometimes we fall prey, instead, to FEAR. Fear that we won't be able to complete it, fear of the sensations of discomfort or weather or even our own silly lack of planning. I have found that respect for a new distance or intensity is a good thing, although sometimes I talk about it as being "afraid." I have learned to channel this into more of a sense of excitement, even if I'm about to do a workout I've done many times, since it is never the same experience!
When we are in the workout or race, our ability to be mindful and watch ourselves and our reactions is something we come to only with focused practice. To the extent we anticipate with joy and wonder rather than fear, we are able to free ourselves to be mindful. When we are afraid, we are a victim of our own negative thoughts; when we are joyful and focused, negative thoughts are able to come and go and we can just watch them and let them be. But oh, the range of thoughts that come and go! It is the same as meditation, so if you're not comfortable just letting your thoughts come and go without evaluation, you are not going to enjoy really pushing yourself in training or in a race. Most thoughts that you have will come and go in a flash as long as you keep your mind relaxed and free. And your body! In order to go fast, you need to be relaxed. Sounds like an paradox, right? It isn't. Muscles need to be able to contract AND relax effectively in order to maximize their potential. This is the paradox of speed. You gotta relax to go fast! Sometimes I find that just by making myself smile when the heat is on and I'm putting out a good effort, that it induces me to relax my muscles, freeing them to do their thing as best they can!
The mindfulness we cultivate while training and racing is, I think, the hardest part of being an athlete. Why? Because it's easy to plan (look forward) and evaluate (look backwards), but it can be difficult to just be in the moment. If we aren't used to doing it in our daily lives (and face it, most people aren't, otherwise we'd all be happy, healthy and free of mental suffering, right?) but then we try and become an athlete, we are forced into a position where either we pay attention and "get it" or else we fail. It is difficult to ignore the sensations coming from your muscles when you are pushing them to go long or hard or both. They are screaming at you PAY ATTENTION NOW! Which is why many of us are attracted to endurance sports to begin with. We enjoy having everything boiled down to such a simple concept as paying attention to our muscles and breathing and technique. We think it is allowing our minds to go on autopilot--to tune out, or "veg," if you will. But in reality our minds are being given a gift care of our muscles. MOVE OR DIE AND LEARN TO DISPENSE WITH ANY UNPRODUCTIVE THOUGHTS OR ELSE WE WILL SLOW DOWN OR QUIT.
Think about someone you know who you consider a "successful" athlete. I'm not talking about professional athletes. I'm talking about Jane and John Doe. People who live the life of an athlete. Maybe they talk about it, maybe they don't. Maybe it seems like they care too much about the sport, maybe not. Sure it's fun to ask them about their workouts or training regimen, how they eat or how they stretch or whatever. But what's really neat is getting them to talk about what's inside their head as they do this. Or why they are so excited about their workouts or races. Or maybe sometimes you are surprised to hear what comes out of their mouths (or goes onto paper--real or virtual). Are those people successful because they are physically gifted? That certainly helps (especially the right parents). Are they successful because they train hard? Sure. But none of them are successful if they haven't gotten the mind thing down.
See, many people, I believe, waste their mental powers on the whole post-training/racing evaluation, or they spend far too much time at it. Sure it's good to do a little reflection and just state the facts: "I swam x:xx/100 yds., I biked xMPH and I ran x:xx per mile." It's also fun to correlate your speed to particulars of the day--weather, nutrition, etc. That stuff is pretty much determined for you ahead of time, right? You practice your pacing, you practice your nutrition, you learn how to make adjustments for the weather or other things that spin out of control in a race. But what about your ability to relax, focus and be in the moment? How did that go for you? What are you bringing back from that experience that will enhance your future training sessions and life in general? For if you are doing it in your "life," then so it will be easy to do it in your training/racing. But if you figured it out first in your training/racing, then hopefully you are trying to expand that to the rest of your life.
When you say you had fun, what is it that you were describing? For me, I don't think of fun so much as of being right there every moment and doing what I'm there to do. So I don't much think about training or racing as "fun things to do." They are challenges and opportunities for me to practice mindfulness. At one point yesterday, I thought, "I am here to put in a good effort and continue my streak of lots of biking." It was as simple as that. I wasn't there to pick off other riders or blab about how much riding I am doing. This is not to say I couldn't appreciate the beauty of nature or the gift of my health. But those things are best enjoyed in the moment, too :) Sure I had plenty of time to chat with people and thank all the volunteers and such, but it was simple to just be focused on the one thing, the thing that in unison with my heart, lungs and legs, kept driving me to keep going.
Now, I am like any other endurance athlete in that sometimes I have negative or catty thoughts about myself or others. Like people who wear Ironman stuff that haven't done an Ironman. Maybe the wearing gives them special feelings that help motivate them. Who cares? Or people who have and/or wear ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that says Ironman on it. Got an inferiority complex? Tattoos! I need to shout to the world that I do this! (OK, I am shouting I guess since I have a blog.) How about people who will spend thousands on gear that is not going to make them faster or that they don't know how to use effectively, but then "can't afford" a coach? What about people who race to a sexy bike split but then can't pull off a decent run afterwards? How about people who are constantly injured because they won't rest their body? Or who waggle their fingers at moi for my lack of rest days? Or who claim they are working on their body composition but just can't seem to make progress? Or who can't let go of whatever their past was (it's done, no?) and move forward? Or who live in the past (back when I did my one triathlon) and are experts to this day? Or who keep raising the stakes on the events they do (oops, that's me!)? Or who say "I am just having fun?" (maybe that is the definition of true Nirvana)? Or who post racy pics of their bodyparts as if to say, "Look at me I'm awesome!" (also me)? Or people with coaches who don't pay attention to them or think the coach will magically "fix" them? Or the people who think they can self-coach by reading blogs? Come on, I am interested to hear what rant categories I fall into. Throw it at me! Vent! Tell me all the negative thoughts you've had about me and other people. We deserve to know! Sometimes I think I'd rather read blogs where everyone openly talked about everyone else. The good with the bad. I was actually happy when Spandex-King told me to get a life. I thought, "Gee, this guy is brave and honest." Then he has to go and apologize. Dude, it wasn't necessary.
If I were perfectly free of judgment and 100% mindful then I would have achieved Nirvana, but that ain't happening anytime soon. I am merely using my time as an athlete to train myself for the larger objective which is to be a vibrant, energetic, compassionate body and mind of energy. I cannot control nor do I wish to what others think of me. I can only try to be present during what is happening right now. Most days it works beautifully, but occasionally I fall victim (remember, victim behavior is a direct result of fear) to judging others or thinking I suck or that the world is a terrible place. Sometimes I ask myself why do I do all of this? But then I realize it is just my way to seek excellence at whatever I attempt, and also that I happen to like moving around (and the subsequent tiredness afterwards!). Does it really need to be more than that? I don't think so.
We are all way more alike than we think, and it is our desire to think we are different and separate from others that gets us into trouble (can you say war?). Maybe we think we are DSB (different than, separate from and better than) because we are endurance athletes. Or that we are ultrarunners. Or that we are triathletes. Or that we are Ironman triathletes. Or that we have done X Ironman races. Or that our best Ironman time is whatever. Or that we are juggling more non-athletic stuff in our lives and yet we still do this. Or we are trying to prove that we aren't just (insert one): mothers, wives, husbands, fathers, providers, students. Or popular on podcasts. Or have Y number of people reading our blogs. Or have read literature or studied on a topic. When we try to quantify or qualify others' behaviors or actions, it is also an act of DSB.
I fall into DSB mode every so often, and I know I need to make some changes when that is happening. The first thing I do is refocus--I am not an athlete to be DSB--I just enjoy training. I enjoy the anticipation, the mindful watching and the necessary evaluation of my efforts. Doesn't make any difference to me whether it's a race or not. How do I reconcile that with a competitive nature? Being/getting faster is just that. FASTER. Fast is not a judgment. It just IS. At least that's my explanation today :)
DSB is the antithesis to humility. Sometimes we are even trying to DSB ourselves. Isn't that sad?
JFR
I'm tired from the last week of "training" and so I decided to postpone a 3800-yard swim workout. Why? Because my regular pool is closed for 2 weeks and I decided it would be better to sleep in this morning than to wake up at 5 to drive extra, knowing I'd still be fatigued.
Why am I tired? Been training a lot. A LOT. Trying to get in 1,000 miles of biking this month is doing it. I don't know how grand tour riders can ride so much. I just don't know how they do it. I know that I would sure want some "enhancement" if I was going to try that.
I must be getting stronger on the bike. Yesterday I rode 102 miles by myself (well, except for when I let 2 different groups of sorry-ass triathletes suck my wheel for about 5 miles at a time and then summarily dropped them), and averaged 18.3 MPH, where the last 40 miles of that were into a headwind. Needless to say, that is a little faster than what I would average on an Ironman ride, but still, that's a good clip for that distance. On very little sleep. A friend (whom I met at Ironman Brazil) was in town from Miami for the weekend, and we had a few cocktails Saturday night, and then I just couldn't get to sleep. Tequila tends to do that to me!
Just 4 weeks ago I rode at an average speed of 18.3 for 100 miles with 2 others in mostly drafting formation, so it was good to know I could hold that pace on my own yesterday. I don't know how I did it--my legs were dead on Saturday, and I mean DEAD--I wanted to ride a bit so my legs would be prepped for Sunday, so I decided on 2 hours. I threw in some intervals, but just did not have the power I was looking for, and tried to run off the bike, but felt so wiped that I bagged it. So I rested more or less the remainder of the day, and then went out for cocktails around 8:30 (I only had one Margarita, a big one, though), then couldn't get to sleep, decided to sleep in (until 6AM), since I was unsure of when I actually fell asleep (I'm sure it was after midnight, maybe more like 1AM), and figured I had some play in my plans.
Originally I had wanted to begin my ride yesterday at 7AM, but since I didn't wake up until 6:15, that was not in the cards. Still, I sucked down some coffee, ate a Power Bar Triple Threat, guzzled 400 calories of Glycoload (same thing as Ultrafuel, basically), pumped my tires and was on the road by 7:05. It was maybe a 35-minute drive to the ride start, and of course I had to pee when I got there, but there were too many people around in the bank parking lot to do a "metal tree pee" (my term for squatting next to an open car door--not too discreet--but remember I will pee just about anywhere), so I got my bike ready to go, rode to the start and there were porta-potties, did my thing, paid the money, declined the T-shirt (all they had were XXL), took the water bottle, and away I went.
I was riding by 7:50AM, and since I wanted to go to this bike race later in the day that started at 3PM, I figured I needed to keep about an 18MPH average, including my rest stop time, to finish in time to run 20-30 minutes, drive home, eat, shower and walk 1/2 mile to the bike race. We started out with a bit of a tailwind heading south (and I knew that meant headwind on the way back), and we were heading roughly towards the Illinois River, so that meant on a slight downward slope. I was hammering away blissfully by myself, and even though I typically take about 1 hour to warm up, I just started going. All thoughts of lack of sleep, the tiredness that had been in my legs the day before, the fact that I had shuffled my workouts this week and that I was only scheduled for a 4-hour ride this weekend, but had decided that if I felt recovered enough I would do 100 miles, were out the window. At the first aid station, in a split-second decision, I even had a doughnut! They had Dunkin' Donuts, and the custard-filled, chocolate-coated (my absolute favorite) called out to me. I joked that I hoped they had cheeseburgers at the next aid station! That doughnut was just what the doctor ordered--more sugar--and apparently I also needed a good dose of fat.
I focused back on why I was out here--because I wanted to put in a lot of bike miles this month. I think because I carbed up while cocktailing that I must have had enough in the tank, and man, it was just the most beautiful day ever--got me motivated to push the pace. I knew that because of the ride logistics that I could bail and only do 75 miles, and for the first 2 hours I was thinking about doing that, especially after eating a doughnut! I mean, what am I trying to prove? Well, I am not trying to prove anything--I am just trying to get stronger on the bike, and strength comes from toughness, both mental and physical, so this was a perfect opportunity for me to show myself what I got.
There weren't very many riders out on this ride, which was odd, but then again, there were bike races going on, the Chicago Air and Water Show was on, and I'm sure a lot of folks were just getting in their last blast of summer fun in other ways. I just like riding my bike!
Since I started late for a 100-mile rider, I figured I wouldn't see too many other 100-mile riders out there, but right about at 40 miles in, I started catching up to and passing people riding 100 miles (in retrospect the doughnut was just what the doctor ordered). First there was this group of 3 triathletes. For a bit, they acted all "faster than me" and such, but then I thought hey, I had caught up to them, so let's see what they got? I let them pull me for maybe 1 mile, and then since I wasn't sure of their paceline strategy, figured they were taking turns every .5 mile or so, and so I figured it was time for me to go up front. Which I gladly did. And I'm riding and riding, and I'm seeing 2...3...4 miles ticking off and nobody is coming up front. Finally I turn around and they are GONE. We were into a headwind, but that usually makes me push harder, and the peer pressure, you know. But they were gone. One of the girls in the group seemed pretty fast, and I had commented on her yellow bike, joking, "Yellow bikes are faster than others," and she seemed to want to prove it to me, but I guess she couldn't hold pace with MY yellow bike.
But then shortly after that I come up on another group of triathletes, 4 of them (3 girls and 1 guy), and have the usual banter "what are you training for?" and they were all training for IMFL. I hang with them (they were riding 2 abreast) for about .5 mile, and I'm looking at my power, and it's on the down low, if you know what I mean, and I'm getting a bit bored, thinking these folks should pick it up a bit (and let's face it, I DID catch up to them). So I go up front, thinking they will get a clue and we can take turns pulling to get in a decent workout, and I pull for like 5 miles and they all just sit back there! For a bit, I was thinking you lazy asses, but then I thought, what the heck, I am getting a great workout let's go! (Ironically, much later in the ride with about 15 miles to go I actually SAW an ass--er--a donkey, and had to yell at the little guy, "Hey, you ASS!") Then I just kept riding and get ahead of them, and take a little break myself and one of the girls comes up to my pace and goes past me, and I'm thinking she must be sick of their shit, too, so she motivates me to pick it up again, but then she slows down and "waits" for her group, and I can see they are all flagging, but I do get past them for a bit.
As we ride along the Illinois River it's totally beautiful and shady and curvy and really nice, and we all pull into the next aid station close together, and I hear one of the group asking about a gas station and I know why--they need some caffeine. So we sort of head out of there together, we get into a town (Seneca, I think), and there's the gas station, and we are saying our good byes (who knows maybe they will catch me back--NOT), and I say to them, "Cokes, huh?" And they say, "Yep." See I knew it. Maybe they were cocktailing more than me. Maybe they are training more than me, or maybe they do the stupid long-run-on-Saturday-long-ride-on-Sunday training which is guaranteed to fry your legs (like my legs weren't fried from all the biking I've been doing???). I'm not saying they were slow or slackers, but considering they were riding in a group, I thought they would be going faster. The girls in the group didn't seem too friendly to me--I really don't know why--I am pretty light and cordial, after all we are all just out trying to do our things--but whatever, when they stopped at that gas station, I knew 2 things for certain: 1) they are already toast (and we were only about 55 miles into the ride) and 2) I would not be seeing them for the next 45 miles if I could help it.
Right after that we started heading back north, and I knew this meant 2 things: 1) headwind and 2) climbing out of a river valley. Oh joy! Uphill into a headwind! No problems, I knew my average speed might start to go down here (I think I was close to 19MPH through 65 miles), and I wondered if I could hold effort and still make my goal time. There was one fairly long and sort of steep climb that I remember doing 4 or 5 years ago on some ride. Oh well, just keep turning over the pedals. Every few miles, especially after turns, I would look behind me to see if I saw any riders approaching, but nope!
It continued to be a gorgeous day--temps in the mid-70's, clear blue sky with puffy cumulous clouds, lots of really tall corn and soybeans, very little traffic, and my legs felt fine. At about 72 miles in, I stopped briefly and lo and behold another Griffen! Of course we both gushed about how much we love our bikes, and I said when I get a new road bike that's what I want. One more stop, and I'm done.
In a way, I still wasn't sure that I should be riding 100 miles, but then again, sometimes you don't know what you are capable of until you try it, and what's the worst that could happen? I become tired. Let's just say that when I got off the bike to run, it was not a pretty sight. I had to "run" up this rather large hill, and then another one, and I was getting all demoralized, but then I realized going back would be downhill and I made myself RUN. All I could think is that I have been going at things pretty hard lately, and that it was amazing that I was still moving!
I cut my run short to only :25, got in the car, drove home while drinking my Endurox and eating a pack of cheese/peanut butter crackers and guzzling a small bottle of Gatorade, unpacked my car in a hurry, put something in the microwave to eat, got in the shower (best shower ever--although crotch not too happy), wolfed down most of a Lean Cuisine, dumped a beer into a plastic cup, grabbed a bottle of water, made a baggie of chips in case I got hungry, and left to walk down to the bike races, which I made it to by 3:30. It was probably good for my legs to do some walking, although I'm guessing I looked like a war survivor, as I couldn't walk very fast. I watched bikes whooshing by for about 1:15, and realized I was so tired that I better go home and fix dinner before I passed out.
In case you were wondering, here's what I did last week:
Weekly Totals 08/14/2006-08/20/2006
Swim: 9100 yards (5.16 miles) in 3.08 hours; 17% of weekly workout time; approx. 1080 calories burned
Bike: Approx. 168 miles in 9.42 hours; 53% of weekly workout time; approx. 4518 calories burned
Run: Approx. 25.51 miles in 3.85 hours; 22% of weekly workout time; approx. 1898 calories burned
Strength: 1.3 hours; 7% of weekly workout time; approx. 325 calories burned
All Sports: Approx. 198.67 miles in 17.65 hours; approx. 7821 calories burned
Sleep: 8.64 hours avg./night
Stretching: 2.52 hours
Doesn't look like a lot on paper, does it? But my intensity has been right up there for weeks on end now, either racing with no taper or riding 9 hours straight or running freaking 5K races weekly, so that's plenty. Oh, and I crossed over the 700 training hours for the season this week!
OK, so maybe I won't make up that swim I missed today, or maybe I might. Now I am just focused on next weekend--and the plan is to do about 75 miles on Saturday and 125 on Sunday. That will be a first for me. So until then I am going to be watchful on my recovery and leg fatigue, with the goal of going into Saturday with relatively fresh legs. Ha ha, I will need to, as I'm doing the trifecta of 3 days straight of hard running again.
For the month of August, so far 591 miles on the bike. After I add it up, I don't think I'll hit 1,000 miles (more like 850), but it will still be a solid month of biking. And then a little non-race, and then I will switch modes into *actual* 1/2 Ironman training, OMG!!!
Ride on!
Why am I tired? Been training a lot. A LOT. Trying to get in 1,000 miles of biking this month is doing it. I don't know how grand tour riders can ride so much. I just don't know how they do it. I know that I would sure want some "enhancement" if I was going to try that.
I must be getting stronger on the bike. Yesterday I rode 102 miles by myself (well, except for when I let 2 different groups of sorry-ass triathletes suck my wheel for about 5 miles at a time and then summarily dropped them), and averaged 18.3 MPH, where the last 40 miles of that were into a headwind. Needless to say, that is a little faster than what I would average on an Ironman ride, but still, that's a good clip for that distance. On very little sleep. A friend (whom I met at Ironman Brazil) was in town from Miami for the weekend, and we had a few cocktails Saturday night, and then I just couldn't get to sleep. Tequila tends to do that to me!
Just 4 weeks ago I rode at an average speed of 18.3 for 100 miles with 2 others in mostly drafting formation, so it was good to know I could hold that pace on my own yesterday. I don't know how I did it--my legs were dead on Saturday, and I mean DEAD--I wanted to ride a bit so my legs would be prepped for Sunday, so I decided on 2 hours. I threw in some intervals, but just did not have the power I was looking for, and tried to run off the bike, but felt so wiped that I bagged it. So I rested more or less the remainder of the day, and then went out for cocktails around 8:30 (I only had one Margarita, a big one, though), then couldn't get to sleep, decided to sleep in (until 6AM), since I was unsure of when I actually fell asleep (I'm sure it was after midnight, maybe more like 1AM), and figured I had some play in my plans.
Originally I had wanted to begin my ride yesterday at 7AM, but since I didn't wake up until 6:15, that was not in the cards. Still, I sucked down some coffee, ate a Power Bar Triple Threat, guzzled 400 calories of Glycoload (same thing as Ultrafuel, basically), pumped my tires and was on the road by 7:05. It was maybe a 35-minute drive to the ride start, and of course I had to pee when I got there, but there were too many people around in the bank parking lot to do a "metal tree pee" (my term for squatting next to an open car door--not too discreet--but remember I will pee just about anywhere), so I got my bike ready to go, rode to the start and there were porta-potties, did my thing, paid the money, declined the T-shirt (all they had were XXL), took the water bottle, and away I went.
I was riding by 7:50AM, and since I wanted to go to this bike race later in the day that started at 3PM, I figured I needed to keep about an 18MPH average, including my rest stop time, to finish in time to run 20-30 minutes, drive home, eat, shower and walk 1/2 mile to the bike race. We started out with a bit of a tailwind heading south (and I knew that meant headwind on the way back), and we were heading roughly towards the Illinois River, so that meant on a slight downward slope. I was hammering away blissfully by myself, and even though I typically take about 1 hour to warm up, I just started going. All thoughts of lack of sleep, the tiredness that had been in my legs the day before, the fact that I had shuffled my workouts this week and that I was only scheduled for a 4-hour ride this weekend, but had decided that if I felt recovered enough I would do 100 miles, were out the window. At the first aid station, in a split-second decision, I even had a doughnut! They had Dunkin' Donuts, and the custard-filled, chocolate-coated (my absolute favorite) called out to me. I joked that I hoped they had cheeseburgers at the next aid station! That doughnut was just what the doctor ordered--more sugar--and apparently I also needed a good dose of fat.
I focused back on why I was out here--because I wanted to put in a lot of bike miles this month. I think because I carbed up while cocktailing that I must have had enough in the tank, and man, it was just the most beautiful day ever--got me motivated to push the pace. I knew that because of the ride logistics that I could bail and only do 75 miles, and for the first 2 hours I was thinking about doing that, especially after eating a doughnut! I mean, what am I trying to prove? Well, I am not trying to prove anything--I am just trying to get stronger on the bike, and strength comes from toughness, both mental and physical, so this was a perfect opportunity for me to show myself what I got.
There weren't very many riders out on this ride, which was odd, but then again, there were bike races going on, the Chicago Air and Water Show was on, and I'm sure a lot of folks were just getting in their last blast of summer fun in other ways. I just like riding my bike!
Since I started late for a 100-mile rider, I figured I wouldn't see too many other 100-mile riders out there, but right about at 40 miles in, I started catching up to and passing people riding 100 miles (in retrospect the doughnut was just what the doctor ordered). First there was this group of 3 triathletes. For a bit, they acted all "faster than me" and such, but then I thought hey, I had caught up to them, so let's see what they got? I let them pull me for maybe 1 mile, and then since I wasn't sure of their paceline strategy, figured they were taking turns every .5 mile or so, and so I figured it was time for me to go up front. Which I gladly did. And I'm riding and riding, and I'm seeing 2...3...4 miles ticking off and nobody is coming up front. Finally I turn around and they are GONE. We were into a headwind, but that usually makes me push harder, and the peer pressure, you know. But they were gone. One of the girls in the group seemed pretty fast, and I had commented on her yellow bike, joking, "Yellow bikes are faster than others," and she seemed to want to prove it to me, but I guess she couldn't hold pace with MY yellow bike.
But then shortly after that I come up on another group of triathletes, 4 of them (3 girls and 1 guy), and have the usual banter "what are you training for?" and they were all training for IMFL. I hang with them (they were riding 2 abreast) for about .5 mile, and I'm looking at my power, and it's on the down low, if you know what I mean, and I'm getting a bit bored, thinking these folks should pick it up a bit (and let's face it, I DID catch up to them). So I go up front, thinking they will get a clue and we can take turns pulling to get in a decent workout, and I pull for like 5 miles and they all just sit back there! For a bit, I was thinking you lazy asses, but then I thought, what the heck, I am getting a great workout let's go! (Ironically, much later in the ride with about 15 miles to go I actually SAW an ass--er--a donkey, and had to yell at the little guy, "Hey, you ASS!") Then I just kept riding and get ahead of them, and take a little break myself and one of the girls comes up to my pace and goes past me, and I'm thinking she must be sick of their shit, too, so she motivates me to pick it up again, but then she slows down and "waits" for her group, and I can see they are all flagging, but I do get past them for a bit.
As we ride along the Illinois River it's totally beautiful and shady and curvy and really nice, and we all pull into the next aid station close together, and I hear one of the group asking about a gas station and I know why--they need some caffeine. So we sort of head out of there together, we get into a town (Seneca, I think), and there's the gas station, and we are saying our good byes (who knows maybe they will catch me back--NOT), and I say to them, "Cokes, huh?" And they say, "Yep." See I knew it. Maybe they were cocktailing more than me. Maybe they are training more than me, or maybe they do the stupid long-run-on-Saturday-long-ride-on-Sunday training which is guaranteed to fry your legs (like my legs weren't fried from all the biking I've been doing???). I'm not saying they were slow or slackers, but considering they were riding in a group, I thought they would be going faster. The girls in the group didn't seem too friendly to me--I really don't know why--I am pretty light and cordial, after all we are all just out trying to do our things--but whatever, when they stopped at that gas station, I knew 2 things for certain: 1) they are already toast (and we were only about 55 miles into the ride) and 2) I would not be seeing them for the next 45 miles if I could help it.
Right after that we started heading back north, and I knew this meant 2 things: 1) headwind and 2) climbing out of a river valley. Oh joy! Uphill into a headwind! No problems, I knew my average speed might start to go down here (I think I was close to 19MPH through 65 miles), and I wondered if I could hold effort and still make my goal time. There was one fairly long and sort of steep climb that I remember doing 4 or 5 years ago on some ride. Oh well, just keep turning over the pedals. Every few miles, especially after turns, I would look behind me to see if I saw any riders approaching, but nope!
It continued to be a gorgeous day--temps in the mid-70's, clear blue sky with puffy cumulous clouds, lots of really tall corn and soybeans, very little traffic, and my legs felt fine. At about 72 miles in, I stopped briefly and lo and behold another Griffen! Of course we both gushed about how much we love our bikes, and I said when I get a new road bike that's what I want. One more stop, and I'm done.
In a way, I still wasn't sure that I should be riding 100 miles, but then again, sometimes you don't know what you are capable of until you try it, and what's the worst that could happen? I become tired. Let's just say that when I got off the bike to run, it was not a pretty sight. I had to "run" up this rather large hill, and then another one, and I was getting all demoralized, but then I realized going back would be downhill and I made myself RUN. All I could think is that I have been going at things pretty hard lately, and that it was amazing that I was still moving!
I cut my run short to only :25, got in the car, drove home while drinking my Endurox and eating a pack of cheese/peanut butter crackers and guzzling a small bottle of Gatorade, unpacked my car in a hurry, put something in the microwave to eat, got in the shower (best shower ever--although crotch not too happy), wolfed down most of a Lean Cuisine, dumped a beer into a plastic cup, grabbed a bottle of water, made a baggie of chips in case I got hungry, and left to walk down to the bike races, which I made it to by 3:30. It was probably good for my legs to do some walking, although I'm guessing I looked like a war survivor, as I couldn't walk very fast. I watched bikes whooshing by for about 1:15, and realized I was so tired that I better go home and fix dinner before I passed out.
In case you were wondering, here's what I did last week:
Weekly Totals 08/14/2006-08/20/2006
Swim: 9100 yards (5.16 miles) in 3.08 hours; 17% of weekly workout time; approx. 1080 calories burned
Bike: Approx. 168 miles in 9.42 hours; 53% of weekly workout time; approx. 4518 calories burned
Run: Approx. 25.51 miles in 3.85 hours; 22% of weekly workout time; approx. 1898 calories burned
Strength: 1.3 hours; 7% of weekly workout time; approx. 325 calories burned
All Sports: Approx. 198.67 miles in 17.65 hours; approx. 7821 calories burned
Sleep: 8.64 hours avg./night
Stretching: 2.52 hours
Doesn't look like a lot on paper, does it? But my intensity has been right up there for weeks on end now, either racing with no taper or riding 9 hours straight or running freaking 5K races weekly, so that's plenty. Oh, and I crossed over the 700 training hours for the season this week!
OK, so maybe I won't make up that swim I missed today, or maybe I might. Now I am just focused on next weekend--and the plan is to do about 75 miles on Saturday and 125 on Sunday. That will be a first for me. So until then I am going to be watchful on my recovery and leg fatigue, with the goal of going into Saturday with relatively fresh legs. Ha ha, I will need to, as I'm doing the trifecta of 3 days straight of hard running again.
For the month of August, so far 591 miles on the bike. After I add it up, I don't think I'll hit 1,000 miles (more like 850), but it will still be a solid month of biking. And then a little non-race, and then I will switch modes into *actual* 1/2 Ironman training, OMG!!!
Ride on!
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