Sunday, January 29, 2012

Rolling 2012

The comeback trail, troubles with poop, and exciting news that will shake up all the plans.

After returning from Tanzania, rested from the climb and the first half of training, I am now in full swing with my training. Mostly I have 3 swims, 4 rides, and 4 runs per week, give or take. A typical week is a swim on Monday, a swim and cycle on Tuesday, a cycle right into a run Wednesday, a swim then run workout on Thursday, and off on Friday. Cyclelab, a country-wide club, does rides of about 47 miles every Saturday. With relative ease, as riding in a pack is, I bang out almost 50 miles with ease, plus whatever I do before or after. I have been backing this up with a run of about an hour. Then Sunday I do a long run and then hop on the bike for a spin ride. Lather, rinse, repeat.

That is, unless I am racing. Starting in late January, I race a marathon, triathlon, or cycle race 6 times in 8 weeks. The roads here suck for running and riding (traffic and hills) so the best indicators of fitness and just simply getting in the distance come at organized events. Plus when a marathon costs $10 and a triathlon not much more, why not take advantage?

Recently, I did a marathon in Pretoria. Originally, I had planned to run a fast race, getting an “A” qualifier for Comrades and testing my speed. But with only 3 weeks since the break, I decided to chill out and get in a solid run that I could recover from. Out smart, I crossed halfway in just under 1:33. A solid pace. Toying with my talent, I dropped the pace for the next 10k, blowing by people. But the last 10K of the course was largely uphill and I slowed, not horribly, but enough to even out the pace. At no time was I pushing for sub-3 hours, and I settled nicely to a perfectly even split and a 3:05:52. Caught 22 people in the 2nd have of a small marathon – many of who were many minutes ahead of me – and was caught by no one. That’s how I roll.

The battles of the past have returned (See Feb, 2010). What I thought was a stomach flu going around now appears to be similar to my disastrous 6 months of 2009-2010 that kept me less-than-competitive for half a year. It isn’t as intense; my performance is not as effect, but the same full feeling consumes me along with the gut pain. A self-induced expulsion fest did not cure it (as it did in 2010) and I have gone back to the doctor for the blood, scans, and poop tests of old. For now I train through, hoping for a solution and praying for safe resolution.

Things are going well. I nearly ran a Boston qualifier (new standards) on nothing (18.25 miles per week over the preceding 8 weeks of training). Not to be fooled because my log lies in a box in a basement somewhere, but I know I wasn’t doing this kind of training for Ironman ’04. Not 50-60 miles rides backed by runs. Not the intensity in the pool. My times in the water are dropping like a rock. My latest 2K time trail converts to a 1:06 Ironman swim. My rides are becoming faster and more comfortable, and I can keep it together on a run. In ’04, I had run 4 open marathons. Now I have nearly 40 under my belt and know what it takes to keep the momentum going. The next month will be hard on the body and mind, but the homestretch looms for Ironman 2012!

And now, the chain in the cogs. I got into the Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile jaunt through the mountains of California in June. After many, many years of entering the lottery and being denied, this year, with my Ironman, trip to Germany, and conferences in the summer, I got in when I least wanted to. But how can one turn down a ticket to the most prestigious ultra in the world? The only problem is that I cannot possibly dedicate myself to both events. Nothing can sacrifice my training for Ironman (April 22). But then that means I have only a few weeks to transition myself into ultra running and the Comrades (June 3). The Comrades now becomes a training run for WS100, and I have 3 weeks to recover and maintain for WS (June 23). It is going to be a crazy 12 weeks!

In order to survive this roller coaster, I have solicited the services of Chase Pack Consulting, a group led by Michael Trahan, former college athlete turned ultra runner. Michael provides pacing services, spiritual resolution, diet and training advice, and overall justification. Under his tutelage I will emerge from this SNAFU of completion successful.

 
Training From August to Jan 29

Cumulative Distance
Cumulative Time
Swim
68550m
28:36:02
Bike
1202.9 mi
71:06:11
Run
533.8 mi
73:49:01
Core
N/A
13:45:00
Lift
N/A
6:00:00