Ironman 70.3 Geelong

What a day! The toughest race conditions I have ever seen which meant everyone’s, even the pro’s, times were significantly slower than what is normally achieved.

The Conditions – the day started at about 25 degrees and the wind was building. It was predicted to get well into the 30’s and the wind to reach upwards of 50km/h, which it did!

The Swim – The wind made the water very choppy and sighting became very difficult as it was hard to find any rhythm. I decided to take a line inside the marker buoys until reaching the turning point. Most of the marker buoys are a guide only and there were 3 main buoys which you must go around. I chose this in order to have my own water instead of battling all the other competitors. Also, I believed the current was pushing across the course slightly and I felt the initial distance to the first turning buoy would be made easier if I allowed the current to gradually move me in the direction of the buoy instead of fighting it all of the way there. This was a mistake. Once in the water, the water was basically moving straight towards shore and I didn’t get the assistance I was after which meant I ended up swimming a little further than I needed too.

After the first turn I was able to begin swimming a bit more fluently as I wasn’t going directly into the water chop. It was more comfortable but it was still a slow, hard slog around to the swim finish.

The Bike – I pushed through transition quickly and within the first 500m of riding, I could feel the effects of the strong wind as it battered me from the side initially and gave me a few wobbles.

I almost had a bike problem before the race even started as I had discovered during the days prior to the race, a strange noise coming from my front wheel. I tried adjusting the brakes, my speedo sensor and even the skewer but the noise still remained. After looking closer and feeling the wheel turn on its axle, it was obvious that there was a significant bearing issue. However, I only discovered this as I was checking in my bike at transition the day before the race. It was at this point when I realised that I hadn’t packed my spare wheels before leaving home and I always take them in case something like this happens. So, I had to borrow a front wheel from my mate, Rod. Fortunately, he had brought his spares along and he was kind enough to trust me with it.

Because of the new wheel, I wasn’t able to operate my speedo so I removed the computer form my headset but this wasn’t an issue because I had already decided to ride on feel alone and not worry about the numbers. This was an excellent choice as, in the past, I may have been disappointed when looking at my speedo and thinking I’m not doing well and then have a negative mindset from then on. Instead, I didn’t even look at my stopwatch the entire ride. All I wanted to do was ride as hard as I knew I could by staying in my aero position to limit the effect of the wind as much as possible. I remained focused throughout the whole 90km ride and felt stronger on the 2^nd lap, than I did on the first. However, the heat and wind would have the last laugh.

The temperature was rising but the wind made me feel dry. I didn’t know how much I was sweating but I drank a lot because my mouth was dry. I started with 2 x 750ml bottles with a mild electrolyte mix. Normally I would have one bottle an hour and top up with some water for the remaining part of the bike leg but I was finished my two bottles within 1 and ½ hours. I took on a bottle of water and went through that in the next half an hour. I got another one and that got me through to the end of the bike. There was an electrolyte drink available on course but I didn’t think I needed it because I had consumed all of my food equalling about 800 calories and my two bottles of electrolyte mix. Unfortunately, this didn’t satisfy my body’s need for more things like, sodium.

Because the wind was keeping my body fairly dry, I didn’t think I was sweating as much as I was. Therefore, I believed the amount of nutrition I had consumed was sufficient for my needs, and even when I was beginning to cramp in my quads I didn’t think it was a sign of a lack of nutrition. I took this as a sign of working hard on the bike and assumed my running legs would sort out this when I got on my feet again. How wrong I was.

I completed the 90km bike in 2 hours 32 minutes, which is 10 minutes below my PB from Shepparton but there were very few bikes back in transition which gave me a sense that I had performed very well on the bike. It turns out I had one of the top 40 bike splits for the day and only 16 minutes down on the professional winner Craig ‘Crowie’ Alexander.

The Run – I was out onto the run at 3 hours and 12 minutes and my legs didn’t feel great but as the initial run out of transition is a steep ascent for about 200 metres, I wasn’t worried and thought I would find my run legs once it flattened out. This didn’t happen. I just did what I could and took little amounts of fluid at each drink station. My stomach felt full of water as I hadn’t absorbed much of what I had drunk through the lack of electrolytes.

Essentially, I was quite dehydrated and there was no way of getting my body back to where it needed to be if I was to continue running and hope to post a reasonable time. So, I just took in what fluid I could manage while running and tried to keep my body cool through putting ice in my top and water on my body. At no point did I feel light headed of jelly legged so I didn’t realise I was dehydrated. Instead, I thought my slow running was from hard bike riding and just the heat in general. In hindsight, there were many signs and I will now have a plan in place to prevent and combat this in future races. My eventual run time was 1 hour 47 minutes. About 20 minutes down on what I would’ve liked to do but it was all relative to the conditions on the day.

The Finish – I crossed the line in 4 hours 59 minutes and placed 11^th in my age group and 64^th overall. It 

was disappointing not to place much higher in my age group but there was still one thing left for the day that I was hopeful to succeed in. That was, gaining a qualification slot at the 2014 Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Mont-Tremblant, Canada.

The ‘Roll Down’ ceremony took place a few hours after I had finished the race and it was an anxious wait as they went through the female age groups first and then from oldest to youngest in the males. The ‘Roll Down’ process is that a total of 30 qualifying slots are allocated to the race and 15 each to males and females. They are then distributed amongst the age groups with a minimum of one per age group and then the rest are distributed to the larger age groups as a percentage of the total number of participants in that gender that it forms. This meant that my Male 25 – 29 category had 2 slots up for grabs. They then allocate the slots to the highest placed finishers in each category, who are in attendance at the ceremony. Only if you attend the ceremony can you accept a slot so you never know who is there and if you might just get a slot despite finishing down the list.

When it came to my group there were three of us hoping to get one of the two spots. When we went to the presenter to state our names for him to check his list and see who were the highest placed from us three, I was the highest. I couldn’t believe it. I was so relieved after missing out by so little at Shepparton.

I am going to a World Championships and I’m going there to win!! I am going to be more focused than ever and be in the best shape of my life so I can produce an incredible performance on September 7. I have looked at the course details and I believe it will suit me with a mostly flat ride with a few sharp climbs and an almost flat run course with just gradual up and down hill portions. It won’t be hot and it is a fresh water lake swim.

I have learnt so much from my race this season and I have a lot of new knowledge to take into my training for the next 6 months.

Tell me, what have you learnt from racing this past season?

Race Time – Geelong 70.3

Three days until my next attempt at reaching my first ever podium finish in a triathlon and a berth at the 2014 Ironman 70.3 World Championships.

The past two weeks have only been about 80% pleasing in terms of the training I have completed and how fit I feel from it but I have made some simple mistakes which have contributed highly to this.

The training I have missed has been minor but noticeable. Predominantly, this has been my long ride only being of 3 – 3 ½ hours instead of the desired 4 – 4 ½. This puts a little doubt in my mind about overall endurance and how fresh I am going to feel when I hit the run during the race. Also, I have not quite worked on all of the elements of my swim. I have not put any real time into working on my kick which was meant to be one area of focus throughout this build up.

There were also the bike mechanical problems I had. Two weeks ago I had my bike serviced and as soon as I got it home and began to ride, the SRAM Return-to-Centre gear lever for my rear derailleur wasn’t able to shift the gears in one direction. This is just one of those things that can’t be predicted when it will happen. General wear and tear is to blame, so, back I went to the shop. As this happened just before the Australia Day long weekend, it meant, getting a new set of levers was going to take extra-long. I didn’t have my race bike for a total of nine days which left me to grind out my bike sessions on my not so well maintained road bike. But, I pushed on and still had some decent sessions. When I got back on my time trial race bike I was very happy and had a terrific long ride on Saturday. This was my last big session before my taper and I did my best ever time up the 3km climb which I go up on my way to Gisborne. I hope this is a good omen for the undulating bike course at Geelong.

I am glad the race has finally come around. I have been anxiously waiting for it just so I will know if I qualify for the World Champs. By about 3:30pm on Sunday, my fate will be sealed at the qualification ‘Roll Down Ceremony’.

The forecast for Sunday is not looking pretty. 38 degrees and a northerly wind up to 45 km/h. The race starts between 7 – 7:30am and I will, hopefully, only be out there for about 4 hours 15 minutes so the heat shouldn’t hit me too hard and I’ve had plenty of chances recently to train for it. The wind doesn’t worry me too much either. On the bike, if you have a headwind one way then you will have a tail wind coming back. However, it’s the crosswinds that will play havoc. I feel prepared for that as I often battle the wind on my rides to Gisborne. Generally it is from the north-west which means head and crosswinds. Also, I think all of the strength work I have done riding in a big gear at a low cadence will prove a vital asset when battling the wind on Sunday.

My taper has been as good as I can remember for any race. I have only backed off during the final weeks before the race instead of gradually decreasing the training load over two weeks. I think this has left me feeling sharper and I don’t feel fatigued at all. I have taken two full rest days but one of them was due to twisting my ankle last Thursday while having a leisurely kick of soccer with my Dad. I was very sore for a couple of days and it doesn’t feel perfect but riding isn’t an issue at all and I can still run normally. It hurts a little still but nothing that will stop me from going my hardest on Sunday.

I have trained short and sharp on each of the past 4 days and will repeat this for each discipline tomorrow and Saturday. I have, also, had an excellent week diet wise. I have been overeating recently which has meant I am a couple of kilos heavier than I wanted to be for this race. But as I have decreased my calorie/carbohydrate intake significantly the past 4 days in preparation for my carbo-loading tomorrow and Saturday, I have dropped a kilo and realised what I should’ve been doing all along. I just wasn’t careful enough with my portion sizes and thought I needed it because I was training so hard. Still, it’s just another learning experience which I will benefit from greatly in the future.

I can’t wait for Sunday and you can track me online at http://ap.ironman.com/triathlon/coverage/live.aspx and search for me in the ‘Athlete Tracker’. I am in the male 25-29 age group category.

And tell me, what is the most important thing you have learned while preparing for a big race?

Time To Focus

It’s been a funny past couple of weeks and I have had to exercise flexibility and patience with my training. Things have come up at short notice so I have found myself doing a little less work on the bike and more running and swimming as they are the two things that are easiest to continue fitting in, even when away from home. All I need is my goggles and a pair of running shoes and I can still get in quality sessions wherever I am.

There is just 3 weeks left until Geelong 70.3 and I have revised my training to ensure I get in the necessary work before race week. Instead of starting to back off the volume of training two weeks before the race, I will train hard until 7 days before and then drop the volume by at least 50% to freshen up for the race.

I am relatively happy with where my swimming and running is at the moment but I don’t feel strong enough on the bike. To rectify this, I know that all I need is to get in my 3 main rides and one solid weights session each week.

My 3 rides are:-

Ø  Tuesday – Strength ride with 5 x 20 minute hard efforts in a big gear pushing a low cadence.

Ø  Thursday – Single leg work followed by high cadence efforts on the indoor trainer. This will precede my weights session consisting of dead lifts, single-leg squat jumps, Swiss Ball hamstring curls, step-ups and calf raises.

Ø  Saturday – 4 to 5 hour ride with some sharp hill and race pace, time trial efforts.

Ø  I will attempt to fit in easy 60 minute rides on other days for active recovery and a warm-up to run sessions, as well.

I must, also, focus very hard on my diet in these final 3 weeks. I am still holding a couple of kilos more than what I would like and I haven’t been eating enough meat, fish and vegetables in the past couple of weeks.

I am feeling very motivated to put in a massive performance in Geelong to continue my pursuit of, hopefully one day, being fast enough to compete as a professional. However, there are simple things I can do in these final 3 weeks to give myself the best possible chance of having a great performance and I will be getting very strict on myself.

I will be getting some chiropractic and massage treatment a couple of times each in these final weeks. It’s something I have neglected in the past 2 months and I have found it catching up with me through tight muscles and aggravated joints. I am looking forward to some Chiro treatment from Dave at Holistique Health and Spa - http://www.holistiquehealth.com.au/ - https://www.facebook.com/HolistiqueHealthSpa/info - as it really straightens me out so that I am not over compensating as much for things like my misaligned pelvis which can play havoc with my glutes, quads and cause knee and hip discomfort. Getting this sorted out makes a huge difference to my power output on the bike and run which can easily make a difference of 5 or more minutes to my race time.

There’s no time left for complacency. I must make the most of these final training days to get what I want out of this event.

Fresh Start To 2014

The past 10 days have seen me decrease my training load and take several full rest days in order to freshen up the body to prepare for my final 3 week build towards the Geelong 70.3.

I had been feeling run down prior to Christmas after some big days at work combined with a heavy training block. So, from Christmas Eve until now, I had made it my rest phase and it has done its job. I am now feeling in great shape to tackle a massive 3 weeks of hard work to give me the best possible chance to do something special in Geelong.

I will be extremely focused on honing my race pace and technique over the next 3 weeks until Australia Day. I want to ensure I am extremely comfortable with the pace I plan to push on race day. Therefore, I will do key race pace sessions in each discipline throughout each week.

My sessions in each discipline, for the next 3 weeks starting Monday 6^th Jan, will be broken down as follows,

4 Swim sessions:-

Ø  Monday – 5km strength swim with hand paddles and an ankle band used for most efforts.

Ø  Tuesday – 2km of technique drills.

Ø  Wednesday – 3km of mixed work using fins. Focusing on kicking and fast arm turn-over.

Ø  Friday – 4km. Warm-up will be followed by 25 – 30 reps of 100 metres at race pace. I will also incorporate a lot of sighting in this session.

Friday is the key race pace swim session and the others are to cover various facets of the stroke and necessary specific strength.

6 Bike sessions:-

Ø  Tuesday – 2 hours big gear strength work. 2 hours 30 minutes during week 3. Can do on indoor trainer or on the road.

Ø  Wednesday – 60 minutes easy ride.

Ø  Thursday – 2 hours on indoor trainer. 30 minutes of alternating single leg work and the rest done as a Fartlek cadence session.

Ø  Friday – 60 minutes easy ride.

Ø  Saturday – 4 or 5 hour endurance ride. Some extended efforts at race pace and a few sharp hill climbs will be in there.

Ø  Sunday – 60 minutes easy ride.

Saturday provides the endurance so I will be able to handle the 90km distance on race day easily and combines the race pace practice with some hill work as Geelong is an undulating course. Tuesday and Thursday provide other fitness aspects of strength and high cadence which will both be needed at some stage on that course.

6 Run sessions:-

Ø  Monday – 30 minutes of drills and technique work.

Ø  Tuesday – 30 minutes at race pace on the treadmill after my strength ride.

Ø  Wednesday – Long run of 2 hours done on a hilly course below race pace but consistent.

Ø  Friday – 45 minute tempo run at race pace or slightly above.

Ø  Saturday – 30 to 45 minute steady run, on the treadmill, off my long ride.

Ø  Sunday – 75 minute Fartlek run.

Wednesday gets me used to running the necessary distance, plus a little more. Tuesday, Friday and Saturday helps to hone in race pace off the bike. Sunday trains the legs for changes of pace which will happen on the up and down run course in Geelong and Monday ensures I have a good range of movement and sound technique.

I will do core exercises on Monday and Thursday with Thursday being accompanied by a short, lower body weights session.

The third of the 3 weeks in this training phase will be slightly higher volume than the first 2 weeks with completing sessions to their maximum specification, ie: 5 hour ride and 45 minute run on Saturday. I will also take slightly less rest between reps in the pool to increase intensity.

Seeing it all written down makes it seem like a lot but my aim is on frequency, in this last phase, as much as anything. I want to train my neuromuscular system to be completely used to all of these movements and the pace needed to perform well on race day. It’s going to be a big ask and, as always, it will be difficult to complete all sessions without neglecting the other important parts of life but I will simply try my very best. If I miss the odd shorter session here and there, I will not be worried, as long as I am completing my long sessions each week and performing all sessions to the best of my ability and to the specifications required.

This will be the largest volume of training I have ever undertaken but I am confident in my ability to cope with the stresses associated with it. Nutrition will be as important as ever and that is something I have worked hard on in the past to find what works for me. I am confident my nutrition plan will provide me with the energy and recovery elements necessary while assisting in getting me to my desired race weight of 72 – 73kg, as I am currently hovering around 75kg.

2014 is going to be an amazing year.

Happy New Year to everyone and I hope you are also having an exciting fresh start to 2014.

Time For Some Rest

I have been working very hard on all aspects of training in the past two weeks and I feel I have achieved my goal of returning to the fitness level I was had at the time of racing in Shepparton.

I am getting more comfortable with my higher arm turn-over when swimming, I am developing great strength and consistency on the bike and my running is feeling terrific using my altered technique. However, in the past few days, I have noticed the first signs of over-training and being in need of a significant rest.

The past two weeks have seen my training volumes increase significantly but it has come at a time where I have experienced a very busy period at work which has resulted in overtime and an extra shift when I would normally have a day off. All of these factors combined, have left me feeling very sluggish, restless when trying to sleep, constantly wanting to eat and struggling to find the energy I would normally have for training. 

Although, these feelings have only come on in the past 2 – 3 days, they have been quite strong.

The first day (Sunday) I felt this way, I did my medium length fartlek run. I would normally do it first thing in the morning but I decided to have a good breakfast and wait a couple of hours before commencing the session. Once I had warmed up I found my running legs quickly and had a great session. The next day (Monday) I did my strength pool session and found that it took me about half an hour to feel comfortable in the water and that my arms weren’t too heavy. However, for the rest of the day, I felt quite fatigued all over and just wanted to nap but I couldn’t as I was at work.

As I write this, it is Tuesday and I am feeling tired and lethargic. I have felt this way since I woke up despite having a good sleep. I initially thought I would just do a light bike workout but decided not to and, instead, begin a proper rest period. I had originally programmed a rest week starting yesterday but thought I would have one more build week before taking a rest week starting New Year’s Day, as I was feeling really good about my training. However, my body has decided it didn’t like that idea and the rest should start ASAP.

I think I will have an extended rest period because of this situation. I will spend the next 5 – 6 days only training a small amount and then build my training back up gradually for the following 6 – 7 days. This will leave2 and ½ weeks to train at high volumes for my final build phase into the Geelong 70.3 prior to my two week taper. Based on how my body has reacted to the last two weeks of high volume work, it appears that it will benefit from this better than the Training:Rest ratio I have currently programmed.

I am placing a top priority on getting myself feeling fresh again before I push my body into fatigue from hard training again. It needs time to absorb the hard work it has done recently and recover fully so that it can be pushed to its limits again to improve further. It’s a very fine line between general fatigue and over-training and I feel I was very close to crossing that line. When you do cross that line, it can take weeks, months in some cases, to get back to feeling right again and to the point where you can perform to your best. It’s definitely not a line I want to cross, ever!

One other step I will take in the next few days is, get a blood test. I will take the opportunity to get my levels of vitamins and minerals tested to see if I have any current deficiencies and/or excessive amounts of anything in my body. If there is anything considerably out of whack, or an infection is present, it can have various negative effects on energy levels and performance and it is essential to rectify those issues as quickly as possible to restore normal function.

It’s not always easy to do what your body is telling you because your mind wants to do something different. I have made the mistake in the past of not listening closer enough to my body and it has resulted in poor training and/or poor performance, along with illness and a really bad mood. With my strong desire for a massive performance in Geelong in just over 6 weeks, I must do all that I can to avoid major setbacks and I am taking those steps now.

Resting is equally as important as training. Learning how to do it properly can take years but the long term benefits can be outstanding.

Back In Training

I commenced my structured training 10 days ago and, although, various things have meant adjustments were needed for some of the days, I feel I have made a great start to my build-up for the Geelong 70.3 in two months.

During my 2 weeks of light, recovery training following the race in Shepparton, I thought very hard about how I was going to tackle this next phase in order to improve further and I have come up with several items which I will be looking to focus on during training.

Swimming

After being quite disappointed with my swim in Shepparton, I have investigated specific changes I can make to improve my open water swimming and drills and techniques I can use in training to achieve this.

Ø  I need to train myself to be more comfortable and efficient with a higher arm turn-over. A higher turn-over is essential in open water to ensure constant forward momentum. With the environment of an open water race swim being so different to pool swimming, I need to move away from the classic ‘catch-up’ stroke which I have used for a long time and develop a greater arm speed. In just a few sessions using a higher turn-over, I have already noticed how beneficial it is. It’s difficult to maintain good form as I make the change but I am confident in the long term results.

Ø  I will be increasing my strength and power by incorporating the use of an ankle band. Having not used this method before it is a strange feeling but it is amazing when you have to work so hard to try and keep your body as horizontal as possible without any use of the legs whatsoever. If you’re not sure, I literally tie my ankles together while swimming freestyle. I do this while using a leg buoy between my thighs and hand paddles most of the time too. The extra drag of my legs, as they want to fall straight to the bottom of the pool, is significant and I even wear a pair of shorts occasionally to add to the drag. I will use this method in the pool once a week for the whole build-up.

Ø  I will be devoting one whole session each week to drills and technique to assist all aspects of my stroke from strength to speed. Drills like, sculls, swimming with fists and single-arm work all help me to get a better feel for the water. In another session I will incorporate sighting and even ‘polo’ swimming to develop my open water skills.

Ø  I’m hoping to do 4 swim sessions each week, up from 3, for a total of 13 – 14km.

Riding

Not too much to worry about here. I will see improvement by doing things almost exactly the same as my preparation for Shepparton. However, in order to ensure I improve my 90km bike split, I will increase my long ride to develop greater endurance, work harder on high cadence efforts to assist with downhill portions of the Geelong course and generally focus and train harder overall. I will also do a weekly weights session to provide extra strength and power from my glutes and hamstrings.

Running

I was a bit disappointed with my run in Shepparton. I felt I didn’t maintain my technique as well as I could have and my leg turn-over was sluggish. I will address this in training by doing the following:-

Ø  I will slightly alter my technique to focus on a faster turn-over of my legs without lengthening my stride. I will be looking to make contact on the ground with my foot more directly under my body using a forefoot strike and raising my foot up behind me a little higher than I used too. This will aim to produce more forward momentum as opposed to having a ‘braking’ effect with each stride when I was striking the ground slightly in front of my body and leaning back a little.

Ø  Having extra emphasis on my core and body position remaining strong and stable during running at all speeds is essential. I will do drills to assist this as well as strength training a couple of times each week for my core and hips.

Ø  My weight training will also benefit the power and strength I can produce with each stride without using more energy.

Ø  The sessions I do will be similar to what I did prior to Shepparton. I will still do short runs off hard bike sessions, an above race pace interval session and a long run. The difference is my long run will not be as fast as what it was. Instead of breaking up 20km into 4 x 5km sets and going above race pace with a decent break in between, I will perform a below race pace effort up to 2 hours in length on a hilly terrain focussing on consistency and technique. This will build strength and vital endurance.

Putting these methods into practice is showing good signs already. I feel, by Christmas Day, I will be right on track to great improvements. Another 10 days of hard work before resting over Christmas and then a massive block in January to bring in the new year.

Race Photos from Shepparton

Here are some photos from my race in Shepparton.

They are in order but unfortunately the photographers are unable to get photos of the swim.

1st photo is on the first of two 45 km laps of the bike, cruising along one the many flat roads around the Greater Shepparton region.

At the turn-around after 45 kms. I was very happy with my time split at this point and I was feeling good.

Just after the turn-around.

Out on the second lap and I was very comfortable in my aero position the whole way.

My new aero helmet, which I only got just ten days before the race, was put to good use. I really noticed the difference between this and my regular helmet with the way air flows over my head and cuts through the wind.

About 2 km into the run. I started out at a good pace but was a bit too fast to maintain for 21.1 km.

Going past the race site and finish line area at the start of either my second or third lap of 7 km.

The finish line! Don't be fooled by the time clock. I started 28 minutes behind the professionals so the clock indicates the time after they started.

And that was my day. Behind where this camera was sitting was the athletes finish tent with ice cream and fruit salad, which was awesome after a hot run. It came with a side of flat coke, which is equally as good during and after a long race.