I'm a family guy who is addicted to swim/bike/run and anything to do with getting out into the backcountry wilderness areas. This blog focuses on the swim, bike, run and other various aspects of my attempts to finish in the top ten percent of my age group in whatever race I do. It used to be all about finishing the legs of an Olympic Distance triathlon: swim in 20 minutes, bike in 60 minutes, and run in 40 minutes. Now, it's more about training well and finishing well.
When it comes to aerobic fitness, I think ski mountainerring (skimo) is probably the most demanding sport aerobically and certainly breeds a different kind of athlete than marathon running or triathlon racing. The combination of basically running up a hill and then bombing down in a sustained squat is incredibly challenging.
This weekend is the US Ski Mountaineering Association race at Grand Targhee. Every year, I want to do this race just to see what would happen, and again I'm behind the ball in remembering to find out when it is (it just started snowing here in Pocatello!). This is definitely on my "some-day" list.
Ski mountaineering, in it's basic sense, is hiking uphill with skis on ("skins" give you traction) and then bombing back down to the bottom and then doing another "lap.' Sometimes, a bootpack is included, which is when you take off your skis and hike in your boots. And you can win alot of time in transition by being quick about getting your skins on and off, so there is not much of a break between the uphill and downhill portions.
Overall, it is INCREDIBLY DEMANDING on the aerobic side. I love to go backcountry skiing (the recreational equivalent of skimo) for the aerobic aspect!
Luke Nelson is racing in it this year, and I wish him the best of luck in his adventures. About 5 or 6 years ago, we ran together in a local trail race, and he was really fast (and I was really slow). In any case, that's when I first met him, and he's a great guy. Since then, he has become a truly world-class skimo and trail race / ultramarathon guy. Check out his blog. And he lives right here in Pocatello.
In the previous post, I discussed the different clothes you'll need to start cross-country skiing.
In this post, I'll talk about the gear you'll need. This gear will allow you to ski fairly efficiently on local trails in powder or a ski-track or on a groomed trail. These are not the skis that you can make downhill turns with (although I hear some people do). Also, this is not the gear that will get you on the podium in any cross-country ski races. This is medium-grade gear that will get you out on the trails and break that cabin fever!
Skis: I like the Rossignol BC70 as a great all-purpose cross-country ski. It is about the widest ski that will fit into a groomed track, and it comes with metal edges for control on descents. Definitely get metal edges! And you'll also want to get the "scales" on the bottom that allow you to get some traction going uphill....you shouldn't need climbing skins for basic cross-country ski adventures; those are used for more advanced backcountry skiing.
Bindings: The bindings are a very important piece of the equation here. To increase the capability of your skis (but adding only a few dollars to the cost), you certainly want to get NNN-BC bindings. These bindings have a little bit thicker bar on them where you click-in your boots to the skis, thereby increasing your stability.
Boots: Boots are a very personal decision, and I don't want to send anyone in the wrong direction here by recommending a specific boot. Some of the things to look for in a boot are
1) Proper fit (no kidding, right?)
2) Zippers. Do you really want zippers that can freeze up or break? I don't like them, but others do.
3) Ankle stability. The pair of boots I got don't have a plastic strip on the ankle that can provide stability. I wish I had paid extra for that. Definitely consider the upgrade to a pair of boots that has a plastic stability strip around the ankle and a velcro strap across the shin.
4. Waterproofness. Consider that your feet will be sliding through snow for several hours, in contact with that snow against the warmth of your foot and boot....all that produces water. Water and cold and feet don't mix! Try to get a pair of boots that has really good waterproofing. Full plastic boots is probably overkill, though.
5. Eyelets. Like the zippers, lacing eyelets can break and freeze-up. I prefer a standard boot-lacing system over multiple laceing eyelets.
Poles: When you buy the skis, you can consider getting poles. You'll definitely need the poles. But...you might already have a pair for backpacking or whatever. The general-purpose trekking poles work just fine, but the powder baskets tend to get lost alot more than you might expect.....and the poles don't work without the powder basket. I think this is more of a financial decision than anything else if you already have trekking poles, but the default answer is to get the poles that come with the skis, especially if you are into a package deal.
Backpack: I'm assuming you want to get out and ski local trails and not in a resort area. You'll definitely need a backpack to carry assorted items. For starters, you'll NEED the TEN ESSENTIALS of being outdoors. I recommend you also carry those extra gloves and socks I mentioned in the clothes post the other day. I sometimes take a small camp stove and hot chocolate mix if I'm with a crew that is more about experience than the workout...or I'm taking my kids out for the day(!). ALWAYS PACK A HEADLAMP for the same reasons that you pack the heavy socks and gloves. The backpack should have a place for a water bladder, of course. I recommend that it have a flap or stash-pocket on the outside to secure layers on the outside of the pack (putting them inside the pack takes time and gets all the inside-stuff wet).
Finally, as far as food and such goes, take the same stuff you would take on a long bike ride and then add some good "fillers" like cookies...hey, this is supposed to be fun!
With winter now in full swing and enough snow on the ground, it's tough to maintain running volume for triathlon training. Solution? Cross-country skiing!
I'm a big fan of cross-country skiing, and after a big adventure recently, I wanted to share some start-up tips with anyone thinking about getting into cross-country skiing out on local trails. I'm not a competitive cross-country skiier, and almost all of my gear is bought with multiple, year-round uses in mind...think hiking, fishing, skiing, running, biking, mountain biking all using some of the same gear. So, you won't find much sport-specific gear here. These tips and gear recommendations are meant to get you skiing as efficiently as possible without breaking the bank.
Starting with clothes, you have to figure what kind of weather you'll be in most of the time. For me, that means about 10 - 25 degrees with some 10 - 20 mph winds. It might still be snowing when I go out. And of course, you need layers; you can't be out there skiing with a big jacket because you'll be nice and warm for the first ten minutes, burning-up-hot and sweating while skiing, and then instantly cold from being wet in the cold the second you stop.
Here are my recommendations from top to bottom for clothes. Please keep in mind that the links are to an online store to give you a picture of what I'm talking about....there are generally cheaper places to find the same thing if you look around on the internet. And remember, cotton kills in the backcountry.
Hat: any basic fleece beany will do great. I prefer fleece because it breathes well. You might consider the type of headband that lets the top of your head vent while keeping your ears warm (I did this for a year but never really like the feel of it, although it worked great).
Neck gaiter: not really needed, but you might want one to wear on the way to the trailhead.
Sunglasses: get a good pair of polarized, UV-stopping sunglasses. They should be all plastic. Get some that have a built-in nosepads; the ones with additional pieces that attach to the pads tend to bend and break.
Base layer: I like a technical t-shirt (generally the kind you get as a freebie in your race goody-bag) as a base layer. They tend to dry quickly and don't rub on the skin.
Second layer: This is usually a long-sleeve technical shirt, but sometimes I go with cotton (against my own rules, but this layer doesn't get much sweat on it).
Third layer: Very light fleece jacket that zips up. You don't want a pullover because you can't vent it as easily as a zip-up. A 3/4 zip fleece could probably work pretty well.
Outer jacket layer: This is the real protection from wind, cold, and snow/rain. As such, I usually just wear a standard outdoors backountry-style rain jacket like a Marmort Precip, and it works great. Make sure you have pit zips and some velcro around the wrists to crank-down on your gloves if you're in a section where you might fall (this keeps snow out of your gloves and wrist area). A hood is needed, too, and it should be adjustable so that it doesn't come down over your eyes when you put the hood over your head.
Gloves: light fleece will normally be enough unless you get into windy conditions, in which case you need something that can break the wind. I normally carry two extra pairs of gloves in my pack, in addition to the ones on my hands, for a total of three pairs of gloves. Hey, if your hands get cold, it will ruin your trip! So, the three pair of gloves I carry at a minimum: one light fleece, one light glove that has an exterior that can break the wind, and then one set of very warm backcountry gloves in case something goes wrong (broken leg, get lost, etc) and I need some really good gloves for an extended period of time.
Underwear: I just wear standard, every-day cotton boxers. Yes, that's against my personal rules again, but it is a minor point.
First layer on the legs: I like wearing a pair of lightweight running pants next to my legs. If I start sweating alot, this layer soaks up sweat. These are not cotton!
Second layer on the legs: I have a pair of heavier outdoor pants that are nice and durable and provide protection against abrasions,of various sorts or snow or wind if I'm skiing without snowpants. Cargo pockets are a must.
Outer layer snowpants: I normally but not always wear a pair of snow pants to protect against wind, cold, and snow when I fall. I've had a pair of North Face Freedom pants for ten years. These are full-zip without a cargo pocket, and they don't make them like this anymore (now they replace the full-zip pants with a cargo pocket). I don't recommend the insulated versions because they will be too hot, even if you open up all the vents....the insulated versions are for downhill skiing when you have to sit on a lift. I wish my pants had a cargo pocket, but I'll take the full-zip over the cargo pocket. I found a cheap pair of suspenders to use with these, too, to keep the pants up where they belong....I think bibs are overkill and probably too hot. When these pants finally give up the ghost...as in they have too many rips and don't hold out the water (the North Face Hyvent is VERY good waterproof material, by the way).....I'll probably get the new style of these North Face Freedom pants.
Socks: Smart Wool!! That is all that needs to be said about the type of socks. Like gloves, I carry always carry multiple pairs of socks with me, and the reasoning is the same as the gloves. If your feet get cold, it will ruin your trip! I like a medium pair of smart wool on my feet, a similar pair in the backpack, and then a heavy pair added to the backpack for the "just in case" events that will make me slow down (again, a broken leg, getting lost, etc).
Next post will review the kind of equipment you need to get out on the trails for cross-country skiing.
Yes, I know this is a triathlon blog. But in the middle of the winter, I think it's appropriate to throw in some cross-training love. So here it is!
Me and ski-buddy-Steve took advantage of slowness at work and vacation time to complete a big ski day we've been planning for a couple years. Steve has done this route before, but I haven't.
I was looking for a long route with some fresh, untracked powder, and the desire to say "I am completely done skiing for today and probably the next week." I got what I was looking for!
This route is a lollipop of about 11 miles, with 2,000ft gain and 2,000ft back. The ball of the lollipop is the fun part because nobody really goes there. I remember sections of this route from the when I ran relay section of the Pocatello 50 race a couple years ago, too.
We left work at 11:00. Stepped-off at the trailhead a few miles out of town at noon. It's awesome that it's that close, and it feels like you are in the middle of nowhere while you're out there.
The first part, the stick of the lollipop, was the standard fare for that area, which I've skied several times. It was all tracked up. This time, somebody had gone through with a four-wheeler and put some really deep ruts in the track that are just barely too narrow for cross-country skis (btw, thanks dude...I guess the rules of no-motorized-vehicles don't apply to you!). But it was still doable.
The weather was great. About 25 degrees. Constantly falling snow...just enough to keep the skies a bit white against the gray clouds. I dressed just right, too, was breaking a bit of a sweat but nothing serious.
We broke into the loop of the lollipop, and the four-wheel track went away. We were into single track as expected. BEAUTIFUL!
Thirty minutes later, we were into the untracked powder. We broke trail for two hours on the ball of the lollipop. It was AWESOME! It was great to stop and take in the incredible silence. You can't hear that kind of silence in town or anywhere but deep into a forest like that. No birds. No cars. No animals. Nothing. Wow!
The mostly black, white, and grey scenery is busted up here with some trail signs. See the blue square on the tree nearest the camera? And the yellow sign towards the back-center of the photo (hint: follow the ski track)? That's how you navigate these trails. If there are no signs, you can generally tell where the trail goes by looking for a "tunnel" in the trees.
We got to our trail intersection that meant we were heading down and home. This was at the four-hour point now! And it was 4pm! I was wanted to be home at 5pm and was supposed to be at home at 6pm. It was looking like I would be lucky to be home at 6pm. We pointed our skis down the hill.
This downhill wasn't fast, but it was nice to finally not have to go uphill. And we were on a single-track that somebody had been on before, so it was kind of fast. Life was good.
There was steep section that we both had worried about. Normally, it's hard but doable. Today was barely doable for me, not doable for Steve. The four-wheeler had made it to that point and put in the ruts! It's hard to steer cross-country skis in those ruts. I fell several times. I swore. I thought I broke a finger when I fell. I got snowy and wet. Then I realized I needed to get control of my circumstances....and from there it went well. But I still hope Mr/Mrs Four-wheeler realizes the impact he/she has, and I wonder how many knees will be broke because of those ruts, and how many people won't want to ski again because of the experience with those ruts? Anyway...
Sun and clouds on Scout Mountain.
As it got dark, the "blueness" kicked in strong. This pick also shows the sagebrush section of the route. Most of it is in the trees, but this section is up on a ridgeline with nothing but snow. Glad the wind wasn't blowing when we were on here because I'm pretty sure it could get intense.
It was getting dark at 5:30. We pressed to get to the car before "real" dark hit. I got there at 5:40. Steve pulled in at 5:50. I got home at 6:10, just a bit late, and wifey was cool with it.
We were both absolutely beat-down and tired.
Points to Ponder about this awesome ski day:
1. It took me 5hrs 40 minutes, about the same as my 70.3 in September. Maybe I'm not in such bad shape after all. I feel like I felt after that triathlon! I'm going to hurt tomorrow. This is definitely getting into the local backcountry!
2. I love the silence of the forest.
3. I love that this trailhead is only about 20 minutes from the house. Many other trail options are available, too.
4. I want to mountain bike that trail in the summer. Could start before sunrise and solve the "how do I bike outside in the dark" dilemma (I don't like biking on a road in the dark). But a slow uphill climb til the sun comes up seems doable.
5. Why is it that only a guy that is much older than me will go on these adventures with me? I hope I'm in good as shape as he is when I'm "that age."
6. It's great to have a job and family that provides flexibility to do something like this.
If you're getting interested in cross-country skiing as a great way to cross-train for triathlon in the winter, I'll be putting together a gear-list and things think about to get you started in the next week.
I'm also planning a post on the ways that cross-country skiing (and backcountry skiing) are great ways to stay in shape for triathlon during the winter. It really does work!
Back from the yurt. We made it a short trip to keep our wives happy or at least closer to happy that if we had been gone early Saturday to late Sunday. Oh yeah, I guess I have a super bowl party to go to, too.
Swam Saturday morning before the yurt trip. About 2,400 yards. Lots of breast-stroke, which I'm not a fan of but it's still swimming. So, the swim workout wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.
Home at 9:15 from swimming. Out the door to the yurt trip at 10:55.
AWESOME weather for the trip! Sunny and no wind. It was like a nice spring day instead of early February when it is normally blowing snow and cold and generally really crappy weather. Hike up to the top from the lift was good. Saw the guys who had the yurt the night before; thanked them ahead of time for shovelling all the snow that I thought (and was confirmed) probably hit the area in the last week or so.
Ski'd down with our packs on. I kept my pack light this time. Snow was ok, but there was still some rocky areas that we had to look out for, and this was at 7,500 - 8,000 ft! Beautiful day though!
We found the yurt, if only by following the tracks of the guys there the night before. Finding the yurt can always be tricky if you haven't been there before. The backup plan was to use a GPS, of course. No need for that this time.
We took a break and then climbed up to nearly the top of the mountain again for nice run in the afternoon. This was about 1,600 vertical feet. Not alot by some standards but a nice rise for sure. That took an hour. We took our time on the way down and got in some nice turns.
Dinner and relaxation, then night ops! We did four runs on a nice little stretch of open area. The 75% illumination from the moon lit the place up like the night time! Quite awesome, and that's what I love about yurting. Crisp and cold in the moonlight with nobody but the Yetis within many miles.
Sunday morning we woke up and got going right after 9:00am. I figured it would take one hour twenty minutes to get to the ridgeline 1,900 ft above us, and that's what it took me. The wind picked up near the top and cooled it off, but before that the early morning sun in the still air felt hot while skinning up the hill. Then we skied down through the trees to link up with the lift-served side, which we bombed down. My legs were fried when we got down. Cheeseburger and fries before heading home!
AWESOME skiing! Not as out of shape as I thought! Looking forward to a couple more yurt nights. I'm taking Paul to a yurt with cross-country skis in early March.
Winter has never really arrived in the valley here in Pocatello. There's plenty of snow above 6,000ft. I don't have to mow, and I don't have to shovel. Life is good, right?
I like to have snow on the ground in the winter. And I like to see my breath when I walk out to the car in the morning in February. That hasn't been happening.
But it's nice not to freeze my butt off on my way to a dark, early morning swim workout!
If only I was taking advantage of warm lunch hours and running 4-6 miles every day. Then I'd be making some progress towards my goals. However, it seems like there is always something going on at lunch the last couple of weeks.
This weekend is the annual yurt trip! I'm very excited about the trip. But I'm not excited about probable bad snow. And I'm sure I'm not in the aerobic condition of years past that allowed me to cruise uphill with no problems.
I haven't been running in a month, and my biking has been minimal; mostly because I can't recover properly from the swim workouts, and getting up at 0430 every day isn't working very well. And if I did wake-up, any workout would be interrupted for 15 minutes while I change and feed Noah at 5:22 or 5:46 every morning (those are his standard options for wake-up times; very strange that the clock always seems to say one of those times!).
My dilemma is if I go to swim practice before I go to on the yurt trip. I could hit swimming from 8-9 Saturday, and then leave the house at 10 for the yurt trip. That would put us at the lift at 10:30. We take the lift up most of the way to the top, skin to the top of the mountain, then ski down to the yurt to drop our gear, then skin back up about 2,200 feet for another run. If we do that 2,200ft climb three times, we'll be more than ready for bed at 8pm! Hopefully we'll have enough left in us to get in a short night run under a bright half-moon sky.
Spent some time cross country skiing instead of biking and running today….well worth the effort! We went no-kidding “cross country” for the first half, getting off the trail and heading up a ridgeline as if we were backcountry skiing. Our goal was to hook into our favorite trail for a quick trip home. Total of 2.5 hours skiing. INCREDIBLE WEATHER! Warm but not too warm to make the snow stick. Sunny and no wind! Living the dream!
Went for another ski today. This time pulled Paul up the standard Scout Mountain route. It was quite warm today yet, and very windy in town. But up on the hill it was cloudy and still in the trees. The last storm dumped rain up to probably 7,000 feet, maybe 7500 feet looking at where the snow melted. Crazy stuff for mid-January.
I know XC Skiing is supposed to be a great workout, but I think I was just kind of slogging along today. I definitely broke a sweat, though. But after the effort coming back from the yurt, most everything will feel easy.
I slept in this morning, so no bike trainer workout.
I put the "Local Hero" video from Sufferfest on my phone. Looking forward to working it tomorrow.
So this weekend was a yurt weekend, which is always a favorite weekend. We take the lift up to the top of the mountain and then traverse two miles over to yurt. Or, we could climb about four miles and 2300 feet, but I think at $15 one-time lift ticket is worth it. I'll give you a trip report later, but first I want to put this trip in terms of training.
I track my training volume using a points system I got off slowtwitch.com:
- run 1/4 mile = 1 point
- bike 1 mile = 1 point
- swim 100 yards = 1 point.
This point system isn't perfect, but it gives a better idea than just time alone can do. It doesn't provide a measure of intensity, which is what I'm really looking for. And it doesn't allow for someone to be good at sport and not-so-good at anther. For me specifically, the effort level and time needed for 100 yards swimming is much less than running 1/4 mile but about the same as biking one mile (although the swim is 90 seconds and the bike would be 2 mins 30 seconds).
A friend climbs up the hill on a nice day......last year! Weather this weekend was near-zero visibility.
So, the question becomes: How many points do I count for this weekend's ski effort? This isn't walk-in-the-park skiing, either. It is a significant effort to get to the yurt, and very difficult to get back (climbing alot in the snow!). It took 90 minutes to get over to the yurt, most of it downhill except some traversing and a 15 minute climb. Overall, I think it felt like a four mile run, so that's what I'm calling it (16 points). Then, because the snow was so crappy with a quarter-inch ice crust on it, we decided we didn't want to ski for turns. Instead, we would do a little cross-country tour down in the valley. I figure that was 4 miles each way.....but downhill was significantly easier than uphill, which wasn't that bad either. Anyway, although it was 8 miles and four hours round trip, I'm calling it equivalent to an eight mile run (32 points), giving me 48 points for the day.
Now, coming home this morning was a bit different. It is two miles from the yurt to the saddle where the downhill starts, but there is significant climbing. It takes just under 90 minutes or so. I'm calling this equivalent to a very hard 12 mile run, though, because that's how I feel afterwards. It really whoops me!. So, 48 points going home. Although my legs burn alot on the downhill coming home, I'm not going to count the downhill today.
There you go..... how I score backcountry skiing and cross country skiing. Very subjective. Tomorrow, when I go cross country skiing with Paul and use actual cross-country skis (much lighter than backcountry skis!), I'm count each mile as one point, even though I'm pulling Paul. If I wasn't pulling Paul, each mile would be a half-point. This is because of the glide involved and the near-zero-effort for going downhill. Overall, I think that's how the points should work for me to maintain some consistency of what a point "feels" like.
How was the skiing? The downhill skiing sucked because of a think ice crust. Not sure how that got there because it was at all elevations, even up high on the ridgeline. So we didn't look for turns. The cross country tour was a great alternative because it was something we normally wouldn't do but was scenic, and the weather was much nicer and visibility significantly better down low.
Oh yeah, the weather: heavy wet snow at the yurt this morning while we ate a Jimmy Dean maple sausage (yum!) and coffee. Then wind blown hell up to the ridgeline and over to the saddle with short calm periods in the trees, and then basically rain on the lift-served side of Pebble as we came down. My outer layers were soaked from rain when we got to the bottom, but they held the rain off my fleece layer underneath.
The yurt was awesome as always. I don't know why, but I love spending a night in the yurt. It's a great way to get out and going camping in the winter without freezing to death.
Here's a map of where we were: Click on "full map" to get a topo version:
My living room is down there somewhere, which is why I'm up here and looking down!
So, I've taken the last week off, kind of. After a good three weeks of consistent running and biking, I needed a week of rest. This week, between Christmas and New Year's, seems like a great week to take a break, at least sleep in. Another part of me thinks that this is the week that could be some really big volume; if I'm a few minutes late to work in the morning or after lunch, noboby will notice or care because 1) they probably aren't even there, and 2) they are probably late, too(!).
Anyway, I say I've taken the week off "kind of" because I did a three-hour cross country tour last Thursday afternoon. And today I did a 3.5hour backcountry tour to the top of a local mountain I've been eyeing from my living room window. The mountain top looks great and seems like it would be a skiing heaven, but everything looks different up close. In the picture above, I'm at the top of Wild Horse Mountain and looking down towards the Portneuf Valley and Pocatello, with Idaho State University and my house in the middle of the picture.
This3.5hour tour took alot more out of me than I expected. Mostly because I broke a pole 30 minutes into it and decided to keep going! Ha! Backcountry skiing, mostly hiking, is difficult with just one pole. I figure I got a great ab workout of the deal because that is the core of balance needed on skis. I didn't get a lot of turns in, maybe a total of 30 linked turns total, but it was a great day to be out and about, and my expectation was to do more hiking to see this area than to get turns.
Anyway, it was a great day in the mountains, and I finally got up to the mountain that has been calling me from my living room. And it was great workout. I'm putting it down as the equivalent of a twelve mile run......it feels more like an 18 mile run, but I'm going with 12 because I like to be a bit conservative that way.
Update: I did the route in mapmyrun at http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/us/id/pocatello/155129376609373579
Winter came on strong here in southeast Idaho last week. But NO WORRIES! I got this figured out. Here are a few thoughts about winter training in the snow and cold.
1. How bad will it really be? 4 miles is 40 minutes at the most, so how cold can you get in 40 minutes when you're putting forth at least some effort? Nothing that five minutes in a hot shower can't fix.
2. Plan to stay out of the wind. Really, it's the wind that is the real culprit in the winter, not the cold. If you dress with layers and cover all the skin, the plain old cold doesn't really get you. It's the wind whipping around and THROUGH your jacket that gets you. So plan to run a route in some trees or at least not in the open areas that are getting blasted by the wind.
3. Get warmed up in the house. It's very difficult to leave a nice warm bed next to your next warm spouse to go out into the freezing cold. It's so easy just to snuggle up for another hour or two, and you'd get major cool points from your wife or hubby, right? To win this mental battle early in the morning when you're not even awake yet, plan at least 15-20 minutes of warmup time in the house to get your blood flowing and maybe a couple cups of coffee in you if that's how you roll. The key is to create a transitional period.
4. Enjoy the SUN! It might be cold, but the sun is shining on many afternoons. Get out there and play in the sun! Plan your runs for the middle of the day, and your gyms and swims in the dark times. Plenty of scientific studies say the sun is good for morale, and common sense says the same.
5. Cross Train! Break out the skis. Personally, I think a day in the backcountry hiking up big hills and then maintaining control on the way down is the hardest workout I do. Cross-country skiing is a great option, too. Don't worry so much about whether you cut a bike or a run to add skiing....the point is to break up the monotony of indoor training and GET OUTSIDE! The positive mental aspects of a break in the monotony will far surpass any issues with missing a bike or run that you do half-ass cuz you just aren't into it mentally.
6. Get organized. You've probably read all about how proper organization can help. That is doubly important in the winter because of the extra gear needed to stay warm. Multiple sets of gear help, too. Here are the setups I have, all with old gear that I had laying around and not really being used (ie I didn't spend a ton of money):
1. A warm top and bottom laid out next to the bed so I can get up easily and get going.
2. Bike trainer clothes. Also, I have a coffee pot with a timer downstairs by the bike trainer room. More than once the smell of the coffee already brewing has gotten me to get out of bed!
3. A set of shoes, pants, jacket, hat, gloves, and shorts/shirt for the one mile run to the gym after the bike trainer workout. They are staged by the bike trainer every day to make a quick transition from the bike to the gym for lifting weights (generally only a winter workout).
4. Set of shoes, pants, jacket, shorts, shirt, hat, and gloves staged at work for running at lunch. I keep it simple and use the same gear each day of the week, taking it home only on Fridays to wash it over the weekend. That might sound gross to some people, but it keeps me from forgetting anything more than one day.
It takes about five minutes each night to restage everything in the house and setup the coffee to start brewing five minutes before I should be getting to the coffee pot in the morning.
And what if you forget something? Go anyway! Today I forgot my socks, and I knew I'd be running through some snow and slush. Oh well, nothing a five minute hot shower won't be able to fix afterwards. And do you know what? They didn't even get cold in the 18 degree weather...just a little wet as if it was raining and 50 degrees.
Bottom line: there are only a few no-kidding good excuses for not training (running) outside in the winter; generally you can work around all the standard "but it's winter" excuses. For me, blizzard conditions, significant ice coverage on my running paths, or other unsafe conditions will keep me inside for a day or two at the most.
Ski'd yesterday and today, pretty much the same distance, except today was a bit longer and with Paul on my back. That extra 40 pounds makes quite a difference! About 6 and 8 miles respectively, first hour all uphill followed by 25 minutes downhill cruising.
Anyway....I love living a 20 minute drive from a great XC ski area. This year I expect to do more XC skiing than backcountry simply because Paul is getting older now, and I'll need to take him to leave Tera in a quiet house on a few afternoons so she can get some much-needed sleep.
I'm definitely considering getting the chariot xc ski setup. We have a really nice backpack for the baby, but I would much rather pull than pack. In the future, after the kids are all grown up, I envision using it then as a pulk to get our gear to snow camps and ski camps or ice-fishing or something like that.
At my Marine Corps Reserve Drill this weekend, we did lunges during our PT session. We did ALOT of lunges. After a three mile run and returning back to the "grinder," a large asphalt parking lot area used for military parades, we started the lunges. At one end of the grinder, the Commanding Officer lined us up and said, "Lunges, all the way to the other side." Well, the other side was 200 yards away!
The next day everyone was sore. I was incredibly sore right in the glutes that are used for bicycling. Mmmmmmmm......maybe I really do need to do these lunge things more often. I did a Spinnerval video last winter (rented from mypypeline) that had us get off the bike and do lunges.....I was sore for two days after that and told myself I need to do more lunges. Well, I never got to incorporating that.
Now, it seems that my weight lifting routine is only 25 minutes long this year, instead of the 30 minutes that it was last year and all the years before it. That means I have five minutes to fill, and I started filling it with lunges this morning.
Spent Saturday and Sunday backcountry skiing the local mountains. Spent Saturday night in the yurt....I really love that place. The weather was really awesome, sunny and no wind. The "no wind" part is what was so great; I've never been there without 20+mph winds. The snow was not so good, but good enough to get some turns. On the ridgeline, we could see forever. The Grand Teton was in plain view, as were all the mountain ranges of central Idaho. Great skiing, and the workout was as awesome as ever; going uphill is never easy but always worth it when you get to go back down.
Went to Yellowstone this past weekend for some hiking and fishing with family. Five mile hike in to the fishing, and then five miles back out. Good for two hours of cross-training each day, plus a whole day of fishing on the river. For some reason, my calves got really sore. I always sleep GREAT in the backcountry, and this night was certainly an awesome night of sleep.
Ran 6.1 miles in the heat today, with hills, in 49:31, beating my previous time under similar heat and rest conditions by 30 seconds. I thought I lost alot of fitness in June and the first two weeks of July, but that appears not to be the case. Woohhhooo! Tomorrow I find out if I lost any endurance on the bike.
Yesterday wore me out, but I didn't know it til this morning. My legs were completely dead. So no run this morning. I bike to work most days in the summer, and I have to go uphill about a mile; my legs didn't like that this morning.
Did a standard hill workout on the bike at lunch. Times were off about ten percent, 9 minutes instead of 8. Very tired.
I'm running an 18-mile leg of the Pocatello 50 mile trail run this weekend, so I need to be careful with my legs. I thought I could front-load alot of the work into Monday, Tuesday, and first half of Wednesday, but that is obviously not working. I was supposed to do a 40k bike today, but that would have really killed my legs. The trail race is for fun, but I don't want to be dead-legs going into it.
And yesterday was indeed really hot. Weather service says it was a record day with 91.
Last day of cross-training! Got in a 90 minute uphill ski of about 3000 feet. One short run on the Pebble backside with fair snow. Then we came down from the top into South Bowl. Again, the snow was a bit heavy and the turns were pretty tight amongst some of the trees, but who cares what the snow is like on a day like this? Sunny skies, very little wind, and about 50 degrees on the mountain. This little adventure wrapped up the ski season for the year. I think I finally have it out of my system for a few months!
This morning I did a 40k bike ride. I didn't push real hard and came in at 1:21. Going out, I averaged 22mph, and when I turned around I realized why it was so fast....the wind was pushing hard. On the way back, I averaged only 15.75, and I took a couple breaks along the way to just kind of cruise and enjoy the incredibly awesome morning, sunny skies and snow in the local mountains. I got a late start because I wanted it to be at least 45 degrees when I started, so I didn't get going til 9am. My toes still froze, and I'm glad I wore pants and a long sleeve! I didn't run because there wasn't enough time between the bike and departure for skiing.
All in all, this is my kind of day. Bike, ski, and tonight Tera and I are going out for dinner and a play at Century High School. Woohoo! Grandma and Great Aunt get to take care of Paul tonight.
A most AWESOME and BEAUTIFUL day here in Southeast Idaho. The weather man had been forecasting this day since last Sunday, and the rain/snow he was forecasting during the week came, too. So the plan since last week was to go skiing today, thinking it's probably the last of the year. There will definitely be enough snow for at least three weeks, but the lift is closed after today, which means that it's a one hour hike up the hill.
Anyway, we got in two runs plus the lift-side run back down to the car. The skies were blue and there was NO wind. Incredible day! Snow was good. Not great, but good. And on a day like this, who cares what the snow is like? It's just great to get on the skis under blue skies finally.
So I logged 3.5 hours of cross-training today w/ average heart rate of 140. Quads and hamstrings got burned up pretty good, and my face would have been sunburned but I put on sunscreen three times and my face still got a bit red.
So I think that the skiing is out of my system now but I'm still holding out for maybe a couple of hours next week.
Next weekend is the Bengal Triathlon in Pocatello. It's a really early season triathlon. Pool swim of 700 yards on Friday night followed by sprint distance bike and run on Saturday morning on the same routes that I workout on. Still not sure I'll do it. I guess I'm waiting to see what the weather is supposed to be like....I'm definitely a fair-weather biker, and I draw the line for running at a heavy rain and high winds w/ temps under 40 degrees.
For anyone not in Pocatello, the photo shows what the standard slope looks like:
I've decided to drop the weight lifting from my PT schedule for the foreseeable future. I felt much stronger in the pool Wed and Frid (this morning), and I'm pretty sure it's because I wasn't lifting weights and was a getting a good recovery.
My 1x1500 swim this morning was 24:30, which is slow for me. I looked at my logs from Aug 08, and I was swimming 1500 in 21 minutes, when I wasn't lifting. So at this point, I'm jumping to the conclusion that it's because I wasn't lifting weights last summer.
Foreced myself to run today. 5.3 miles. Cool and windy. I really didn't want to run, but I reminded myself that I'm now into true race-prep phase and I need to get in the run miles. These were not "junk" miles. I did it simply to ensure I can do the 18 miles during the Pocatello 50 in six weeks! Times were the same as I was running in January but I ran it at a bit less effort level. Average heart rate today was 141 versus a 154 for the same time in January.
It's snowing right now. I think there is more snow in the local mountains now than there has been any other time this winter. What's up with that?! So I'm going skiing on Sunday, and it's supposed to be sunny and 50-60degrees with just a bit of wind. I'm pumped. I might have to go next weekend, too! Cross-training should be done at this point in my annual training plan, but I can't say no to what should be some great powder after the weather we've had the last several days.
And I called up the bike shop today. I should be able to test out a 70mm and 80mm stem, and purchase for $40-$80. I need to make that happen so I can get used to it in the 2 1/2 months I have before my first race.
Weather on Monday and Tuesday is supposed to be nice. Sunny and 50. Woohooo! I might have to add bike workout to Monday to get out on the road. Wednesday and later look cool and wet.
traverse two miles over to yurt. Or, we could climb about four miles and 2300 feet, but I think at $15 one-time lift ticket is worth it. I'll give you a trip report later, but first I want to put this trip in terms of training.
