One of my overall goals this year was to do the local bike club race series, mostly to learn something from the real bicyclists and also to challenge myself to something new. I wanted to do it last year, but I never put the races on the schedule so I alwasy forgot about them.
I have one flat TT and one hill climb done so far. I missed one flat TT and I'll miss next week's hill climb, both because of other comittements.
I'm learning already! Lesson 1: I have found a new pain threshold. That's a very important learning point.
The first flat TT went ok, but there was the usual wind at the location out on the plains. OK, so the wind was just average, but it was still kicking pretty good at about 30mph. The first race (the one I missed) was the week before that with winds of probably 40mph, and that race was rescheduled because the week before that there was a wind advisory (50mph+?) that postponed the race. Anyway, I did ok on the race for me personally, but I got crushed by everyone else (of course). The race went as planned....slower on the way out against the wind, cruising on the way back with the wind, and I hit my target mph's. BUT, my math had been wrong, so I was slower than I wanted. My goal on this 10k course is 15 minutes; last week my time was 16:40ish (haven't seen the final results). I made that goal without really knowing what I was doing other than saying I want to average 24mph, which if my math is right (and I'm bad at math!), puts me at 15 minutes. I put everything I had into that 16:40 time, and I didn't make it. I think I I'd get close to it if I didn't do any workouts a few days prior, but that doesn't support my overall training goals, so missing those workouts ain't gonna happen. I'll just keep going in tired and challenge myself 110% with what I have.
The hill climb was tonight. I don't know the stats other than it's about 5.25 miles. Google earth says it starts at 5,080ft and ends at 6,535ft for 1,465ft gain. It really kicked my butt. I was the only one on a TT bike....that's the only bike I have. The club folks are nice enough to let me join in. They really are a great bunch of folks. In any case, it was a BEAUTIFUL night to be out riding...very little wind, a bit of sun, and nice temps about 60deg.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
General training insights
So here are a few training insights I'm thinking about. I'm trying to get away from the boring "I did this workout today" and add in some thought-provoking stuff.
1. If you're at a plateua in your run training, try increasing your swim volume. It's been working for me the past two months. I went from avg weekly swim volume of 4500-5000yds to 7000-8000yds, and my six mile time is coming down fast. Dropped from 52 minutes in March to 46 minutes today. Some of the improvement can be attributed to steady running and some hill repeats, but I think most of it came from the swim increase. Something to do with oxygen levels, I think, but I'm no scientist.
2. The weather is not cooperating for my bike leg! The end of April and nearly all of May seems like it has been 75% cold/windy/wet/snow. I'm an admitted fair-weather-biker, so I'm still on the trainer. Not good. My first race is just south of Logan, UT, and I figure alot of Salt Lake folks will be there. They've probably been biking outside since March, and they're going to crush me on the bike.
3. Hill repeats are great for the run! I started doing hill repeats on a 45degree hill that is about 400 yds long, and takes 2:45minutes to 3:15 to finish going at a very hard pace (but actually is quite slow). I think these are equivalent to 800 yard runs, but I get more out of them in about the same time.
4. Mixing length and intensity is important. This is the first year I've mixed up the training between long/easy, medium/medium, and short/very hard. It seems to be working. All the times on my standard courses are coming down. And the variety makes it much more interesting.
5. I've found that I like triathlons because of the variety in training. There is never a week that I get in all the workouts, and I do specific workouts only once each week, except a few easy runs that I throw in when my schedule requires it (ie I can't do a scheduled workout). When I was training for the one and only marathon I've done in my life, I got so incredibly bored with running that I almost decided not to do it (but then I realized that that was the important part of being able to finish a marathon...running a very long time and dealing with it mentally). Each workout feels like a fresh beginning because it's been a week or more since I last did it.
6. Consistency is definitely the key. Just getting out there and doing something...anything...is better than nothing.
7. I think I'm getting close to figuring out what my body needs for improvement. There is so much information out there, much of it contradictory! You just have to take the time to figure out what's best for you, and that could take a couple of years. You end up trying a basic training philsophy for an entire year before you know if it's working. Of course, changes in mid-season are always warranted if something is definitely not working, but that is usually just a minor tweek of the overall philosphy for the year. I suppose that's why the most competitive age group for men is generally the 40-44 olds...they've had a few years to figure out what training works the best for them. So, I've got this year to figure it out before I get into that age-group.
8. I turned 39 on Sunday. But I feel like I'm 25 again! I'm positive it has to do with moving to Pocatello and getting into a more active lifestyle, specifically not stuck in a car during commutes to/from work, and being able to get outside and be active right from the garage instead of fighting traffic on the weekend to get somewhere (again, more time sitting in the car!). If anyone reading this is wondering if the small town life is truly better...YES IT IS!. Don't worry about missing all the big city stuff; it will be replaced with much more activity that simply makes you feel better. You'll add time to your day to do stuff you've always wanted to do because the commute is generally much shorter, and life is all about time to do the things you want to do and be with the people you love.
1. If you're at a plateua in your run training, try increasing your swim volume. It's been working for me the past two months. I went from avg weekly swim volume of 4500-5000yds to 7000-8000yds, and my six mile time is coming down fast. Dropped from 52 minutes in March to 46 minutes today. Some of the improvement can be attributed to steady running and some hill repeats, but I think most of it came from the swim increase. Something to do with oxygen levels, I think, but I'm no scientist.
2. The weather is not cooperating for my bike leg! The end of April and nearly all of May seems like it has been 75% cold/windy/wet/snow. I'm an admitted fair-weather-biker, so I'm still on the trainer. Not good. My first race is just south of Logan, UT, and I figure alot of Salt Lake folks will be there. They've probably been biking outside since March, and they're going to crush me on the bike.
3. Hill repeats are great for the run! I started doing hill repeats on a 45degree hill that is about 400 yds long, and takes 2:45minutes to 3:15 to finish going at a very hard pace (but actually is quite slow). I think these are equivalent to 800 yard runs, but I get more out of them in about the same time.
4. Mixing length and intensity is important. This is the first year I've mixed up the training between long/easy, medium/medium, and short/very hard. It seems to be working. All the times on my standard courses are coming down. And the variety makes it much more interesting.
5. I've found that I like triathlons because of the variety in training. There is never a week that I get in all the workouts, and I do specific workouts only once each week, except a few easy runs that I throw in when my schedule requires it (ie I can't do a scheduled workout). When I was training for the one and only marathon I've done in my life, I got so incredibly bored with running that I almost decided not to do it (but then I realized that that was the important part of being able to finish a marathon...running a very long time and dealing with it mentally). Each workout feels like a fresh beginning because it's been a week or more since I last did it.
6. Consistency is definitely the key. Just getting out there and doing something...anything...is better than nothing.
7. I think I'm getting close to figuring out what my body needs for improvement. There is so much information out there, much of it contradictory! You just have to take the time to figure out what's best for you, and that could take a couple of years. You end up trying a basic training philsophy for an entire year before you know if it's working. Of course, changes in mid-season are always warranted if something is definitely not working, but that is usually just a minor tweek of the overall philosphy for the year. I suppose that's why the most competitive age group for men is generally the 40-44 olds...they've had a few years to figure out what training works the best for them. So, I've got this year to figure it out before I get into that age-group.
8. I turned 39 on Sunday. But I feel like I'm 25 again! I'm positive it has to do with moving to Pocatello and getting into a more active lifestyle, specifically not stuck in a car during commutes to/from work, and being able to get outside and be active right from the garage instead of fighting traffic on the weekend to get somewhere (again, more time sitting in the car!). If anyone reading this is wondering if the small town life is truly better...YES IT IS!. Don't worry about missing all the big city stuff; it will be replaced with much more activity that simply makes you feel better. You'll add time to your day to do stuff you've always wanted to do because the commute is generally much shorter, and life is all about time to do the things you want to do and be with the people you love.
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