The Traveling Athlete

If I'm doing my job correctly, which some will say is rare, I should be on the road 30-40% of my time. This poses some pretty unique problems training for a triathlon.

When I signed up to be coached by Jim McGehee I told him to plan my workouts like I don't travel at all and I'll find a way to work everything out. Amazingly I don't think I've ever had to skip a workout but  it hasn't been without some serious rearranging.

The run workouts are the easiest to fit in. Every hotel has at least a treadmill but it's also fun to find routes in the various cities I visit. So far I'd have to say my favorite city runs are around Central Park in New York and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The Ulmstead Park in Raleigh is pretty sweet, too.

The start of my run from Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Surprisingly, finding the time to swim isn't actually that hard. For now I just swim twice each week so it's much easier to book-end on the week. I can't tell you how many times I've boarded a plane smelling like chlorine and still sporting goggle eyes. Most major cities have aquatic centers or a YMCA with reasonable hours for lap swim, too.

Fitting in my bike workouts is the toughest part of traveling. I don't bring my bike with me when I travel because it's a huge hassle. If I'm driving somewhere there is no guarantee I can fit it in my rental car. So when I'm scouting hotels to stay at I always look for one with an upright bike in the fitness center. It's not the same as riding outdoors or at home on my trainer, but it will do. The Marriott East Side in NYC actually has a nice spinner bike with aero bars and a killer view!

The other hard part about the bike workouts is that they are often the longest of the three disciplines and finding the time to fit it in is not easy. This will really get hard as I ramp up for Ironman and I imagine I'll finally have to bring my bike along on a few trips.

Perhaps the hardest part of traveling is my nutrition. A lot of my appointments revolve around meals or receptions where the food is heavy and the drinks often heavier. At the end of a long day it's really easy to fall into the trap of unhealthy eating and one, or two, extra drinks. I have no real strategy to prevent it other than my weak will power.

Is This Thing On?

I'm back! It's been over three years since I've posted on this blog and, honestly, I forgot that I even had it.

So what have I been up to since February 2010? Let's see...

• Started a new job
• Started working with a Coach
• Completed my first Half Ironman - Charleston 2011
• Got my first podium - 3rd place Tri Adventure Spring 2012
• First in age group in the 2012 Virginia Triathlon Series
• Bought a new bike - a 2011 Cervelo P2 that I've renamed Optimus Prime
• Signed up for my first Ironman - 2013 Beach 2 Battleship in Wilmington, NC

That last note is why I'm here. I plan to chronicle my journey as I check off a bucket list item. I'll never forget the first thing that I told my wife, Mindy, when I crossed the finish line after my first HIM - "There is no way in hell I'll ever do an Ironman." Well, here I am.

I can honestly say that I'm in the best shape of my life and it seems odd to say that as I approach 35 years old. Can I still dunk a basketball, probably not and it would likely look like this:



But, I can swim, bike, and run circles around the old me and that feels pretty good. I'll do my best to post at least twice each week on a variety of topics.

So what's on tap for today and the weekend?Well, it started off in the pool with 25x50 on :55. It's one of those workouts that looks harmless on paper until you get into the meat of it. I'll lift weights during lunch and then I've got a 50 minute run that has some intensity thrown in. Tomorrow is just an easy hour aerobic ride and Sunday I get to test out my HIM pace with a tempo run. There will probably be a few beers and basketball games watched as well. Cheers!

Digging out again

So we got hit with another snowstorm on Friday that prevented me from working out until today. I had to do it indoors which was tough since I tend to sweat my arse off.

Anyway, I ran 35 minutes on the treadmill, 25 of those minutes were in Zone 3. Then I biked for an hour and did intervals that bought me into Zone 3.

It was nice to finally get out of the house and looking at the extended forecast I might be able to do my workouts outside next weekend.

I.....am.....tired

Not sure if it's because of the increased intensity or what, but I am really tired. This might be the first time that I've ever done double workouts in three consecutive days.

The last two days I've done my swim workout after a bike or run and I've cramped during the swim. I think the cramping might be because I only took about 3.5 hours in between workouts.

The reason that I workout in the morning and during lunch is because I like to come home after work with nothing to do. That will change once the weather warms up because I'll do my bike rides after work. For now it's got me very tired and cramping. I really just want to curl up under my desk and take a nap.

On the bright side I have had some trouble with swimming beyond 200 consecutive meters. I think most of it is in my head but today I didn't start my workout off with drills. I was determined to swim 250 meters after my warm up and I did it with no problem. I didn't get a chance to do the drills because I started cramping.

Thankfully I'm scheduled for just one workout each of the next two days.

Ramping up the intensity

Thanks to a foot of snow I didn't get to do my brick workout this weekend. The substitute was shoveling the driveway and back deck. Actually not a bad substitute.

Anyway, today I started the Base phase of my workout. I saw this morning and then later did a run workout that consisted of eight :20 strides.

Strides are when you go almost all-out, about 95%. I jogged for 1:40 after each stride. It was the first time I've ever done it and I liked it. It was kind of hard on a treadmill but I didn't feel like risking running around campus since all of the snow and ice haven't been removed.

I have a feeling this week will be tough. The first three days are double workouts and I hope that I'm not overdoing things. Guess we'll find out.

Big News

Okay, still going through the intro phase in my workouts so nothing exciting there. But, this week I am in Raleigh for work and I decided to check out Inside Out Sports who is actually sponsoring the North Carolina Triathlon Series run by Set Up Events. They have everything a triathlete needs.

Anyway, my plan was to try on wetsuits to see what size I might need when I rented one for the SML triathlon. Well, thanks to a 30% off sale I ended up buying one made by Blue Seventy. Fittingly it's called a "John" suit because its sleeveless. With what it costs to rent and ship wetsuits it should only take me about 4 events for it to pay for itself so I see it as a wise investment. Maybe I'll wear it at Haloween too.

Inside Out also has a nice selection of triathlon bikes. I saw Felt, Look, Quinona, P4, and Scott while I was there. The staff is also very helpful so check them out if you're ever in Raleigh or Charlotte.

First Brick of the Year!

Well there were two firsts yesterday. I did my first brick workout and I finally got to ride my bike outside.

For those who don't know, a brick workout is when you do two different workouts back-to-back. In my case yesterday I ran 45 minutes and then immediately bike for an hour. The idea of these workouts, other than endurance, is to get your body used to the change in activity.

Yesterday was the first time I had ever done a run followed up with a bike ride. In the past I had always biked and then ran.

Anyway, yesterday was also the first time I biked outside this year and it was also the first time I've biked in Ellet Valley. I think it might be where I do most of my ride from here on out.

Luster's Gate road has very wide shoulders and my guess is they were built that was specifically for bike riders. I actually saw about 10 others braving the cold and riding their bikes. Most of the people who live out there are used to seeing cyclists and they give you plenty of room, unlike Mudpike where they try to run you over and have no problem passing you on a double yellow when they can't even see if a car is coming over the hill.

The other nice thing about Ellet is the scenery. The road is tucked between the mountains and for most of the way a creek is right beside you.

This coming week is the last of the Intro phase for me and I'm anxious to crank up the intensity. I promise in future posts to provide some pictures.

Fueled by Jim Beam

Same workout today as yesterday. I drove back home this afternoon and it seems like the local road crews tried to turn all of the streets into gravel roads. I'm going to attempt a brick workout tomorrow but if there is still a lot of gravel I might make other plans.

To prepare for my workout tomorrow I'm drinking bourbon and ginger. I find the best supplements to be alcohol.

Grinding It Out

Okay, so today the workout was a bike for 75 minutes. I took 15 minutes to warm up, the next 50 minutes was spent in Zone 2 while doing 90-95 rpms, and then a 10 minute cool down.

I had to do it on the upright stationary bike at my hotel. It's not ideal but I'll take what I can get.

With my travel I spend over a week each month in a hotel and it's got to the point where the hotel fitness center is the first thing I look at when deciding where to stay. Some hotels are great while others are just terrible. I stay at Marriott's exclusively and the best fitness centers I've encountered so far is the Marriott East Side in New York and the downtown Marriott in Raleigh.

The Marriott in New York has a several treadmills but it also has one of those expensive spinner bikes that just so happens to have a great view of the city. The Raleigh Marriott fitness center is massive. They really put some money into it.

Today I also bought some gear for cold weather cycling. Picked up some toe covers and a balaklava. Now I'm ready to rob a bank.

Hello

Yet another attempt at a blog and perhaps I'll stick with it this time.

A year ago a friend and I agreed to do a local triathlon that was to be held in June. My previous experience in endurance sports included one half-marathon and a full marathon. The previous fall I trained for my second half-marathon race but came down with a severe case of ITBS syndrome and had to stop running for close to a month. Believe it or not, being unable to run actually drove me crazy. Never in a million years would I thought I'd say that.

With my run training I always knew that I wasn't doing enough cross-training, like swimming or biking, to help avoid such injuries. I figured that a triathlon was just what I needed.

What I didn't expect was that I would come rather obsessed with the sport. Now, I don't know the ins-and-outs of training but I'm quickly learning. Through combing websites I've found that most endurance athletes are obsessive-complusive. Triathletes also seem to be a helpful bunch and it seems quite easy to find answers to whatever questions you might have.

When I started I really didn't know how to swim efficiently. The first trip to the pool was a real eye opener and I thought I would never be able to swim properly. I couldn't swim 50 meters without having to stop! Thanks to youtube I found some drills that improved my stroke and it wasn't soon before I stopped looking like someone was strangling an ostrich in the pool.

The next step was getting a bike and I just went for the entry level Trek road bike. It's nothing spectacular but it only cost me $500 and I feel like I've already got my monies worth.

Last summer I competed in my first triathlon in Glade Spring, WV and had a great experience. I got a little freaked during the swim portion, which isn't uncommon. But once I got on my bike my training paid off and all I did was pass my competitors. Thanks to a strong run I ended up finishing third in my age group.

This year I'm planning to compete in at least two triathlons, Smith Mountain Lake Sprint and the Lake Logan International. I'm also planning to do a second marathon in December.

With this blog I'll attempt to chronicle my training as well as provide any insights into the sport. I'm still very new to this and by no means an expert, but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night. Actually, I was at home with my patient wife, two snoring dogs, and a cat with claws that would make Wolverine proud.

With that out of the way I'll discuss my training today. I'm in the third week of the intro phase of a training plan I stumbled upon last year. Since I travel a lot with my job it forces me to jumble my workouts. I had to swim three consecutive days this week and this morning I had to cut it short in order to leave on time for my current trip. All I did were drills I learned from a recent swim lesson (more on that later). Just 1000 yards and I feel like my stroke is improving. Now, it's on to some sleepies...