Race Week: Training Log (April 21-27)

It's RACE WEEK! With the job of qualifying for 70.3 World Championships out of the way and IMCDA still two months away, I jumped at the opportunity of racing Wildflower. There's zero pressure to perform well, so what are we going to do? We're going to take risks! Every single 70.3 I've raced has been on a conservative approach - which is smart since I was so new to the sport. With this being my fourth year in triathlon, I think it's time to put on my big boy pants and actually take some risks and race aggressively. There's no doubt that this course can really hurt you if you're too aggressive but I really don't have anything to lose. I'm not tapering or taking this race too seriously. It's all about having fun with team mates and racing harder than I ever have before.

Why risk a blow up when this is my last race heading into the most important race of the season? Well, my confidence is sky high right now. There's no doubt that I'm in the best shape of my life. I've also matured as a triathlete a lot this year and I know what I am capable of. My once hesitant confidence at my chances of qualifying for Kona are now a distant memory. I now believe that as long as I execute come race day at IMCDA, I'll be standing on the podium and collecting my Kona slot. Flanny mentioned that I'm ahead of his expectations with my fitness and I still have two months of solid training to build into the race.

So really, the goal at Wildflower this weekend is to put myself in such a deep/dark place that once I start to suffer at IMCDA, I'll remember the battles that I won at Wildflower.

Here's how last week's training looked like. Work was super busy so I really had to manage my time well and be disciplined on the hour.

Monday: 1 workout

Bike Tempo Session Data HERE:  1:40/ 30 miles / 18.4mph

Flanny’s workout: 1.5-2 hours depending on available time. 2 x 20 minutes @ 70.3 Race Watts on 5 minutes easy. Stay aero as much as possible.

Post workout notes: (in notes) [hr]

Tuesday: 1 workout

Run Track Workout, Data HERE: 1:10 / 8.5 miles

Flanny's Workout:
15 min WU
2 x 2 mile on 2 min rest
(first one I want at 6:30 pace, second one I want at 6:15 pace)
2 x 800 on 1 min rest
(I want both at 6:00 pace.....NO FASTER)
This workout should not be too hard for you.
Easy CD for the remainder of the run.

Post workout notes: (listed in data file). [hr]

Wednesday: 2 workouts

Masters Swim: 90 mins / 4000 yds
500 wup, 4x100 on 1:40, 4x50 on 50
Main set:
5x200 on 3mins
500 pull (buoy/paddles)
5x200 on 3 mins
500 with fins

Post workout notes: I hit all of the 200's between 2:50-55. For not swimming since Friday, this was a really good workout for me - basically 2k at race pace.

Bike Tempo Session DATA HERE: 2hrs / 35 miles / 17.7 mph

Flanny’s workout: 2 hours today with 3 x 20 minutes at your 70.3 race watts on 5 minutes easy riding between efforts.

Post workout notes: (listed in data notes).[hr]

Thursday: 2 workouts

Morning run: 41mins / 4.5 miles / AVG 9:07 pace.

Flanny’s Workout: Easy morning run.

Post workout notes: 5am run's are always hard for me to warm up. Just an easy slow run.

Afternoon run: 1:22 / 10 miles / AVG 8:12 pace.

Flanny’s Workout: Evening Run 1:20 Z2+

Post workout notes: Hit the trails, felt pretty tired after a long day at work but started coming around towards the end. Good double run day, it's been awhile since I've done that.[hr]

Friday: 1 workout

Masters Swim: 90 mins / 4000 yards

700 wup, 10x50 on 50
4x500 @1:35 pace (odds swim, evens paddles)
500 drill (changing every 100)
c/d

Post workout notes: Another early wakeup call as I played golf with some clients for the rest of the day. Starting to love the longer intervals.[hr]

Saturday: 2 workouts

Wetsuit Swim: 31:36 / 2000 yds / AVG 1:34/100 
 
Post workout notes: Was scheduled for a long ride/brick run but woke up to nasty rain and wind so I made a quick call to Flanny and we just swapped Sat/Sun's workouts. I have access to a non-heated pool so I knocked this out and was 3 seconds faster per 100 then I was the week before Oceanside. Good to see some progress.

Tempo Long run, DATA HERE: 1:27 / 11.3 miles / AVG 7:44 pace 

Flanny’s Workout:
30 minutes Z2
30 minutes Z3+
30 Minutes Z2
Relaxed

Post workout notes: (posted in workout notes).6:30's never felt so easy (ok, except in college :)[hr]

Sunday: 2 workouts

Bike ride, DATA HERE. 3:30 / 61 miles / 17.5 mph

Flanny’s workout: Within today's session I want 3 x 30 minutes at Z3 watts with lots of rest between efforts. Stay down and aero for as much of this as possible. We don't need a huge climbing day today so keep it reasonable.

Post workout notes: Notes attached to the power file above.

Brick Run- 20 mins / 2.75 miles/ 7:16 AVG pace. 

Flanny's workout: Easy 20 min run off bike.

Post workout notes: Running is feeling effortless right now.[hr]

Totals (3 swims, 3 rides, 5 runs)
Swim: 10,000 yds /3:32
Bike: 127 miles / 7:09
Run: 37 miles / 5:00
Total hours: 15:41

Hours had to go down a bit this week with it being such a busy week commuting to San Diego 4 out of the 5 days, running a trade show at the convention center for two days and golfing all day Friday. Overall very pleased with the progress and my fitness going into Wildflower.

Wish me luck!!

Here's some more pictures from the weekend, cheers!

[gallery columns="2" ids="2808,2807,2806,2805,2803,2802,2801,2800,2809"]

Training Log (Mar 31-April 6)

Post Ironman Oceanside 70.3 race week was all about celebrating with
some beers, soaking in a good result and getting ready for “official” IMCDA
training to begin. However, the beers had to wait until later that week. Last
week ended up being very Deja vu from last year's race. After swimming in the harbor last year I woke up the next day with a sinus infection. Sure enough, this year - I woke up with a nasty sinus headache. I think it's important to mark sick days in your training log so you can reference patterns that may occur over the years. Obviously there's something in that water that does not agree with me and my sinuses. The difference this year was I have a coach! Last year I took a few days off, took some meds and jumped right back into training, only to relapse three days later and ended up being out a whole week with a full blown sinus infection. After I looked at my training log and conversing with Flanny, we really ramped up slowly getting back into the swing of things last week which paid off as I only took two days off.

Either way, this is the second time in a month that I've been sick which points to a pretty weak immune system. I started taking some electrolyte tablets that have extra minerals I may be lacking (esp. Iron) in hopes that it will boost my immune system a bit. I'd be interested in any feedback any of you have besides eating healthy, getting enough sleep and washing hands often (which I do all three really well and often) on how to boost the immune system. It may just be that I'm around a lot of different environments (kids, work, friends...etc) and I train a lot so it's just part of the process. If you have any suggestions, please comment!

So last week was low key. Just recovering from the race, being sick and then slowly ramping up training the smart way:

Monday & Tuesday: Sick [hr]

Wednesday: 1 workout

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Trainer: 1:35 / 20 miles / 12.9 mph

Flanny’s workout: Super easy z1 ride

Post workout notes: Just watched Breaking Bad on Netflix and got the legs moving.[hr]

Thursday: 1 workout

Rudy Project Recovery Run- 40 mins / 4.5 miles / 8:53 pace

Flanny’s Workout: 30-40 mins Z1 super easy

Post workout notes: Some aches and pains from not running for five days but felt fine otherwise.[hr]

Friday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy Masters Swim: 1hr/ 3k

Post workout notes: I went to Masters but just did a long warm up a few slow sets and then shut it down.

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Trainer Ride:  1:35 / 22 miles / 13.9 mph

Flanny’s workout: Another easy z1 ride

Post workout notes: Same as Wed. Just slow easy, watched some shows to get the legs moving.[hr]

Saturday: 1 workout

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Ride: 2:38 / 43 miles / 16.2 mph

Flanny’s workout: Longish Ride Z2

Post workout notes: Still easing back into it. Stayed on the flats and just enjoyed the ride.[hr]

Sunday: 1 workout

Rudy Project Run- 90 mins / 11 miles / 8:40 pace

Flanny's workout: ez z2 long run

Post workout notes: First time in a long time that I enjoyed a long run. I actually posted that on Facebook and had a lot of comments that it was too short or too slow and they were right haha! It was nice to have a long run with no purpose or no goal but to just put time on your feet. The weather was perfect and the run refreshing. Just what I needed to start a new week.[hr]

Totals (1 swims, 3 rides, 2 runs)
Swim: 3,000 yds /1:00
Bike: 85 miles / 5:50
Run: 15 miles / 2:15
Total hours: 9:05

I always like to have a takeaway from the week of work. Did I get better physically and mentally? This week was all about recovering from the race so getting sick actually happened at a good time (if there's such thing). The plan was a low key week to get me ready for the "official" start of Ironman training. The plan worked and I'm really motivated right now to get knee deep into training for IMCDA. This week allowed my race accomplishment to sink in and in a way grow a love for the sport again.

Momentum.

Questions / Comments always appreciated!
For more info/pictures and James’ website visit: www.konajourney.com

 

 

 

 

Training Log (Mar 10-16)

Last week was the best week of training I've had all year. I executed each workout to plan, had the best swim of my life and mentally overcame each day despite some personal stuff (not divorce or work related!) from the week before. It's crazy how much momentum affects me. I'm either on the upswing or downswing in training, rarely in between. Right now I'm definitely on the upswing and it couldn't come at a better time with Ironman Oceanside 70.3 next week. I'm going into the race as a different athlete than I was a year ago. I'm used to going into these races as a great runner with a decent bike and a poor swim. The swim takes everything out of me, I underperform on the bike and then I do my best to salvage a run with whatever I have left which often leads to unpredictable and poor results.

Now I go into Oceanside with confidence in my swim, something I'm not used to. I also go in with the best bike fitness I've ever had thanks to Flanny and my SRM. I'm actually least confident about my run but I know that me as an average runner is still better than most triathletes out there. I have a feeling that this breakthrough I've been waiting for; for so many years has finally arrived and I can't wait to toe the line and compete against a really good 35-39 field.

Here's last weeks numbers:

Monday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy Masters Swim: 75 mins / 3500 yds
800 wup, 4x100 @1:40, 4x50 on 50
6x150 on 2:30 w/last 50 sprint
6x100 on 1:40 w/last 50 sprint
12x50 on 55 w/last 25 sprint
c/d to 3500


Post workout notes: After that horrible 75 mile ride from the day before (and one to many beers), I struggled on this workout. It was really hard to change gears and actually sprint.

Rudy Project Recovery Run: 51 mins / 6 miles / 8:34 pace

Flanny’s workout: Monday Funday.....Lets get right into it with 50 minutes of Z2+ depending on the legs. Consistency is the name of the game so run as you feel today. If you are good....get it up a bit.

Post Workout notes: Legs didn't feel any better that night. Just felt tired and slow so I didn't force things and just cruised. [hr]

Tuesday: 1 workout

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Threshold Session: Power File HERE
1:32 / 29 miles / 18.9 mph

Flanny’s workout: 30 min WU 10 min Z4 Threshold 2 min Rest 15 min Threshold 2 min Rest 20 min Z4 Threshold Remainder in Z2

I want you hitting mid to upper Z4 zone for each of these. Dont blow your load on the first one.

Post workout notes: I did this workout outside for the first time. In the past I've done these threshold intervals on the trainer but I just can't seem to ride as hard (as I've mentioned in the past). I put out my best numbers for these intervals and was pleased with how I felt.[hr]

Wednesday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy / Flanny Swim: 1hr / 3100 yds
800 Choice warm up
2x100 pull @ 1:50
2x50 pull @ :55
2x150 pull @ 2:45
2x50 pull @ :55
2x200 pull @ 3:40
2x50 pull @ :55
20x25 swim @ :30 (All FAST!)
600 w/Fins (100 swim/50 kick)
200 cool down

Post workout notes: Felt good to get some pulling in as my legs were pretty smoked from yesterday. Feeling stronger in the water.

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Trainer: 1:20 / 19 miles / 14.5mph

Flanny’s workout: Simple Zone 2 ride as recovery to set you up for a good session of speed tomorrow.

Post workout notes: I was very close to bagging this workout because of a massive saddle sore from forgetting to wear chamois on Tuesday (sorry TMI). I just decided to do this on the trainer sitting up as to not agitate it anymore.[hr]

Thursday: 1 workout

Rudy Project / Powerbar / Herbalife Track Workout File HERE
70 mins / 9 miles

Flanny’s Workout:
15 minute Warm Up
4 x [1 mile @ 5:50-6:00 pace, 60 seconds rest between miles]
1 lap easy after miles
2 x [800 m @2:30-2:40, 60 sec rest]
Cool Down remaining time

Post workout notes: My splits are listed in the link above. As usual, I felt terrible during the warm up and then the intervals seemed way too easy. I felt like I could do the set over again. Good workout and good confidence builder.[hr]

Friday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy Masters Swim: 90 mins / 4k
500 wup, 4x100 @1:40, 4x50 @50
4x100 (1:10-15 pace w/20 secs rest)
2x50 on 50
3x100 (1:10-15 pace w/20 secs rest)
2x50 on 50
2x100 (1:10-15 pace w/20 secs rest)
2x50 on 50
100 (1:10-15 pace w/20 secs rest)
2x50 on 50
400 pull (1:15-20 pace)
300 pull (1:15-20 pace)
200 pull (1:15-20 pace)
100 pull (1:15-20 pace)
6x50 sprint on 1 min
10x25 sprint on 30


Post workout notes: So the fast boys forced me in their lane and what a difference it made! I was hitting most of my 100's at 1:12 (with my pr from a year ago a 1:09) and my pulling felt a lot stronger. This was a break through workout for me and made me realize that I may be faster than I think in the water and that maybe I've just been lazy and content with being an average swimmer.

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Ride:  1:47 / 33 miles / 18.5 mph

Flanny’s workout: No concern for watts or speed today. Settle into a good groove and stay down in the aerobars.

Post workout notes: Just trying to ride with others as much as I can so I hooked up with some friends for a nice evening ride after work. Love the time change![hr]

Saturday: 1 workout

SRM / Speedfil / Reynolds Bike Ride, Power file HERE. 4:18 / 68 miles / 15.7 mph / 5k of climbing

Flanny’s workout: Long Ride Z2 with 3 x 20 minutes high Z3 Watts on 10 minutes back in Z2. Start the efforts after the first hour of riding.

Post workout notes: Notes attached to the power file above. I'm starting to do a little experimenting with nutrition and trying to incorporate some real food during intervals to see how it would settle. We are getting some decent heat out here already so also trying to adapt to drinking more and riding in hotter conditions - something I failed at last week. Great ride and felt really strong on the climbs.[hr]

Sunday: 1 workout

Rudy Project Run- 1:40 / 13.2 miles. Workout File HERE.

Flanny's workout: Lets get this in since we didn't have the opportunity last week. 30 minutes Zone 2 getting warm and into a groove.
3 x 10 minutes at 6:00 pace with 2 minutes easy between the efforts
Finish out the run at Zone 2 and drop in some run drills at completion.

Post workout notes: This was the 4th hard day in the row with some sort of intensity so my legs were pretty beat up and energy low. I was still able to execute the intervals. I always like to duplicate my run intervals on the run profile of my next big race. With Oceanside being flat as a pancake, the track was perfect for this. With my tired legs, Flanny was able to duplicate what I will be feeling like in a few weeks in the half marathon. It felt exactly like a 70.3 and I was able to run through the workout like an audition. I got through it and was very pleased with the overall week.[hr]

Totals (3 swims, 4 rides, 3 runs)
Swim: 10,600 yds /3:45
Bike: 149 miles / 8:58
Run: 28 miles / 3:43
Total hours: 16:25

[caption id="attachment_2725" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The man Sean "Wattie" Watkins and I[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2723" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Post ride heaven in your mouth[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2724" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Chillin with family[/caption]

Questions / Comments always appreciated!

 

 

Training Log (Jan 13-19)

Last week was a pretty solid week for me and I have a feeling that it was mild compared to what is to come. The best news was that my finger checked out enough for me to get back in the water swimming after a full month off. I'm scared to death of smacking it on the lane line or wall but so far so good.

This week's focus was to gradually get my swim volume back up and feel for the water without diving in too fast. The bike and run proved to be really challenging with each workout (for the most part) providing some intensity and purpose.

Challenges for the week: I had to commute Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday during the weekdays and for the weekend we had our kids in the Legoland 1 mile race on Saturday with a family birthday party that night. Sunday was Amy's half marathon - which she pr'd by 16 mins! So getting in my workouts on a strict/planned schedule proved key.[hr]

Monday: 2 workouts

Swim: 2000 yards / 45 minutes
4x500:
1 - ez/wup
2 - pull
3 - IM pace
4 - pull

Post workout notes: Got in the water with my BlueSeventy goggles at 6:30am before I started my work day. Today was all about just getting back into the water, ignoring the clock and making sure that my finger wasn't going to be effected by the water or chlorine. I put some second skin on it and it was good to go. I actually felt a lot better than I thought I would after taking a month off. I contribute that to loosing some of my holiday weight, eating healthier again and being in a lot better bike/run shape than I was a month ago.

Bike Trainer: 6x3 minutes Z5 VO2 / 90 minutes

20 minutes Zone 2 Warm Up
4 x 30 sec spin ups (get cadence over 100 rpm) on 30 sec recovery
1 min Easy
6 x 3 minutes Zone 5 on 3 minutes easy
Zone 2 to finish out the session.

Post workout notes: After work, threw my bike on the trainer and hit this up before dinner with the family. My SRM Powermeter is in the mail as I type this - so for this workout, once again was all about going as hard as I could on the Z5 intervals. My legs actually felt great and it ended up being a great session.[hr]

Tuesday: 2 workouts

Bike Trainer: 60 minutes Z2 easy recovery

Post Workout notes: 4:30am wake up call, on the trainer getting in an easy spin to clear out the legs from last nights workout and to prepare for a tough session on the track that night.

Run: Track session / 1 hr, 7.63 miles

1.5 wup including strides, plyometrics
4x1000 w/200 jog ~1 min recovery splits: 3:41, 3:33, 3:28, 3:26
4x300 w/100 walk recovery splits: :56, :54, :53, :52
1 lap jog recovery
1 mile: 5:21
cool down
Data:
Post workout notes: I hit this up after an early wake up call and a long day at work. It's always hard to get motivated to hit a hard track session after a day like this but I've always said to myself, just start running and you'll start feeling better! It really helps on nights like this to run with a group - which is my case is the San Diego track club. My legs didn't feel as good as they did last Tuesday but I was still able to hit pacing that I'm looking for in two weeks at the Surf City half ~5:40 pace. The 300's were fun to get in a little extra speed work and as always we always finish up with a strong effort mile to finish off the workout which I hit in 5:21 and felt so-so. [hr]

Wednesday: 2 workouts

Swim: Specific Technique work / 1 hr / 3k

Post workout notes: Another early 4am wake up call to get in the water. As much as I love our SoCal weather, there really aren't many indoor pools out here which is pretty rough in the "winter." So getting in at 4:30 when it's 38-40 degrees outside can sometimes be hard. But again, I just tell myself - start swimming! Sure enough, it's never as bad once you get going. I debated whether or not to post all of the drill/technique work that Flanny had me do, but it was pretty long. Unless I get some comments asking me to post next time I won't do it. I felt surprisingly good in the water and really don't feel like that month off had any effect on my form. GOOD NEWS.

Bike Trainer: Big gear work / 90 minutes

After a 30 min warm up on the trainer I want you to do 6 x 3 min big gear (hard enough to slow your rpm's to 40-50 as long as the knees are not strained) with 1 min of high cadence spinning between (100 rpm+). Ride the remaining time in Z2

Post workout notes: As soon as I get home from my commute, I kiss the family and immediately jump on the trainer before dinner. I LOVE big gear work. Something about it. For some reason it reminds me of when you were a kid and had a loose tooth. It hurt so good to pull and yank on that thing. Weird right? Legs felt tired, yet strong - good day of work. [hr]

Thursday: 1 workout

Run: Tempo session - 50 mins / 7 miles

Warm Up 20 minutes Z2 and then give me 20 minutes of high Z3 Tempo (5:50 pace) before bringing it back down for an easy 10 minutes of Cool Down

Post workout notes: Got the morning off to sleep in today. Hit this tempo session on the way back home from work on the trails (Lake Hodges). My legs felt really heavy during the warm up and wasn't too sure how it would go. For some reason I've always hated tempo sessions, even in hs and college. Something about them. Maybe it's because I only like either going really hard or really easy, nothing in between. I know these are key sessions though so I take them VERY serious. Here's how it went down:

[hr]

Friday: 2 workouts

Bike outside: Easy recovery spin -80 mins / 20 miles

Post workout notes: Woke up early, bundled up and rode through wine country watching the sun come up.

Swim: Masters - 75 minutes / 3500 yds

500 wup, 10x50 on 50
Mainset (everything on the 1:30b):
2x25,2x50,2x75,2x100,2x125,2x150,2x125,2x100,2x75,2x50,2x25
(1700 total mainset)
500 w/fins breathing every 3rd stroke
300 pull c/d

Post Workout notes: So it was my first time back with the group and was a little nervous of how I'd do. I just jumped right back into my same lane as always and ended up being fine and hitting all of the intervals. I started fading a little bit on the last few but that is normal because of my lack of volume. This was a huge confidence booster when my swim confidence has been lacking. [hr]

Saturday: 1 workout

Bike outside: 2:30 / 42.5 miles / 2k+ climbing

During this Ride I want you to get in 3 x 10 minutes of solid Z4 Threshold riding. Take 5 minutes of rest between efforts and dont start them until after the first hour of riding is complete.

Post workout notes: After watching the kids run their first mile race (which was so fun), we went over to the EXPO for Amy's half marathon. After she checked in, I suited up in my sweet Wattie Ink kit, Rudy Project helmet and glasses and hit the coast for some easy spinning and then hit the San Luis Trail for the 3x10 minutes while they went and hung out at the beach. My legs were dead tired today and was only able to average 21.6, 21.9, 22.5 mph for my three intervals. Some days you just don't have it. My HR felt low and my power felt low but I just did my best and got the work in - nothing else you can do![hr]

Sunday: 2 workouts

Bike Trainer: 1 hour easy spin

Post workout notes: Flanny orginally wanted this after my run but with Amy's half marathon that morning I had no choice but to get this in early in the am. Legs were dead!

Run - Track session: 80 mins / 9.5 miles

20 minutes of Z2 Running
15 minutes @ Half Marathon Goal Pace (5:45 pace)
Easy 5 minutes recovery
Stop Watch and get in 4 x 50 m strides to get some pop in legs
Easy 5 minutes to get back into it
10 minutes @ 5-10 sec per mile faster than half marathon goal pace (5:35 max)
15 minutes cool down

Post workout notes: Sometimes your commitment level is tested. This was one of those days. You're tired from waking up early, playing race sherpa, football and beer surround you but you need to get out the door and get the work in. I always take a reality check in situations like this. What is your main goal this year? It's not to watch football or drink beer or nap, it's qualifying for Kona! So I headed to the track and got the job done. Here's how it went down:

The splits are a little funky. My garmin doesn't calculate the track very accurately with laps. 1 mile usually equals ~ .98-.99. My first 15 minute interval falls on Splits 4-7. My 2nd inteval falls on splits 9-10. Running on tired legs is like Flan50ny's mantra. I hate it because I like to run fast and my legs to feel good. The problem with that is, it's not how your legs are going to feel in a 70.3 or IM. He's training me to run fast with good form and execute when my legs are smashed. It's working, I nailed this workout and am extremely pleased with the week and my progress. [hr]

Totals
Swim: 8500 yds
Bike: 150 miles
Run: 24 miles
Total hours: 15:07 [hr]

Questions? Comments? I would love to hear from you! Thanks for reading.

Here's a few more pictures from the week:

[caption id="attachment_2569" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Kids before the big race![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2570" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Finished up a cleanse which included zero alcohol and coffee. Tough but I feel great![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2567" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Homemade Plantain Chips with Sea Salt that Amy made. Soooo good![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2573" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Tea replaced coffee and it's growing on me more and more and doesn't give me the big crash[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2571" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Carlsbad Beach riding[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2572" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Temecula winery riding. Life is good![/caption]

To see the post on LAVA's site, click HERE.

The Details + Training Log (Jan 6-12)

Here we go!

First The Details. I understand that everyone reading this is not in the same situation that I'm in. Everyone reading this will come from different backgrounds, different families, different structures. But the cool thing about triathlon is that we ALL started somewhere. Every single one of us at some point could barely make it 25 yards across the pool. Or barely made it up that first hill on that $100, super heavy Target bike. Maybe  we even walked/jogged that 50 pound overweight body for a run. Just over three years ago, all of these things I just mentioned were true. I started there and now I am here - trying to qualify for the biggest stage in triathlon. Kona. It's really important that people know I didn't get to the fitness level I am at right now off of talent. It was all work, early morning wake up calls and BELIEF & DESIRE to get fast.

I'm going to give you an overall idea of what my day-to-day is like without giving away my whole life. I really want to translate the whole family-work-workout ratio. The sacrifices made, the times I screw up or lost focus and hopefully inspire some out there to try and do the same so they can reach their goals.

So here's the details:

Family: I have a beautiful wife of 10 years, Amy - who you will see a few guest blog posts in the future from. She'll tell her side of the story and maybe give you some more insight to what REALLY goes on around here haha. I have two kids - a daughter that is 5 and a son that is almost 4. Amy is a stay at home mom.

Career: I'm the Director of Marketing and Business Development for a company down in San Diego. It's an hour commute each way. For three years I made that commute each day and as of about a year ago I am able to work from home 2-3 days a week now. Don't kid yourself though, I don't have it easy because of that. I'm often attending late night functions, all day golf outings and trade shows which is not ideal for training for an Ironman.

Finances: With only one income - triathlon is a probably one of the worst hobbies I could have picked! With a SoCal mortgage, a family to care for, bills and races/hotels to pay for - needless to say money is tight. I debated whether or not to include a "Donate" section on my website because it can come off tacky - but I really don't care. If you want to help contribute to my Journey, you can donate HERE. And thanks for considering!

Structure: If your situation is anything similar to mine then you know you have to make quite a few sacrifices to make it work. For me, getting up early is key which means getting to bed early is important. So I basically structure my day around getting to bed by 9pm. I need those 8 hours of sleep otherwise I usually get sick or see a decrease in performance. I'll discuss this more on Thursday's blog post.

[caption id="attachment_2558" align="alignright" width="225"] Rocking the Wattie World Championship Kit![/caption]

So there you have it. Hopefully this gives everyone an insight to what I'm up against each day going into these workouts. As far as training goes, some days I can get in a double workout, some one, some none. I imagine most of you out there are the same: each week is so different with family/work schedule which makes it even more difficult to stay consistent. Every Saturday is not going to be a long ride or every Wednesday a Masters swim - which can be a good in a way because you're always shocking the body and switching things up. Doesn't make it easy though. That's why I've learned to just take things day by day and not have a schedule etched in stone because things come up and you have to be willing to adapt and be as consistent as possible - key in triathlon!

I'm still toying with the idea of the best way to post my workouts. For now I'm going to write out everything and then highlight/take screen shots of my key workouts of the week. Eventually I might link up my Garminconnect account or maybe Strava. In the meantime you'll just have to trust what I put down is what I'm doing. There's no reason to lie about what I'm doing - it's just a hobby! lol. I have no shame or anything to hide, hopefully this gives you some insight!

January 6-12
Things to note: If you saw THIS post you'll know that I cut my fingertip off on Christmas Eve so I haven't swam in about a month. So this was another week of just riding and running. My wife and I also celebrated our 10 year Anniversary so we left the kids with the grandparents and headed up to Yosemite for the weekend. This weeks focus was all about trying to get in some good quality sessions while staying healthy before heading out of town.[hr]
Monday: Fri-Sun of last week was pretty brutal so Flanny and I decided to make this just a single day.

Trainer Threshold intervals (copied/pasted from Training Peaks account):
30 minutes WU
3 x 10 minute Z4 (Threshold)
5 min recovery between efforts
Let your legs recover fully during the 5 minutes between intervals so you can ride consistently.
4 x 20 sec right leg, 20 sec left leg, 20 sec both legs
Z2 remainder (total 2 hours)
Post workout notes: I don't have a power meter yet (very soon!) so it can be really hard to gauge my effort levels. I basically go as hard as I can without slowing down to much. This workout crushed me. I'm on Season 3 of "Walking Dead" via streaming Netflix and I felt like I was a "walker" after this. One thing to note: I do not watch TV which frees up an amazing amount of time in your life (more on this later). The only time I'll watch is when I'm on the trainer - just not during intervals-music for that! And I also watch the Charger games, although no more games this year :( [hr]

Tuesday: Again, without swimming - we have another single day. I work in San Diego on Tuesdays and hit this workout on my way home at night.

Group Track workout: At Cal State San Marcos with the North County San Diego Track Club.
20 min up, 2 laps of stride the straights, jog the curves.
2x1200 @ Half mary pace w/60-90 sec recovery (avg'd 5:50, 5:40 pace)
2x800 @ 5k-10k pace w/60-90 sec recovery (avg'd 5:19,5:11)
2x400 @mile pace w/60-90 sec recovery (avg'd 4:54, 4:56)
1 mile at 5k-10k pace (5:16)
c/d (total 1 hour)
Post workout Notes: I'm happy with the way my running is coming around. I led this workout even after four hard days in a row. I've seen some big gains lately which is perfect timing with the Surf City Half Marathon coming up in three weeks. [hr]

Wednesday: With the anticipation of me leaving town that weekend we had to get in a big day today.

3 hr Long ride: 2:53, 51.5 miles, 1500 ft of climbing - AVG 17.8mph
Easy run (non brick): 40 mins, 4.28 miles - AVG 9:28 pace

Post workout notes: I worked from home so I got up at 5am, worked from 5-9 - then rode 3 hours. Ate a big lunch, worked from 1-5, then put in a 40 minute easy run. Something to note: my easy runs are sloooooow. I don't even look at the watch, it's usually in the 8-10 minute mile range. I just go off of feel, with nothing to prove, all to gain. Kenyans do the same thing. After dinner, playing with the kids, reading stories...etc I had 30 minutes where I put in some stretching, foam rolling (something I'm trying to do more of). Some alone time with the wife, packed for our trip and then it's lights out at 9pm (about the same every night).[hr]

Thursday: Single day. Thursdays I work in San Diego. Today my boss let me off a little early to get a head start on our Anniversary weekend. After putting in final prep plans for the weekend I jumped on the trainer for some big gear work:

Big Gear Trainer session: After a 60 min warm up on the trainer I want you to do 5 x 3 min big gear (hard enough to slow your rpm's to 40-50) with 1 min of high cadence spinning between (100 rpm+). Ride the remaining time in Z2 (total 2 hours)

Post workout notes: Again, another QUALITY session. Flanny doesn't put a bunch of fluff or extra miles in. I have a limited schedule so each workout is planned with a purpose. I have a sick love for big gear intervals. I love the burning legs feeling - this is bike specific strength training.[hr]

Fri: We got up at 3am and drove 7 hours to Yosemite. After checking into our hotel, we hiked 6 miles and climbed up to three different waterfalls. Breathtaking! [hr]


Saturday: Flanny had a specific running workout for me, but with the trip it just wasn't going to happen. This weekend was all about celebrating our 10 year Anniversary. So we woke up, had a huge breakfast and hit a big day on the trails. Normally I would never input "hiking/jogging" miles into my log but this one was actually pretty difficult. We ended up hiking/jogging over 9 miles with 3k+ of climbing in altitude. It was one of the best days of my life. We were surrounded by beauty and on our way down it got misty and foggy and we ran most of the way home in this dream-like setting. Unreal. Something I'll never forget![hr]

Sunday: After traveling back home I got in an easy 40 minutes of running to shake the cob-webs out as my legs were pretty sore from that hike! 4.5 miles, 8:53 pace.[hr]

Totals:
Bike: 121 miles
Run: 16.4
Hike/Jog: 15.1
Total hours: 14:47 [hr]

So overall it was a great week. Our little getaway felt like it recharged us for the year! I can't wait to see what 2014 has in store and excited that you can follow along with me.

Special Blogpost: Coach Robert Flanigan

James and I started working in late May of 2013 as he was coming off of a long period of illness. From the start it was very apparent that James was like most other high level athletes in that he was extremely motivated, self driven, and eager for success. These three traits are a blessing and a curse at the same time. Normally those traits are accompanied by a lack of patience, desire to do more, and the ego. Adams is thankfully an exception to this and from day one was eager to listen, stuck to his plan, asked questions when clarification was needed. He showed the patience needed to succeed.

This year’s development of James can be simply broken down to one word: Consistency. He has the tools required to succeed at Iron distance racing but needs more than anything consistency week after week, month after month, and beyond. His run ability is lethal but will do us little good if the 2.4-mile swim and 112-mile bike put a dent in him that he cannot recover from. Volume and Training with Purpose will become his best friends.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Flanigan goes over a race plan with Adams and other athletes before Ironman 70.3 Worlds in Las Vegas (Pictured l-r Flanny, Denise Hiller, Taylor Jennings, James).[/caption]

In this early part of the season, we are going to keep the volume moderate and work on developing his threshold power on the bike (and thankfully his power meter will be under him shortly) while educating him on how to use power as a tool (and how to not become a slave to it), increasing run frequency and volume, and swimming as often as possible. A few swim sessions a week are dedicated to the development of his stroke while the others are Masters sessions to keep building his aerobic engine.

We will keep up this effort until we are ready for his build to Ironman CDA where we will then switch gears. His volume will increase to as much as he can maintain while keeping him married and remaining a good father. Tempo sessions will dominate where higher intensity work resided and we will teach his body to execute specific efforts on a very fatigued body. We will also be very focused on how he recovers from his efforts.

The last piece is the most difficult in my opinion. There are three types of people on the course at an Iron-distance race: those who participate, those who compete, and those who RACE. Learning to race that distance is very difficult, and requires a great deal of confidence, understanding of ones body and its limits, a mindset to push those limits, and execution of a proper race plan. This is where I think James has a big advantage over those he will line up against. I believe he has the tools to learn, absorb and retain what is required to not just compete … but to race Ironman CDA.