AndyPants' Blog

What a weekend!

2008-10-13T05:13:00.000-07:00

It's a bit cloudy this morning, as I sit in the Westchester Airport waiting for my flight to O'Hare. But the last few days the weather has been perfect.

Friday morning I managed a nice easy 2hr ride through SUNY, New Paltz and out to Rosendale. I stopped in the local bike shop in New Paltz, The Bicycle Depot, and they helped me figure out why the bike was shifting so badly: the rear derailleur hanger wan totally bent! A couple quick turns of the wrenches and it was running smoothly again. Flying with bikes is hard on them, that is certain. Got back to the Shack, had a shower, ate and loafed on the couch, watching movies and sports on the giant tv.

Saturday was a total loafing day. We watched college football (Texas vs. Oklahoma), then started watching the Kona coverage on the laptop. That men's race was unbelievably exciting, but the women's only had one interesting part: where Chrisse Wellington got a flat and appeared to not be able to change her tire. Lots of bitching on ST (me included) about how many women can't perform even the most basic maintenance on their bikes. It turned out that Chrisse had run out of CO2. After she regained the lead on the bike, it was pretty dull to watch, although she did break the run course record for Kona!

A bunch more STers showed up, some staying with us, some not:

John (tetsuoni), Dawn (DawnT), Kat (lurker?), Tamela (DirtGirl), oh man two guys whose names I can't remember right now - I suck - Fred (fred_h), me, Chad (cdw).

Tried to crash early but I had trouble getting to sleep before midnight almost every night. Got up at 5am, far too early, race day. Cold, clear, crisp - perfect! But what the hell to wear??? Just wing it I think. Yeah LOL.

Get to the park (above), and start setting up. Look at that view!!! It is amazing out there! Met a few other STers, like Murphy's Law, tyler_durden, tri_yoda, parkito my man was there too, and some guy from a bikeshop in Buffalo, NY where AndyPants is apparently quasi famous... hunh?

Watch the long course folks start at 7:30, then wait around and try to warm up before our start at 8:30. I decided to go with knickers, a tanktop and a long sleeve shirt overtop of the tank. Gloves, visor and toe wamers were the accessories for the day. Good choices it seemed, it was cool in the shade and warm in the sun. The run was nothing but up and down up and down up and down. I decided before I started to walk every uphill, period. I was aiming for a slow 1h for the 5miles. I came in at 1:00:34, bang on. Passed a few people in transition, headed out on the bike, and immediately hit the first big climb.

Man oh man, that first climb seemed a lot harder than when I rode it on Thursday. I could barely turn the cranks over. Ugh. And when I got up out of the saddle, my calves wewre pretty grumpy. Being my first Du, I have to admit I thought it was going to be worse - Chad kept talking about "butt lock" that you get on the bike right after the run. Well, I didn't get butt lock, more like calf lock. They were close to seriously cramping the entire ride. Well except for my ~30min break in the middle of the ride.

Oh, yeah, a 30-40min break. Seriously. I flatted once, around mile 15, just after finishing a large climb. I heard my front pop, heard the hiss, and decided to roll downhill as long as I could before it was totally flat. Well, I'd advise no one to do that. Wow, did that bike ever become hard to manouever. Pretty freaky. Changed the tube, barely got it inflated with my new CO2 cartidge & valve and carried on. Not 2min later, the rear went. However I had no tube and no air. Fantastic. Karma was biting me square in the camping calves. I decided to walk. I mean I was ~14-15miles away from transition, away from anything really, but what else to do? I must have walked about 2miles, downhill at least. One fellow stopped and asked what I needed, and I said (stupidly): "A tube". So he gave me one and rode away. Wait! I need air too! Doh! So I changed the tire anyways, and then kept walking. Eventually another good samaritan asked what I needed, and this time I answered correctly: "A cartridge!". Got the tire pumped up, and got back on the bike.

The irony of the situation had not been lost on me, and while I wasn't going to win anything (I was DFL at this point), I was going to finish dammit. Finished my ride, racked the bike, and headed out on the second 5mi run. I was going to use the exacgt same strategy of walking up all hills, and I ended up with a run time about 10min slower, I can live with that. I used flat cola and a few gels on the bike, and had a gel on the run, which seemed to work OK, but I drank too much coffee in the morning, my gut felt bloated and I had to pee on both runs (not right). I think I need to drink less coffee, and likely switch back to decaf for when I do drink it. See if that helps alleviate that "gut bomb" feeling.

After all was said and done, I apparently won 1st in AG - solely due to the fact that I was the only one in the AG! My trophy below:

There were a lot of DNFs, Chad and tyler_durden included unfortunately, but Tamlea and Kat did really well, as did Brian, Fred; Dawn and Parke both rocked as well. Murphy's Law was like 5th overall I think.

Post-race: chili and beer, how awesome is that?

Look at that spread? Three kinds of beer, three kinds of chili, cornbread, lots of coke, etc. Wicked awesome. After the last folks came in, we headed into New Paltz for Stumpkin beer (stout & pumpkin ale) at the Gilded Otter - after waiting in traffic for half an hour - apparently all the "leaf peepers" were driving back into the city after a day/weekend of looking at leaves. Crazy. Got to the Otter, it was packed, the Stumpkin was great, and so was the cheeseburger. Headed back to the Shack, showered, had a few more beers in my trophy, packed the bike and hit the hay.

So here I am waiting. I thought my flight was at 10am, apparently it's at noon. I suck. I guess I had told myself "gotta be there at 10... gotta be there at 10..." so many times, it became "the flight's at 10... the flight's at 10...". So I hauled my butt out of bed at 5am and drove the 90minutes from Highland to White Plains. As soon as I had returned the POS Saturn VUE, I realized my error. Doh! Two extra hours at the airport - no vehicle! Oh well, serves me right dammit.

What have I learned from this experience?
1: Less coffee in the morning period. Decaf or not.
2: Two CO2 cartidges, not one. Just in case I have problems with the first one. It wouldn't have solved my problems but it would have made it easier.
3: My running is terrible. Really terrible.
4: Considering #3 above, my strategy worked really well (for me).
5: I am a pretty descent climber. Not amazing but I get it done.

Did I meet my goals? I think so, the only exception being that I wanted to get in more exercise, particularly running, during my time. Well, that didn't happen - I mean I rode enough, but I ran squat except race day. And I wonder why my running sucks so much. I really have no choice any more, I need to just start running more, not harder, just more often. I really don't like running at lunch every day (2-3 times a week is enough), so I may have to try the early am sessions. Something to figure out.

In the meantime, my legs are pretty stuff - quads mostly - and my biceps - from climbing out of the saddle I think. And my lower back too, a bit. My first duathlon was a hard one. But I loved this race, and would do it again in a heartbeat. In fact, I think I'd like to do it again next year. I know P would really like this race: hills everywhere, beer everywhere, lots of great riding. How can you go wrong? ;-)

AP

Day 1 in Highland NY

2008-10-09T20:01:00.000-07:00

Wow it sure is beautiful here. I can't believe how beautiful. I mean every colour of fall, winding, climbing roads, azure skies and warm sun. It is amazing. I must come here again.

Dawn, Chad and I did the race loop today. What a great ride. Not easy, oh no. If the LC was a 2-looper, I'd be tempted. But I can't imagine doing THREE of those loops. Man am I glad I put on a 12-25!!! However, I loved this ride. 25degC, sunscreen required, hot hot hot on the climbs but cool cool cool in the shade of the descents. The climbs actually are OK, and challenging without being stupid (a la Whistler -> Lillooet). Some you have to get out of the saddle, but most are OK to just spin up. Very nice course.

Stopped into the local bike shop, Bicycle Depot, on Main street. Got a local team jersey ( my souvie) and a co2 and crackpipe, and a duraAce 53t ring - likley $20 -$40 cheaper than at home. Bah. Good shop, will ride in tomorrow, get some help with my rear der (indexing a bit off since the new cassette installed - not surprised). Yeah, will ride into town, boot a bit past then head back for a short transition run. Then we will pick apples in the owner's orchard - hah!

Dawn made ministrone (awesome BTW!), then wine and baseball/hockey and then bed. Ugh. Slow day. Tomorrow should be busier. Going to check out the run course tomorrow methinks. See what it's like. However I do miss P and our new mattress (P more than the mattress of course).

AP

On my way to AmZof!

2008-10-08T09:53:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here at YVR Gate 77, waiting for my flight to Westchester NY for American Zofingen, and I'm pretty stoked. I've never done a duathlon before, so this will be a new experience. I've never been to New York state either. My goals of this trip are as follows:

1: have fun and meet new STers.
2: have a solid race day, take the first leg easy, ride solid, then see what's left in the tank for the second run - really try to loosen those calves earlier than I did at Black Diamond.
3: no soy.
4: get in as much riding and running as I can during this trip.
5: nap every day.
6: drink a lot of beer.

I think, while it's a lot, it's do-able.

I decided to take the Soloist for this trip, and I may regret that decision, but I put on a new cassette (12-25 vs the 11-23 that was on) and if there's a half decent bike shop in the area, I will see about a 53t or 52t crankring to replace the 55t.

I have been riding a descent amount to and from work these days, and am feeling pretty good in the legs. Only managing two runs a week but they are starting to feel better, I think largely in part because I am not trying to push so hard in my runs - I am trying to stick to a descent effort level i.e.: RPE ~11 not ~15+. I want to feel like I could keep running, and even more important, that I could run the next day too. I think it will take a long time, and lot of shorter easy/steady pace sessions to get to the point where I can train every day. I am getting there, but the pace of improvement is frustrating.

I have an ultrasound scheduled for after my return. Hopefully this eliminates any possibility of DVTs. Then I meet with the neurologist a week later. I suspect he will have nothing useful to contribute either. I will try to go back to the endo and have her do a more detailed thyroid blood panel, that may be of more use.

Now I just need to get to the pool at least 1 day a week until spring. I will just have to suck it up and start forcing myself to go. Problem is I hate training in the evening after work. So it will have to be before work, which means a late morning (i.e.: getting to work late). Once OWC has moved to Burnaby, I will be able to go to Canada Games for the 6:30 opening (long course too!), then ride back to work (10min ride). That would work just fine. And if we're kid free we can drive if nec, or both ride in. Would be about a 45min ride to CGP from home I think. I might have to test it out one weekend.

Well, I'm going to sign off now, and I will post some pics of upstate NY as I get them. Looking forward to seeing Dawn again, and meeting some new folks!

TTYL,
AP

Signing up for IMC 09/Black Diamond OLY/I am an idiot.

2008-09-21T19:22:00.000-07:00

Well, it's done. I have given away $550 USD to NAS sports and signed up for IMC 2009, as did P. Jeebus we must be crazy folks. I honestly have no idea how we'll get all the training in but we will. My biggest problem will be the swim - the time for swimming seems the first thing to get cut when time gets short. My options include signing up for the Dolphins again (which will motivate me to get up early again), swim cords, sucking it up on my own, or some combination. I am pretty close to signing up for the Dolphins. I actually really miss those 5:30am swims. I figure I could swim 2-3 times a week, even if only for 1hr each session before having to cut out early and head home for kid detail/getting to work (LOL).

My second biggest problem will be my running. It sucks right now. I was back at my GP (again) for yet another round of tests. My legs hurt a lot, they swell very easily, as do my hands and lower arms. My neck always hurts, but I think that's my matress haha. This time she wants to rule out MS, ALS, and she is also sending me to a neurologist. I told her I was more concerned about my circulation than my nerves. I think it is time for a new GP. Can't hurt to get a second opinion, right? But if I can at least get in enough miles to have some run form, I'll manage. I'll manage.

The secret weapon for me - this time around - will actually be my bike. Seriously. I have always been an OK rider, but this race season I have had some really decent bike splits, like FOP in my AG. Yeah, crazy eh? I have picked up a set of compact cranks, will get a new cassette with girlier gearing, I'l be a MACHINE hahahaha. I will take my trainer to work as well, so I can ride long there if I want to (it's virtually impossible to ride at 4am at home on the trainer and not wake someone up). I know I can be a better rider than I was for IMWA, and the Soloist will make a huge difference. And to top it off IMC bike course suits me, I actually like to climb and I am an aggressive descender. Should be good. I see no reason why I can't log a 6:30 or better on that course.

So last weekend, P and I did our last tri of the season, the Black Diamond Olympic in Enumclaw, WA. We went down early to watch the 1/2IM race on Saturday, which was great to watch, it made me very nostalgic, jealous even that I wasn't racing! Watching T1 was very fun, we saw one woman spend almost 10min dicking around with a shirt and armwarmers and a jacket and toque and aerohelmet and putting on shades and taking off shades and putting on shades and dropping the lenses out of the shades and putting them back in and putting the shades on and taking them off and putting them on and taking them off and taking off the aerohelmet (while her bike was unracked I noted) and taking off the toque and putting on the aerohelmet and putting on the shades and taking them off and putting them on... It was so painful to watch we nearly cried. Lucky for her she was an awesome rider.

Later that day, we linked up with a friend who was doing the sprint, headed into town for some dinner, and tried to call it an early evening. Lunch was a sammy and some supplies (for breakfast) from Safeway. I drank an Odwalla soy protein drink, it was supposed to be close to chocolate milk. Well, Soy and Andy do not mix. The next morning I must have evacuated on the back side about 4 times before the race even started. I felt pretty bloated and gassy and not happy in the GI region at all. Started the race, swam was tough, it took me a good 400m or so to get into a rhythm where I could bilateral breathe. But then I felt ok, wasn't super fast or anything but wasn't trying for anything special on the swim. Finished about 2min faster than Apple - that was ALL wetsuit lol but I'll take it. Pretty descent T1, then went out and had a solid ride, felt really good, although the taint was a bit tender by the end, it is definitely time for a new saddle. Got off the bike, had a good transition and started trying to run. My calves were SO tight. Holy cow they took until mile 3 to loosen up, I had to walk all up hills. I gotta start running off the bike again, and check the fit on the Soloist again, might need to tweak it.

Before my calves could loosen up tho, my bowels had. I hit the portaloo twice on the course, the bushes at one point, and as I finished the race I ran right past P and straight to the loo. Man, that was nasty. I totally blame the soy drink, I don't normally eat or drink soy of any kind, I prefer cow's milk/dairy. What a miserable run. I should have been 5 minutes or so faster than Kelowna, but instead ended up 5 min slower oh well.

OA finish position: 156/216
OA finish time: 3:07:24  
AG finish position: 8/13 
Swim:   34:08   165/216  5/13
T1:      2:51
Bike: 1:20:47   133/216  3/13
T2:      1:39   142      3/13
Run:  1:07:59   193     10/13

So a pretty good bike overall, 3rd fastest in my AG. In fact I was in 3rd for my AG at the start of the run. Finishers in 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th all passed me on the run. Ugh. Funny thing is that once my calves loosened up, and I wasn't clenching my butt to stop it from exploding, I actually felt ok running, the physical motion of the legs, arms, breathing, focus, etc. It started to feel like it used to feel.

Lessons learned:
1) NO SOY EVER before a race. This is so obvious it kills me.
2) Gotta work on getting those calves looser off the bike.
3) It is time for a new saddle.

Lessons relearned:
1) Nothing new before a race/on race day. I am such an idiot.

I have one du left - American Zofingen Sprint Du - in upstate NY, should be a lot of fun, then the Haney to Harrison, then it's 2009. I was chatting with F, my amigo who coached me through IMWA, about IMC, and he said he'd help me out a bit again, which is great.

The key will be the LSD workouts every week. After that one interval/VO2Max type session in each, after that we start getting into technical or dual sport sessions, more sport specific stuff. I admit, I am ready for it, and kinda looking forward to developing a bit of a routine... plus it is a great excuse for not staying out too late/drinking too much/etc... and I will fit into my skinny pants again! Ha!

The goal for the remainder of the year is to get the health stuff in order, as much as possible, do pretty much whatever training I want, but focusing on swimming and running, and try to get the bike set-up and gearing fine tuned.

Oh yeah: P got a new bike! A super sweet Cervelo P2SL, anodized colour, it's awesome. It's SO light, I'm never going to catch him now. Dammit, time for sabotage? ;-) Nahhh...

Stay tuned. AmZof is next! ;-)

AP

I am a bad blogger: Diva's only sprint/Whistler->Lillooet Drive/Apple OLY/IMC

2008-08-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

OK it's only been sheesh a month or so since I last posted... and believe it or not, I have to wait til I am on vacation to catch up. How utterly sad is that?

July 27th, I did the Diva's only sprint tri, pretty much on the North Shore tri course (slightly different run). I had never done a women's only tri before and in fact have pretty much shied away from them - I don't particularly like the concept of excluding anyone - but it was a sprint and on a weekend that was a good date for me so I signed up. I recall waking up at 6am or so to a huge downpour, and was ready to DNS to thing, when I thought "oh suck it up - you'll feel better that you did the race than not", so I did.

The rain stopped just after I set up my rack in Transition - I did that set-up in about 2min flat, I was so late for the pre-race briefing. After the briefing I realized I hadn't had breakfast - so a gel it was. Blech, not my idea of breakfast but I needed some calories. It seemed to work ok. I was honestly just out there to get some confidence, particularly on the run - and by that I mean just feeling better than I did the last few races. I felt pretty good.

My age group results:

AG: 12/24
OA: 37/146
Swim: 13/24 15:40  2:07
Bike: 7/24  39:46  27.2
Run: 19/24  29:52  5:59
Finish: 12/24 1:25:17

So not bad at all, and that was with a nasty chain debacle on the bike split that cost me about 3min or so. Man, I could have really rocked that bike split otherwise ;-). Pretty much as soon as the race ended, the rain started again, and really poured so I was pretty happy to be done. Even though my run time was slow, the run felt OK, I was able to run off the bike, starting slow and then picking up steam, and finishing strong. That's the MAIN thing. While slower than North Shore, I was also kinda dogging it on the swim, and well, let's face it, I didn't have to worry about trying to beat Phil LOL.

The following weekend, after a drunk night in Kelowna, Phil and I joined up with Khai and Alexia in Whistler to ride with a fellow SlowTwitcher, Tina, from Corpus Christi TX. We rode from Whistler to Lillooet, about 135km, on one of the hottest days this summer.

Check out this profile:

We are truly idiots. It was not that warm when we left Whistler, around 9:30am, we had two flats in the first hour i.e.: before we got to Pemberton. The road between those two is not bad, it's mostly downhill to Pemberton. Then flat flat flat through towards Mount Currie on Hwy 99. OK, let me try to describe the hell that is the climb out of Pemberton: The first 13k or so are grades often in the double digits, followed by another 8k or so of 5-8% grades. It sucked ass. I had to stop so many times, I lost count. Good thing we had SAG that day or we would have all been cooked, ok all of us except Alexia, damn smart woman for riding compact cranks (plus she climbs like a demon anyways). Once we made it to the top of the main climbs, there were a bunch of nice descents, but man the road was in horrible shape. Huge potholes, one section at the bottom of a nice hill was a gravel hairpin (yeah really - wtf was Highways thinking? "Hey let's kill some cyclists? Sure sounds like fun" - jackasses). Phil and Tina got launched over the drop onto the gravel section and barely missed having huge wipeouts. It probably didn't hurt that they have ridden MTB so they at least have an idea of what riding on gravel feels like. There were some amazing views though:

I was so absolutely baked, I had to stop and chug some cans of Coke and rest for about ten minutes before I could even get back on the bike to finish. I haven't bonked that badly in a long time. When we arrived in Lillooet it was 42degC and we were all completely hosed. One of our SAG drivers bough a bunch of cold cans of Coke and we chugged those in about 30sec flat. Then we drove back to Whistler, where we could see the absolute idiocy we had just completed, and ate an unusually large burrito. Mmmmm. Burrito.

We were pretty wrecked the entire next week, I think I rode twice and ran once. Ugh. But that's OK. It certainly makes almost any other ride profile look ridiculously easy. Example: Richter Pass (IMC) - looks likes a joke now. Haha.

Fast forward two weeks to the Apple Olympic in Kelowna (Aug 17th). Not like either of us had done a lot more training since that crazy ride, but we were feeling OK. All I wanted to do was 1) finish; 2) have fun and 3) run the entire run. I managed all three. Yippee!! On Sat, the day before the race, the weather was brutally hot, like 35degC+. The lake temp was 23degC - non-wetsuit legal for the swim - particularly as this was a national championship (who knew? no wonder it was so busy with so many super stud racers). So no wetsuits. I don't mind, even though you get some free speed - I'd rather be a bit slower than overheat. But you could see a bunch of people kinda freak out about it. Funny thing was I had just (week before) bought my new wetsuit, this super sweet nineteen frequency that fits like a glove. Oh well, I guess I'd have to wait to use it...

Race morning, the clouds managed to hang around long enough to keep it below 30degC, thank god. But I managed. Even though I've been having trouble in the heat (getting sausage hands and feeling like total crap after 25min of running) I managed OK by constantly dumping water on my head, visor and my rashguard. I know I will still have problems in the heat but I will just have to learn to manage it. Either that or find tris in Norway LOL.

My Apple results:

AG:               42/50
Swim:          40 34:22  2:18
T1:            19  1:52
End of T1:     36 36:13
Bike:        31 1:21:37  29.4
End of bike: 33 1:57:50
T2:            33  1:47
End of T2:   33 1:59:37
Run:         44 1:04:21  6:27
Total:       42 3:03:57

Funny thing is that this is only about 5min slower than the last time I did the Apple, in 2002, when I was in much better shape. Must be the bike. Bought speed and all. Haha. See that silly smirk on the bike? ;-)

Phil on the other hand did really really well for his first OLY race, with a 2:53:

AG: 42/50
Swim:         30 30:07  2:01
T1:           39  2:42
After T1:     32 32:49
Bike:       39 1:15:42  31.7
After Bike: 35 1:48:31
T2:           39  1:44
After T2:   35 1:50:14
Run:        47 1:03:10  6:19
Total:     42 2:53:24

I mean look at that! ;-) Way to kick butt. But it looks like both of us need to work on our runs.

More to come later... Including IMC, vacation and signing up for IMC 2009.

AP

Recovery week/New car/Gearing

2008-07-19T09:46:00.001-07:00

For a recovery week, I wanted to take it easy but not too easy. Heck I felt fine Monday which says to me that I didn't work hard enough in the race.
Wait a minute, don't you remember what happened during that run?
Oh yeah, hmm... but my legs feel like they didn't even race!
Yeah well, it's not about how your quads feel, ok? Let's keep that in mind...

So I managed two short rides, and two short runs during the work week. Got in a nice ride (~40k) with P yesterday, just home to the North Shore via Lions Gate Bridge, then to Deep Cove and back home via Ironworkers'. Then we bought a car. How silly eh? We've been pretty happy with our one-car month, so we traded in both of our cars for a new Audi A4 wagon. It's soooo pretty... we pick it up tomorrow - yippee! The best part is that we can easily fit the two adults, the two kids and two bikes. Exactly what we need. We'll get to break it in on our road trip with the kids soon... and we will save on all that gas and insurance $ while not always cursing the small interior size of the A3. I will miss Spanky and Cammie, but Moby Dick will be great.

What this also means is that we commit to commuter riding more. Which is just fine with both of us. My Olmo will do just fine through the winter, with some fenders on it. Ditto P's Cannondale. Plus by the end of the year, we'll both be working back in the same areas of Burnaby.

So the long weekend of August, it seems a group of us will be doing a ride from Whistler to Lillooet. 130km. There is a climb out of Pemberton up Mount Curry that is ridiculous though. Something like 11k with sections of 13% grade. I may have to walk some of that section... or... I might swap my rings. Maybe pull the 55 and 39 off and put on a 53 and a 34. I may need a new chain for that though, but then the gearing of the Soloist might be a lot better for this kind of ride. I figure I better check out my options for gearing on that bike before the Apple. That race has one short steep part - you ride the base of the Knox Mt climb - but has nothing else too steep or long. I could probably use the 39 instead of the 34 for that race, so trying the 53 instead of the 55 is probably a good idea. Some experimenting to be done, results to follow.

And on the note of experiments, I am trying aloe vera juice in an effort to calm my stomach (which seems to be grumpy due to the daily meds). It was a suggestion from a neighbour - she swears by it. It tastes terrible - quite bitter - so you have to put a bit (2oz or so) in some juice. But the two times I had it in the morning, my stomach did feel better. Placebo effect? Possibly. I'll keep at it and see how it goes.

AP

Subaru Vancouver Intl Sprint

2008-07-13T15:44:00.000-07:00

It was an interesting day, that's for sure. Because of my last 6+ weeks of post-pericarditis and FEAR of being really messed, I honestly was aiming for a 1:45-1:50 race.

We got there nice and early, did a partial set-up of transition before being booted out as the 1/2IM swimmers came through. We were going to Rock the Hoff and wear our Team Baywatch jackets but it was too warm already. Next time. ;-)

Swim: the water was very warm, 18degC, so I opted for my 2mm SpeedTube and my tri top - yep - no neoprene on the upper body. It was comfy enough that's for sure, probably could have used the 5mm SpeedTube with equal success but might have been warmer than I like. That was also my first open water swim since, oh, that time Khai and I swam at Sasamat about 2 yrs ago? Yeah, seriously, how bad is that eh? ;-) It felt comfy enough, the old habits came back pretty quickly, sighting was easy but lots of drunken mules out there - no one to follow only folks to kick and push off you as they swim in zigzags around you. Super fast transition due to tube only, then onto bike.

While happy that the gazillion potholes on the Spanish Banks road were filled, I cannot wait for the city to repave that stretch. Tres bumpy. Did the climb up to UBC OK, felt pretty good actually. Passed a bunch, got passed by some more, back and forth, you know how it goes. My biggest pet peeve was the lack of riding etiquette out there. Lots of blocking, drafting, attempts ot pass on the right, but the one that cheesed me the most was the chick doing the 1/2IM (I know your # BTW in case you are reading) who had her obviously kick-ass roadie BF who was not racing out riding with her almost the entire time. WTF?!? Even worse was the fact that he would help block other riders (like me) in the narrow sections, so I couldn't even pass his GF. Moral dilemma too: trying NOT to draft off this guy, who was clearly blocking, was difficult. I still believe it's not right to draft - even if that person is not a competitor. It took until the descent on NW Marine to get past them. Very frustrating.

Finished the ride, feeling pretty good, quick T2, then started the run relatively easy. After North Shore where I felt terrible during the run, I just wanted to feel comfortable. Started feeling pretty decent actually, so I picked up the pace a bit. Turned to make the hill up 4th Avenue, and just past the aid station, I suddenly got that spaced out feeling, like when you get lightheaded and think you might faint. At the same time, my entire left upper body went numb. I stopped dead in my tracks, noticeable enough to get quite a few "are you OK?"s as people ran past me. I didn't know what to say to them, but I appreciate their concern. Good to know that if I had passed out, someone would have done something. I just started walking, tried shaking out my arm, and tried not to panic. I tried to start running again, still felt funny with my LH side chest area all numb, but hoped it would go away. Figured I'd have to get to the finish area anyways, so I might as well just keep going. It eased, particularly on the next downhill, so I kept on, but definitely didn't push it, even walking the next hill.

By the time I hit the flats with about 1k to go, I felt OK actually, enough to finish with a decent enough 1:39. What strikes me as ironic is that my AG's #2, 3, and 4 all passed me on that run. Bah. Next time. But guess it's back to the doctors - that numbness was pretty odd. I have had a lot of stomach cramping lately - which I think is due to my synthroid dosage being upped - but funny enough my stomach didn't give me any grief at all today during the race. Seems the bod is trying to tell me something.... but what, I dunno - yet.

The last few weeks I have been trying to get in a lot of runs and short rides, and I think it helped a lot. At least for confidence if nothing else. I will try to swim twice this week (on the days I have to drive, try and go to New Brighton at lunch), to give my legs a break. I'll ride in Thurs and Fri as I don't have to drive those days. I'd like to get in two runs if possible next week, as the following week I fly to Houston, Tx for work (Tues thru late Fri). Not really looking forward to Houston, but I will try to get in some treadmill runs while there, maybe even find an outdoor pool. Will be hot and disgusting if nothing else. Ugh.

AP

Heart seems fine, not sure about calves/Bike Commuting

2008-07-02T19:58:00.000-07:00

So the heart issue seems to have resolved itself, rest and rest and slow return to activity. However, I still have to follow up with my GP and with Internal Medicine at VGH about that high D-dimer test. If I think too much about it, I swear I can feel a pain in my right calf. My actual fear is not that I have a DVT but that I end up believing I have one when I don't. I don't need to play mind games with myself. Sheesh.

Speaking of mind games, my running still sucks. I honestly think I have forgotten how to push myself. I make excuses too easily: Oh I'll just go easy today, Oh I rode this morning I better skip hills, I can't do intervals - I'm not fast enough yet. Etc. What crap. I just need to run more often. Once a week does not cut it. And I know better. So I ran today even though I rode. Yeah I forced it. I'll force it again tomorrow and Friday. F*ck yeah. Take THAT you stupid DVT-on-the-brain.

I also realize I need to swim more. Ugh. Kits yesterday, managed a painfully slow 2500 or so metres. I didn't feel bad, but wow I didn't feel fast either. I'm not sure when I'll get swims in, so I am seriously going to have to look at swim cords. Double ugh. I love swimming but it's so tough to fit it in these days, especially if I am riding to work every day and not driving.

I'll figure it out.

On that note: So we decided to try and live as a one-car household, to see if we can do it for the rest of the summer before we sell Cammie (the wagon). I rode all last week - 5 days in a row - to and from work - with one trip over the Lions Gate Bridge i.e.: 40min vs. 20min. Neither route is particularly hard, except there are usually one or two long climbs over bridges. I am really enjoying riding to work. If I didn't have the daycare issue I'd drive every day. In fact we're looking into a live-out nanny - we could save 4K$ to 6K$ a year by riding more, so why not eh? That money can go to a nanny instead of a large petro company. Plus we'd feel better and lose a bit of weight. That would be nice ;-)

I have about 10 days before my next race, the Subaru Sprint at Locarno. Should hurt, but will help mentally with prepping for Apple, which is about 6 weeks away. I really want to do well at Apple, by well I mean feel good about it and not suffer too much. ;-)

If I could just wrap my head around this running thing, I'd feel a lot more confident.

I still want to do IMC next year. I was chatting with my buddy FM, and he helped me get through the first one in 05. He knows I can do it, so he's a good one to talk with to get a confidence boost. He told me to go for it. In my gut, I know he's right, if I don't do this, get back on the horse so to speak, I will give up on myself. That would suck. All my worries about doing IMC are either trivial or real. They will reveal themselves. And I will deal with them. For example I have already warned my boss that I will likely want to scale back my hours next summer, not a lot but some. So I'm already planning for it. ;-)

But nailing a sweet 5k run, would help me more right now. With my confidence, that is. I am debating doing a sprint tri on July 27th, might help with that confidence thing. Otherwise, maybe hypnosis ;-)

I still want to do Comrades. Maybe in 2010 or 2011.

That is a B-I-G goal.

I know I can do it.

AP

That was a scary weekend

2008-05-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday morning, I started having chest pains, shortness of breath, nausea. It didn't really go away. Fatigue set in, it was difficult to walk much without needing to rest. By later that day I was feeling pretty crummy. I went to a clinic up the street, where the doc on duty thought I might have pericarditis. Sent me home, to take NSAIDs and rest, and see if my condition improved (or not). Well it didn't much, so I went to VGH emergency on Sunday afternoon. They did blood tests immediately, looking for enzymes that are present after a heart attack - that came back clean. All of my blood tests came back clean - except one: the D-Dimer test. Yep that came back high. I asked the ER doc "how high?" and he just said "I don't like to tell patients by how much they have failed a test..." Fair nuff. I overheard him later talking to a nurse and I swear I heard him say "a thousand on the D-Dimer"... if that is true, then they should have immediately started me on blood thinners. Hmmm.

So they did a chest x-ray and a chest and heart CT Scan. All tests showed nothing but perfect health. But I was still having trouble breathing. I mean I was fine if I was resting, but as soon as I got up to walk around, I would become breathless. More blood tests, ECGs, PF tests (breath flow measurements), and an echocardiogram. All perfect. The echocardiogram techs commented on how "perfect" and "beautiful" my various bits of my heart were, I guess they are used to seeing hearts in diseased or ill condition.

Conclusions? They think it is pericarditis, just a very mild case. I just happen to notice when I feel off more than many folks, so I guess I'm just sensitive ;-). I am on bed-rest for the remainder of the week, with continued NSAIDs, and light duties next week - but NO EXERCISE except walking until the week following. I have to follow up with Internal Medicine at VGH/UBC next week, as they want to dig further into the results of the D-Dimer test.

The no exercise part will be the hardest. I still feel off when walking up the stairs. And my chest gets tighter when I lay flat down on my back, often a symptom of pericarditis. They told me it was likely due to a cold virus. They also said if you get it once, you are not predisposed to getting it again, which is good. Just kind of a fluke I guess.

So all those hours sitting in emerg, with all those really ill people around me, gave me time to think about things. What if it was a heart attack? Would I change things in my life? What would I change? Jobs? Try to reduce stress? Eat better and drink less? The main concept that came to me was that I should enjoy life because who knows what will happen when. That I should take more time to enjoy Kate, Phil and Liam, more time not working and enjoying time outside of work.

So I will try to make the most of my time off, and not go crazy watching daytime TV.

AP

North Shore done. Man, I suck as a runner.

2008-05-21T08:26:00.000-07:00

Well, North Shore has come and gone. Swim; ok, bike: ok, run: terrible.

201 76/157 F 17/27 Female 35-39 Andrea 174
15:11 2:04
134 38:46 31.0
149 53:57
253 30:04 6:01
201 1:24:00

Yep: swim: 15:11; bike (incl T1 and T2): 38:46 and run: 30:04.

THIRTY MINUTES? WTF?!?

My back was really tight on the run, but more than anything I think I have lost the mental ability to run hard. I just can't wrap my head around it. I need to change up my run workouts - big time.

I dropped over 50 places with that run. Dammit.

Last time I did this race was 2003 (where it turned out I was already pregnant) and here's the comparison:

| 2008 | 2003 |
------------------------------
Swim 15:11 14:25
Bike 38:46 40:05
Run 30:04 25:24
Total 1:24:00 1:19:53

So, I am better on the bike - oh wait, that's just the speed I bought (faster bike). the swim is closer than I thought it would have been, so that was a pleasant surprise actually.

But that run split licks donkey balls.

The best part of the day was Phil. For a first race he did AMAZING:
164 110/161 M 12/17 Male 30-34 Phil
179 15:20 2:05
114 38:02 31.6
140 53:21
211 27:43 5:33
164 1:21:04

For a guy who has hardly swum, that is a really good split. I knew he'd smoke on the bike, he's so strong, and he looked so good out there. And what a great run split considering he has only been running, what, 8 weeks? He's already stoked about another race ;-).

Then there's Khai. Jeebus. This was so fast I couldn't believe it. I knew the boy had been training but man oh man this was a colossal time:

85 63/161 M 5/17 Male 30-34 446 Khai
83 13:14 1:48
49 34:39 34.6
55 47:53
169 25:44 5:09
85 1:13:36

Yeah - 85th OVERALL. Considering the level of talent that usually comes out for this race, this is huge. What a difference from UBC. See what 8-9 weeks of *actual* training can do? And what a great bike split. He will go into Oliver in great form if he keeps this up and stays healthy.

So next is Subaru sprint OR Squamish Olympic in mid-July (on the same day). There is a half option at the Subaru race, but there's no way I'd be ready for a half. OK that's not true, I'd finish but it would be painful, and I'm not certain that would help me with the Apple olympic in August. Hmm. I will have to think about it.

As for fixing my run, here's what I see as options:

1: Add a LSD run building to 2hr OR add a 50min interval run (i.e.: 4x[4' @ 10k pace with 2-4' recovery])
2: Add a LSD run as above OR add once weekly strides to one of my above runs (i.e.: 6-10x[30" pick-ups with 30" recovery])
3: Add the interval run OR the strides run (maybe alternate weekly).
4: Convert one existing run and just stay at 3x week.

So far the ST crowd thinks that option #3 is the best - skip the long run for now. Unless I want to do that half... then I have 6 weeks to get to half-marathon distance on the run. Sigh.

Further analysis is required.

Stay tuned.

AP

Back from camp

2008-05-13T20:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back and have "recovered". We drove straight thru from Wed around 6pm and arrived 19hrs later after a stop at Denny's (blech) and In-and-Out (mmm). We even managed a ride Thursday evening. The rest of the campers arrived over the next 12hrs - Chip, Park, Trim, Little Jeff, Big Jeff, Erica and Mike. Coach Mark showed up Friday morning and proceeded to get us to run a descending 4mi run along the canal - out and back with a brutal headwind on the way back. Needless to say making that last descending mile was hard - I didn't make it - hardly anyone did. Phil ran great, in fact he ran great the entire camp. He also rode really well, poor guy got stuck riding with me instead of the faster folks.

So
Thurs:
Rode 1hr
Fri:
Ran 4+mi
Swam barely 1600yds
Rode 1hr
Sat:
Bike fit clinic from the man (Dan E)
Ran on the trails at 7000'++ which ended up being a disaster
Sun: Rode 3hrs

The disaster? Well apparently I don't do well above 7000'. I couldn't breathe and my hands and ankles were swollen up pretty good. Nice headache ensued. Yep, mild altitude sickness. Ugh. Missed an open water swim later that afternoon. Prolly a good thing though, it would have been pretty sad haha.

During that first run and that first pool swim, Mark filmed us. Wow. My run form sucks ass. Years ago, when I was recovering from a bad piriformis problem, I had to learn to run in the Pose method i.e.: with good posture and a compact stride with high cadence. Apparently I have completely forgotten all of that. I was all over the place. No wonder my running sucks these days.

However, the swim actually looked pretty decent. I have a few key things to work on (aside from sheer mileage and endurance): a correct pull under my body and not super wide, and not looking forward as much as I do (look more at the bottom of the pool instead). To have the coach of the UC - Davis swim program tell me my stroke is pretty good, well, that felt great. Now I just need to get that endurance up, and teach my muscles to do that pull correctly. Again. Then for my next trick I'll cure cancer. Lol.

So I told my boss that I think I will be signing up for IMC for next year. He's supportive but asked if I'll "go crazy"... he's seen others go this path. After this weekend, where it was pretty apparent that I am not in good shape at all, so now I am hesitant. I signed up for Squamish (Olympic in July) and am hoping to do the Apple (Olympic in August). I have North Shore Sprint this next Monday too. I think I will have to see how I progress through the summer. If I can get those two oly races under my belt and feel Ok about it, then I can plan for a fall half marathon (Victoria or Okanagan in October), maybe a Feb marathon (Austin sounds good), then train until August for IMC 09. Wow, that sounds like a lot.

My big fear is that I sign up for IMC and then get into training mode and somehow end up diverging from P. I have to admit I am kinda afraid that if I go do this that I run the risk of distancing myself from him, you know, of spending too little time together so that you end up growing apart. I see it happen so many times, that it's kinda scary. I mean it could be easy to do it together but after this weekend, I know that I don't want to pressure him into anything he doesn't want to do himself.

In the back seat of the car on the way home I had the chance to do a lot of thinking. A lot of what I thought about is not really for a blog... I'll keep that to myself for now... but some of it was realizing things about myself. Like: I get really negative about things that I shouldn't. In fact, I sometimes have a negative thought, and then for some reason I try to take it further, as if to see how bad it can get, to see if I can handle it. How counterproductive eh? So I am trying to smile more. And I am trying to stop the negative thoughts. Here's what I do when I start down that path (it's stupid I warn you): I mentally go "ssshhhh". That's right, I tell myself, nicely, to shut up. So far it seems to work. It's like white noise in my head.

I don't know why I beat myself up, why I think I'm not good enough - whether it's triathlon, work, Kate or P. I sometimes wonder if it's part of just getting old. Like not feeling attractive. I used to have men hit on me all the time (ok, women too). It doesn't happen anymore. And I think it's just me getting older and having to deal with that. But it kills me sometimes to not be as attractive as I used to be. I sometimes think about cosmetic surgery. Good thing I'm kinda cheap by nature or I could see myself getting sucked into that, botox to start, then maybe some lipo, get my teeth done (w/o braces even lol), maybe a boob job - although since they don't float, it's not good for swimming and buoyancy... ;-)

I'm sure other women deal with this. For some reason my confidence just isn't there. I wonder if it's the uncertainty in my life that causes it. Or the stresses. Although they really are the same thing, right?

What does it mean to be menopausal? Well, medically I know it means no more kids. I haven't wanted another since having K, so I can't imagine that's what's bothering me. Hormonally it means I get messed up (hot flashes, emotional instability, etc.). I suspect that is really what's going on. Well, that paired with the hypothyroidism. Not easy to manage. As well, the last few cycles, I have been "delayed" as it were, and I've had to ask myself "what if?" I *know* exactly what I'd do. Thank god soon enough I won't have to even worry about that. Then I can focus on other "stressors"...

Some times it would be nice to just run away and hide, or take the easy path. However, that is not in my nature. Dammit.

Back to running tomorrow.

AP

It's been a while, sorry about that

2008-04-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I didn't even get to post after UBC... sheesh I suck. Anywhoo, here's how it shook down:

Swim: 20:06 (which includes that super long sprint to T1, my swim time by my watch was 17:30)
Bike: 44:05 (which includes both T1 and T2, my bike time by my watch was 40min even)
Run: 28:00
Total: 1:32:09

Good enough for MOP (11/21 in my AG). PLUS as a huge bonus, I beat Khai both on the bike and overall. Now he owes me a double-double animal style at the first In-and-Out we hit on our way to Xantusia in May. ;-)

I felt pretty good on the bike, better than expected, I owe most of that to my spin classes with Arielle at Twist Conditioning. The run started slow and painful, but the legs loosened up and I finished pretty strong. Obviously I still need to take 2-4 min off that time, but it didn't feel as bad as I thought it was going to. The swim however, well, I should be a 16 or better swimmer for that distance. I have some serious work to do in the pool it seems. So with actual training, there's no reason why I can't get 5ish min off that total time.

My next race will be North Shore Sprint Tri, on the May long weekend. P is also doing that one - his first tri ever! He's been running 2-3 times a week for a while now, so he'll do OK. The swim will be the tough part for him, as it will be for me. Plus having never done one of these pool swim tris (NS has 5-10 folks in one lane doing laps with a lap counter) he will get PO'd at the other swimmers. Hopefully he just lets it go and uses his frustrations to blow by those folks on the bike.

Between now and then, we (me, P and Khai) are all going to a tri camp at Xantusia May 9-12th. We're driving down and back, so it should be hilarious. Camp should be great, I know P will love riding out there. They are going to film our swim technique, so that should be pretty eye-opening. Ditto our run form. Bit scared at the prospect of seeing my big butt on Monty's giant TV, but it's time to suck it up and get the most from this camp.

The last few weeks have been busy though - we spent a week in Florida mid-Aprila few nights in South Beach and the rest in the Keys. We did some fishing, drank waaaaay too much, but we did get ONE run in, along the boardwalk on South Beach (at right). One thing I noticed while in Florida was how much better I slept, that my sinuses were basically clear all the time. At home, I have been struggling with really upset sinuses, dry, bleeding, can't breathe thru my nose during the night kind of sinuses. So this was quite a revelation to me, that humidity (or lack thereof) was the likely culprit for my sinuses issues. Bought a humidifier once we got home. It helps, I sleep a lot better.

I saw my Endocrinologist before we left on our trip, and she upped my dosage of synthroid to 125mcg. I think it's helping. I feel better, but running is the true test - how do I feel when I run? I have decided that I hate feeling like I have no energy in my legs, so I will just run slow as molasses if necessary - that is, run at a pace where I feel like I am not putting in a lot of effort. I am going to do that until camp, and see how it goes. The endo also recommended I seek out some complimentary medicine... soooo I have found a naturopath who says she thinks she can help. I am curious but somewhat skeptical. Trying to have an open mind.

First tri in 2.5 yrs tomorrow - EEK!!!

2008-03-08T13:47:00.000-08:00

Holy crap, it's finally here. The UBC Tri is tomorrow. My heat is at like 2:30 or something ridiculous. That's OK. Then I have aaaaaalllllll day to think about it. It's only a sprint (800m/23k/5k) but I am getting nervous now. My buddy Khai is in the heat after mine, so we might cross paths out there. I have no idea how this will feel. I suspect the swim will hurt, the bike will hurt and the run will hurt. But seeing the finish line and having the beers afterwards will make it all worthwhile.... RIGHT! I am seriously hoping I can crack 2hrs hahahahaha. Here's my guesses: swim: 16:00; T1 (which is rolled into the swim time in this race, if they time it the same way) will be about 4min; bike: 45:00; T2 (which I believe is rolled into the bike time): 2:00; run: 30:00. That would give me a frightening total of.... 1:37. Wow, I'd actually be pretty happy with that. Now I just have to execute that plan.

P and I also signed up for a tri camp in May at Monty's place in SoCal. Khai will also go, looks like the three of us idiots will drive down together, just for fun. Should look something like this:

Leg 1: Wed after work, leave around 5, drive like madmen for Southern Oregon. Last time I did this trip solo, I got to Grants Pass, a drive of about 900km and stopped just after midnight. Granted I was speeding the whole time (like 160kph speeding not 120kph speeding) and I missed the bulk of the Seattle evening rush hour, but that's pretty good for 7hrs of driving. I think with the three of us, we can drive at least to Grant's Pass if not further. I would like to get to Mt. Shasta for leg 1, it's about 180km past Grants Pass. Even if we sleep less - we can sleep in the car dammit.

Leg 2: Thurs am, get up and drive the rest of the way to Valyermo/Palmdale area. Last time, I left OR around 8am, and got to camp around 7pm. The slowest part was from Sacramento all the way down to the turn off I-5 by the grapevine. Lots of traffic. Plus I made the mistake of driving through Palmdale which was super slow too. And I stopped in Gilroy, CA (S of San Jose) for lunch with two former co-workers - there went 3 hrs. Approx 1100km for this leg. If we start this leg at Mt Shasta, then we can get to Xantusia by late afternoon, that would rock. Get some "Hi howaya" time in before dinner.

Friday am: training starts at 9am. I have no idea what the itinerary will be. I am guessing a short group ride (1-3hrs). I suspect the ride will be the hillclimb - P should do well at that! Then a swim at the pool in Palmdale in the early afternoon (that is a nice pool too! but not open on weekends that's why I'm guessing the swim on Fri), and then either a second ride or a run later that day.

Sat: My guess would be a "group" ride with a few groups breaking off, 3-6hrs long. Then optional swim in Monty's pool (which will be cold, so I will bring the speed tubes and vest), then a late run.

Sun: Ride of 2-4 hrs OR run. Swim in Monty's pool.

Then the fun begins...

Leg 3: Sunday night: Xantusia to Mt. Shasta. When I did this heading home, I left around 2pm. It's just over 900k, and I think I pulled in around 11. I remember being really tired... I had tried the hill climb that morning and was kinda wiped. We should aim to get to Mt. Shasta that night. Totally do-able, seeing as the last time I did this drive, I missed the part where I-5 veers off near Sacramento and I only realized it when I noticed I was driving West and saw a sign for the Livermore Ntl Lab - dammit - nearly ended up in SF! I had to double back, because I didn't have a map and didn't want to chance getting lost. So about 1.5hrs lost there.

Leg 4: Monday: Mt. Shasta to Vancouver. 1100km. I left Mt. Shasta at 8am-ish and got home by 5pm Monday. That was OK. Stopped in Fairhaven (S. Bellingham) to get gas, grabbed a couple cases of beer (Fat Tire and Pyramid...mmm), border was dead, rest of drive thru to home was easy peasy.

I didn't really stop anywhere for food, I ate bars, bag of trailmix, etc while I drove. I remember pulling into Grant's Pass and having to hit a Taco Bell drive thru I was so hungry. This time, we'll stop in Fairhaven and load up with fud. PLUS - most importantly - we will hit the In-and-Out Burger once if not once each way. Mmmmm. Oh yeah baby.

Ok, now I'm hungry off to eat lunch. I will post my rr and pics when I have them.

AP

Me and my tribike...

2008-03-01T20:16:00.000-08:00

So I managed two rides last week and one nice lots-of-aero on my tribike this weekend, Phil2. I was pleasantly surprised at how comfy it rides, even though I haven't been on it since last summer. I ran this past week as well and felt really horrible. Spin classes are going well at least. Really tough, love them.

So the run was horrible and it took forever to recover, and actually I hadn't been sleeping well lately... and through some chatting on the ST Women's forum (god bless!) I stopped taking my multivitamin in the morning with my synthroid, and now take it at bedtime. Even after only a few days of that change I feel heaps better. I have also started having my breakfast later, at work even, and am avoiding dairy for those breakfasts. So, day 1: whole avocado; day 2: two hard boiled eggs. Funny those meals are actually so low in calories yet I feel so full. I really do need to avoid eating carbs except maybe later in the day when I don't really care about that blood sugar crash, and the likelihood of wanting to eat again an hour later is lower.

Now I just have to get off this damn birth control pill. My cycles are getting shorter, I'm apparently entering perimenopause, and I would like to only take 1 pill a day thank you very much. I also would like to see if some of my other issues go away when I go off the pill. Like the nightsweats and the insomnia. Granted they feel better already, having reduced the calcium intake with my pill.

P and I booked a trip to Miami and the Keys, 6 weeks away. Can't wait. Lots of loafing and drinking and diving... should be awesome! It means no tri camp tho, which kinda sucks, I would like to do both. Maybe I can, although it means less time with K... hmmm... oh well, we'll see I guess.

UBC tri is next Sunday, and I am woefully prepared. I have pretty much decided that what ever happens is OK. I expect my swim will be 16+min (ugh), my bike will be over an hour (ugh), and my run will be closer to 30min than 25min (double ugh). Anything better than that is GRAVY.

Next tri after that will be Delta, Sat April 26th. Slightly shorter swim and bike, so it won't hurt for as long haha.

Off to my glass of wine, then a movie, then bed. Going to get in a short (6-8k) run tomorrow before I pick up K.

AP

Racing, Recovery and the next challenge...

2008-02-22T09:08:00.000-08:00

Well, I did it. 2:07. I was tracking for a 2:00 even, but around mile 9 the blisters started. Hotspots between my big toes and the balls of my feet, both sides. I have no idea why, I have never had that happen to me. But it was pretty damn uncomfy. Plus I only got about 3-4hrs of sleep the night before which didn't help. Oh and I forgot to bring a gel or beans or similar carbs. So all I had was gatorade. Oh well. I'm still pretty happy with my time, considering how little long running I have done. And now I know I can get to 1:55 next year ;-) hee hee.

I was pretty stiff later that same day, and for a couple days afterwards. I swam on Tuesday, felt ok. Then I went downhill skiing Wednesday after work. While it was fun, I think it made it harder for my legs to recover. It certainly didn't help. Spin class on Thursday was pretty brutal. Then P and I rode for 2hrs on Sat, which actually felt really good. Managed a huge pinch flat on a nasty pothole, and actually blew the new tire (maybe 2 rides on it, dammit!) as well as the tube. The rim might be a problem too, won't know til I get a new tire on it and give it a ride. Oh well.

Since then, I have been so swamped at work I have hardly done anything. :-( Spin class on Thurs and nothing else. Bah. At least spin class was awesome - really hard pyramid intervals - and the core work was very good too, definitely feeling stronger. Now I am at the start of a 4 day weekend (thank god!), I can maybe get in a short run today, and I am hoping to ride tomorrow (weather looks good).

As it starts to get lighter earlier in the day and is staying lighter longer at night, I am starting to think about early morning or post-work sessions... heck, even riding or running to work. The weather is getting better, warmer... heck soon I'll be able to take my tribike out for a ride ;-)

My next challenge? UBC sprint tri, March 9th. 800m pool swim, 23k bike and 5k run. Should really hurt. Should be a lot of fun too. Need to get some more swimming under my belt before then though.

OK, off to run some errands and maybe have a nap ;-)

AP

The night before the First Half Half Marathon...

2008-02-09T17:54:00.000-08:00

... and I am actually really nervous! P and I had tickets to tonights Canucks game, but I said no way, he should go with a buddy instead. It will easier to not drink too much beer and eat crappy food, plus I'd rather spend the time with K and get to bed earlier. Don't get me wrong, I am a bit jealous cuz I love going to games with P. But can't do it all. Oh well. We have another game on Valentine's Day (which is quite appropriate actually) so I'll manage. Not being hung over tomorrow will help a lot.

So, tomorrow. Sigh. I haven't been this nervous in a long time. I hope I will be able to contain my anxiety tomorrow morning. I'll probably wake up early, get a coffee or two into me (with sugar and milk, it helps my stomach before running, it seems), a couple slices of PB&J, and then get dressed and get there. I am debating if I should wear my shuffle during the race or not. I never have listened to music when racing, the only time I did was this past November for the H2H relay - I guess because it didn't feel like racing (that is I wasn't really racing). I have been listening to music for years while training though, and I wonder if I would miss it. I think I will bring it for the pre-race, and see how it goes. It kinda feels like a security blanket, plus then I don't have to listen to myself and my fellow racers as we sound like we're about to die... lol.

I have been fighting a cold all week to boot. Didn't run or spin at all. The last run I did was last Saturday, 15k (home counter-clockwise around False Creek via Burrard Bridge). That run has been taking me about 1h35 the last few months. Well, I decided to try to keep a stronger pace and I did that in 1h25! That's almost 1min/mile faster than usual! I felt great too. I did drink flat coke during the run... hmmm... maybe I should bring some with me tomorrow? wait no no, just use what they have on the course... don't change plans now... augh! so confused! Oh well whatever will happen will happen. It can't be worse than the first half marathon I did.

Let's see: Vancouver marathon, May 01, did the half. First half ever. Involved running up Prospect Point hill. Ouch. I had gastro at Lumberman's Arch, and it was all shite (really) after that. 2h15. Only finished because Janet kept egging me along.

After that, it goes like this:
June 2001: ScotiaBank Half: 2:08
Oct 2001: Victoria Half. Much better. 2h03.
Feb 2002: First Half. 2:08. Cold very miserable day, I remember my stomach was not happy too.
May 2002: Van Half: 1:59 (wow!)
Feb 2003: First Half: 1:55. Hubba hubba. 13min improvement

After that I only ever ran half's as part of 1/2IMs. So I am really looking forward to this, and am nervous. I would honestly be thrilled if I could be sub 2:10. But I secretly want to see that clock under 2.

Well, off to make dinner with K and loaf for the evening. Then to bed. I will report on the results tomorrow.

AP

Spin class at Twist/XC skiing/LASIK update

2008-01-19T13:33:00.000-08:00

Well, spin class started last week, and I have to tell you, these are some of the hardest spin classes I have ever done. The intervals we do are brutal, they leave you breathless, and some of them actually almost register on the puke factor scale. You know that feeling you get at the end of a sprint, like the finish of a crit. When the world turns dark and there is nothing but pain. Yep, it is possible to get that in a spin class. It's funny, the instructor knows I can ride, so she's constantly telling me to up the tension on the bike. Even when I have it cranked, it's not enough (so she says).

The hardest part of this class though is AFTER we get off the bike. Then we do 20min of bosu core work. I have zero core strength - so I have found. The instructor is really good, she helps to modify the exercises for me (yeah, it's that bad), and she is very encouraging. Even after a few sessions I can already do things I couldn't in the first class, so I guess that's progress. I have 10 more sessions, hopefully after that once I get back out on the road, I will not feel like I have little to no leg strength.

Last night, P and I went up to Cypress Mountain to get in some xc skiing. It's been about 3 years since I'd been skiing, so I was expecting it to be a world of hurt. It wasn't for me, but it was for P. He badly bruised his right torso up a year and a half ago from a bad mountain bike crash, and apparently the heavy breathing plus the upper body motion sent his right side into muscle spasms. He couldn't breathe, that's how bad it got. So we called it a short evening, and he went to the Dr. today. Anti-inflammatories, heat and rest for three days, see how it goes. Hopefully it's just cranky intercostals that just need to be loosened up and given a chance to heal. Fingers crossed that's all it is. I would hate to find out later one that it's something like a pesky rib that never healed right... As a consolation (I guess) I felt pretty good, smooth, stable, strong. I didn't get as winded as I used to, and my legs were fine. My upper body is a bit tight as a result of the poling, I could really feel it in my shoulders, and a bit between my shoulder blades. I am using P's heatpad right now ;-).

LASIK update: my eyes are fine says the eye doc. 20-20 vision. They get a bit dry, especially when watching tv or staring at the computer screen for too long. But overall, everything is good and I am so happy I did the surgery.

So First Half Half Marathon is Feb 10th. Then UBC Sprint Tri (800m/23k/6.6K) on March 9th. Then Tri camp in SoCal April 19-20. Should be good.

Ciao,
AP

Laser eye surgery done

2007-12-29T11:22:00.000-08:00

I can see! Really! I had my surgery a week ago (22nd) and now I see 20-20 in both eyes. It's crazy, I keep feeling like I am forgetting something every morning and every night... and I often think I cannot find my glasses (it's cuz they were donated DUNH!). It was a very strange experience, kinda scary, but I'm so glad I did it. I had to take a few days off running of course, and I can't get in the pool for at least another week, but it's not like I'm swimming that much these days anyways ;-)

I have been running a bit, trying to be more consistent in running 3-4 times a week, and so far I'm being reasonably good at keeping that up. I start spin class at Twist on the 10th of Jan, so that will get a typical week looking like this:
M - run easy 35min
T - run easy 40min, add strides if feeling OK
W - run easy 50min
R - spin class 1h10
F - off or easy 30min run
St or Sun - run easy 1h30 to 2h

Totally do-able, I'm almost doing that now. Then I will have to add in one swim a week, hopefully in Feb sometime, after the First Half Half-Marathon. I will likely kill the Friday run at that time so I can swim Friday morning. I could also add in a Wed evening swim... hmm... let's just wait and see... I have to not get too ambitious here... ;-)

I read a really interesting interview with Scott Tingley on Slowtwitch this morning. I appreciated his perspective of athlete as self-centered person, and how he's been morphing himself into a different person, learning humility and perspective. It was a good reminder that sport is just sport, and that it's difficult but important to keep some perspective on that. While running this morning (1h30, nice and steady 15k), I tried to be observant. I saw some beautiful things (all the fresh snow on Cypress Mountain and the partially clear sky over English Bay) and some saddening things (a person sleeping under the Georgia St. Viaduct, garbage and dog shit along the seawall in Yaletown, and so on). The cranes at the Olympic Athlete's Village are huge; construction is 6 -7 days a week there. I remember when half of False Creek was nothing but parking lot and city works yards. The Plaza of Nations buildings are being torn down now; the plaza roof between them was taken down almost a year ago. I remember when the Plaza first opened, for Expo 86. The more I tried to look around the more I realized that I am liking my home city less and less. When did Vancouver become the home to so many douchebags and assholes?

My brother and I have been talking about jointly buying an acreage on a lake somewhere out of town, somewhere to go when you need a break from the city. I have to admit I am looking forward to having that place to escape to... heck, in a few years I may want to leave entirely and go live somewhere less... busy... For the time being, I will work at not letting this kind of stuff stress me out, but also not being complacent about it.

The new year is upon us. I will have to do some thinking about these things.

AP

Well apparently I smartened myself up/Looking back at 2007

2007-12-17T12:53:00.000-08:00

Since my last post I have run 4 times a week. I am even doing strides again. Holy cow. This is goodness. It is not as difficult as it used to me to get motivated to run. And with each run I am feeling stronger and stronger. This is much goodness. I also have less desire to drink as much as usual, to eat as much junk food as usual, and to get not enough sleep. I feel heaps better for it. If I keep this up, I will have a solid half-marathon in February. It won't be fast but I won't kill myself either.

I am also feeling motivated to renew my TriBC membership for 2008, as I think I will do a sh*tload of short course races next year (UBC in March, Delta in April, North Shore in May, Panorama in June, maybe Squamish in July, Apple Olympic in August) and if I'm feeling up to it, a 1/2IM in September. Add to that a bunch of running races and I will be booked baby. And, yes, I already renewed my BC Athletics membership ;-)
------------
I got this set of questions from my friend Cathy. It's a good thing to reflect on the past, it helps up close it off and look forward. Here goes:

1. What one word describes your 2007 season? Does it match what you said last December in anticipation of this year?

AP: Tiring. I was tired for the better part of the year, and it turned out to be my thyroid. I started medication in late August, so to get where I am now (after a year of fatigue) is pretty good. I should stop beating myself up and praise myself for sticking with it.

2. What one word comes to mind when you think about your 2008 season?

AP: Improvement. Cuz it's gotta be better than 2007!!

3. Did you race any new distance this year or try any new type of racing or sport?

AP: Nope. Only race I did was the Haney to Harrison. Not new at all. Would have if the 101's had run... dammit.

4. What was your greatest thrill or joy this year from training or racing?

AP: Gals of ST camp in April.

5. What was your biggest disappointment this year from training or racing?

AP: Not racing Halifax 101 or Woodlands 101. Out of my control tho (races canceled).

6. What was your favorite race in 2007?
AP: Haney to Harrison. It's the only race I did, but it *is* one of my favourites, so that's a good thing I think.

Ugh... stop the madness, I want to get off...

2007-12-09T17:04:00.000-08:00

It's been a few too many weekends of partying and I'm tired. I mean really tired. Poker night, office Christmas party, mini trip to Tofino and Victoria... Yesterday we slept in til noon. How ridiculous is that? I went for a run today and felt like sh*t. Am I surprised? Heck no. Am I annoyed at myself? Heck yes. If I want what I say I want, and to do the races I want to do and not feel like crap doing them, then I need to give my head a shake.

There was a post on ST in the Lavender Room about simplifying your life. A lot of ideas like getting rid of the tv/internet at home (gasp!), cleaning out the clutter and unused things, even giving up on harmful relationships (i.e.: ones that are toxic or too demanding/one-sided). Some good ideas. The key message I got from it was if you want to add something to your plate, you have to make room by removing something - you can't indefinitely cram things on to a finite plate.

One post suggested making a list of things that are important to you and to use that as a guide against which to compare choices, decisions, activities, etc.

So what's important to me?
- Kate. Time with Kate that is meaningful for both of us. That means me being more patient and compassionate with her, while still being her parent (not her friend).
- Phil. Similar to above, having meaningful times with him, working towards our goals together, and never ever taking him for granted.
- Liam. The more time I spend with this amazing little boy, the happier I am to have him as part of my life. The challenge is that no matter how I want to spend time interacting with him, it's not up to me. So I am somewhat sidelined here.
- My mental and physical well-being. The last year has shown me that I need to take better care of myself, racing aside. This point is not about training and racing, it's about making choices that lead towards well-being, not the other way around.
- Work. Work has always been a big part of who I am, sometimes to a fault. I find it difficult to balance work and non-work time in that I sometimes feel very guilty about not working more... seriously. How sad is that?
- Competition. Racing, specifically running, triathlon, and even cycling, is about me competing, mostly with myself. I am a competitive person by nature, and racing gives me that outlet so I can be less competitive in other aspects of my life. This also lets me push myself towards goals that mean something to me.
- Friends and family. This is a tough one. While a social person in general, I also find it difficult to maintain relationships with many friends and family members. I usually spend my time with Kate, Phil, at work, or trying to take care of myself. I end up with very little time left over. My parents hate this. So do some of my friends. I don't know how to change this without giving up something else.

As I write this list, I find it somewhat easier now to see that I really would rather spend time going for a run than visiting my mother. And that I shouldn't beat myself up about going to spin class at lunch on a work day. I am only supposed to work 40hrs a week, and I do more than that already (not much more mind you... heck I remember 5ish years ago I used to log 70+ hrs a week).

I need to stop beating myself up about my choices. I will never make everyone happy.

-------------
On a positive note, when I take care of myself (eating right, a solid 8hrs of sleep and little to no alcohol), I do feel a lot better after working out. I am sleeping a lot better than I used to, now that the thyroid situation seems to be under control (last blood tests looks very good). I have about 6 weeks until the first half half-marathon. I need to get some more miles in before then or it's going to be a long and painful run. I am signing up for Twist again for January, this time two classes: 1 functional fitness (weights, core, speed) and 1 Cycling class (spin class but with some core work added). I also bought a xc ski pass for evenings at Cypress, so I am hoping I can get in a few sessions there...

and...

I AM GETTING MY EYES ZAPPED! Finally got my butt in gear enough to go to Lasik, and I get the procedure done on the 22nd. I am so excited. No more contacts. Thank god.

I'm off to go hang with K. Later skater.

AP

Still running, but not much else these days...

2007-11-28T11:32:00.000-08:00

And that's OK - for now - I think. I have realized that I am very fearful of getting back into training again. My fears mostly stem from putting in a lot of effort but never getting back to where I was in the fall of 2005. Another aspect is trying to balance time with K and P as well as training time. I don't want to end up spending my time alone - again. While I can run at lunch a few times a week, and get in one long run on the weekends, I think I am afraid of getting up to swim early in the morning - because I will miss my time with P. I know it's silly. I bet if I started doing it, he'd likely join in, then no one's missing anything. But it's still a fear.

Things I can do to mentally get back in the game:
- not wear a watch/hrm for most workouts: check that.
- reward myself after each workout: perhaps not with a croissant... but you get the idea
- try doing something different: xc skiing, hiking, even snowshoeing. why not, can't hurt.
- keep track of my sessions: I bet after a few months I will be surprised at what I have accomplished
- train my brain: writing down goals, reading them every day...
- picking realistic goals: maybe a fall marathon is do-able but not realistic; ditto a September 1/2IM. Maybe I should just hit the sprint circuit in 08, stick to 15k running races or less, race more often but shorter...

Then we get into the "taking it to the next step" phase, where I can use testing to monitor my progress. But I'm not even going to start that nonsense til oh March. I don't even want to think about it actually...

This weekend, we're going to have some serious down-time in Tofino. Loafing, sleeping in, etc... I am looking forward to it. Might even get in a run hee hee ;-)

AP

Remembrance Day

2007-11-11T08:51:00.000-08:00

Today is a tough day for me. It is an important one, but I find it emotionally difficult. This year, I have K with me and we just finished watching the ceremony at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. K had so many questions, and it was tough to answer them all. How do you explain to a 3 year old what a war is?

Yesterday, P and I went for a ride to Horseshoe Bay, then up Cypress. We only got to the 7km mark, and yeah we could have kept going, but we would have suffered for it today. It was a beautiful sunny day, something of a surprise as the forecast all week had been for a miserable weekend. How lucky to be able to go ride wherever we wanted, whenever we wanted. I read that fighting is beginning again near Rwanda, and that South Darfur is about to explode. We keep losing soldiers in Afghanistan and it is harder and harder to support that mission - it feels like there is no end in sight.

I consider myself very lucky to have the life I do.

AP

Signed up for...

2007-10-29T14:11:00.000-07:00

- Haney to Harrison next weekend (doing leg 2 thank god)
- First Half Half Marathon in Feb (always popular and sells out quickly)
- November ST Swim Challenge (aiming for 9 times in Nov, hoping for 3000m each session for a total of 27000m)

Crazy noise. It will be nice to swim more than once a week though. I think if I can do more swimming in Nov, then back to more running in Dec, and slowly build it back up, I will be in good shape come spring to add in riding. Come better weather, one LSD ride a week and one ride to & from work will be enough to get me back to racing.

A friend of mine is doing a cleanse (12 days, "Wild Rose Cleanse" I think he called it), and he's lost 9 lbs in 7 days. Shee-it. I need to lose some weight all right. In fact, I need to review my diet entirely - beer & wine aside (yeah, that's an obvious one, I know), I need to see how much meat and dairy I am actually eating. Heck, I might even have to try one of these cleanses, might be a way to kick start my system, now that I am feeling better, it's time to start losing some weight.

And on that note, I am off for a 1.5hr run, ttyl

AP

20k run today...

2007-10-20T19:50:00.000-07:00

Holy crap I forgot how much that long a run beats up yer legs! It was a miserable day for a long run too, rain, wind and not super warm (maybe 8 degC). But I tell ya I felt pretty strong even at the end. I know I will feel it tomorrow. Had a hot bath with epsom salts afterwards which should help (I hope). I wanted to ride actually, as I had the whole day free, but I hate riding in bad weather. I have no problem running in the worst weather, in fact I kinda like running in bad weather. It's crazy I know, but I do. There are less people out and about for one. And there is something about feeling the wind in your face, or the rain dripping off the brim of your hat, or splashing through puddles with wet feet that makes the run feel more... challenging... satisfying even.

P and I rode last weekend, just a steady 1-pee-break ride from home to Iona and back. Solid 72k at a manageable pace. You know, the pace that you can maintain the whole way, and if you needed to, you could ride another 10-15km without bonking. These LSD rides are so key to rebuilding my endurance, and as that improves, I can start working on my power and muscular endurance. Running three times a week is a good start, but I think I will have to start doing some weights to get those quads back in form.

In fact, I am close to averaging 7hr/week. That is my goal until the new year: 7hrs/week doing anything (swim, bike, run or weights). Next weekend I will be busy with K and so have no time to get in anything (unless Grandpa gives me 30min for a short run). But I can run Mon, Wed and Fri, that's about 3hrs there, and the weather is supposed to be ok much of next week so I should be able to get in at least one ride to and from work. That's another hour. So at 4. Try for one swim next week during lunch (Tues or Thurs), that's another hour. At 5 now. I think it's not likely that I will get in those extra 2 hours with a fully booked weekend, but that's ok.

It's funny how when you are training a lot you manage to reorganize your life to accommodate all that training time. And when you are not training regularly, how unbelievably difficult it is to make time to train. It's just like how easily you lose fitness when you don't train, how quickly your life slides into a non-training-friendly arrangement. I mean I used to think nothing of getting up at 4am to train, and nowadays I can't even get up at 6 to train. How sad is that? Well, it's more about how non-motivated I am to get up at 6am to train.

I think as I continue to feel better and better, and continue to get in the base training hours, I will find a way to make the time. I know there is no reason why I can't swim Thurs or Fri mornings before work. It's like before you start the workout session, it can be so hard to drag your ass and get going. But once you start the session, and especially after you finish, you feel great and are so glad you did the session. I felt great at the end of my run today. And I have felt better and better each time I run or ride these days. Soon, I'll swim again, and I'll feel the same way.

It'll come, I don't need to force it.

AP

Going to camp...

2007-09-29T08:55:00.000-07:00

Well, since Houston 101 was canceled, myself and the rest of the ST chicks has started planning to meet instead at Xantusia for a weekend of riding, running, swimming, hot tubbing and margaritas. Monty will resume his stint as Den Mother, Dan as expert fitter/rescuer of lost chicks and Emilio as bartender. I have to admit, I was not sure I'd be able to go - or that I'd want to due to the tradeoffs (Kate, work, Phil, etc.) but Phil will be in the Okanagan anyways, so why not. I am trying to get one of my local friends to come with me, as I think they would really enjoy it. The big questions left are: 1) do I flyout of Seattle or Vancouver? and 2) which bike do I bring? ;-)

I have run three times this week already, and am hoping to get out for another run today as well. I am feeling sooooo much better - and the runs are getting easier. The hills feel better, that's for sure. Used to be that even the little rises would just kill me, but now I can power over them without even noticing them. I am somewhat lucky in that I get to run at lunchtime at Lynn Canyon park in North Vancouver. Right now the leaves are turning, so I get to run alongside this very pretty river, with lots of trees and DOGS! The park is a off-leash park, and commercial dog walking (up to 6 dogs) is permitted. So there have been many times when running with my shuffle on that I get a surprise visit from one or more dogs... sometimes they sneak up on me and I get a little startled. Some dog owners are really good and their dogs are under control all the time, and the dogs know that kind of behaviour is not allowed. But there are a lot of people who think it's ok to let their dogs jump up on strangers, or even try to nip at their heels or hands. I realize I am running, so some dogs will react to that motion. But come on people, it's not ok.

I went for a ride last week, bought some new tires for my Olmo (Conti 3000s), and cleaned every inch of my bike. I need to get some fenders on it for the winter, as the rain is coming soon. I hope to ride "long" at least once every two weeks through the winter. I am also looking at going back to the track - the velodrome that is. But I'm not too worried about the cycling, I'm only looking to do a 1/2IM next year as my goal race... The swimming is more of a challenge. I am seriously thinking about re-joining Pacific Spirit Tri Club if only for the weekly coached swims (Thurs night, Sat morning, the odd Tuesday). I hate swimming short course, but there are no long course swimming facilities available in the evenings. Not that I need the coaching, really, but the structured workouts help keep me motivated to go...

The thyroid meds are kicking in. I am starting to lose a little bit of weight (not much, just a little so far), the appetite is better, and I just have more energy in general. I will have to go back to the GP for another blood test in about November, see how the thyroid is performing, see if the levels are improving. But for now, I am just going to enjoy feeling good again... ;-)

AP

Almost a month later... almost 3 weeks of thyroid drugs...

2007-09-15T21:11:00.000-07:00

And I am RUNNING again! Yesss! (insert fist pump here) This past Wed and Thurs I ran at lunch. While it was slow and easy, and I could tell my fitness was pretty much toast, I was able to run 35min and 50min! And I still feel good - good enough to ride 2hrs today. :-)

When my results came back, all my tests were perfect except the Thyroid Marker - the one your brain produces to tell your thyroid to make more hormones. That one was off the charts, unbelievably high. So off I go, into the world of daily doses (100mg) of synthroid. I am supposed to give it up to 3 months, then go back for more tests to see if the dose required adjustment. And of course just after this, the Houston 101 race was cancelled - so no racing for me at all this year... I think it's a sign. I was not meant to race at all this year. At least they gave me a 100% refund.

My muscles are slowing uncramping. I am less and less fatigued. Hell, I feel wicked awesome - like I *used* to feel before I fell off the functioning thyroid wagon. I know I have a long way back to the fitness level I used to have, but I'm totally ok with that.

P and I went and watched IMC last month, and I think I have him hooked. At this point he'll try a sprint next spring, aim for an Olympic in the summer (likely the Apple in Kelowna, so his folks can watch - that would be cool). I will train for a half, I think. If that all goes well, we will sign up for IMC for 2009 (again, local race and family can watch us race). I have to admit, I really would like to do IMC.

Well, to be specific, I want to do another IM. IMC is kind of a tough one, as there would be so many familiar faces. I have always enjoyed smaller, more obscure races, places where I can "hide"... whereas at IMC all my friends will see my performance - warts and all - and that's tough. What if I have a crummy day? What if I DNF (doubtful I know but always a possibility)? That's hard to swallow in front of that crowd...

We also had a vacation, back East, after IMC. Vacations always help. And even though I was abusing my body (especially my poor liver! hee hee!) I still felt better than I had in a long time.
We rode from Halifax to Peggy's cove and back, and although it was a sufferfest (100k on chipseal kinda sucks, and I had only been on the synthroid for 5 days at that point), I'm glad we rode. We swam at Lawrencetown and froze our asses off - but it was great. We explored the FlowerPots on the Bay of Fundy. We went to PEI and had a huge beach to ourselves. We ate lobster on the Northumberland ferry back to Nova Scotia. We drank single malt whisky at the Glenora distillery in Cape Breton. We explored White Point, and ate wild blueberries we found amongst the carpet of heather and juniper. I was feeling really relaxed.

Then we went to Montreal for 3 nights and drank a silly amount of beer. WooHoo.

But now... now it's time to get back in shape. I mean, I just bought a new pair of Conti tires for my Olmo... they are begging to be broken-in ;-)

AP

Wow, it's been a while...

2007-08-20T16:16:00.000-07:00

... and wow am I a bad blogger... oh well. ;-)

I finally had my appointment with the endocrinologist, it took over 4 months to get in to see her. She spent about 30min with me, reviewed my prior tests, planned some more tests, and gave me a prescription for Thyroid hormone. She suggested my estrogen may be too high (which would explain the sweating and the breakthru bleeding), my muscles may be very unhappy with me (as they are always tight and cramp very easily), and I may have trouble absorbing vitamins (Celiac).

So had more blood drawn today. It's funny, but 6 vials and I feel like crap. I remember when I used to give blood and felt fine. Apparently no more. Oh well, it just goes to show that I'm getting older. Yes, I aged-up this year, entering the F35-39 AG... sigh.

One of the things the endo suggested is that I may be experiencing perimenopause! Seriously! I find that surprising, but at this point anything is possible. Hopefully the results will be back soon, so we can start the next phase of treatment. The thyroid hormone pills should start kicking in in a few weeks to a month. It will take time, which is what is so frustrating.

I rode the trainer today, and I swam 3000m on Saturday at the UBC outdoor pool. I am still doing Twist once a week, and I think I will continue that through the fall. I count 12 weeks until Houston. 10days of that will be spent on vacation in Halifax and Montreal, and although we plan on riding to Peggy's cove one day, most of that vacation will be loafing and eating and drinking. It's long overdue.

So my biggest challenge at this point will be to get my swim endurance back up (it's not bad - that should be do-able) and to start to pile on the bike miles. I am willing to avoid running until when we get back from Halifax/Montreal. That's not going to kill me. Most of running - on race day at least - is mental - how much pain can you take? how much can you push yourself? I am not worried about that part.

Fingers crossed that these little pills help...

AP

First session at Twist...

2007-07-06T17:02:00.000-07:00

Well, that was certainly interesting... OK, I did my first "intro" session at Twist this afternoon, about 1hr long, my first class is next Wednesday (1h15min). The things the instructor got me to do were very different than what my usual aerobic exercise consists of... push ups on a bosu ball, lots of lunge thru to knee lift and arm press with a weight, lots of squats and some fast footwork stuff as well. She asked me what my goals were for this training, I said #1 is to improve my leg power - I want to be a better climber on the bike. She said "Oh then this will work wonders for you..."

Observations:
- I am stronger core-wise on my left than my right. This would match my experience of having problems on my right side (pelvis).
- When doing squats, my legs really want to move & wobble all over the place. Putting a focus on my outside heels really stopped that motion.
- My shoulders are rolled very far forward, likely due to a tight chest and weak upper back. This is something I will have to really watch out for...
- My upper body in general is really weak now, specifically shoulders.

I suspect I will feel this tomorrow - a lot. Good thing I'm going riding with Phil - HA!

AP

I signed up for Houston 101, and for Twist...

2007-07-01T08:16:00.000-07:00

So my Halifax 101 entry was converted to an entry to the Houston (The Woodlands, to be specific) 101 race, on Nov 11th. And it turns out the better part of the girls from our ST Tri Camp back in April are also racing! Cathy, Dawn, Kylie... plus Cathy has pinged Monty, Dan and Emilio - who look likely to attend as well. This should be a lot of fun! I'm pretty stoked about knowing more than one person in Houston... nothing like racing alone :-(

I also signed up for Twist conditioning. It's right next door to my office. Monday, Wednesday and Friday at lunch time for 1h15. Apparently they work you pretty hard, and you get pretty awesome results. Lots of core work, plus agility and speed stuff. These are the guys that train the Vancouver Canucks, and while they usually focus on hockey and lacrosse players, they also deal with schmucks like me... (suckas with $). Seeing as they are 20 ft from my office, literally, I have no excuse to not go.

I also invested in a laptop backpack, so I have no excuse to not ride to & from work on the days I don't have daycare detail. And the next three weekends I have completely free & clear so I can log in a few loooong rides on back to back days. You know, get really good & cooked. Ride for hours, get in a short run off the bike, then eat & shower & fall asleep on the couch... oh yeah...

And instead of doing Sooke 1/2IM on the 22nd, I think I might do a sprint (yeah - just for fun) in North Vancouver on the 29th. Doing Sooke would involve a ferry ride, hotel, plus race fee, so instead of spending that $$ I'll stay home and log some long training hours. I can spend that time and $$ on a big steak and a bottle of wine with P instead ;-)

AP

Halifax is CANCELLED!

2007-06-21T19:46:00.000-07:00

Boo hiss and all that. :-( I was so excited about this race... this morning I had an email from the organizers saying they decided to cancel now, because they didn't think they'd have every thing in order (permits etc.) in time. So instead of putting on a less-than-perfect event, they decided to call it. At least they transferred my race entry to the Texas course (Nov 11), or I could have taken a 100% refund. 100%? That is UNHEARD of in the tri community. No one offers that kind of refund. Amazing. I have to give the organizers huge props for treating those folks that registered early this way.

Needless to say, we will still go to Halifax (& Montreal) and enjoy ourselves. And I will continue training for the November 11th race in Texas.

And I have been training too, that's the funny thing. This week I have ridden and swum a decent amount. Not tons or anything, but a decent start back into the routine. So I feel more motivated to train. A big part of that motivation is that I am really enjoying riding my new Soloist.

I think I will still do Sooke in July - it will be a good reminder of the pain and hurt. I think I need that reminder. ;-) Then I will so another half in September - Maybe Enumclaw (Black Diamond) again. I liked that race a lot, and the bike leg is overdistance for a half (100k vs. 90k). It's a good test, and low numbers, easy to enjoy the race... Another option is the new Vancouver 1/2IM in Sept. Not sure about the course on that one yet... we'll see.

AP

A nice day of training

2007-06-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

It was. I swam 2000m at lunch, then I rode a hard 40k after work on Phil2. I feel great. Seriously. As long as I limit my running, it seems I can swim & ride and still recover well. So as previously mentioned, I will curb my running to twice or even once weekly and spend more time on the bike and in the pool. All in the name of building overall fitness.

The more I ride my new bike the more I love it. I love how fast I feel on it. And as we all know, 90% of sport is in yer damn head... It's very comfy. Plus I love the looks I get from other riders hee hee! Tonight, I passed so many CARS and they didn't pass me back! I mean I can keep a steady 35kph on the flats at Spanish Banks now. I can ride so many smaller/low grade hills in my aerobars that I couldn't before. It's great, I'm very happy I got this bike.

One thing I do notice is the wattage difference between riding aero and riding slack/on the bullhorns. It was an STer, Jens I think, who said he thought my new position would require 10 or so more watts to maintain similar speeds. And on any kind of incline he is right - it's almost exactly 10 watts difference. Then again, as I am lucky to crack 200W at any one time (yeah really how sad is that), 10W is 5%. Big difference. This is something to explore further in future rides.

So I have decided I will do Sooke even if I am only so-so ready for it. I will just do it to get the taste for "racing" again. I do miss racing, I remember a time when I raced every week. A crit, OW swim, tri, road race... so many events... so many RACE FEES!!! AUGH!!! Oh yeah my new company actually gives you up to $300 per year to spend on "being active" which includes race fees!!! So I might be able to expense my Halifax 101 fees ;-) That's pretty cool. Not many companies do that. Heck they had 3 Haney to Harrison relay teams last year... lots of runners it seems. One of my Mechanics, he used to race & courier, so he's a sick rider. And another woman in Engineering, well, she's a sponsored XTERRA racer. Heaps of riders and runner - all good stuff.

Off to get a glass of well earned wine. Tomorrow is ride to work, ride to a friends post-work then ride home. Not a lot of miles, but better to get some than none.

AP

Those early morning rides...

2007-06-16T08:01:00.000-07:00

OK, it's not as early as I used to ride, but it's 8am and I'm waiting. I am waiting for an event to occur so that afterwards I can go for a ride before the rain comes. You know, waiting... So I try coffee. That usually works. And I wait. And wait... There is nothing worse than starting a ride and oh about 15-30min in you need to find a loo. There are few of them around (Spanish Banks, UBC, then nothing til Iona - maybe one in a park along Marine...) and they are usually nasty. You also tend to get funny looks when you bring your bike into the handicapped stall with you. ;-)

I went running last night, another 1hr run along False Creek, and it was good. I can definitely feel the lack of fitness (in my lungs mostly) but my legs feel good, my form feels good so that's promising. I am afraid of getting fatigued again, so I am only really running once or twice a week right now. If I have the time, I would rather ride than run. The last thing I want is to feel like I was feeling a few months ago...

And I have to be careful as my lungs are still inflammed, still unhappy from being sick and also (it turns out) from my new workplace. Yeah, seriously. I sit in the middle of the manufacturing area, and there is all sorts of machining and welding and chemicals etc in the area. And every weekend I feel great. And every Monday I start to cough again. I will be moving my desk shortly - that should help - then I will see how I do. It turns out I am not the only person who seems to feel rotten at work - I am hearing about a lot of people who don't feel well or who are sick often. Good thing we are moving to a brand new facility soon... (well 4-6 months away but that's pretty soon).

OK, now I am ready to ride. TTYL,
AP

First run in 2 months.

2007-06-10T13:42:00.000-07:00

Well, as per the title, yesterday I ran for the first time in two months. The last time I ran was before the tri-camp in SoCal, that was April 12th. I recall that last run really sucking ass too, I couldn't run at all - had to walk every few minutes or so. Then I got sick, and have been sick for 5 weeks or so. I was finally feeling really well so I thought I'd give it a try, an easy 30min or so.

It was pouring out. Got dressed to run, put on my shuffle and hit the road. Was surprised at how comfortable it felt. Was also surprised at how much I have missed running - I missed having that alone time to just let go and relax. To forget all the stupid little crap I have to deal with on a daily basis. So I can think about more important things, big things.

I ended up running an hour, I got soaked, and I loved it. I feel great today. I can feel that my leg muscles were used yesterday, you know that low dull ache you get from exercise, and I am aware that I haven't felt that feeling in what seems like ages.

In an effort to not crash into the fatigue I experienced earlier this year, I will be very judicious in my training. I will swim twice a week, I will run twice a week (one long run and one easy 1hr or less run) and I will ride as much as I can fit in to my schedule, likely one long ride and one short ride. It won't be much, but it will be more than enough to get me to the start in Halifax.

Wow, over 3 weeks since my last post...

2007-05-28T07:50:00.000-07:00

My buddy Khai informed me that I have dropped off the face of the planet. True, I suppose. In the last 4 weeks, I: 1) left my last job; 2) got a really bad cold that morphed into a sinus infection; and 3) started a new job. So I have done JACK ALL for training in those 4 weeks. I rode once (up to Buntzen lake) on the new set-up, and I swam once in my new deSoto SpeedTube and T1 vest. On top of that, my blood tests came back and it turns out my Thyroid is out of whack. I am still waiting for my appointment with the specialist (endocrinologist)... :-( So I have put running on the back burner in the meantime to try and fight the fatigue. Since I have stopped running I feel like I have tons of energy, even with that cold & infection. So I will cautiously add running back into the mix...

The new gear ROCKS! The bike set-up is very comfy, and I feel like I can go pretty fast without really putting a lot of effort into it (which means I have to start putting more effort into it). One thing I did notice riding the new set-up was that very specific sections of my quads were affected - they were working far more than when I was riding my slack road set-up. I can't wait to get in some more long rides.

In fact, I have been debating going back to doing some 4am training sessions. I did a lot of these in training for IMWA 05, and I found them very useful as I find it hard to train after work. I am usually so cooked by then, all I want to do is eat a steak and drink a bottle of wine, seriously. I suspect the trainer might be too loud, so I'd have to get in these rides on mornings when K is not with me. Sneak out for a 2 hr ride, get home, shower, eat, go to work, yeah that sounds like a good idea...;-)

The new job certainly has been a bit stressful, but it's a welcomed challenge. I was waaaay too bored in my last job, had been for about a year. But it wasn't the right time to leave until just recently. Now I feel like I have got all my ducks in a row - except training. I was supposed to do the New Balance 1/2IM in 3 weeks, but of course I won't be there. So do I try to do Spokane or Sooke at the end of July? I should, if only for my mental confidence. I think I would like to try Sooke, as it will be a week earlier than Spokane, and likely less HOT than Spokane. I'll have to see how the training goes, obviously, but it's important to have interim goals right?

Anyways, back to work, I am going for a swim at lunch today, so I have to get my butt in gear and get my stuff done. This week looks like this - super easy to get back into it:
M: swim 1hr
T: swim 1hr
W: ride after work 2hr
R: ride to & from work (easy ride)
F: ride to & from work (easy ride)
St: 1hr easy run
Sn: off

We'll see how that goes.

AP

Transitions/Bike Fit

2007-05-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

I have this week off work - technically I am unemployed for this week - as I start a new job next Monday. I am going to go build subs. Seriously. I am taking over Production & Operations for a local company called OceanWorks who builds small subs and hard dive suits (and lots of other cool underwater things). I am trying to use this week off to mentally let go of Spectrum and to get my mind ready for the new challenges ahead, of which there are many.

I am also using the time to swim like crazy and to get my new bike, Phil2, fitted.

Pre and post.

Not sure how well it will work, but it is comfortable, far more than I was before. I suspect, as did many STers, that I might have a drop in power in the new position, but I want to give it a try, see how I feel after longer rides and especially when running. The biggest change is the aerobars - wider pads so I can rest more of my weight on my skeleton - very comfy. Hope to get out and ride tomorrow, the weather hasn't been great this week...

Cathing up: last day of camp/new bike/fatigue/new job

2007-04-26T19:51:00.000-07:00

Yeah yeah, long title I know. It's been a while since I was able to post so I have to recap it all for you.

Last day of camp? Did the hill climb behind the ranch, the one that Bjorn and Jordan (rappstar) have done in sub50min. Well I left the ranch it was cool for sure, I was wearing my new deSoto polypro long sleeve shirt with a wife beater underneath and another jersey on top, with arm warmers and thick socks and a toque... it was maybe 45degF when I left the ranch. Downhill, a bit of flat and then UGH 11miles of climbing. Well, I had just pasted the 7mi marker (i.e.: 4 left to go) when Dan (slowman) passed me in his truck. He had just finished a run with his dogs closer to the top and was heading back. He saw me, waved, and the pulled a u-turn behind me. He rolled down his window to talk to me, and just then I noticed it was SNOWING. He told me it was like 24degF at the summit and suggested I bail there and then. He offered a ride back, which in retrospect was a good idea. I am still bummed that I didn't get all the way up, but well that will have to wait til next time. Dammit.

I love this new bike, Phil2. I didn't have time for a fitting by Dan, the master, but will get one locally. I am pretty sure I need a shorter stem, and some wider aerobar pads. Other than that, the ride feels good.

Anyways, ate, showered, packed up and headed out. I had a lot of driving ahead of me (2200km to be precise) so I thought I better get started. I made it to Mt. Shasta that night, then home the next day. I have to admit, all that driving was physically tiring. I love road trips but next time I will have a co-pilot/co-driver. My back was stiff, my neck was sore (from the bouncy sport suspension), and I was just wiped. I slept a huge amount the next two days.

Which leads me to fatigue. I have been dealing with low-level fatigue since oh about December. I have talked to my doc about it, some blood was taken, and I should get some results shortly. I am suspecting it is either diet (not eating enough? too much fat & alcohol?) or something to do with my lower GI (parasite? need probiotics?). Hopefully the doc will rule out anything really bad, and have something constructive for me. But I have a bad feeling that the usual tests will come back fine.

This fatigue is a funny thing, I find it affects me most when running. Swimming and riding seem OK, not as good as they should be, but still they don't wipe me out like running does. Some runs I can't even manage 5min before I have to walk or really slow down. It feels like I am running in maple syrup, it's that slow and difficult. And even funnier I felt GREAT at the camp. The less I run the better I feel. That doesn't bode well for my racing, but oh well, I can always just suck it up and run long on race day.

So tomorrow is my last day of work at Spectrum. On May 7th I start at OceanWorks, making subs. Yep subs. How cool is that? I have 10 days off between jobs and I intend on training a lot. I have been swimming more than usual, and doing long endurance sets no problem i.e.: 2500m non-stop in 48min. Next week I hope to swim and ride most days, maybe I'll take Monday off though, and take Kate to the Aquarium. ;-)

AP

Last nights hi-jinks.

2007-04-14T16:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here are some pics of last nights hi-jinks.

Emilio gave us all trucker hats (woohoo). Some chose to use the cardboard inserts for fun-time:

Loren's finish line dance was the hit of the night. Shake yer booty baby.

Get yer damn camera out of my face missy!

Big smiles... is it the hat? or the margaritas? ;-)

Day 2 of camp

2007-04-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

Got up around 7:30, feeling some of the margaritas from the night before (thanks Emilio) but not too bad. The call went out: we ride at 9:30, going to head North to some flat-ish terrain for a 2-6hr ride (you pick the duration). Ate some pb&j and some eggs & cheese, couple cups of coffee, hit the loo a few times, and got ready to go. Decided to wear my new Sugoi bib-shorts. God I love these shorts. No more "hey check out my ass" for the following riders and motorists. We rolled out and the group packed up as best as possible, considering how many different riders we had. I have to say I am used to riding the road bike, and riding paceline. When almost everyone is riding with an aero front end, it's virtually impossible to ride in a tight group.

It was windy. Quite windy. Like IMWA windy. We had quite a head/side wind most of the way out and on our loop (via 170th). I was really looking forward to a nice tailwind to carry me back up the last 5mi climb to the ranch.

HOWEVER nature had other ideas.

By the time we got back to 170th and made that right-hand turn to head back, the winds had shifted. Seriously. I am NOT making this up, I have folks that will back me up on this, the winds had changed such that we had a head wind virtually the entire 3hr ride. They were gusting at least 25mph, but I think it was blowing harder than that. Lots of folks cut the ride short, called the SAG wagon for a rescue ride, but I just sucked it up and SLOGGED all the way back to the ranch. Horribly hard ride.

I have just finished my lunch (stew, homemade guac & chips, water water water), and now I am about to go hit the hot tub with a beer. Others are planning on running later today, I am not ;-) I will have a nap instead. Ha ha.

More pics later.

AP

ST Gals Camp day 1

2007-04-13T17:43:00.000-07:00

Well, after 1.5 days and 2200k of driving, I made it to Xanustia, with time to meet everyone, have a few glasses of wine, a briefing from our host (Mark "Monty" Montgomery), and a quick watch of the 1986 Catalina Island Triathlon on the big screen. Emilio DeSoto and Bjorn Andersson are here too. The Catalina Tri had Elimio and Mark racing, and it was hilarious to see them during interviews, wearing their old skool Oakleys and these ridiculous red baseball hats with "Stroh's" across them... tres 80s. Amazing what they managed to accomplish with such gear... no coaches, just a lot of hard training. Got too meet the famous Snacky Chan/Princess Dirtball, along with the silent and mysterious Bjorn. He's going for that "quiet and deep" thing. LOL... Crashed out around 10 in the cabin down by the pool, nice & quiet, nice & cool. Had a good look at the stars that night, amazing view here in the middle of the desert. Gotta try and get a pic of the sunset...

Next morning, up at 7 for coffee & breakie #1. Then, I dawdled down to the garage to put my new ride, "Phil2", together. After an hour of puttering on it, I took it for a bit of a short spin to tweak the fit. It's been about 15 months since I rode aero regularly, and it felt, well, strange. Plus not having the usual handlebars & shifters, and (just to top it off) new shoes & cleats & pedals.

Here it is:

And here is some more gratuitous bike pjorn:

Emilio's new ride:

And Bjorn's P3C...

Yeah that's a crazy drop, I know...

Some pics of the garage and all the bike schtuffs:

So post-ride we all went for a swim in this brand new 12-lane outdoor pool (scy). Got in a nice 2500y session.

Even had a relay team try to beat Bjorn at 150y free. It was close - Emilio pulled the last leg and almost caught him (finish shot above), although it was pretty obvious that Bjorn was sandbagging the first few laps... ;-) The lack of sunscreen became obvious tho, as I could feel my ass burning in the pool. I did wear my rashguard tho so my arms & shoulders are just fine (yes I did pick some sunscreen up afterwards, no more excuses)...

Then lunch at the Pines Cafe (poor lady saw us all walk in at 1:45, fifteen minutes before closing). Great big omlettes, lots of water & lemonade, all good. Back to the ranch! Another buck-fifteen spin on Phil2, and I think the aerobars are pretty good now, might do some more tweaking after tomorrow's ride. Having a beer now, just about to hop in the hottub.

More to come later/tomorrow... AP

Big Ring Riding/Reacquainting myself with an old friend...

2007-04-03T10:39:00.000-07:00

So I have been doing my last few rides solely in the big ring. Including a jaunt (ha!) to Horseshoe Bay and then up Cypress to the look-out. Profile below:

Yes, I did that entire ride in the big ring. Which for me is 53x (I run a 12-25 on the back and used most of those). Phil was on his new Cannondale and he climbs crazy awesome. It was great to see him looking soooo much more comfortable than he was on the Minute Maid. Khai, the smartass, rode his fixie. Those descents on a fixie are insane. I would never do that kind of riding on a fixie. But then again, Khai is crazy.

The cool part is even though I worked my legs hard, they felt great! Heck, P and I even walked into town for the Canucks game that night, and post-game walked around for another hour. I actually think the walking helped.

The weather has been great lately (I check here and here) so I'm excited about getting in some road-time before the rains return and I am forced back to the pool (not that I'm complaining mind you). Plus I am now working on a part-time schedule, so I get to either hang out with Kate or train in the afternoons. Today I will ride (as it is beautiful outside) and swim tomorrow instead.

Yesterday, I rode the trainer for an hour while K napped. I hadn't been on that trainer since one of my last rides before leaving for Perth for IMWA in November 2005. It was odd. I only rode an hour, which is enough to start (I will build up to maybe 2hrs on the trainer when it's miserable out - I doubt I will need to do more as the race sked this year is much better than 2005). I forgot how much more you work on the trainer - well, not necessarily more, just different work. It's steady effort, you don't get a rest, really. I focused on keeping my cadence at 90, and I did a set of one-leg drills. They always show me my flat spots. Then pyramid gear-ups, that is: 2min in each gear, getting progressively higher, until the 2min blows my HR, then 2min in each gear heading back down. At the end of the 1hr, I felt great, and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Yeah, crazy I know. I think I missed the trainer rides where I would just zone out, listen to the tunes and spin away... maybe it's the zoning out I missed ;-).

Anyways, the weeks looks like this:
M - 1hr ride (trainer)
T - 2.5hr steady ride; 30min run off bike
W - Bike to work (45min); bike home (45min); swim 1hr (3000m)
R - 2hr LSD run; swim 1hr (3000m)
F (day off work) - 4hr LSD ride; optional 30min run off bike; 1hr swim (3000m)
St - swim 1h (2500m); 2hr easy ride OR 1hr easy run
Sn - off.

Very excited about this whole part-time thing.

AP

OK, so April will be crazy-awesome

2007-03-28T15:00:00.000-07:00

I have changed my work schedule to mornings only, starting April. I am so stoked about this. This means that Monday and Tuesday I can spend the afternoon with K, and Wed thru Fri I can TRAIN! WooHoo! I am taking a huge pay cut for this, but I think it will be worth it. I may only get to do this for April or I might get this set-up for the summer -- who knows, we'll see. Very excited about this new situation.

But I might be going to a new job shortly. In which case, it will be back to f/t, likely beginning of May. So I have to maximize my training time in April. It's going to look like a bunch of crash weeks I think. Example:

Week 1 - April 2 to April 8
-------------------------
Monday: run aerobic easy 40min
Tuesday: run 50min intervals/hills/tempo
Wednesday: lsd run up to 2hrs; swim 1hr (3000m)
Thurs: ride 2hr tempo with 30min run off bike; optional swim 1hr (3000m)
Fri: ride 1hr trainer/intervals/drills; swim 1hr (3000m)
Sat: lsd ride up to 5hrs; swim 1hr (3000m)
Sun: 1hr easy trainer ride

Something like that.

And, the BF got a new road bike (well, new to him) -- one that fits him much better than the Minute Maid. So now he can do more riding, longer rides, and be more comfortable. That's great. It was a steal (Cannondale R700 with aerobars, computer, egg beater pedals) and it was in fabulous condition - hardly ridden. He can probably ride that bike for years. We'll strip the good stuff off the Minute Maid and keep them/sell them/put them on the Cannondale. Then we'll ditch the frame. Hopefully I can sell my Olmo hybrid frame & fork to clear out some room because... my soloist is coming home with me in about 2 weeks!!! mmmm... I'll get to ride it at the ST camp next month, and also get a real professional bit fit out of it while I am there. Sweet. We also booked our trip to Halifax (biz class both ways) including a week in Halifax post race to explore and three nights in Montreal on the way home.

I love it when a plan comes together... ;-)

AP

Riding with Power?

2007-03-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

I am seriously close to buying a friend's bike, it's a Cervelo Carbon Soloist. It comes with an Ergomo power meter. This is a device that is installed in your bottom bracket and it measures your instantaneous wattage. Then you have a fancy wireless computer that tells you all the usual stuff (speed, distance, cadence, HR) along with your power. The deal on the table is a good one. I would have to try and sell my hybrid Olmo frame, instead of building it up with Campy, which I might get $500 towards some race wheels.

I have never ridden with a power meter. I know it will give me (likely) useful quantative data, which will compliment the HR and PRE (perceived rate of exertion) data. But it seems a bit excessive.

OK I'll be honest - it's not the power meter that scares me. It's the bike itself. It's a super sweet ride. It really is. Total weight, built up, is 17lbs. The bike screams fast. So why would I not jump on this deal? I guess I have the fear of being labelled as those jackasses who drop a load of $ on a bike that is a far better machine than they themselves are. That is, the rider is not worthy of the bike. I want to be worthy of this bike, and I am worried that I won't be.

How stupid is that? It's almost as bad as not wanting to wear a trisuit when you are a MOPer.

If we take that logic to the next step, I suppose it would encourage me to improve my cycling abilities, so that I could one day be worthy of the bike. I wonder how much I would ride her when not doing tris or TTs.

Hmmm.. what would I call her? She is such a pretty bike. And yes, all bikes are girls, in case you were curious.

Riding coming along nicely

2007-03-01T09:54:00.000-08:00

Since the middle of January, I have been pretty good about getting in my rides (spin class once or twice a week plus at least one ride outside, sometimes twice a week outside). I feel stronger on the bike, I can almost keep up with the BF, and I can push the bigger ring a lot longer. However, I am still slacking on the swim front. I'm lucky to get to the pool once a week, and that will not cut it. It is March 1st, and I have 16 weeks until the New Balance 1/2IM in Victoria. I know I can get the swim endurance back, I'm not too worried about it - provided I can start swimming twice a week. I am seriously thinking of canning one of my weekday lunch spin&run sessions to go to the pool.

That said, there have been interesting developments at work. The company for whom I work has been acquired. I am expecting a severance package, from April onward for about 20-25 weeks. If I can get this package, and I am pretty sure I want one, then I can train silly! I dream of this possibility... spend Sunday and Monday with K, then while she is at preschool on Monday (2hrs), I can run. Tuesday, Wed, Thurs, Fri - swim, run and ride to my hearts content after I drop K off and before I pick her up. Sat will still be the long ride with the BF, and hopefully I can get him back in the pool too ;-). I could possibly log 20+ hrs a week without batting an eye. God, just the thought of it makes me so excited. Squoodge. So I guess if I can keep with 1 swim a week for March, and then ramp up to like 3 swims a week after that, I'm sure I'll be ok.

And the weight is slowly coming off. I can feel the difference when I put on my skinny jeans. That I like. I don't think it's from a major change in diet, but more in a reduction in portion sizes. I find I am eating less than I used to, and although I know this will change, it's interesting to see how little I do eat now. A few more months and I'll be Skinny AndyPants again... ;-)

AP

Recovery week, takin it easy...

2007-02-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

So I like to take an easy week every 4th week. It gives me a chance to get rested up for the following weeks, and to spend time doing other things. So this past week has been a recovery week. Monday was an off day as my back was totally hosed from ice skating with K on Sunday. Tuesday was running & spin class. Wed was off. Thurs was a 2hr easy ride with the BF. Friday was off. As was Sat. Tomorrow, the BF and I will get in a 2-3hr ride at least. I might swim as well, that is, I hope to.

One thing I really like about recovery weeks is that they keep me mentally fresh. I get a week to not really think about training, just do what I want based on how I feel. Usually, if the recovery's been sufficient, I am usually raring to go at the start of the next week. I have to admit, I am already feeling antsy. So guess it's working then... ;-)

As an aside, while riding this past Thursday, my left quad was really tight, cramped almost. Later that night, I massaged it with my Stick, and could feel a pretty good knot right in the middle of the quad. I think it might be from my new car, which I got just over a week ago. Spanky, my 2007 A3 that I love to drive. How can this be causing me a problem in my left quad? Well, Spanky has a manual transmission, and I haven't driven a lot of stick in close to 10 yrs. The BF laughed at my theory, but he laughs at a lot of my theories ;-). Something to keep an eye on I suppose.

Oh and the company I work for was acquired last week. I might be out of a job mid-April, and if I swing it right, with severance for the entire summer. You know what that means? SILLY ASS TRAINING is what that means hee hee! Keep you posted as I know more.

AP

Technique vs. power

2007-02-11T13:02:00.000-08:00

So swimming yesterday, I noticed that I have been able to get back to 2000m in 45min. That's a standard swim set, mind you (easy warm-up, drills, main, and cool-down). That's good. That's a far cry better than the 1hr it was taking me back in mid January. That means by March I should be back up to 2600m or more in 1hr, again, with that distance being completed in a standard swim set, not swimming straight.

When I think about this, and how back in oh 2002 and 2003, when I was swimming with PSTC and before I swam with the Dolphins, I would be happy with 2000m in a 1hr session. That year I swam with the Dolphins made a huge difference. And I don't think it's all endurance - I think it's technique. I know I kick better, and more, than I used to when I was swimming with PSTC. I also know my catch and pull is much more effective than it used to be. I have a better feel for the water now.

While I miss swimming in a 50m pool - the pool by my house is a 25m pool - I look forward to summertime, when I can swim at Kits pool (137.5m long) or Second Beach (50m). Nothing like swimming in an outdoor pool. Sigh...

I have been debating getting some swim cords too. For those times when I can't get to the pool. Some people swear by them. Some people think they screw up your form. Guess I'll have to see what coach says. Probably safer than doing upper body weights.

AP

OK, how did my ass get this big?

2007-02-07T08:35:00.000-08:00

Well, considering I had hardly done any riding or swimming since IMWA in Nov 2005, but I did run a reasonable amount over that year+, how did my ass get so big? I mean, I am baffled at how 10-15lbs of FAT can take up so much space... and the worst part of it is that it feels like it will take forever to get some to all of that fat off my ass again. I know that once I start riding long and swimming regularly, I'll start to lose the weight I gained.

In the meantime, I have started my interval run sessions again, once a week (Mondays), using the treadmill to clock my pace. I'm at 4x(4' at 10k race pace with 2' recovery) with warm up and cool down of course. That yields 16' hard with 8' of recovery. My current 10k RP is about 13kph - nothing fantastic - but still better than it was the summer before IMWA. I figure I will extend the number of intervals to 5x(4'@10k RP, 2' recovery), then I will go back to 4 intervals and extend the length of each leg, say 4x(5'@10k RP, 2' recovery). That's 20' of hard effort and 8-10' recovery. After that, up the number of intervals to 5 giving 5x(5'@10k RP, 2' recovery). That gets to 25' hard with 10' recovery. If I can run 25' at 13kph, then I am pretty much back where I want to be. That's 3 more weeks of hard intervals. Then I will switch it up for 3-4 weeks of aerobic running with strides.

So this week's plan:
M: Interval run (as above) (50m-1h)
T: Run to spin class/spin class/run back to work (1h20)
W: LSD run of 1h40; swim 2000m
R: As Tues above
F: Swim 2000m
St: LSD ride of 3h; optional 3rd swim
Sn: Off

So far, feeling good. Not too wiped out from the sessions. But I have found it hard to do anything in the evening. I prefer to relax, make & eat dinner, etc. I'd prefer to get up early to train than to train in the evenings. I'm going to try to swim Wednesday after work, and see how that goes. I suspect I will end up swimming Thursday morning instead, but we'll see.

AP

I wish I was Jack Bauer

2007-01-29T21:14:00.000-08:00

OK how long in a Chinese prison, tortured silly & malnourished, and the guy can whip off what looks like a 6min mile without breaking a sweat? Man that's awesome.

Seriously though, there is always an element of wishful thinking when I see people who have natural athletic ability. I was always athletic, but have had many medical and "situational" problems over the years that make it feel tough today. Many times I regret giving up high school basketball, xc and especially T&F where I was pretty decent in my day. Being a smartypants, I was always encouraged in the classroom. But not so much in athletics. One year (grade 9) I was quite ill, and unable to participate and compete as I used to... well, the next year when I was all better, there was no support, no encouragement. Like, oh well, too bad, you blew it.

I bet no one turned their back on Jack Bauer.

No, wait, correction.

I bet everyone turned their back on Jack Bauer and he just went and proved them all wrong. Worked his ass off. Every waking moment was focused on showing them what fools they were.... yeah, that's more like it.

That guy's adrenal glands must be massive.

Last week was better than expected, considering all that is going on. My big disappointment was only getting to the pool once. That simply is not going to cut it. Heck only going twice a week will barely do it, and I'm not even there yet. But I've been riding, and feel pretty strong on the bike. So that's good.

Just for fun, I looked back at my training diary from 2005, the year I did IMWA. And ya know what? Even that year, I was barely training at this point in time. I actually felt slightly better about the whole thing after seeing that. It was like getting a kick in the ass that "oh yeah, you can so do this, heck this will seem easy compared to IMWA, ppffftthh." I really felt a lot better and a lot more motivated after reading that old diary.

So this week's plan is about 12hrs. I would be pretty damn happy to crack 10 all righty. I think I can, I think I can... ;-)

AP

Riding under the stars

2007-01-25T19:59:00.000-08:00

Tonight I went for a 1hr ride, in the dark. It's finally been dry and reasonably sunny the last few days, and after I got home today, I thought "why not..." I slapped a light on the front, put on my reflective gear, swapped my lenses for clear ones, and headed out. It was cool, dry and the quarter moon was laying on her back. The stars were out and so were many other riders. I spun my way along the Adanac then Seaside bike route to the Burrard Street Bridge, and spun back. Much nicer than the spin class I had on the sked today. ;-)

I am supposed to swim tonight as well, and I may still go, but it's been a challenging week - still - again. I know I will feel better afterwards, but I also know that I need to rest - still - again. I ran 10miles yesterday. And then went and saw my father in the hospital. It turned out that his double bypass surgery ended up being a quadruple bypass. Wow. He looked like he's been hit by a truck. Which in some respects, he has been. Maybe I will swim in the morning... yeah I think that's a better idea. Pool opens at 6:30, I'll be awake anyways.

Better go eat dinner now (grilled chicken breast, baked squash) and get into my jammies. Maybe make some popcorn and watch a movie. I am solo tonight - P is in the Okanagan and K is with her dad until tomorrow afternoon. I get to starfish the bed ;-)

AP

Riding on the actual ROAD

2007-01-22T21:15:00.000-08:00

Crazy I know. 2hr ride through Richmond, a steady 50k ride, virtually zero breaks - definitely NO food stops ;-). The BF is a task master. And a darn good rider, so I have to work to keep up with him. I always wondered if it is better to ride with better riders, and I think it is. I have a tendency to dawdle or at best keep a slack pace. Riding with P forces me to keep the intensity up. Zone 3 pretty much all the way, so that was bang on. New frame+set-up felt good, it should as it was almost the same as what I was riding before except the handlebar height was higher than I used to ride. That's OK for early season riding, I'll get it adjusted later. The main thing is to be comfortable for the whole ride, which I was.

I forgot just how much grit and salt and dirt accumulates on the roads over the winter. I forgot how easily the bike can start to rust with all that salt too. Major cleaning ordeal afterwards, and I still am not happy with the job I did. I had a Park chain cleaning tool, which is still packed away somewhere. That tool was the BEST for cleaning the chain. They are by far the best I've ever used. Either that or switch to a Whipperman with the removable link. Then I could take the chain right off and soak it. We'll see how much cleaner I can get the chain with the Park tool first.

As an aside though, life is still making it tough to get in all my scheduled sessions. I'm trying, and doing fairly well considering the situation(s). I am finding that I am enjoying my sessions, when I do get them done. That is a good sign. I feel motivated. Just gotta put in the time & miles, be smart, eat well (at least better than I have been) and get lots of rest.

My father is having open heart by-pass surgery tomorrow afternoon. I am supposed to run & do a spin class. I'm probably doubtful, but you never know, I might need the mental break I get from training. Long run on Wed, spin & run on Thurs with a late swim on Thurs as well. Fri will be a run at lunch. Sat off for K's 3rd birthday party (mmm... cake!). Then Sunday during the day, a 2hr ride and a swim. Fingers crossed I can get it all in ;-).

AP

Heart Attack Man

2007-01-15T10:37:00.000-08:00

On Thursday afternoon, my 62yo father had a heart attack. He is stable now, thank god, but he's going to have by-pass graft surgery shortly. Sitting in that cardiac ward makes me want to never get old. I never want to be that sick. I know my heart is strong and healthy now, but I am going to do my best to keep it that way.

Needless to say that threw a major wrench in my training for the week. Which is OK, as it was planned to be relatively unstructured anyways. This week is as per coach. Here's what I have this week:

Mon: off
Tues: run to spin class (45min) and 30min afterwards (lunch)
Wed: 1h20 easy aerobic run (lunch)
Thurs: same as Tues + 2500m swim in the evening
Fri: 1h run with 3x4' at 10k pace with R:2'
Sat: 2hr aerobic ride (morning) + 2500m swim (afternoon)
Sun: 1hr trainer ride with 4x5' OD pace with R:2' + 45min aerobic run
Totals: swim: 2h; bike: 4h30; run: 4h05
Weekly total: 10h35.

Should be a good week to ease back in. I am looking forward to it. I am hoping to really contain my calorie intake, as I have at least 5lbs to lose, and it would be nice to lose it during prep and base training periods as opposed to build periods when I really need to be able to up my calories consumed.

I also got my new Olmo Impact bike, with all my existing parts moved over - it'll be a pretty nice winter + spring bike for all my early training. I won't worry about my racing set-up until early May. That should give me 6+ weeks of riding aero as prep for Victoria 1/2IM. Pretty excited, hope to ride Sat outside - however, more SNOW is forecasted boo hiss. If that's the case, I'll have to dig out my trainer. Likely going to need it anyways.

Feels strange to have a Monday off (no running). I am tempted to do some core work at lunch though ;-).

AP

And first time back in spin class...

2007-01-11T09:36:00.000-08:00

... in almost 2 years. You know what, the class is not as hard as I remember it being. It could be that I am not working hard/pushing myself, that's entirely possible. Or the bike was poorly calibrated. Or it could be that my legs are stronger. It felt ridiculously easy. 10-15 min run to the rec centre, 45min spin, 10-15 min run back to work. Nice 1h15ish session. I will try to do these twice a week for Jan and Feb (Tues and Thurs), and increasing the run back to work in Feb. However, after the class, I was super hungry all afternoon. Ate my container of pasta, then two (!) granola bars, an apple and (bad Andy) a hot chocolate. Although to be fair, I didn't have much for dinner that night as I wasn't that hungry.

I was hoping to run yesterday but we got a huge dump of snow here and it's a sheet of ice out there. Most of my spare time was spent trying to get to and from work. I'm going to try to get to the spin class today at lunch, but it might be more of a walk than a run, depending on the state of the sidewalks. God knows the roads aren't safe for running. ;-) I have my trail runners, so I can run in the snow if need be.

I also signed up for the New Balance half Ironman on June 17th, in Victoria. I've always heard about what a great race this is, and coach says I will do two (!) halfIMs, this one and the Spokane Troika in August. I've done the Troika three times now, with mixed results. It can be devastatingly HOT (high 90s) for that race, and there is virtually zero shade on the run. It's a tough run, but a great bike and swim. I do like this race, even if it is a humbling experience every time. Victoria should be good, as the bike will be rolling hills and the run is dead flat on shaded trails (mmmm... sounds good eh?). But it's a high-profile race, and I've always preferred the low-key events. Oh well. I'm sure I will see lots of familiar faces out there. Plus now I have NO EXCUSES re: training.

So with the two 1/2IMs, my high-level sked now looks like this:

Weeks 1 to 9: Prep, try to train 1hr a day, every day, with 2 swims and 2 rides a week, min.
Weeks 10 to 22: Base, increase the volume of each of those LSD sessions. Ride and swim 3 times a week.
Weeks 23 + 24: Peak ending with 1/2IM Race (17th) - Victoria New Balance
Week 25: Recovery
Weeks 26 to 30: Build
Weeks 30 + 31: Peak ending with 1/2IM Race (5th) - Spokane Troika
Week 32: Recovery
Weeks 33 + 34: Build
Week 35: Peak ending with 101 Race (2nd)
Week 36: PARTY!

It's a good solid sked. Now I just gotta get my new bike and start riding, and get the consistency of the training sessions up. As the weather improves over the next few months, it will get easier, that's for sure.

First time back in the pool

2007-01-08T13:29:00.000-08:00

Holy crap. It's been over a year since I did a structured swim workout. So Saturday afternoon, I walked up the street to the local 25m pool and got wet. 1800m. Wow. I thought I would have trouble finishing 1600m, but it was OK. In fact it was better than I expected.

My observations:
1: Swimming is relaxing. I felt very relaxed just to get in the pool and swim easy, with nice long strokes. And afterwards, I was pretty mellow. I am usually quite a fidgiter, just ask the BF ;-). After swimming, I could sit on the couch and relax and NOT fidgit. It was quite amazing actually.

2: My legs are pretty strong from all the running I have been doing. When I did 100x kickboard, my times for 25m kick were not that far off from where they were over a year ago. And my legs didn't fatigue like they used to... that was very promising.

3: I don't know why I always avoided doing flip turns before. I did as many as I could this session, and while I certainly don't have the best technique, they didn't feel too difficult. I'm sure if I keep at it, they will get better.

4: I have always loved doing drills, and apparently I still do. I feel so much better, my form is better, after I do a nice 500m worth of drills. Catch-up, side kick, one arm, fist, extended dog paddle, all good stuff.

I am hoping to get into the pool twice a week, and over Jan and Feb get back up to 2000m sessions.

On a related note, my new winter work horse bike should be ready tomorrow. Now I will have a solid bike that I can ride in all sorts of crummy weather (without worrying about the carbon on my Dynamic getting dinged up). It's an Olmo Impact that I got for a sweet deal as my former LBS owner was clearing out some inventory. I'm pretty excited about going for a ride when I get it. Wow, I haven't been excited about riding in a while ;-).

And on that topic - motivation that is - I was thinking about why I was having such a hard time getting motivated for Comrades. I think the lack of variety in the training was one factor, and also the thought of having to go to RSA on my own to do the race, plus all that training time alone - well, you can see why it would be hard to get motivated. We'll see at the end of the month how I've done - I'd like to try and get in an hour each day, get back into the habit of daily training. I think I'll come pretty close.

AP

High-level plan to get to 101Halifax

2007-01-03T12:31:00.000-08:00

So the plan looks like this:
- January and February: Prep. Get back to the regularity of training, enjoy the time training, lots of short fun stuff, some cross training. Focus on form and technique.
- March to May: Base. Slowly build those distances of the LSD (long slow distance) sessions. Focus on building endurance.
- June: do an Olympic or Half-ironman distance race, with appropriate peak and recovery weeks.
- July and August: Build. This is when the intensity picks up a bit, and the workouts are more race-specific. For example, Halifax will likely have a bike course full of rolling hills, but lacking the massive climbs you would see at IMC and won't be flat like IMWA. So this is a good period to focus on how to really ride those rollers.
- September 2nd: RACE and have fun.

I have my coach back to help me, so that will help keep me in line in the prep and base phases, plus push me more in the build phase.

So my goals for January:
1: Get my nutrition back on track. Gotta cut back on those high GI carbs, and lean up the protein a bit more. Overall my diet is pretty good, but it just needs some tweaks. That should help me lose the weight I need to for Sept.
2: Get back into training consistently, even if it's only 1hr a day: 2 rides, 2 swims and 2-4 runs to start. The hardest part will be getting time in the pool. My schedule is pretty restricted for half of the week but wide open for the second half. So that means swim sessions pretty close to each other.

I think that's plenty for now. ;-) AP

Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in...

2006-12-29T18:13:00.000-08:00

Well, today was a bit of a breakthrough day, mentally. I bought a new pair of runners (Saucony's - needed them badly), some gels, a couple l/s drifit shirts, and... (drum roll please) an annual training diary. There's something magical about the day you crack open a virgin diary, and start to enter in that SEASON GOAL and TRAINING PLAN in the book. It feels like the first day of school. Like the first day of a new year. Like the first day Kits pool opens. Ahhhh. Smells like... promise... hope... possibility.

After that, I went to meet my bud Khai at SpeedTheory on 4th. Went to have a chit chat with Calvin da Man about finding a frame+fork for my old drivetrain. The plan is 1) get the new budget frame+fork with old Veloce gruppo for winter and spring riding; 2) get a new gruppo (likely Chrous) for my Olmo Dynamic frame and trick that out as my race bike. C says he will call Paul formerly of La Bicicletta who is the local Olmo guy and see if he can swing me an older model for a deal. That would rock. Then I will have a bike I can put fenders on, and not worry about if it gets beat up a bit.

It was strange being in a tri shop again, heck even a bike shop would have felt strange. But looking around SpeedTheory and all the accoutrements to the sport of triathlon, wow, I can't believe how much GEAR us tri folk buy. I realized I don't have a wetsuit anymore (sold my last one as it didn't fit anyways). That's OK, I'll deal with that in May or June. Definitely go sleeveless again. But it was an odd feeling. I guess I thought I wouldn't be going back to tri so fast. Well, it's not that fast, but sooner than I thought.

As the pieces are coming together, I can see what my Jan and Feb will look like, mostly LSD rides on Sat, LSD runs on Wed, swim when I can (this will be the tough one! my schedule is crazy), but a lot of prep + base sessions. I'm also going to add weights (seated row, bent arm pull down, squats, crunches - that's it) twice a week (M and T).

I am thinking about goals for the actual race itself. Here's what I think:

3k swim: 1hr -> totally do-able, my 2k swim time is like 37, so this gives me time for T1 or if problems come up.
130k bike: 5hrs -> that's 26k/hr. I managed a solid 25.7 at IMWA and those were tough conditions. Halifax will be rolling hills, and I am better at hills than flats. Heck, I might be able to do 4.5hrs, but let's aim for 5, and be realistic.
30k run: 3hr -> that's 10k/hr, a 60:00 10K. My 10K PB is 46, so I think I can do this.
Total: 9hrs.

More than do-able. Now I have to make sure I have a riding partner for Saturday. And hopefully I can sucker him in to swimming with me once a week too hee hee!

Well, I have just under 2 days left this year, so I better enjoy them while I can. Better open up that Maudite ;-). I'm riding on Dec 31st for a few hours, and might run tomorrow, or maybe swim. After Monday the 1st, the schedule kicks in. Now, let's see if I can get my momentum going again.

So I changed my mind...

2006-12-24T09:17:00.000-08:00

And am going to give Comrades a pass for 2007 and do the One 0 One race in Halifax in Sept 2007 instead. So a new blog was required. Here we go...

Happy holidays, see you all in Jan.

AP