30.10.12 Sunday ride...on Monday

As it was a long weekend in Wellington I decided to take advantage of it and take the Sunday off after my long run and swim and do a long ride on the Monday.  I got up early (7am), grabbed some breakfast and then headed out on the bike.  I was going to do the Makara ride similar to the one below and it was going to mean at least 4 hours in the saddle.

On the way I go past Makara cemetery and decided that as it was such a beautiful morning, to go and pay respects to a friend who recently passes away.  I said hello and then jumped on the bike and continued my ride.  As I finally reached the top of Makara hill feeling exceptionally good mind you, I pulled out my drink bottle and felt something hit my leg.  The drink bottle holder was holding on with one screw and I had no idea where the other one was.  I stopped and luckily the screw was still sitting in the holder.  I opened my saddle bag to get my Allen key out only to find that it was missing.  I pulled out every loose Allen key and could not find one to fit.  I tried to do some DIY to at least hold the bottle holder from falling on my leg by wedging my pump in it.  The bottle was going to have to go in my bike top but as I had only started the ride around 40minutes earlier, the pockets where full of food.  I stuffed the drink bottle down my top and decided to head for my local bike shop  to try and borrow an Allen key.  Needless to say I made it to the shop and learnt a valuable lesson about carrying the right gear when riding.  It started to make me think about what needed to be carried during my race in a couple of months time.

The remainder of the ride felt good.  I ensured that I ate plenty and it wasn't until around the 60km mark that I started to get a sore back.  I made it home in about 4 hours flat and quickly said hello to the family before slipping on the five fingers and going for a 2km run.  It was nice to be back training and feeling good again.  Just got to be a little more regular and get that bike time down to a more respectful time.

30.10.12 The week off

Yes, I know it has been a while since my last blog especially after my promises of my previous blog but the work load has not stopped and has led to me having to take the weekend off much to my disappointment.  As I sit here typing this blog whilst in Auckland waiting to fly home, I can now look ahead to what should be an easier period for me to knuckle down and really nail the final months of my training.

Since my last blog I have been pretty consistent in my training with some good sessions in the pool as well as some long rides and runs.  Just last weekend despite the long week at work, I knew I had to take advantage of the long weekend with some serious sessions.  I decided that on the Saturday morning I would attempt the longest single tuning have ever done and run 21km straight.  It was going to be a challenge due to the fact that I was tired from work and knew the following week was going to be just as bad.  I had a little sleep in Saturday (6:30am) before having some breaks and driving to the pool.  I parked the car and started the run.  Immediately I felt really good.  I was running along the coastal road as shown below with some kind of adrenaline running through me and felt like I was flying.

By the time that I started to round the point and was on my way to the turnaround point, I had already completed 8.5 km.  as soon as I hit the turnaround though I realised pretty quickly why I had been feeling so good.  I had been running with a tail wind.  I knew that the next 9km was going to be a bitch. At around the 16km mark the legs and feet were starting to hurt however by this time I could see the airport and knew that I was close to be home.  Maybe 30 minutes worth of pain left!  I got back to the pool and realised that I was short on my 21km run, nothing a couple of laps around the nearby oval could not solve.  The run was over and I had done it in 1 hour 53 minutes and I was happy.  I quickly grabbed my swim gear and jumped in the pool to start the 2km swim.  Surprisingly, I felt good and before I knew it it was time to jump out and have a stretch.  My day was over and it was only 10:20am, time to chill with the family

09.10.12 Work before play

It has been a while since my last post and I would love to say it is all due to my increased training but instead it is due to a huge workload that I have experienced over the last month.  The training has been happening at the same time and by the time I have come home and had something to eat, the last thing I want to do is jump on a computer and type a blog!  So below is a brief catch up what has been happening over the last 4 weeks:

1) Two days after my blog called 'Size does matter', I ran to work in my new Vibram's.  In my blog I had talked about the fact that the new larger size Vibram's how I had no blisters and the larger size made me run faster.  Well on this day, disaster struck.  I am not sure if it was the fact that I was tight in my legs or the new shoes but 1/4 of the way into the run, I knew something was not right and my feet were rubbing in my shoes.  Half way to work it was starting to really hurt and by the time I got to work and took of my shoes, I could hardly walk.  I looked at the damage and in the middle of my right foot exactly where the Vibram's seemed to have rubbed before in my old pair was a huge blister as well as a couple of blisters near my little toe.  I was now worried that my new shoes were not all they had shown themselves to be and that they may be too big.  Since that day I have not had significant blisters but do get rubbing every now and then.  I have put it down too how tight my legs are and the strike of my foot because when I am warmed up or not feeling tired, all is well.  When it is an early morning run and I am sore from the weekend, I get some blisters.  I have now learnt to deal with it though.  I know many people who get blisters when they run so it is not just related to me.

2) About three weeks ago I decided to really step up the training and do 7 days straight.  I was feeling really good after the weekend's worth of training so instead of taking the Monday off, decided to keep it going.  The training was the below:

Monday - 10km run to work
Tuesday - 13km ride to swimming, 3km swim, 7km ride to work, 10km ride home, 1.5km warm down run after work.
Wednesday - 10km run to work
Thursday - 13km ride to swimming, 3km swim, 7km ride to work, 10km ride home, 1.5km warm down run after work.
Friday - 10km run to work
Saturday - 21km Half Marathon
Sunday - 80km Ride

Total kilometers equalled around 200km and almost 10.5 hours of training.  I was a little tired after it but was ready to go again the next week.  Unfortunately the work schedule did not allow it and it became a mini rest week which felt weird, almost like I had stopped training.

3) As you can see above, as part of the training in the week, I managed to do a half marathon.  I have never run a half marathon in my life before.  Of course I have run long distances in my adventure racing before but never a straight 21km on a flat course.  I was not really sure what it was going to feel like but decided that the best way to find out was to get out and do it.  I decided to run to work which I knew was 10km, then run 5km along the waterfront before turning around and running back.  Whilst I was around 4km into the run and had hit the flat that I would run on for most of the remaining part of the run and was conscious not to go out too hard as I did not want to blow up.  I thought I was running at a slower pace and was surprised to see that I was running at around 11.5km an hour, my normal pace.  I ran to work and was still feeling good as I made my way to the waterfront.  I began to see other runners and slowly but surely I managed to run past them whilst still maintaining a good pace.  I got to around the 14km mark and my right knee suddenly gave way.  It felt like I had torn something in my knee, but I had not tripped over and the pain was immediate, not something that I had felt slowly come on.  I slowed down and the knee felt a little better as the pain slowly went away but it did feel very weak, like it could go at any time.  I ran the 21km and was pleased with my time, 1 hour 45 minutes.  If I could do that time during my race I would be pleased!

4) I came home to look after Lachlan one afternoon and since it was such a cracker of a day, decided to go for a run with the pram.  I have not really had a good run with the pram (we bought the dogs bollocks pram with hand brake, 16 inch wheels and suspension so that I could go for runs with it) so decided that it was time to have a go.  I took Lachlan halfway to work around 6km before visiting some animals at the pet store and then catching the bus back.  Surprisingly, I was running about 1km an hour slower than what I normally run.  Looks like more runs with the pram are in order!

5) Due to work commitments, I have had to leave the bike at work and catch the bus home as it has just been too late to ride home.  It is not an excuse as I would love to ride home but by the time I get home, have a warm down run, shower etc, it is too late to spend time with the family.  Due to this I had to run to work last Saturday to pick up my bike and then ride home.  After I ran to work, I got on my bike and
as I tried to change up gears, it would not work.  I was pushing the change lever but nothing was happening.   I looked up to see that I was riding past a bike store that I go too sometimes.  I took it in and discovered that my lever was broken inside and that to change gears I would have to hold the front lever (brake and big gear change) whilst pushing the smaller leaver (rear gears).  It was a pain in the ass but at least I would be able to get home.  Needless to say the bike was booked in for a service with them two days later.  So how expensive is the sport of Triathlon...very expensive!!  I read somewhere once that triathletes are the best people to buy presents for as you can always buy them something.  New gels or protein bars, bike gear, drink bottles, sunglasses etc.  However there are just some things you can't do without and a working bike is one of them.  The bike is now fixed and has a new front lever, and it is now a 10 speed bike rather than a nine speed so at least I have a few more gears to play with.  The unfortunate thing though is the cost.  Lets just say that you imagine getting a reasonable service on a car...double that cost and you will probably be there with my bike service.  Luckily we have been saving a crap load of money on the non purchase of alcohol in the last 6 weeks, yes 6 WEEKS and I have still not had a drink.

6) Lastly, it was a beautiful morning today and I was all set to go for a nice long ride but my body just said no when I tried to get up.  I have been fighting a mini cold over the last week and I listened to my body and had a sleep in.  There was an orienteering event on today so Vic and I decided to go and do it  and take Lachlan in the pram.  It was nice to be running with the pram again but also to be running as a family.  Before we knew it, 8km had been run followed by a nice sandwich at a cafe whilst sitting in the sun.

So that has caught you up on what I have been doing, again sorry for the delay.  I have now decided that I will do short and more regular posts as they are easy to do rather than wait a month like I have recently.  Just a catch up on the goals so far:

Weight - 77.5kg.  I have lost around 4.5kg since August.  I wanted to be 77kg for the race but now think I have at least 2kg to go and hope to be around 75kg on race day.  Needless to say, I might need to buy some new suit's as the belt normally worn for the look is quickly becoming the only thing stopping my pants from falling down!

Alcohol - As mentioned before, I have not had a drink for 6 weeks.  Bring on January!

Race Day - It is only 89 days to go until race day.  The pressure is on and just like my rejuvenated bike, the training is just kicking into another gear!

09.09.12 Size does matter.

As I again tried on my new (one size bigger) Vibram's, I accidentally ripped off the label.  I had being trying them on and off again for the last couple of days.  Too worried to wear them outside as I still could not get over the fact that they were a size bigger than my last ones that I wore only a week ago with no issues.  Oh well, the decision had just been made for me, they were now my new shoes.

Running with new shoes that I am not 100% sure are the right size and still not properly healed blisters on my right foot was only going to lead to one result on my run today...but another surprise awaited me.

After still trying to understand the size change of my feet (almost over it now), I decided to google what you would normally google when you have a question; How to run in Vibram's.  I found a link to a youtube video called, How to walk/run in Vibrams.  The link was everything I already knew about running barefoot.  How not to strike your heel, how the shoes work etc.  But it also provided a tip on how to lift your foot off the ground, not push of your foot like you would in normal shoes.  I found it quite interesting as I think I have been pushing off my feet at times and this was a new piece of advice that I was not aware of.

The weather this morning was atrocious but by mid morning it had cleared.  I decided that I would run to work to pick up my motorbike and finally test out the new shoes.  I started the run and everything felt normal.  I ran down the slight incline before reaching the top of the gorge being careful to stay away from the concreted stones that only a week ago caused so many issues.  I don't like running down hill however today it did not seem to be that bad.  I really started to concentrate on lifting my foot rather than focussing on pushing of my foot.  I felt like I was going reasonably fast and looked down to see that I was running at 13km an hour, faster than I have run in a while.  I made it down to the bottom of the gorge and to the flat run all the way to work.  Again, I was concentrating on lifting my foot and by doing that really felt my leg speed increase.  I looked down at my watch to again see that I was doing anything from 12-13km.  I was running at a speed on the flat that I had never run before, but the question was; could I maintain it?  I was two thirds of the way to work and was getting tired, but again focussed on lifting my foot.  I was definitely running slower and was surprised to look down at my watch and again see that I was cruising at over 12km an hour.  I finally made it into the city and to the finish line at work.  I looked down at my watch to see that I had just run 9.6km in 45 minutes, the fastest I have ever run that I can remember.  My legs felt good, my feet were not sore, no blisters had occurred on any of my feet and more importantly the blisters that were there from the other day were still there, unharmed.  Maybe my new shoes were just what I needed...size really does matter!

Attached is the running graph of my run and as you can see there is a pace line showing the consistent pace that I was running at today.  As you can see at the end of the run there was lots of stopping and starting due to crossing roads and traffic lights but overall pace was 4:41. That is a 1 hour 28 minute 20km!!  I might just have to say thank you to those concreted stones when I run past them again tomorrow...

07.09.12 The Vibram's are back!!

I had dropped my Vibram's off at Gordon's Outdoor Equipment on Monday so they could investigate the issue with the ball in the right hand shoe as well as look at repairing the tear in my left hand shoe.  I was not expecting much but I received a call from them the next day.  They had sent my shoes to the Vibram head office in Wellington and they had agreed that there was an issue with the shoes.  Even though they were past the warranty period, I had two choices.  The first choice was that they had rmoved the ball from the right shoe and could repair the tear and I could have my original shoes back or I could wait for a shipment to come in later in the week and I could get a new replacement pair.  I work in hospitality and I know a thing or two about customer service but the customer service that I have received from Gordon's Outdoor and Vibram is exceptional.  It is not often that a global company will stand behind their product like these guys have and if you are thinking about buying shoes or outdoor equipment in the future, I highly recommend getting it from either of these companies.  Of course I took the second option.

After my crappy day on Thursday due to the poor performance of my swim, I needed a cheering up of some kind.  I received the call that I had been waiting for, my new Vibram's were in-store and ready for me to pick up.  I was glad to finally get them back on my feet as I had not gone for a run since I had handed them back.  I arrived at the shop and there on the back counter were my new shoes.  I couldn't wait to put them on.  I was given the box and went over to seat to slip my toes into them.  They were a new colour rather than the grey black ones that I had previously which was not an issue as I just wanted the shoes back.  As I put them on though, I realised that something was not right.  They felt very tight and my big toes were touching the end.  The sales girl also said that they were too small.  I asked if they were the same size as my other ones which they were.  "Well how can this be" I said, "how could they not fit me?"  Okay, maybe the new design was smaller.  We found a different colour to the ones that I had previously and I tried them on.  Same issue, they were too small.  So I was given a pair to try on the next size up in the old grey and black color. They seemed to big.  No not according to the sales lady, they were too small also.  So I try another size up and they are way too big.  I am now confused about which pair I am meant to be wearing.  I can't understand why all of a sudden I am a size bigger and potentially two sizes bigger!  The sales lady confirms that she does know of other people that have had the same issue where the next pair has been a bigger size.

After much deliberation and trying on about 4 different pairs of shoes I decided to go with the size bigger than what I was already wearing in the original grey and black.  I was told to take them home and wear them around the house to see if they feel okay and if not to bring them back and swap them over.  I am wearing them as I type this, still with the labels on because I still do not understand how I have gone up a size.  Although we have had 140km winds today and it looks like it may be a similar story tomorrow, I think it is time to finally get my new Vibram's dirty.

07.09.12 25 Minutes

10 days no alcohol
80.5kg

On Tuesday morning at swimming the coach decides he wants to do an analysis on my stroke.  The whole session I am being critiqued and we are trying different things to make me more efficient in the water and therefore faster.  My stroke count has always been an issue as I 'glide' too much through the water and therefore there are parts of my stroke where I slow down and almost stop resulting in momentum stopping and me being slower.  We do a verbal breakdown compared to a year ago and determine that I am definitely getting better but do need to focus on stroke speed.   My coach reminds me of the 1.5km time trial that is on Thursday and that he would like to see me go under 25 minutes.  The fastest I have ever been is around 25 minutes 13 seconds so that is a whole 13 seconds off my best time.  It is also around 1:40 per 100 metres which for those non swimmers out there is relatively fast.
Although we are trying new things with my stroke, I am feeling confident that I can break the 25 minute barrier.  Training is going well and diet is good, I just need to feel it on the day.

I wake up on Thursday morning and get changed into my bike gear before the 13km ride to the swimming pool.  I am aiming to warm up on the bike but take my time so as not to fatigue myself before the time trial.  I have eaten some breakfast and jump on the bike.  I am not feeling good.  I feel quite fatigued but enjoy the ride into town non the less.  By the time I make it to the pool it is 5:45am and I am still not feeling good.  I eat a banana and have a drink before jumping in the pool at 6:00am for a warm up swim.  I have a plan for today.  I am going to go out hard for the first 200 metres and then settle into a rhythm before sprinting the last 200 metres.  I start my watch and we are off.

The first 50 metres is good and I am focussing on my stroke speed.  I am feeling okay at this point as I hit the wall and turnaround for my first 100 metres, only 14 to go.  I look up at the clock and have done the first 100 in around 1:30.  I settle into the second 100 but there is no sprint, the energy is just not there.  I get into a good rhythm though and continue through the first 500m with the last 400m done on about 1:40, I am on track and only 1km to go.  The 600m, 700m, 800m and 900m mark passes and I am still on 1:40 pace.  I am feeling okay and know that I only have 600m to go.  I hit the 1km mark and  before I know it I have someone touching my toes, wanting to pass.  I hang on for another 100m before I am passed by one of the guys in the lane and as soon as he passes he is getting further and further ahead of me.  400m to go, only around 7.5 minutes of pain left.  I keep going and hit the last 100m before I begin the sprint home.  I touch the wall, look at my watch to see the time of 23:47 and my coach looking down at me saying "don't you have another 100m to go?".  Shit!!  I push off the wall and sprint the last 100 metres (again) before touching the wall.  I look at the clock and it reads 25:37.  I am gutted.  I have been on track for most of the swim and have lost it somewhere near the end.  I do a warm down and then head over to the coach.  "I don't know what else I could have done today" I say.  "Yes, you looked pretty pissed off when I told you your time" he says.  He has recorded the splits and begins to go through them with me.  At the 1km mark I was on track for a 24:58 swim.  Every 100m after that I have lost around 5 seconds a lap.
"You blew up" he says.
"I would have rather blown up than just gone slow all day.  My lats are killing me so I know I have worked hard".
"Blowing up is good" he says.  "At least you knew that your limit was 1km and now we need to improve that to 1.5km".
I am disheartened.  I really wanted to break 25 minutes but what he has said has made sense and based on the way I was feeling this morning, a 25:37 is not the worst swim in the world.  I put on the bike gear and head to work. Still feeling pissed off and now with even less energy than this morning.

04.09.12 The Vibram's are gone!!!

8 days no alcohol

80.5kg

It is Monday morning and I decide that I will run to work rather than take the motorbike.  I get changed into my running gear, have a quick bite to eat and I am out the door by 6:00am.  I begin my downhill run from my house into a slight down hill before heading down the massive gorge that will take me down to sea level and a flat run all the way to work.  It is a cold morning so I am wearing my long skins, Nike running gloves and of course my Vibram's.  I am feeling really good despite the cold and looking forward to the run.

I am now running down the gorge and see a flashing light coming from behind me.  I know it is a cyclist wanting to go past me on the narrow footpath.  I pull over to the left hand side whilst the cyclist passes me and notice that it is a mountain biker that I see regularly riding home very late at night.  I know it is her because of a orange waterproof jacket she wears.  I usually pass her near my house whilst I am heading home reasonably late on the motorbike and I am impressed that she is riding home so late and have often said to myself "Yeah but I bet she was not up at 6am this morning".  Well, this morning she has proved my wrong.  She goes past me and I make my way back onto the footpath as I step through some loose stones and before I know it I am airborne.  As I head back to ground I put out my hands to reduce the impact and the slide down the steep footpath for another metre or so before coming to a stop.  Owwww I say to myself as I roll over onto my back.  I pull myself up and just stand there for a little while trying to work out what the hell has just happened.  I walk back up to the loose stones only to realise that they are not loose stones, they are stones that for some reason are concreted onto the footpath and I just tripped over them.  My hand starts to sting and I look to see a massive hole in my running gloves, however my hand is only slightly grazed.  I am pissed off though that I have ruined my gloves.  My knee starts to sting.  I look down to see a hole in the right knee of my skins and a badly cut up knee.  I am really pissed off now.  My left hand toe starts to sting and I look down to see a hole in my VIBRAM's!!!  I am super pissed now!!!  The worse thing is that I am 5 minutes from home and still have 40 minutes to run into town.  Now I have to do it with a cut up knee, hand, toe and the feeling that I have just ruined all the equipment I run in.

The run in is a sombre one but I make it in feeling pretty good.  My right foot is hurting a little and I put it down to my knee obviously causing some pain on that side.  It feels more than that though and as I take of my Vibram's I see the reason why.  I have a huge blister on the bottom of my right foot.  I look in the shoe and see that there is a bump under the fabric of the shoe which I have noticed in the past but it has never been an issue.  Today it is bigger and it has given me a huge blister.  I am now even more pissed off.  I can't do much about the rips in anything especially the Vibram's but decide that the bump in the shoe is something that is now an issue.  After having a shower, patching up my knee I decide to call the shop from where I bought the shoes and see what my option are.  They ask my how long ago I bought them and that Vibram have a 90 day return policy for any warranty issues.  I tell them I will go home, get the receipt and bring the shoes in for them to check as I am pretty sure they are past 90 days old.  I get home and sure enough I am 20 days over the 90 day mark.  I decide to take them in anyway and see what they can do about the rip.

The next day at the shop I drop off the shoes and explain the rip as well as the bump in the middle of the right hand shoe that is causing me to blister.  I have noticed it for a while but it has never caused an issue until today.  They tell me they will send off to Vibram and they will let me know the outcome...