Since I moved my long run to Thursdays this week, I thought I probably have put in a lot of running in the last week, so I went and added it up, and for the 7 day period beginning last Friday through today, I've put in 42 miles!
I had no trouble getting in my 1:40 run this morning, except for starting at 6:30AM which will get earlier and earlier as the runs move up towards 2:00, since I need to start working by 9AM. I still did my extra crap before I ran this morning, and wasn't sure I could pull off the run. Yesterday I didn't get enough sleep and felt generally run down from the combination of lack of sleep and training a lot, and thought I might be getting sick, too. But I felt pretty good this AM after a good night's sleep, albeit a bit dizzy which I think was leftover from 1/2 tablet of Advil PM that I took around 1:30AM because I wanted to make sure I kept sleeping.
I drank a can of Coke and a little bit of Gatorade during the run, and it was fine, and I had some company on the adjacent treadmill for about :30. Our conversation was extremely colorful--this guy has a lot of respect for my level of fitness, and at one time I thought I wanted to date him, but he was frank that he couldn't deal with someone like me! So today we were discussing some female stuff, since I guess his girlfriend is around my age, and then the conversation deteriorated (in a good way) from there.
I finished up the run with 15' on the track where I was able to run solidly at about my 10K pace, which is what I was supposed to do, and overall, the entire run felt great. I stretched about 10' and now I'm at work and will probably want a little lay-down at some point, but I still have about 30' of strength to knock out today. At the end of the day, I'm going to go pick up my award from the indoor tri series, and that should be a nice way to head into the weekend.
It always amazes me how a few pounds off makes such a difference running, but it does. In my case, it's not enough to make me necessarily overall faster; rather it just makes it feel less bad when I do run. But no worries, I have no desires to lose any more weight at this point. I still remember back to the first time I was this small and I was climbing on the bike and for the first time wasn't wishing I was any lighter! That is a good feeling.
On that note, back to work for me...
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
It's SWIM LIKE A PIRATE DAY!!!
I got my custom Splish pirate suit yesterday, so I'm going to swim all pirate-like today. Plus this documents my 4-weeks of dieting, although I still think I have some fat to lose, but I'm training too much to diet any longer so it's lots of Pirate Booty for me!
As you can tell from the pic above, I am in no danger of losing my huge fat ass.
That's my girlfriend, Pirate Whore Barbie, next to me ;)
Boo-TAY!
Frontal version with strategically placed pirates
As you can tell from the pic above, I am in no danger of losing my huge fat ass.
That's my girlfriend, Pirate Whore Barbie, next to me ;)
Boo-TAY!
Frontal version with strategically placed piratesMonday, March 23, 2009
And the Stream of Expected Changes Continues
One of the things I get a kick out of is being really in tune with my body as I gradually increase my training load. After a brief break in the fall (which is typically way brief for me), I am itching to prove to myself that I haven't lost my endurance, which is why a 1/2 NothingMan in November or December (2008's was delayed due to my back injury, although I suppose my November Cheaterman 60-mile bike/15 mile run was close) has become a regular event for me.
Next, I have to adjust to life on the fucking trainer, but I start out with short workouts so that I can up the intensity, and for no good reason at all, I cut back on my swimming. And then I start working on some running intensity.
Next, I feel like a complete and total blob, because I hate how I look when I am not tan, even though it is probably just a few pounds of fat because I'm not training like a maniac. I remember that I need to be watchful of my diet, especially treats like candy and chips, because I usually don't start in on them until I'm training at least 15 hours per week.
Then I get up to around 15 hours a week and it's always a bit of a shock to my system, just getting used to the frequency of the workouts and all the bottles and how I need to manage my time very efficiently. But then after a few weeks of it, big things start to happen, since I usually don't hang out at 15 for very long.
There's the Monday morning workout, "Oh SHIT am I tired." I slept well last night, and felt fine when I woke up, but as soon as I started doing pullups, I could tell I was tired. By the time I got into the pool, I could tell I wouldn't be swimming too fast. There will be Mondays where I can barely put my face in the water I am so tired, but that won't happen for a few months (I hope!). And when one of those days happen, I have a conversation with myself and my little friends that goes like this:
Me: Huh, I feel kinda tired. I wonder if I should take a rest day?
Inner Devil: Fuck no just go a little easier today
Inner Angel: Gee, it wouldn't hurt you to take one
Me: I wonder when was the last time I actually took a rest day? Probably before some race...
Inner Devil: Rest days are for losers or the day before a race ONLY.
Inner Angel: Maybe you need a rest day.
Me: Now that I am thinking about it, what do you know? I can work out harder right now.
Speaking of shit, there's more of that happening, too, as my body adjusts to more food going in and consequently more shit coming out (sorry about that it's true). It will take a few weeks for me to get all synchronized on that front, which is mostly a function of run volume and frequency. I'm up to 5 runs a week, and I'll add a 6th in 4 weeks.
The next thing that will happen, I'm guessing in 2 weeks, is that Mr. Tapeworm will return. Since I've been dieting, I've been used to some feelings of hunger, but that's from calorie restriction. Mr. Tapeworm will see to it that not only am I hungry all the time, even while actually eating, but that while eating one meal I will be thinking about the next one!
Finally, I'll experience regular bonking. Not necessarily during a workout, but yesterday, for instance, after I finished about 2:15 of stuff, ate lunch, had a beer, had a lay down, then got up and started doing yard work (which apparently I do rather vigorously, go figure), and about :40 in I started bonking. It made me laugh, because now I need to be aware of any extra physical activity that I'm doing because it will require more calories coming in every 2 hours at least.
Bonking during workouts will happen when my timing is off, i.e., I started a workout later than I should have and didn't keep fueling right up until. This will happen usually during the week when work takes precedence over when I get my second workout in, since I won't eat lunch until after that's finished. And even if I pound a Coke or Ultra Violence, it might not be enough calories to keep me going, only because I probably am not able to keep my glycogen topped off on a daily basis when I'm at 16+ hours in a week.
All this while, I will be feeling like I am strong and that nothing can get to me, but you know what? Predictably I get a little moody. I know many people think they only get that when in a taper, but I am already there--it's more a function of how much I'm training. I already did a mini-build while doing the indoor sprint races, and now I'm in the volume build for Triple T and I already notice some moodiness. But I've done this for years now, so I've learned when to paste on the smile and say "thank you" when I might not feel like it or to just smile or to just be quiet.
It doesn't help to not have raced in 2 weeks. You know, even though it wears you down, you get used to the high of it because there is nothing like it. I just completed a survey which was fun to take, since it confirmed what I thought to be my mental state while racing. And that high can last you for a few days, and I naturally have these aggro tendencies, so you put it together and it's quite heady.
But then there will be the first 100 mile ride of the year, the first 2 hour run, the first 4,000 yard swim, and they will be other joyous markers of things to come. It makes a training year like climbing a mountain, and then you need to come down off of it. But the way up is fun, fun, fun, and you know what? Even if you reverse the first letters, it's still fucking fun!
Edit: During my little :45 run, I realized I forgot a few other markers:
Next, I have to adjust to life on the fucking trainer, but I start out with short workouts so that I can up the intensity, and for no good reason at all, I cut back on my swimming. And then I start working on some running intensity.
Next, I feel like a complete and total blob, because I hate how I look when I am not tan, even though it is probably just a few pounds of fat because I'm not training like a maniac. I remember that I need to be watchful of my diet, especially treats like candy and chips, because I usually don't start in on them until I'm training at least 15 hours per week.
Then I get up to around 15 hours a week and it's always a bit of a shock to my system, just getting used to the frequency of the workouts and all the bottles and how I need to manage my time very efficiently. But then after a few weeks of it, big things start to happen, since I usually don't hang out at 15 for very long.
There's the Monday morning workout, "Oh SHIT am I tired." I slept well last night, and felt fine when I woke up, but as soon as I started doing pullups, I could tell I was tired. By the time I got into the pool, I could tell I wouldn't be swimming too fast. There will be Mondays where I can barely put my face in the water I am so tired, but that won't happen for a few months (I hope!). And when one of those days happen, I have a conversation with myself and my little friends that goes like this:
Me: Huh, I feel kinda tired. I wonder if I should take a rest day?
Inner Devil: Fuck no just go a little easier today
Inner Angel: Gee, it wouldn't hurt you to take one
Me: I wonder when was the last time I actually took a rest day? Probably before some race...
Inner Devil: Rest days are for losers or the day before a race ONLY.
Inner Angel: Maybe you need a rest day.
Me: Now that I am thinking about it, what do you know? I can work out harder right now.
Speaking of shit, there's more of that happening, too, as my body adjusts to more food going in and consequently more shit coming out (sorry about that it's true). It will take a few weeks for me to get all synchronized on that front, which is mostly a function of run volume and frequency. I'm up to 5 runs a week, and I'll add a 6th in 4 weeks.
The next thing that will happen, I'm guessing in 2 weeks, is that Mr. Tapeworm will return. Since I've been dieting, I've been used to some feelings of hunger, but that's from calorie restriction. Mr. Tapeworm will see to it that not only am I hungry all the time, even while actually eating, but that while eating one meal I will be thinking about the next one!
Finally, I'll experience regular bonking. Not necessarily during a workout, but yesterday, for instance, after I finished about 2:15 of stuff, ate lunch, had a beer, had a lay down, then got up and started doing yard work (which apparently I do rather vigorously, go figure), and about :40 in I started bonking. It made me laugh, because now I need to be aware of any extra physical activity that I'm doing because it will require more calories coming in every 2 hours at least.
Bonking during workouts will happen when my timing is off, i.e., I started a workout later than I should have and didn't keep fueling right up until. This will happen usually during the week when work takes precedence over when I get my second workout in, since I won't eat lunch until after that's finished. And even if I pound a Coke or Ultra Violence, it might not be enough calories to keep me going, only because I probably am not able to keep my glycogen topped off on a daily basis when I'm at 16+ hours in a week.
All this while, I will be feeling like I am strong and that nothing can get to me, but you know what? Predictably I get a little moody. I know many people think they only get that when in a taper, but I am already there--it's more a function of how much I'm training. I already did a mini-build while doing the indoor sprint races, and now I'm in the volume build for Triple T and I already notice some moodiness. But I've done this for years now, so I've learned when to paste on the smile and say "thank you" when I might not feel like it or to just smile or to just be quiet.
It doesn't help to not have raced in 2 weeks. You know, even though it wears you down, you get used to the high of it because there is nothing like it. I just completed a survey which was fun to take, since it confirmed what I thought to be my mental state while racing. And that high can last you for a few days, and I naturally have these aggro tendencies, so you put it together and it's quite heady.
But then there will be the first 100 mile ride of the year, the first 2 hour run, the first 4,000 yard swim, and they will be other joyous markers of things to come. It makes a training year like climbing a mountain, and then you need to come down off of it. But the way up is fun, fun, fun, and you know what? Even if you reverse the first letters, it's still fucking fun!
Edit: During my little :45 run, I realized I forgot a few other markers:
- Gagging when I brush my teeth. This seems to start happening once I am racing, and then continues as I build volume, because brushing my teeth means either I'm on my way to a race or a long workout!
- Hot legs. As the volume goes up, so does the metabolism, and there comes a point when my legs are always burning up while I sleep, which makes me wake up and move to another part of the bed which might be cooler, or throw all the blankets off and put a cool feather pillow on myself, go into the guest bed which will be nice and cool, or move to the edge of the bed so a fan can blow directly on me. Last night was the first time where I had to have a fan blowing on me all night because I was so hot, even though the air temperature in my bedroom was maybe 68. When I travel during the summer to races or training weekends, it's a big joke with whomever is my roommate about how cold we will keep the room. 58-60 is not too cold!
- The MESS. Since I had my house all nice and fixed up, I've reverted to being somewhat of a neat freak, but once I start running and riding outside exclusively (and longer), time available to clean will go down the drain, and there will be shoes, helmets, dirty clothes and bottles in plain sight pretty much daily.
- Practically puking after runs from home. Why? I think because on the way back, I am usually so excited that I will be done for the day, and I usually have something in reserve so I throw caution to the wind and just gun it for the last mile. And then spend 5 minutes dry heaving and coughing!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Weekly Workout Totals 03/16/2009-03/22/2009 and Miscellaneous Ramblings
I ended the week on a high note. Had a great run this morning (after my warmup of 50 pushups, 22 pullups, 130 crunches and 5.5' of jumping rope) of 1:40. 30' z1, 30' z2, 30' z3, 10' z4. Was supposed to end it with 10' z2, but I went onto the track and figured let's see what I can do since the rest of the run felt just great, and what the hell, I ran in z4 (this is all pace-based as I no longer use an HRM). After the run, I went and swam 1150 yds. with the paddles to cool down, and then I did a few hours of yard work to cap off the day.
While stretching I was thinking how is it that I feel so good right now? Maybe I expect to feel like crap--more tired, more sore muscularly, something. But it's not happening. I am not complaining--after all, it's only March! But it got me to thinking that this extra stuff I've been doing has been helping me in subtle ways. Like this morning, my right knee was a little gnarly from yesterday's ride (and probably the brick run), but I'm pretty sure jumping rope this morning fixed it right up. Why? Because it's tough to jump without putting equal force on both your knees, and my knees get out of whack because the left one has no ACL and so it fucks with my hip mechanics. And with the pushups and pullups, it has forced my back, from upper to lower, to equalize in strength, and I can tell when I roll on the foam roller that I am much more symmetrical in terms of which muscles feel "crunchy," which is a term I use when I can feel one muscle rolling over another one and the sensation to me is one of crunchiness, although maybe there's a technical term for it.
The other thing I notice is that just by dropping a few pounds I feel much better running, and since running is the big screwer upper of everyone's low back, it stands to reason I should not feel as beat up. Yep! I remember a few years ago when I first hit 112 lbs. how much I noticed how much better I felt.
I suppose watching my diet a little more has made a contribution, too. Although I have to say that 1/2 bag of jelly beans last night was necessary and must have contributed to me feeling so good running this morning!
It wasn't until this morning that I realized why my training plan had me doing the long run yesterday and the ride today--it's because I do another 1:40 run on Thursday morning, so if I'd done today's run yesterday I'd have one more day of recovery, but what the fuck, I've done a lot more crazy shit than that so no worries there. When I see what other people are up to on Facebook, I feel like a total slacker anyway.
Mentally I feel a bit edgy. Like I'm in an Ironman build. DOH!!! I feel strong and also like I could rip someone's face off at any minute. I know that sounds harsh, but it's just a state that my body gets in and it affects my psyche, too. But I'm aware of it, so I don't actually go around ripping people's faces off.
But this is just the beginning. I've got another 8 weeks of pretty serious training, and then it's Triple T, which by itself makes for a big week, and then 8 weeks of all out craziness followed by IMLP.
I should be happy I feel so good right now--the TIRED is going to be knocking at my door any day now, and I will welcome it with open arms, after all, whose idea was this shit anyway??? MINE!!!
Here's what I got done last week. Oh if you add in the extra crap, it's more like 17 hours...and why I didn't just ride another .5 miles to make 112, who knows? I didn't know I was off that number until today...
While stretching I was thinking how is it that I feel so good right now? Maybe I expect to feel like crap--more tired, more sore muscularly, something. But it's not happening. I am not complaining--after all, it's only March! But it got me to thinking that this extra stuff I've been doing has been helping me in subtle ways. Like this morning, my right knee was a little gnarly from yesterday's ride (and probably the brick run), but I'm pretty sure jumping rope this morning fixed it right up. Why? Because it's tough to jump without putting equal force on both your knees, and my knees get out of whack because the left one has no ACL and so it fucks with my hip mechanics. And with the pushups and pullups, it has forced my back, from upper to lower, to equalize in strength, and I can tell when I roll on the foam roller that I am much more symmetrical in terms of which muscles feel "crunchy," which is a term I use when I can feel one muscle rolling over another one and the sensation to me is one of crunchiness, although maybe there's a technical term for it.
The other thing I notice is that just by dropping a few pounds I feel much better running, and since running is the big screwer upper of everyone's low back, it stands to reason I should not feel as beat up. Yep! I remember a few years ago when I first hit 112 lbs. how much I noticed how much better I felt.
I suppose watching my diet a little more has made a contribution, too. Although I have to say that 1/2 bag of jelly beans last night was necessary and must have contributed to me feeling so good running this morning!
It wasn't until this morning that I realized why my training plan had me doing the long run yesterday and the ride today--it's because I do another 1:40 run on Thursday morning, so if I'd done today's run yesterday I'd have one more day of recovery, but what the fuck, I've done a lot more crazy shit than that so no worries there. When I see what other people are up to on Facebook, I feel like a total slacker anyway.
Mentally I feel a bit edgy. Like I'm in an Ironman build. DOH!!! I feel strong and also like I could rip someone's face off at any minute. I know that sounds harsh, but it's just a state that my body gets in and it affects my psyche, too. But I'm aware of it, so I don't actually go around ripping people's faces off.
But this is just the beginning. I've got another 8 weeks of pretty serious training, and then it's Triple T, which by itself makes for a big week, and then 8 weeks of all out craziness followed by IMLP.
I should be happy I feel so good right now--the TIRED is going to be knocking at my door any day now, and I will welcome it with open arms, after all, whose idea was this shit anyway??? MINE!!!
Here's what I got done last week. Oh if you add in the extra crap, it's more like 17 hours...and why I didn't just ride another .5 miles to make 112, who knows? I didn't know I was off that number until today...
| Weekly Workout Totals | 03/16/2009-03/22/2009 This week's totals are sponsored by yin/yang |
| Swim: | 10050 yards (5.7 miles) in 3.58 hours; 23% of weekly workout time; approx. 1255 calories burned Canadian: 9189.72 meters |
| Bike: | Approx. 111.54 miles in 6.15 hours; 39% of weekly workout time; approx. 3325 calories burned; Total TSS=386 Canadian: 179.51 kilometers |
| Run: | Approx. 31.03 miles in 4.66 hours; 30% of weekly workout time; approx. 2100 calories burned Canadian: 49.94 kilometers |
| Strength: | 1.32 hours; 8% of weekly workout time; approx. 330 calories burned |
| All Sports: | Approx. 148.27 miles in 15.71 hours; approx. 7010 calories burned Canadian: 238.62 kilometers |
| Sleep: | 7.5 hours avg./night |
| Stretching: | 2.73 hours. Massage: 1 hours |
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