Game Time!

It's game time.  Well, not time to race, but time to train.  20 Weeks until Racine!  My racing plans have taken a definitive shape.  Here's the list:

    4/02 Martian Marathon (Not set in stone yet)
    6/05 Hawk Island Tri - Sprint                  
    6/12 Motor City Tri - Olympic                
    7/17 Ironman Racine 70.3                                      
    7/30 Warrior Dash MI
    8/07 Lansing Legislator - Sprint or Olympic                        
    9/11 Rev3 Cedar Point 70.3                          
    10/15 GR or Detroit Marathon
    11/05 Iceman MTB Race - 27 Miles of Pain!!  

To summarize my off season:  October left me spent.  Grand Rapids Marathon was a great race, but I was secretly glad the season was done.  I had hopes to run an ultra marathon, but I needed the rest.  I decided to take December easy, January came quick and I emphasized strength training and stretching.  I did low volume running and no swimming.  February proved to be a challenge to get back into the groove of training.  Many times I had to really make a mental push to get in the workouts. 

Warm weather is close, here in Michigan, and everyday we see more sunlight earlier in the morning.  I'm ready to go, I'm chompin' at the bit!  

I've registered for the Iceman Cometh mountain bike race.  This was my 3rd year thinking about the race, but every year it sells out within hours of opening registration.  This year I got in, the race sold out in 5 hours with 3700 participants.  I'm pretty excited about this race.

Becky and I will be running the Warrior Dash just after Racine.  I'm excited about this one too, it'll be my first adventure race and it will be super fun to run it with Becky!!  Some good friends ran it last year and came back with stories and pictures that you wouldn't believe, I'm stoked to run this one!

Team Motiv8 is well under way!  We're nailing down our sponsors and creating our tri training classes.  We are also readying our childrens programs.  I can't wait to get in with the kids and talk to them about the importance of making healthy nutritional choices and to encourage them to play (like kids should do).  What a great opportunity that we have!  Check out our website at Team-Motiv8.com We'd love for you to join us and run with us across the finish line.  Watch for us at local races and stop by our tent before and after the event!  There will be good stuff happening at our tent!  

As always, thank you to my girls! Becky, Anna and Sophia - you ARE my world! You inspire me to be a better person every day.

February Totals:

Bike:	10h 29m 48s  - 161.55 Mi
Run:	9h 31m 10s  - 53.5 Mi

The Last Couple of Months

Wow, time has flown by since my last post!  Ironman Racine 70.3 is less than a month away and next week I reach the Critical Volume stage of training.  This will be the test of mental and physical endurance as this plan calls for "9/3 of the event distance per week"  That means swimming 3.6 miles, biking 168 miles and running 40 miles each week for 2 consecutive weeks. 

So over the past 2 months I've ramped up my running and biking, though my swimming has been lingering.  I've chosen to do a little better than 'just finish' my swim, but I hope to rock the bike/run at Racine.

I raced the sprint distance Hawk Island Triathlon and finished 3rd in my AG with an OA time of 1h01m and some change.  My swim felt good, but I averaged over 2min/100yds.  My bike avg speed was 21mph and my run avg pace was 7:11.  I expected to be a bit faster on the swim and definitely hoped to be much faster on the bike, based on previous trials of the bike course.  My legs were very tight on the bike and my calves were sore on the run, but loosened up after the first mile or so.  I had been a little sleep deprived at work for my previous 2 shifts worked the night before the race.  Perhaps that contributed to the tight legs, maybe not.  Nutrition was good and water intake was good.

The following week I went to Motor City Triathlon and competed with the RACING GREYHOUNDS on a relay team.  We raced the Oly distance and I completed the swim leg... yippers - you read that right.  I even did well.  I finished up the 1.5k swim in just under 30 minutes, pacing me at sub 2 min per 100 meters... in the past I've been at or just over 2 min per 100 yds.  I felt strong and didn't give up placement to those who chose to hit and kick me, I may have shoved back.  So that was a huge boost to my swim ego!  It was a good thing I didn't bring my bike along or I would have seriously been tempted to ride and run the Oly course.

All in all, training has been going well.  I have been shy on my volume for the last 3 consecutive weeks, but I'll concede that time for my family time.  These next two weeks will be brutal and recovery plans will need to be tailored specifically to each day's workout.  Then I'll be taking 2 weeks easy as a Taper for Racine.  I'm pretty excited!

I have been very blessed with my family for supporting me in these plans.  This past weekend was Father's Day.  I took some much needed time to spend with my beautiful girls (all 3 of them) and just relax.

I have also been honored to be part of the Fluid team as a sponsored athlete.  They provide a great tasting recovery drink that provides electrolyte replacement with added protein and l-glutamine - EVERYTHING you need after a long training session!

May Totals:
Bike - 10 hours - 172 miles
Run -13.5 hours - 83 miles
Swim - 4 hours - 11260 yds

June Totals (to date - I'll have 1 week of CV to add to these):
Bike - 10 hours - 171 miles
Run - 12 hours - 78 miles
Swim - 1.5 hours - 4k yds

November 2009 'The Off Season'

November of 2009 has now passed us by. It's time for Christmas and the New Year!

This past month I focused on swimming. I spent more time in the water than I did on my bike (never thought I'd say that). Since I did plan for November to be a month of recovery, I didn't run very much at all. So what did I do?

November's totals:
Bike: 4h 30m 17s - 72.43 Mi
Run: 2h 28m 11s - 14.6 Mi
Swim: 4h 35m 40s - 12650 Yd
Strength: 4h 20m

Next I have my basic plan set up for training to race Ironman 70.3 Racine in July. I'll be doing 9 Weeks Prep, 15 Weeks Base, 6 Weeks Build, 3 Weeks Peak/Race/Taper for Racine. The Prep phase is underway as of this past Sunday. Racine is less than 230 days away. While I want to do really well at this race, my ideal goal will be to qualify for the Foster Grant Ironman World Championship 70.3 - November 13, 2010 in Clearwater, Florida.

Finding the Life/Work/Training balance will be tough, especially heading into June where I will be reaching the Critical Volume stage of training. There are 2 weeks of training will be huge, nearing 14,000km swimming, 475 miles biking and 60 miles of running. As always, family first then work followed by training. I've already started to plan my specific day to day training for each Phase of this process. So now I just need to sit back and do it :)

I will be a RACING GREYHOUND again in 2010! A few other Greyhounds will be going long in tri's as well, completing Half Iron distance events and even Ironman Florida (Trish).

I've been blessed to have a few specific people to train with this year. Next year I hope Craig will continue to kick my butt in the water and that Trixie will keep pushing my limits in biking and running (and now strength training too).

I'm lucky to have several people to train with. So a big 'Thank You' to those who choose to put up with me. Also to the great friends at BeginnerTriathlete.com and especially those the in SWBKRUN MG. You guys rock, thanks for continuing to encourage and inspire me.

Lastly, to my family: Thank you for supporting me. Specifically to Becky, Anna and Sophia - I Love you! This year will be highly rewarding for me on a very personal level and I won't be able to do it without you. I am truly blessed.

So how can you help? Give me a call anytime.

October 2009

October of 2009 is now complete. The book is closed and my "Recovery" has begun. Unofficially 'recovery' must have began early in the month as my October training calendar shows more Yellow Days than any other month this year. In October I took 19 days off from training. (I'm not so sure Recovery is supposed to look like that). But I also ran 2 events that were both great for me.

October's totals:
Bike: 4h 05m - 66.51 Mi
Run: 3h 40m - 25.87 Mi
Swim: 2h 19m - 4874.89 Yd
Strength: 1h 15m
Elliptical Training: 55m
P90X: 2h 45m

The Off Season is here. What do I do? Most people 'In The Know' say that the off season is a time to allow your body to recover from a long race season. They suggest that rather than to eliminate workouts, switch out for something different; train and focus on the most weak of the 3 triathlon disciplines; and to strength train.

So I'll do it! I will be back on the elliptical trainer more in the next few months; I will be on the bike trainer doing some easy session; running will be for fun and I'll do it when I feel like it. Easy, right?

Swimming has been my limiter over the last 2 years. I initially focused on running, this year my focus was biking; this off season and next year I will improve my swims. I will also do more strength training in order to increase overall power output next year.

I may spend some time on the MTB and get out in the fresh fall air.

I was nominated and selected to be in a local health magazine about my weight loss...

My Story: I weighed 145 pounds in high school and struggled to get my weight up to 170's for the first few years after high school. After I started working for a private ambulance service and into the time where I worked as a volunteer firefighter, I found myself putting on the pounds. Late in 2006 I was over 200 pounds. I couldn't even run a whole mile without stopping.

January of 2007 I took part in a fitness challenge that I helped to coordinate with a few coworkers. I dropped over 30 pounds. Over the next year I began to run and did my first 5k. I found a local sprint distance triathlon and made it my goal to complete that race... though I couldn't swim.

In January of 2008 I chose to teach myself how to swim. I managed to complete 2 triathlons (though my swims were less than par). I did a handful of running events and decided that 2009 would be my breakout year for triathlon.

Early 2009 I bought my first Triathlon/Time Trial bike and stayed on it all year making some great gains in speed. I have now completed 13 races and taken Age Group and Overall medals in 5 races, and set a new PR for 5k at sub 21 minutes. This year I have ran 2 half marathons, a 10k and 5k, a few Time Trials (Individual - Bike), couple of duathlons and 5 triathlons.

Next year I will race the Olympic distance triathlon and complete my first Half Ironman event - a 70.3 mile race that consists of 1.2 Mile Swim, 56 Mile Bike, and a 13.1 mile run.

Now, if I could just decide what Half Ironman to do... What do you think?

Loving Las Vegas and the End of the 2009 Race Season

Well, we are back home from our Vegas vacation. Becky and I had a great time and loved our time spent with friends. We were able to see many sights and eat some great food. This was our first real vacation since our honeymoon, almost 5 years ago.

For the first couple of nights we stayed with a good friend who lives in Henderson. She cooked for us and drove us everywhere!

On Friday we went to Lake Mead and Boulder City to get an overview of Saturday's triathlon. We visited the health expo at the race finish and did our packet pick up. Later we ate at Milo's - This is a great place to eat and I'll be attempting to remake my sandwich sometime in the near future! But our appetizer consisted of breads and fruits with baked Brie that had Pecans and dried cranberries over it. So very tasty. Friday night we went to Lake Las Vegas for an outdoor concert. This place is an amazing village inside the big city.

Saturday morning came quick and we were out the door for the race. The weather was great and Lake Mead water temp was 72 degrees F. I opted out of my wetsuit for the race for a few reasons, but one main reason was that this was a point to point race with 2 different transition setups. Anything that you'd leave in T1 had to be in a specific bag with your race # on it; it would then be brought to T2/Race finish after the race. Swimming was awesome! The sun popped up just before the race started and the nearly instant heat felt great while I was in the water. The race was very challenging physically and mentally. It was tough to comprehend the elevation for the bike ride. It was hard to maintain speed when there were no breaks in the climb during the bike. The run went well, but my legs were spent. Andrea placed #2 in her category so we stuck around for awards. Way to be!!

Saturday afternoon we got all things reorganized and packed up to head down to the Las Vegas strip. We stayed at the Rio hotel thanks to Andrea's parents. We ate a fabulous dinner at the Rio's Village Seafood Buffett. So many choices of seafood. I ate way too much, but between the 4 variations of crab legs, fish, sushi and desserts... it was so very yummy!

Saturday night we walked the Vegas strip and played some slot machines. We had VIP tickets to the VooDoo Lounge and spent a few hours hanging out and dancing. This bar is on the 51st floor of the Rio, it's outside and you can see the whole Vegas strip. Absolutely amazing view. We finished up our evening by playing a few more slots. Then off to bed for a couple of hours rest before heading back to the airport to return home.

We had an amazing time! Thanks to our friends for hosting and taking us around the city. Becky's mother was able to take some time off work to stay with the girls at our home, Saturday Becky's father came and my father was able to visit too. We are so greatful for our families to have helped out, which gave us the opportunity to take this vacation and make this final triathlon of the season possible.

With that all said, the Recovery stage of my triathlon training has fallen. I now plan to take a few weeks of easy workouts. I may join the US Masters Swimming and compete in one or 2 swim competitions over the next few months. When I get back into serious training, my main focus for the rest of the year will be swimming. Late this year or early next year I'll start training for next years race season.

I have been honored to be part of the 2009 RACING GREYHOUNDS Team. This team and sponsors are amazing! We have had several opportunities to race together and play together. I have made several new friends that I plan to bother for the rest of my life. Thank you GREYHOUNDS!! Next year I will have a different plan than I had this year, and I hope to be in contact with businesses and people over the next few months to secure opportunities for next year.

In 2010 I will have a different focus. I will not be racing as many events as this year. I'll be stepping up to the Olympic distance races (I plan to still run the Hawk Island Tri and maybe another sprint later). I hope to culminate next year's season by competing in a Half Ironman Triathlon (1.2 Mile Swim, 56 Mile Bike and a 13.1 Mile Run). I will consider an earlier HIM if my swim training goes well over the off season. I must also consider running a full marathon (26.2 miles). If I am able to race the Olympic distance, complete the HIM this year and race them the following year then in 2012 I may be able to consider a full Ironman (as that will complete my 5 year goal to run an IM) Late this year and early next year I will work on increasing my strength training, maintaining a bike/run base and general recovery. Then in February or March start a training program that will last for about 25 weeks until the HIM. But my main goal now is to recover from a long 13 race season.

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged and supported me over this last year of training and racing. I am blessed to have many friends to train with, many of whom have also given me invaluable advice and coaching; you know who you are and I would not be where I am today without you. Becky, Anna and Sophia - you make me who I am. Thank you for putting up with my love of racing and for going with me to the races, cheering me on and giving me hugs and 'high fives' along the course. You bring a smile to face. I love hearing "Daddy, you're all sweaty" and "Don't run too fast, you could fall down and get hurt" I am truly blessed for the support system that I have. Thank you all.

June is Here Already

May flew by quick, perhaps it was the 4 races I did. All in all, I have had a great year so far. I only met 1 of my 3 goals for the month, although with the planned races, my goals may have been slightly unrealistic. I wanted to hit 300 miles biking, 50 miles running and 5 hours in the pool.

So what's next? I'm not exactly sure. I'd like to think about another sprint tri as there are two great 3 race series taking place this summer at the Island Lake Rec Area. The way my work schedule falls, I won't be able to make either series, but I could do 2 races of each event. So there is potential for 1 race in June and 1 in July.

August will be the Lansing Legislator (possibly my first Oly tri). September will be the Capital City River Run half mary. And October will be another tri in Las Vegas.

Seems crazy to think about the end of the season so early in the season. But I've learned a few good lessons that I will carry with me for the future. One, for example, is that I cannot afford to race 15 races every year :)

So I need to set goals next year for better performance at longer distances. In this manner I should be able to race my first Half Ironman soon. My 5 year goal of running a full Ironman event seems much more realistic now too. Both of my girls will be in school/pre-school then and I'll have the necessary time to train for this type of endurance event. Man, it's exciting to think about an Ironman!! But, that's still a while away.

Thank you all as always for your support and encouragement! I look forward to the next race with great anticipation, whatever race it may be.