Wattie Ink / Black Dragon Racing Training Camp

Last week was the Wattie Ink Elite Team / Black Dragon Training Camp held in Carlsbad, CA. Black Dragon Racing owner, Wattie Ink Elite Team member and my coach Robert Flanigan hosted the camp with the man Sean Watkins with the support of:

1. Reynolds Wheels / Speedfil - SAG support for rides.
2. Blueseventy -sponsored swims and swag
3. Rudy Project - sponsored runs and swag bag
4. Herbalife / Powerbar - provided all nutrition before, during and after workouts.
5. ISM  - swag
6. Spidertech - Taping seminar and swag.
7. Nutrition seminar by pro triathlete Erin Green
8. Q&A with Heather Jackson hosted by Nytro Multisport.
9. Special guest appearance by pro triathlete Matty Reed.
10. On deck swim coaching/instruction by pro triathlete and Rev3 series leader Eric Limkemann

Over 25 athletes from all over the US came into town and the weather couldn't have been any better. Location is so important for a camp and Flanny/Wattie couldn't have picked a better place. I was particularly excited as it's close to home! Here was our schedule for the week which included about 20-25 hrs of training in 5-6 days:

It looked pretty intimidating on paper as I've only had probably a handful of weeks over 20 hours and that was over seven days! Looking back on it now Flanny was a genius in devising this schedule. The key was it being a "volume focused" camp. The only intensity we did was in the pool and then on a tempo run which I'll dive more into later.We arrived at registration and were greeted with a swag bag and a sweet custom shirt for camp - sweet!

For a great write up about camp, check out friend and fellow teammate Karin Langer's blog HERE. I'm going to just post links to my workout data and let the numbers talk this week. For the bike geeks, I weight 140 lbs. If numbers bore you, I'd stop reading here.

Here's how it all played out (feel free to reference what we did with the schedule above):

Thursday

Swim: 1 hour, 3k

2 hour ride: SRM Power file: Click HERE.

Brick run: Click HERE.

Friday

Swim: 90 mins, 4k

3 hour ride: SRM Power file: Click HERE

Saturday

Swim: 1 hour, 3k

1:45, 14 Mile Tempo Run: Click HERE.

90 min recovery ride

Sunday

5 hour ride: SRM Power file: Click HERE.

30 min brick run. Data HERE.

Monday

1 hr swim, 3k

90 min easy run. Data HERE.

Totals over 5 days

Swim -4.5 hours / 13k
Bike- 11.5 hours / 186 miles
Run-4.5 hours / 32 miles
Total = 20 hours

Leading up to camp I just had some s,b,r's that slowly got me back into it without having a relapse of sickness. The planned worked and I'm really pleased with my effort and results at camp. I think I'm ahead of what I thought I'd be at this time of the year - especially with all the missed time I've had to take off with my finger issue and my sickness.

The time I had at camp was amazing. Even though it was pretty tough to juggle work, family and this training load - I felt I had the right balance though out. Planning was key and Amy and I did a great job syncing our schedules. There was no way I was going to leave them at home while I went to camp. So we got a hotel down by the beach where she was able to hang out with family and friends while I suffered. Her and the kids had a blast and so did I; win, win.

Not only did camp boost my confidence, it also showed me that I can handle a pretty hefty amount of volume and recover really well. I'm recovering like I am 21 again which is a great sign because I'm going should be able to handle the upcoming volume in stride.

This weekend is the first race of the year! Desert Tri. Past two years I've gone 2nd then 1st. This year I step up to the big boys in 35-39 so it should be interesting to see how I stack up fresh off of camp.

Thanks for reading and I'd love feedback if you have anything!

Here's a bunch of pics I took over the week





 

 

 

Guest Post: Amy Adams - Recipes

With two kids and an Ironman in the house, we do our fair share of eating. We are on the go very often and I've found it's really challenging to find unprocessed/easy snacks to take with us (besides fruits & veggies). So I took the matter into my own hands and found a lot of great snacks that are easy to prepare (kids love to help), taste good and are healthy.

Here are some of our favorites (click on the links for full recipes):

[caption id="attachment_2664" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Vanilla Granola[/caption]

We love to throw this on our yogurt, oatmeal or just straight from a baggy.

[caption id="attachment_2666" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Homemade Cliff Bars[/caption]

James likes to take these out on his rides and the kids love them for school snacks

[caption id="attachment_2665" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Plantain Crackers[/caption]

We eat 90% GF, so these are a great alternative for a cracker. They are great plain or dip them into hummus, which the kids love. I've found they taste best fresh. Once they dry out they can become pretty chewy and not as good.

[caption id="attachment_2667" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Quinoa Coconut Granola Bars[/caption]

These have become a household favorite. Highly recommended!

[caption id="attachment_2663" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Homemade Graham Crackers[/caption]

These are not gluten free but very tasty and the kids love the shapes :)

[caption id="attachment_2662" align="aligncenter" width="111"] Raw Cookies[/caption]

These are so easy to make and everyone really likes them. We do a lot of raw cookies around here, just Google or look on Pinterest and you can find a lot of recipes.

These are just a few recipes - I always like to add my own flair to each of them so don't be afraid to add more or less of something. We also get a lot of our snacks from Feed Zone Portables. The kids love the peanut butter and jelly rice cakes and many others. Each week when we do our food planning for the week we always pick out a different recipe from the book so we have something different on hand all week.

~Amy

The Week of Sickness (and what I did about it).

As I mentioned in my last blog – my fun weekend in Palm Springs came with a price last week. I ended up with a chest infection. I seem to get hit harder with sickness as I age. In college even if I had bronchitis I would still run twice a day, go to class and work all night! Now when I get what seems like a normal cold, it’s accompanied with fever-y aches/pains, low energy and I’m down for the count. This sickness was no different. It got to the point where I actually started getting worried like I had pneumonia – something that would make sense after what I did to my body that last weekend.

“Luckily” the doctor said it was a chest infection. He’s an avid runner so he kind of knew the question was coming, “When can I start working out again?” He said 7-10 days off completely and that the cold will probably linger for 3-6 weeks. If I cheat, it’s just going to prolong me getting healthy – something I’ve been guilty of in the past. So I got off the phone, called my wife and then called my coach to let him know what’s up. Flanny takes a “no bullshit” approach to things.  As much as I tried to get an early jump on working out again, he stuck to his guns and slowly got me back into it. So what did I do during these 7 days off!? My fellow Wattie Ink team mate and Lava Magazine contributor Ryan Schneider inspired me to write about my week off. There’s no doubt that I’m serious about triathlon (Lava plug) and even though I was pissed about my mistakes, I still choose to take a positive spin on this learning experience.

First, I had to do was kick the chest infection. So I took the same disciplined and aggressive approach that I do for training to get rid of the sickness. Number one, I refused to take any medicine or antibiotics. I may get a lot of hate mail or disagreement on this, but I believe this was key in getting me better. Instead of hiding the cough and letting the mucus (sorry, getting real) linger – I lived by a sink/trash can and had Kleenex by my side at all times to cough up and blow out all of that junk as much as I could! I let my body do the healing, not some chemical laced pill or over the counter syrup. *Note, I believe in medicine, just not in every circumstance. I confess - I did use some aids to get me better. I had years of podcast notes, word of mouth help, a hippy mother in law and an awesome wife that helped me come up with a game plan:

1. Juicing. Definitely a lot of conflicting views on this but I believe it helped a lot. There’s no way I was going to eat as much vegetables as I consumed through juicing. We Amy juices regularly for the whole family – but these had a disgusting spin on them. The one that makes me gag still thinking about it – termed “Diarrhea Drink” by fellow Wattie team mate and pro Erin Green. Amy found a recipe that had a lot of great reviews in kicking sickness. It had onion, garlic, broccoli, celery, carrots, and raw honey. The worst was that you had to have it with hot water – so it was really hard to get down. A lot of dry heaving – again, a lot like training…


2. Sleep. Without having to get up at 4:30 to get a workout in, sleep became really easy to do. It’s like my body signed up for the same game plan to get well and rewarded me with a lot of non-disruptive sleep.  A lot of this also had to do with my diet which contained easily digestible foods which free your body to do the healing instead of digesting (hence why you always hear soup is good for you when you’re sick). I was regularly getting10-12 hours a night and a nap if I could fit it in.


3. Hydrating. A ton of water, coconut water, calm now and a lot of lemon, ginger, green tea with raw honey.


4. Supplements. Extra Sport Multi’s and doubling up on Vitamin C.


5. Weird things. Oil of oregano with water, apple cider vinegar, coco butter on the chest with eucalyptus oil rubbed on it (don’t ask..freaking weird). For some reason just writing or saying eucalyptus oil makes me laugh.

You know what? The game plan worked. I kicked what should have been a 4-6 week sickness away in 6 days.

What about the mental toll it played on me? After all, a week off should certainly ruin a season right? I definitely took a positive spin on it.

1. It’s only February.


2. The Olympics are on all week – inspiration overload!


3. Mental recharge/Stronger immune system going into the season.


4. Got to spend more time with the family.


5. Got to spend more time with the family…

So that’s what I have been up to. What do you do to kick a cold or handle the mental let down of not being able to train?

On the training front, this weekend is the Wattie Ink Elite Training Camp down in Carlsbad, CA. I am live tweeting the daily activities with some pictures. Follow me HERE. Next week I’ll share a lot of pictures and my notes throughout the camp. Thanks for reading!

For more pictures and past stories, be sure to visit my blog at www.konajourney.com
Feedback and Questions are appreciated!

 

Training Log (Feb 3-9) + 2 RR

Last week was one of the busier weeks I can remember and I'm feeling it, literally. I got sick for the first time since last May and I saw it coming a mile away. Ironman training with a full time job and kids is very unforgiving. You can't let your focus slip even for a day or two otherwise it will bite you and it has. I have a full blown chest cold infection which means zero exercise for 7-10 days. It's very frustrating to say the least. My training has come along really well and I'm in an important build leading up to Ironman 70.3 Oceanside which is a short month away. This last week was a testament to that fitness and although I'm really excited of where I'm at, I know I'm taking a step back with taking this much time off. Especially with my swim fitness. I was so close to getting back to where I was and yet, another set back which has been very common with me. This goes back to what my coach has been preaching about my training all along. How important it is for me to stay consistent - something I've always struggled with whether it be to illness, injury or just stupidity.

Again, I learned from my mistakes. I planned ahead of time to just let go for the weekend and have some fun - because you know, I earned it! Well, come to find out - when you are pushing your body and your time to the limits, there isn't any room for error. No nights to skip on sleep, or eat terrible, drink to much and skip on hydration. Especially when you are throwing down tough workouts. And this is what I did! Here's how the week played out:

Monday: 1 workout

BlueSeventy Recovery Swim: 45 mins / 2500yds
3 x 800 m
1st Easy Swim
2nd Pull
3rd Pull w/ paddles


Post workout notes: This workout was all about recovering from the half marathon. I was a lot more sore then I thought I'd be. [hr]

Tuesday: 1 workout

Recovery Run: 40 mins / 4.5 miles / 8:53 pace

Flanny’s workout: 40 min recovery run w/ 8-10 x 50 m strides at completion.

Post Workout notes: Open half marathons tear me up just as much HIM's do. I really struggled to run those first 10 minutes. Finally I loosened up, but at the end I was still unable to do the strides because of the soreness. [hr]

Wednesday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy Masters Swim: 1:30 / 4k
500 wup, 4x100 on 1:40. 4x50 on 50
Main set all done on 1:30b:
8x150 (100steady 5" 50hard)
Masters min
8x125 (75 steady 5" 50 hard)
Masters min
8x75 (50 steady 5" 25 hard) Fins and paddles
c/d to 4k

Post workout notes: STILL feeling fatigued from the half, I struggled through this one. I barely made the intervals and had to throw on fins and paddles to get through that last set.

SRM Bike Trainer: 1hr / 16.5 miles / 16.5mph

Flanny’s workout: 90 mins: 3 x 8 min Big Gear 2min Z4 on 2 min rest

Post workout notes: Tonight was when the stress started for the week. Basically Wed-Sun was a whirlwind. I know this session was going to be key to try and get my legs back from that race but sometimes things come up. I was only able to get in one interval and then had to call is quits.

[caption id="attachment_2649" align="alignright" width="300"] Directors getting the green screen treadmill ready to go![/caption]

Run: Steady State Run- 70 mins / 9 miles / 7:47 pace

Flanny’s Workout: Z2+ w/ Strides at completion

Post workout notes: This was a long day. Drove to San Diego 1 hour. Worked all day the drove to Temecula (1 hr) for a quick wardrobe change. I quickly got my run in then I then drove to Los Angeles in rainy traffic (2.5 hrs) for a Boston Marathon commercial shoot. This was a really cool experience running on a treadmill with a green screen. Watch for the commercial to run during the last week of the Olympics (next week). Then it was back home in even worse traffic ~3.5 hours totally 8 hours of driving for the day. I was done! [hr]



Friday: 0 workouts

Post workout notes: This was another crazy day of driving down to San Diego, working - headed home, quickly packed and headed off to Redlands for a pit stop and finally to Palm Springs to check in for the century ride and meet up with Eric and Kim for a fun weekend! As much as I wanted to get the prescribed 90 minute bike spin and Masters in, there was no way today to do anything. Sometimes you run out of time. Looking back on it though, I should have woken up at 4:30 and put in a swim before work. Failed planning = part of the learning process.[hr]

Saturday: 1 workout

[caption id="attachment_2639" align="alignright" width="225"] Start of the Century![/caption]

Post workout notes: This was my only 2nd time ever going over 100 miles. My first was a 150 mile crazy weekend with Masi / Nabor a few years ago. I really didn't know what to expect. My last long ride over 50 miles was Vegas I believe. We've just been doing a lot of intensity (with the volume to come). I think the numbers show that not doing a whole lot of volume doesn't affect me like I thought it would. Sure they are skewed, I was hanging in and out of large packs about 35-40% of the time. However, I HATE riding in large groups and this was no different. Sorry to the roadies out there but there is very little benefit of riding with a large pack when it comes to IM fitness. Even the climbs, you can tuck right in and cruise up. You get such a harder workout riding solo if you can push yourself and that's why the majority of the time I ride solo. Each time I got caught up with a pack, I'd bail out after awhile then TT solo until I caught up to another larger or smaller group. I did this the entire ride, maybe said 3 or 4 words the entire day. I just wanted to hammer and see what I could do, not BS with a bunch of arrogant roadies. With about an hour to go my buddy Mike Hebebrand (KQ'er) came by with a strong group. Just what I needed to break the 4:30 mark! We rode hard the rest of the way home and I felt fantastic. It's January and I could have got off that bike and put down a solid marathon which excites me in my Kona qualifier pursuit. With a ride down to the start and it being a little long, I got in a solid 107 miles for the day. Stoked!

The rest of the day included one too many beers, lots of laughs, great food and very little water and sleep unfortunately. I woke up that night with a really bad sore throat, dreading the race the next day.



[caption id="attachment_2638" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Great dinner, Great friends[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2637" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Bad idea...[/caption]

[hr]
Sunday (1 workout)

Palm Springs 1/2 marathon relay (5.5, 3.1, 4.5)

My leg, 4.5 miles - Splits: 5:25, 5:37, 5:38, 5:50...and change
Total: 25:21 (5:38 pace) / Total team time: 1:21:4x
1st Place Co-Ed Division / 8th place Overall


[caption id="attachment_2643" align="alignright" width="225"] Bringing it home![/caption]

Post workout notes: My initial plan was to just watch but after Amy hooked up with a relay team and then my friends Eric and Kim were thinking about doing the relay, I decided to jump in and see how the legs would respond to a tough century ride the day before. Let's just say I wasn't feeling so hot and neither was Eric. Our fun from the night before was not so much fun anymore. I tried doing a warm up but almost threw up so I opted to do some stretching instead. Eric brought it in to the check point flying and in first place (in our division). He said he was dry heaving during the race haha - he still averaged 5:40's! Kim took off for her 3.1 mile leg and before I knew it she was flying in and it was my turn to take it home. I definitely went out a little hot (5:25) but felt surprisingly good and passed about 6-7 people and then from miles 2-4.5 it was just a time trial with me all by myself. I hit 5k sub 17 and then the wheels fell off big time. My quads were locking up and felt like someone put a hammer to them. I was super dehydrated and needless to say, I was ready to be done! I was surprised how much that little 4.5 mile race hurt but I was very pleased with the results. I'm in (was) the best shape of my life hands down for triathlon.  We hung around a bit for results, picked up our medals, had an awesome lunch and said goodbye to the fun weekend.

[caption id="attachment_2644" align="aligncenter" width="225"] (click on pics to enlarge)[/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_2633" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Post race Pina Colada![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2634" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Post weekend nastiness - trying to get better...[/caption]

Now it's all about taking this time to get healthy and recharge for the work that lies ahead. I'm excited to get into full on Ironman training mode. I'm off to a good start with my training and excited to see how March goes with the Desert Tri and Ironman 70.3 Oceanside to start the year.

Totals (2 swims, 2 bikes, 3 runs)
Swim: 6,500 yds /2:15
Bike: 123 miles / 6:03
Run: 21 miles / 2:20
Strength: 1 hr
Total hours: 11:38

Surf City Half Marathon Race Report

This picture sums up how I felt at the race!

I am no longer a runner, but a triathlete.

I'll keep this short and sweet, getting right to the details.

Going into the race I texted Flanny and wrote I could see myself running 1:12 and I could see myself running 1:17. I didn't really have any idea where I was. I just know that two years ago I kicked down a 1:14 and am in way better shape then I was then. Why wouldn't I go faster? Well, it's true, I would kick that little 1:14 runner's ass from two years ago anyday...in a triathlon. The single biggest thing I learned this weekend is that I am no longer a runner. I'm not built that way anymore, I don't train like that anymore and now...I FINALLY I don't think that way anymore. I know Walsh and Flanny both tried to get that through my thick skull but like a lot of things in my life over the years, I had to learn it myself. So as soon as I got over the major disappointment of running my slowest half marathon to date (4 total) of a 1:18 and running 5 minutes slower that I thought I would - the light bulb came on and I am completely content with the result now.

Pre race: Good friend and Wattie team mate Chris Masilon lives 5 minutes from the starting line so him and his amazing family took me in, fed me and let me crash for the race the next day. I slept good, woke up, put on my Spidertech tape and ate a Powerbar and banana two hours before the race and just sipped on some Powerbar Perform leading up to the race. After a quick 10 minute warm up and some strides I was ready to rock! I felt very relaxed and confident of the day to come. The sun started coming out, the beach smell was in the air and everyone's energy was radiating off of their body. I absolutely love the start of a race. All that hard work ready to be paid off. Time to have some fun!

Race: 13.1 miles / 1:18:42 / 6:01 pace / 7th in AG, 24th Overall (out of 15,447 runners):

Our plan was simple. Hit 5:40-45's for the first 10k and then race it from there. I settled into the 3rd pack which was quite large. We all took turns leading and tried to block the two women who were leading their race from the wind. This race was HUGE. Television camera's, helicopters flying overhead - it was a pretty cool experience. Since we held the leading women we got quite a bit of attention. The course is rolling with a lot of false flats. My splits for the most part where right on where I wanted to be:

After a bunch of zigzagging through some residential neighborhoods we popped back out onto the Pacific Coast highway, turned around and BAM. We hit a nasty headwind for that last 10k. The pack immediately started to dissipate and I did my best to hang on. It was a bit of a crosswind so it was hard to hide from. Before I knew it I fell off the back and had to run solo into that wind all the way back. I haven't hurt that bad in a race in quite some time. It got to the point where I wanted to walk but I just fought through it. It reminded me of some of these running nightmares I have where I am running the hardest I can but the wind is so strong it has me running in place, going nowhere. I started to see my pace fall, started to get passed and my legs just got heavier and heavier. I did my best to try and stay relaxed and keep form. I'll mention it again...I haven't hurt that bad in a LONG time!

Eurostar made his debut appearance with about 800 meters to go and as much as I wanted to, I couldn't even crack a smile. I was in some deep pain. I crossed the line, wiped my brow which felt like sand paper from salt, wobbled through the chute and tried to pull myself together. After seeing a few fellow friends/triathletes in the chute, I got out of there as fast as I could with my tail between my legs...I was pissed and just wanted an IPA. Tired legs, wind, blah blah blah - stupid excuses, I hate them and don't want to come across that way. The reality is, I'm built to run a half marathon off the bike now, not crush an open one. My goal is to actually run a 1:18 off the bike this year and if you bring my pacing down to 6 minutes - I certainly think that's doable - especially since I've run 1:22 off the bike before.

To wrap things up, I am in a good place now. I learned more from that race then any other race I've done before. To let go of that runner I've been clinging so hard onto the past three years and accept the fact that I'm a triathlete now. I really enjoy triathlon and I didn't have anywhere near the same amount of fun at this race compared to the fun I have at triathlons....and that's what it's all about. Having fun!

Thanks for all of the support and I want to apologize for coming across like 1:18 is a slow time. I just have very very high expectations of myself and I didn't mean to come across as arrogant in my social media posts after my race. Thank you for reading and cheers to the 2014 triathlon season!

Training Log (Jan 27-Feb 2)

This week was a run test week. What better way to do that than an early season half marathon race? It’s a great way to gauge your run fitness and see how well you do with some heavy training load on your legs. I’ve always had The Surf City Half Marathon in Huntington Beach, CA on my radar for the past few years and this year it just came at the right time with my health, training and fitness. The goal was to treat the week like any other week except to back off on the run intensity a bit and then take Saturday easy instead of the usual long ride.

Here were my workouts for the week leading up to the race:

Monday: 2 workouts

Gerry Rodrigues workout: 90 mins / 4k
4x1000
Buoy,band,snorkel: 4x250 (20") @70,75,80,85%
10x100 (5") 80-85%
Buoy,fins,snorkel: 2x500 (30")
10x100 (5") 90% LTR

Post workout notes: This is a workout I learned from Gerry Rodrigues (Tower 26) from a YouTube video he did a few years ago. I like to do this workout at least 4-5 times a year. The snorkel really allows you to focus on moving through the water more efficiently. It’s a great workout that combines technique and immediately transferring that technique while it’s still fresh in your head over to some hard 100’s. Brilliant stuff. With proper warm up and cool down this is a 5k set, I just didn’t have time for it.

SRM Bike Trainer: 1:27 / 21.5 miles / 14.7 mph

Flanny’s workout: All I am looking for is 75-90 minutes of easy Zone 1-2 riding. You’re coming off of a solid week.

Post workout notes: Recovery spin on the trainer watching “The Walking Dead!”[hr]

Tuesday: 1 workout

Steady Run: 41 mins / 5.17 miles / 8:03 pace

Flanny’s workout: Race week 40 min steady state run w/ 6 x 50 m strides at completion.

Post Workout notes: This was supposed to be a steady run but I ended up getting really dizzy/light headed about 1 mile into this workout so I didn’t push it. A really weird sensation almost as if I was bonking. Strange day/run.[hr] 

Wednesday: 2 workouts

BlueSeventy Masters Swim: 1:30 / 4k
500 wup, 4x100 on 1:40, 4x50 on 50
10x100 on 1:30b descending every 3 (1:25,1:23,1:20) then the last one all out
Masters Minute
10x50 on 50 descending every 3 (45,40,35) then last one all out
500 with fins
6x75 on 2:15
300 c/d

Post workout notes: I’m starting to feel a lot better in the water. I hit all of the pacing right on the money. I’m not quite back to where I was before my accident but my “feel” for the water is improving which is helping me get through these workouts without being so smashed for the rest of the day like it used to.

SRM Bike Trainer: 1:31 / 23.5 miles / 15.5mph

Flanny’s workout: 5 x 3 min Z5 VO2
20 minutes Zone 2 Warm Up
4 x 30 sec spin ups (get cadence over 100 rpm) on 30 sec recovery
1 min Easy
5 x 3 minutes Zone 5 on 2 minutes easy
Zone 2 to finish out the session.

Post workout notes: The biggest take away from getting an SRM Powermeter is that I’m finding I haven’t been riding hard enough indoors. In the past I always used the trainer for one-legged drills, recovery spins or avoiding the rare SoCal storm. Flanny has me on the trainer often because of the ability to ride hard/consistent without interruption during intervals. I’m the opposite of my fellow Wattie Inker Karin Langer (go read her blog on this subject – awesome) where she nails her workouts indoors and has issues outside. I think it’s just something that will take me some time to get used to and once we get my numbers squared away when it comes to power, I’ll have no question whether or not I’m riding hard enough![hr] 

Thursday: 1 workout

Run: Easy Run- 47 mins / 5.37 miles / 8:45 pace

Flanny’s Workout: At the end of the run I want 10 x 80-100m strides

Post workout notes: Hit the trails after work. Felt like garbage until I did some stretching, light plyos and the strides. I was telling Flanny that for some reason until I stretch, do some plyos and some strides – my legs always feel beat up and I just feel slow. This for some reason wakes up my legs and I’m always ready to roll afterwards.[hr]

Friday: 2 workouts

Swim: Masters – 1 hr / 3000 yds.
500 wup, 4x100 on 1:40, 4x50 on 50
Main set:
3x through on 1:30b
150,100,50
500 paddles/fins
25's Indian style (total 200) on the 15
c/d to 3k

Post Workout notes: I opted to go 3k today instead of 4k with the race being a few days away. Swimming felt labored today for some reason. Felt like I was fighting the water more than usual. Whatever, got the work done.

SRM Bike Trainer: Easy recovery spin – 1 hr / 14.9 miles / 14.9mph

Post workout notes: Just cruised and watched more Walking Dead! Legs feel much better today.[hr] 

Saturday: 1 workouts

Easy run: 20 mins

Flanny’s Workout: Easy shake out run

Post workout notes:  Just an easy run before rolling out to Huntington Beach to check in at the Expo. Legs felt good enough to race![hr]

Sunday: 1 workout

Surf City Half Marathon: 13.1 miles / 1:18:42 /6:01 pace / 7^th in AG, 24^th overall (out of 15,447 runners)

Here were my splits:



Post workout notes: Notice the wheels fell off right around the 8 mile mark where we turned straight into a headwind all the way back! You can see my full race report/thoughts in my next post.

Strength Training for the week: 1 hr. Pushups, and different variations of sit-ups (30 each, everyday).

 

Totals (3 swims, 3 bikes, 4 runs)
Swim: 11,000 yds /4:00
Bike: 60 miles / 4:00
Run: 26.2 miles / 3:07
Strength: 1 hr
Total hours: 12:06

Be sure to check in later this week for my next post about my 31 day fast from alcohol and coffee and the results I found!

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