Get Faster Week 2 Wednesday Swim Workout Ladder

Back to the pool today. I had the following workout. My T-Pace is 1:45

WU: 400 - free, pull, kick, free

MS1:
100 (10") @ T-pace - nailed it at 1:44
200 (20") @ T-pace - Fell behind somehow swimming a 1:47 pace
300 (30") @ T-pace - back on track at 1:45
400 (60") @ T-pace - finished strong at 1:45
300 (20") @ T-pace minus 2"" - missed this by dropping only one second and not two
200 (20") @ T-pace minus 3"" - swam 1:39 so was way down cutting 6 seconds off
100 Sprint Set - Swam 1:38 so much better
Total: 1600
I added 100 of kicking just to cool down a bit.
Total: 2100

Feeling much better in the water. Things are slowly coming back bit by bit. Feeling much better today compared to the super soreness I felt yesterday.

Get Faster Week 2: Tuesday Night Bike Workout 2x15

Tuesday night I jumped on the bike as the kids went to bed and Amanda was on the couch sick. This is my fourth workout in two days. My legs were quite sore from running so I was not sure how things were going to go.

My workout was the following

WU: 10-15', then 3 x 1' (1') @ Zone4/Hard, to open up your legs. 
MS: 2 x 15' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard.
CD: 5-10' @ 65-70%/Zone1/Easy

I popped in the movie, Perks of Being a Wallflower, and took off. The movie is great so far as well as the workout. The bike workout really loosened up my legs and took away any soreness that I had.

I had to hit my Zone 4 power of 210-221. I was able to do just that. My legs were tired, but in a good way. It felt good to get in another workout.

The hardest thing I have to deal right now is always being hungry. I forgot how during my training I always want to eat. After the bike workout I pigged out right before bed eating chips, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, grapefruit juice, water, crackers, and jelly beans. I then crashed hard and slept all night and missed out on Amanda puking her brains out all night.

Get Faster Week 2: 2 Run workouts in 12 hours

I am back in the game people!

Monday morning I got my swim on.

Monday evening before Amanda had to tutor I jumped outside and completed an interval run workout.

The workout called for
MS: 2 x 1 mile (4') @ TP/z4/Hard. 

My zone 4 pace right now is a slow 7:35, but you have to start somewhere. Despite not being where I want things, this is far from easy for me. I did a nice mile warm up and started off. It was nice to run in the sunshine, but the wind was rough and gave me a wonderful earache afterwards.

The first mile interval I nailed running a 7:29 pace. I was right on track. I felt pretty good. I did the four minute rest and set out for the second interval. I ran 7:28, but during this mile my quads became sore and tight. I can tell I am out of shape. I knew that continuing the run for a total of 60 minutes was not in the cards for me. It is about quality over quantity at this stage in my training and no use to risk injury. I also knew I wanted to run in the morning so I cut the course short and headed home to finish under 5 miles in less than 40 minutes.

I came home and stretched, but knew I would be sore. My ankles hurt the worst! They are tender.

This morning(Tuesday) I headed to the Y for the 6B46 group run. It was just Jane and we took off and had a great talk. I had a hard time talking and breathing, but once I settled it was much better. I still am getting back in shape. My legs were sore from the run, but it felt good to battle through and loosen them up. I talked a bit about this new book out on training and fitness and we talked family life. It was a good run.

So, in less than 13 hours I knocked out two runs. I have barely ran two times in a week in the last six weeks. As the day wore on I became super sore.

Tonight I jump on the bike for a bike workout. This shall prove interesting to see how the legs adapt. A couple days of double workouts before heading out of town and giving the body a break. I forgot how sore you feel when working to get back into not only shape, but race shape. There are two major differences between the two. Each week I continue to work on better eating. I have to go in stages in order not to burn out.

I will report back in a few hours after my bike workout when the kids go to bed. Until then........

Training Day 8: Get Faster Block - Week 2 Swim

Here is my workout I knocked out this morning. Felt much better in the pool this morning. I have not had time to look at my swim times, but worked hard on pushing pace while maintaining form. I did not fatigue as bad throughout this session.

WU: 400 - 100 Free, 100 pull, 100 kick, 100 free

MS1: 8 x 100 (30"), as 50 Sprint, 50 Easy 8 x 50 (15"") as 25 Sprint, 25 Easy 100 Sprint 
Set Total: 1300 
*During this set the pool became busy and we had to circle swim. During my easy sets I had to swim super easy to not run into the lap swimmers I was in a lane with. A bit frustrating because it was clear I was the only one in the entire pool doing speed sets and he still chose my lane. It worked out well and we had to adjust, but that is life.

MS2: 2 x 200 (20"), any pace you like, counting strokes and focusing on form. Set Total: 400
I did one set with pull buoy to work on technique. However, I only swam 150 yards as I was messed up with the circle swimming. My next set was 250 doing just free working on really holding my position.

CD: 100 easy Total: ~2200 

Tonight I plan on doing a run workout to get my mile intervals in. I will be doubling up these next few days to get my workouts in before being out of town.

My weigh in this morning was not too terrible. Despite eating a mass amount of food and candy this weekend I was still able to knock out .5 of a pound. I am hoping for better results this week by staying the course much better than last week. I did not eat the best, but am merging towards cleaner eating in stages :)

Training Day 6&7: Get Faster Block, Rest, Food, and Cycling

Saturday I was to get in an interval run, but with the late night of attending Green Day the night before and preparations for Easter at our house I did not get the run in. To be honest I was okay with it because my body was sore from the first week back into training. I cannot get in the habit of skipping workouts, but at the same time talking with my coach I have to ease back into routine and training to get back on the bus.

Today, I attempted the bike and run workout. The bike workout called for the following over a two hour period. I was not able to ride for two hours, but I was not expecting to be able to hold the bike for 120 minutes the first week back. I also did not get the run in. It just did not work in the schedule. I typically workout early in the morning, but today being Easter I did not want to be out running or riding when the kids woke up for their Easter egg hunt.

Here is what I knocked out in the bike workout. I hit all my marks to day which felt good. My legs were twitching by the end.

WU: 10-15', then 3 x 1' (1') @ Zone4/Hard, to open up your legs.
MS1: 2 x 15' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard.
MS2: 8' of ""ON"" time This set is a Vo2Max set -- ride equal parts of ""ON"" and ""OFF"" time. ON is at 120%/Zone5/Hard. OFF is at 65%/Zone1/Easy.

 

So for my first week back after a six week block on grossness I feel pretty good. I missed two workouts which happened to both be running. I still hate running. I don't know why I hate it so bad, but I do. I have hated it for about 1.5 years now. The nice weather will hopefully bring me back. Overall, a good week. I completed all tests to see how much I lost and how much I need to work to get back on track. I hit up a few more good workouts this week with this 90 minute ride.

Below are my test results. Nothing amazing, but by sharing I am hoping it will keep me fueled to improve all my times. This week is a huge week of training. I am hoping to get everything in and not miss any workouts. I am out of town for two days this week so that will be a bit challenging, but I will hopefully make it all work.

I really dread stepping on the scale tomorrow. The numbers won't be as good as all the eating I have done, but this was a great weekend with family and friends and well worth it. Off to bed to get ready for a big swim workout, first day back after spring break to teaching and night run.

Training Day 5: Get Faster Block, Friday Swim Workout

I thought my arms would fall off.

Any why did nobody remind me how terrible 200 yard intervals are?

Aside from that I love swim workouts. It is a shock about the work involved to get back into shape. This whole week has been a real eye opener.

Today I had the following workout

WU: 400 MS1: 200, as 50 sprint, 150 easy, 20" rest 200, as 100 sprint, 100 easy, 20" rest 200 sprint, straight into an easy 50 Repeat two more times Set Total: 1800 MS2: 400, any pace you like, counting strokes and focusing on form CD: 100 easy Total: 2700

My warmup I did the following: 100 free, 100 pull, 100 kick(that long 2 minute rest on my watch!), and 100 free.

MS1: These were brutal. Not going to lie.
50 sprint, 150 easy - This was not bad, but a reminder on how swimming fast takes it out of you. I could handle this one.

100 sprint, 100 easy - This one I could always feel on the 75 yard mark and had to hold one for the last 25 sprint.

200 sprint - Not sure I could call my swim for this a sprint, but I swam as fast as I could for this distance. I was reminded of the terrible feeling of dead legs, lactic acid, heavy breathing,  and all while underwater. I hate it!

After each of these sets I only had a 20 second rest which flies by amazingly fast when you want to rest. If only time went this fast when running.

I did have to take breaks between each of the three rounds of this workout. I could not go back into the top again without a breather. I am out of shape and had to adjust. I tried to limit is a bit, but it is what it is. I had to do three rounds of what I mentioned above.

MS2: I did adjust this a bit. I overswam one of these sessions and added two 50's in between each of the three rounds. By this point my legs were dragging and my arms felt like they would fall off. I did 100 kick, 150 pull, and 100 free to wrap up.

All in all I swam 2700 yards and my total time with rests was 54:39. Not too bad for next to zero swimming in the past 5 months. Woo Ha!

Training Day 4: Get Faster Block, Run Test

Holy Dry Heave Batman!

I knew I was out of shape after seeing my times in the pool and bike this week. I knew my run would be the worst. I was not ready for how terrible my body would feel. I apologize to the house I was dry heaving in front of after my run as I tried to regain some composure to jog home for my cool down.

On Feb. 6th I ran a sub 20 minute 5K on a treadmill

Out Season Week 14 Run Test 2/6/13 - http://coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com/2013/02/out-season-week-14-reflection-and-run.html

Today I was not quite there. I was right where I thought I would end up.

I did about a mile warm up and then right at 53rd I took off for the test. I started off good running a sub 7 minute mile the first mile, but things continued to slow a bit. I refused to look at my watch and just run. I did not want to get into a mental battle with the distance. About halfway through I felt my body slowly smack into the wall and begin to slide down it. I was able to hang out to finish with a 23:07 time in 3.23. I did run a bit over the 5K time.

Regardless I have lost major ground.

Back when I started training in November of 2012 after a long break in the action my progress over the out season was

Here is my Out Season Test Recap

Week 1: My time was 20:52 with a 6:43 pace
Week 8: My time was 20:33 with a 6:37 pace.
Week 14: My time was 19:28 with a 6:17 pace

I sit here today looking at my time of 23:07 and vDot of 44.09 and I am really behind. It will come back. I know it will, but this is frustrating because I look at where I was. Today I could barely sustain this and it was not that long ago I was cranking about intervals faster than this pace while watching Netflix. It is all good motivation to not fall behind.

The numbers never lie and this has been a great reality check. 

Training Day 2: Get Faster Block, Bike Test

Well, I knew going into this bike test that I was not going to be happy with my numbers. My lack of doing pretty much anything the last six weeks is showing up. However, it is an incentive to get back on track.

I was planning on riding this morning, but I was tired so I slept in a bit. I am on Spring Break so I knew I had time to get it done during the day.

After finally getting Ava down for a nap I jumped on the bike. It did not take long for my butt to get sore. I lost my tolerance for the little bike seat. Being a tad overweight is just adding more pressure to the good old boys.

Here is my data from the end of my out season back in February

Out Season Week 14 Bike Test 2/4/13 - http://coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com/2013/02/out-season-week14-bike-test-go-boom.html

Here are my previous results

Week 1: 24.9 mph 40 minute test @ 149 HR

Week 5: I converted to Power and tested again
VO2: 245
FTP: 202

Week 8:
VO2: 270
FTP: 215

February 4th (end of out season block) Week 14
VO2: 288
FTP: 95% of 252 = 239


Today was a bit discouraging, but I have nobody to blame but myself

Get Faster Week 1
VO2: 274

This is not terrible. A bit of a drop from February, but higher than my week 8 results when in full training mode.

FTP: 95% of 233 = 221.35

My conditioning is terrible and I just could not hold on. I gradually got faster when you check the chart, but you can see to many ups and downs throughout. This can only get better.

I am in a alright place. I have my work cut out for myself if I want to hit my goals of new PR's this year. This has been another wake up call!

Training Day 1: Get Faster Block, Swim T-Test and Preparing for the Season

I am back. I thought I was a back a few weeks ago, but just did not have the mojo to be real about things. I have been off the beaten path for about 6 weeks now getting in a few runs here and there, but basically I have lost everything I worked so hard at during my 14 week outseason.

Today I return. Today I have things mapped out. I have a vision. I have goals. I will share my season soon once I finalize the plans, but I think I will be ready.

Today despite being my spring break I was up at 4 am getting ready for the first day back. I have to establish all my base lines to figure out my training zones for the future workouts. Today was the swim test. I have only swam maybe 3 times this year so my hopes were not great. Before jumping in the pool I did weigh in and take a few snapshots of my body. I always find it useful to do this so as the season progresses and I have those times when I don't feel like things are paying off I can see my progress and remind myself that it works.

It felt good to be in the pool. Using my new Garmin watch is awesome because I no longer have to count laps. My watch does it all. The only thing it does not do is record when I kick with a board. The workout states 1600, but it was really 1800.

I warmed up doing: 100 free, 100 pull, 100 kick, 100 free, 100 pull. I then did the test which is a 1000 yard swim. This will establish my T-Pace which is my time per 100. This will drive my swim workouts in terms of what pace I should swim for the structured aspects of training and trying to become faster. Technique is everything in swimming. However, my technique work days are behind me and now it is more about fitness. Race season is right around the corner.

I am pretty happy with these results. I did this test in February and swam 17:05. 
My time this test was 17:30 so I lost about 25 seconds which is not terrible considering how disgusting I have eaten and how poorly I have treated my body.

I won't lie, looking back at where I was this time of year last year is frustrating. I have blog posts where I was crushing goals and setting new PR's in the pool and the bike and run. I was swimming 3000 yards a workout in March last year. I cannot let the past bother me.

In some respects I think I might be better off in the situation I am in. Last year I felt like I had peaked too early in the season and by the time my races came around I was burning out and on my way down the mountain. Perhaps by starting later in the season I will be peak when needed. Who knows. I am excited to push my limits and mind. I am excited to continue to learn and grow in my fitness and training. I learned a lot last year and suffered from some serious mistakes. I am sure I will have these moments again, but in then I hope to be fitter, faster, stronger, and creating some new PR's.

Now the real test begins. Being home and not eating garbage food all day!

Ironman Training Slump: What is going on?

I am currently in week 3 of a 6 week bike focused block of training. This comes after my 14 week out season where I made huge strides in the bike and run. However, I have fallen apart big time the last three weeks only working out a few times, battling an injury, and having zero desire to train and workout.

What is going on?

I honestly don't know. I have a lot on my plate, but so does everyone else. I have been incredibly tired lately. Actually, fatigued is more like. I feel exhausted all the time feeling tired down to my bones. Amanda suggested seeing a doctor. That might be in the cards if I don't shake this soon. Not sure what is going on, but it needs to change.

It will change. We have our ups and downs. I have plans for a big season this year, but right now I am struggling just to find energy to make it through the day.

So, that is where I am. It is where I have been and the reason my training updates have not been around.

Time to find myself and resolve some issues and hopefully get back on track.

Run Focus Block: Week 1, Day 2 Run

Today is the second day of the 6 week run focused block of my training. I did not need to do the 5K run test as I just tested last week to end my NOS. Instead I had a 2 x 1 workout at Zone 4. My new Zone 4 pace is 6:43.

5k test for vDOT. WU: 15' including 4 x 30" at 5k pace.
MS: Run a 5k Time Trial. Find a relatively flat course (or track) for your test. Goal is to hold a pace you can sustain for the full duration of the test without blowing up and without having a lot left to kick at the end. The ideal course is one you can test on repeatedly. CD: Walking, jogging as needed, etc.

Note: If you don't NEED to test, do 2 x 1 mile (4') as your workout. 

I decided to finally suck it up and run outside. I have not ran outside this year so I thought it was time to get outdoors. IT was not too bad out. I was cold the first 10-15 minutes, but as I continued to run I warmed up just fine. I started off nice and easy running a 8:16 pace to get loose for about 11 minutes. I then moved to a stretch of road perfect to start the mile interval. I was spot on running the mile in 6:42.

I took the four minute rest going nice and easy to recover. My legs were heavy after this point, but it was soon time for the second mile interval. You can see below I ran that one in 6:36 so a bit faster. This was due to being properly warmed up and also probably a bit of small downhill descent to start the run. This helped to set the pace. I felt really good during this mile and actually overran a bit to run 1.17.

I was pretty tired and my legs were fatigued. I decided to run two more miles nice and easy to begin to build up some base and slowly expand my time on my feet. I have not ran long in a long time due to the focus being on speed. It is time to begin to slowly build.

I love my new watch! Look at all this cool data and this is not even all of it! So worth the purchase. Very happy I splurged. I hit my groove and realized I need to to work on my run. I am glad I chose the run focus because it is needed.

6 Week Run Focus Block: Day 1 Swim Test

I decided to get the swim test out of the way first thing this morning. I was not in the mood for the treadmill or the high winds outside. I needed to get a swim test done as I already have my run and bike data from the November Out Season. And I was anxious to test out my new watch. I broke down and despite not having the money for it I purchased the Garmin 910XT.

Today I had to do the following:

T-Pace Swim Test This test will establish your “T-pace," which we will use as a reference for future interval work. This is also your initial swim test, to gauge your improvement across this plan.

WU: Start slow and gradually build pace/effort. 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim.

MS: After the warm-up, swim 1000 yards/meters at a constant pace and good effort—as if racing.

Record your average pace per 100. This pace is your "T-pace," will be used as a reference for future interval work. 

I tested out my watch and it was amazing! It is worth every penny to have a watch monitor my swim stroke count and how far I swim. I no longer have to think about laps, but just technique. That is a game changer right there. I felt pretty good in the pool. I have to back and look at my swim times from last season to see how I compare, but I don't think I was too far off from last season despite only swimming 3-4 times since August.

When I got home I synced up my watch and my brain turned to ooze when I saw all this data recorded. I did not have time to process it all, but being the nerd I am I cannot wait to sift through it all. All the more for me to look at and analyze. I love it!

I swam the 1000 yard test in 17:05 for a T-100 test time of 1:42/100. Not the fastest by any means, but at least it is a start towards a new plan and goal to being faster this year.

Here is more info! Gotta love it!

Out Season Week 14: Reflection and Run Test with a Double BOOM BOOM

I finally got my butt moving for this run test. Fear is not even close to what I was feeling. I had to overcome a mental block like you would not believe.

A block knowing that I could have trained better.

A block knowing that I have been chicken to running outside since converting to treadmill training in my basement before it broke.

A block not wanting to see my final time.

A block in just not enjoying running period.

Today I got up and forced myself to the Y to run on the treadmill there. My last two run tests have been outside, but since I have been training on a TM over the last month I decided to stick with the TM. I got to the Y and after signing up for one of the new TM's I made my way over to find a young couple taking the very one I signed up for. This made me mad, but I decided to just move to another treadmill. An older one.

I did my warm up and just was not feeling it, but tried to tell myself to get loose and focus. After one mile of gradually picking up speed, I stepped off to stretch and get ready.

I cranked the TM to 9 mph and tried to hold that pace at least until the 1.5 mile marker. That was the plan. My hamstrings felt tight, but I got into a real nice groove. A groove so nice that that TM decided to short out on me and turn off. I went from 9 mph to 0 in .5 seconds. Talk about a disruption of flow. I was about .3 of a mile in and had to quickly move to a new TM. Needless to say that a 6'4" 220 lb man coming to an abrupt stop like that caused a lot of people to stare.

I moved down and started back up. There was about a 30 second lull in the running, but I figured that since I was only a little bit into the run it was not a big deal so I just continued forward instead of starting over. I was out of whack from this point on. I tried to maintain the 9 mph which my watch read as being sub 6:10 mile pace. I was doing good until around the 1.5 mile mark when I had to stop for a quick cramp stretch. I had a 10 second break in the action to stretch my hamstring. I know it is not recommended  but it is what it is. I had to move the pace down to about 8.5 and 8.0 mixed in back and forth to be able to finish and keep my hammie from going crazy.

In the end I hit my goal. I ran the 5K under 20 minutes. I was quite happy. I know that I would be able to do this even if I did not have to stop twice. I was at 19:28 so even if I slowed down a bit more I would have been under 20 with no stops. This was a great sign. Perhaps this is what I needed to reignite my running goals.

This is my second fastest time. Last year I ran 19:!4 at  4.21.12 : PROJECT RENEWAL 5K

I know with a bit more mileage and run focus I could get below 19:14 in a race. I need to seek out a race in about 6 weeks after this next training block of 6 weeks of run focus.

So, this is a double BOOM BOOM. I am quite happy with the results. Reaching goals is always a great feeling. The hard work and getting up every morning early has paid off.

Here is my Out Season Test Recap

Week 1: My time was 20:52 with a 6:43 pace
Week 8: My time was 20:33 with a 6:37 pace.
Week 14: My time was 19:28 with a 6:17 pace

A few things I have learned through the Out Season.

1. Mileage - I have gotten away from the notion of worrying about getting so many miles each week. Rather, I have finally begun to shift to work on the actual workout at hand. Run for 45 minutes with the intervals instead of just an easy 7 mile run. I am adapting my thought process to put in quality instead of quantity  Last year I thought the more miles, the better. It is QUALITY that matters and this Out Season has proven that idea.

2. Rest - You have to listen to your body. Even though I had workouts to do six days a week there were times when my life and schedule were just too busy to do it all. The body wears out if you don't take care of it and sometimes that means taking an extra day here or there. The journey is long so if I have to sacrifice a workout here or there it is worth it to stay healthy and injury free.

3. Rest and Nutrition - Two more important things especially this time of year. Getting good sleep is huge. As I work on eating more balanced and eliminating foods that I don't really need(this does not always happen :)) my sleep has improved. I realize the importance of getting enough rest. I also realize the importance of proper nutrition. They work hand in hand and do make a difference. Sometimes you don't notice right away, but charting data long term you can see the results.

4. Spice It Up - during the Out Season I hit a low in motivation. I had to change things up. I did a CrossFit workout during my test week. Probably not the best week to do this, but it was needed. That change of pace changed everything. Sometimes we have to go against the grain, against the standard protocol and do something different to reignite our passions. I plan to do CrossFit once I am done coaching. It will be a good break of action from SBR(Swim, Bike, Run) and keep me going. The key will be balance and not wearing the body out. Don't be afraid to try something new.

So there you have it. My first Out Season is in the books. I made massive gains that I am so proud of. I look forward to training hard and seeing where it takes me this year in my races. I will enjoy the rest of this rest week by mixing things up with some swimming and lifting and then move on to  a six week run focus training program before hitting up my Ironman training. Time to sign up for the races!

AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge: Results and What I Learned

After the 10 day cleanse of this 24 day challenge I was down 6 pounds. I was happy seeing the weight drop off. I was in a groove after struggling for most of those ten days. I finally got over the hump and had the cravings finally subside.

After one weekend for state robotics things fell apart for me. I had no food choices to stay the course and I went all in. I did not eat in moderation, but ate like a pig and put down so much food and none of it was on the plan. After that day things completely fell off track for me.

The next 9 days I tried to get back on track. I would be on track for about 85% of the time. I would fall apart and tear up my cravings. I struggled. By day 24 I weighed in and found that I was still at my 6 pound loss. I had not gained, but did not lose more.

At this point in time about a week later I am close to being back to my starting weight of 222. Am I bummed? Not really. I took away many great things.

1. Eating super clean all the time is not for me and will lead to burn out. I know myself and my body. I must have my chocolate and candy from time to time. It is what it is. This challenge proved what I knew would happen. Once I gave in to a craving it was over. I went overboard. Instead of eating one cookie I ate 12. I have to have those cheat meals built in.

2. I can go without dairy for the most part. I need my Greek yogurt at least once a day and cottage cheese every once in a while. I am able to give up the rest. I don't have my cheese cravings to put cheese on everything like I once did so that is good. This will pay dividends down the road.

3. Bread - don't really need it either. I will have bread or grain on my cheat days when I eat pizza and such, but I no longer crave the slices of bread or chips. I still need to work on this, but this won't be hard to do.

When it is all said and done. I feel better about myself right now with the weight back on. I feel fitter and in better shape. With my training and adding some CrossFit in a few weeks I will be feeling even better.

What is next?

Next is to go after the Four Hour Body system. I am not dieting. No way. But I like this method of eating clean and having one day a week where you eat whatever you want, however much you want, and then eat good the other six days. I will make one change and that will be that I will continue to eat fruit even though it says no fruit. I just need to eat fruit with my smoothies and all that. If I can keep my cheat meals and snacks to one day I will be where I want to be.

Additionally, in some ways I am glad I failed. I don't want to be down to race weight right now. I don't need to be there until this summer/fall. So if I carry around an extra 15 pounds it will only help with my training. I will be that much faster and my body will think it will be easier come race day when I am 15 pounds lighter.

I did not quite make it the whole 24 days, but I learned a great deal about myself and where I want to be. I take it as a success. The key is eating whole nutritious food. It is not taking some pill or wonder drug. Supplements are not the game changers. Habits are the game changers. Period. Having the self discipline to get the habits to form is the hardest part of a lifestyle change.

When it comes to March/April I will stripping away weight to get ready for some road races and I will be doing this without supplements or some pill magic concoction. I will be curious to see how things pan out. AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge works. It works for a ton of people. It has helped to open my eyes to what I need to work on and what works. I will continue to use certain AdvoCare products, but I know I don't need them all. The key is find what works for you as an individual. We are all different and all need different things to reach our goals.

For me I just need to stay the course with my training. I will be fine. When I put in the work it only makes sense to not jeopardize all the hard work by feeding my body junk. If I want to perform well I must eat and hydrate well. Pretty simple concept, but at times very hard to do in a society that surrounds each person with junk food and fake sweeteners. I will GET IT DONE! and this year will be a big year of hitting PR's and reaching my goals. This was a good kickstart to get things going!

Out Season: Week14 Bike Test go BOOM!

Last week was technically week 14  and the last week of my out season training. However a lull in motivation, busy work, and a CrossFit workout that left me sore for days pushed my test days to this week. A week in which I am to be resetting my brain and mind for the next phase of training.

Monday I had to stay home with two of my kids who were sick. This is never a fun day, but it is what it is. Ava finally went down for a bit of a nap and I decided to get on the bike and get this bike test done once and for all. I won't lie I am not feeling the greatest either. I have a major sinus infection and just feel worn out. I have felt worn out for a couple weeks so I hope I don't have something worse than just a head cold!

The bike test is simply on paper, but a monster in real life.

Bike Test, for Power Athletes ONLY!

WU: 10' easy, then 8' building from 50% FTP to 100% FTP in 2' increments, 2' easy. Fine to use estimated FTP if this is your first test. The intent here is to get in a good warmup, so use your best judgement. 

Test 1 -- Vo2 Max Test: ride 5' at the best (hardest) effort you can sustain for the full 5'. A good target is 120% of your estimated FTP.

 Recover 1: 10' easy spin, stretch, recovery. 

Test 2 -- Functional Threshold Power (FTP) Test: time trial for 20' at the best (hardest) effort you can sustain for the full 20'. 

Recover 2: Minimum 5' easy spinning

Rides - TrainerRoad http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/rides/199304

I will be honest in that these tests make me nervous because I have worked so hard over the last 14 weeks and my fear is not seeing improvements. I have struggled the last few weeks with getting all workouts done and eating healthy. However, the results show that WORK, WORKS! I know that doing these bike workouts I have rode harder than ever before

So here is my progress over the 14 week Out Season on the bike. I am quite happy with the results!

Week 1: 24.9 mph 40 minute test @ 149 HR

Week 5: I converted to Power and tested again
VO2: 245
FTP: 202

Week 8:
VO2: 270
FTP: 215

Week 14
VO2: 288
FTP: 95% of 252 = 239

As soon as I finished the 20 minute FTP ride I had to stop and get Ava. She only slept about 30 minutes. Later in the day when she slept again I jumped back on to finish the workout. I ended up riding an extra ten minutes so I got 70 minuted done.

Tuesday morning(today) I was going to swim, but I am not feeling good at all after going to bed at 8 pm. I think I have been hit with the bug after being with my kids all day. I hope to run test tomorrow if all goes according to plan!

Out Season Week 14 - Blended Run Workout

I have not ran in about two weeks due to several conflicts of schedule and a broken treadmill mixed in with sub zero temperatures.

I had the following workout to get done from earlier in the week

MS: 30' @ EP/Z1/Easy, then 6 x 90 (2') @ TP/Z4/Hard

I headed to the Y early this morning on my late start. I really wanted to sleep in, but I knew I had to get a run in. My hamstrings and lower back are still ungodly sore from CrossFit. I wanted to do more than just do an easy run. I needed to find out if I had anything in my tank for my test run or not. I did not want to go all out and mess things up, but I had to see if it would be wise to test soon.

I was to already have tested this week, but my schedule and lack of mojo and shifted things around. I started off running and my hammies were sore, tight, and not feeling the greatest. I started super easy below my easy pace just to loosen things up. Instead of running steady I decided to pick up the pace over time to keep things interesting. You can see what I did below. I don't have any Garmin data as my watch has also died. I guess it is time to find more money to replace the things breaking on me! I hope my body is not next.

Here is what I got done this morning.

Mile 1: 9:09
Mile 2: 8:34
Mile 3: 8:00
Minutes 26 - 30:00 - 7:30 mile pace
Minute 30 - 32:00 - 7:00 mile pace
Minute 33:00 - 34:00 - 6:40 mile pace
Minute 34:00 - 35:00 - 6:18 mile pace
Minute 35:00 - 41:00 - 8:49 recovery pace

Total miles = 5 miles


It felt good to get going. I had to get over the hump about 15 minutes in when I did not feel like running anymore, but once I got over that I was focused and ready to go. I am glad I got the run in.

As soon as the temps rise about below zero I will attempt to run outside for my test run. I want to use the same course. If not, then I will hit up the treadmill on Monday for my run test.

Despite a tired and sore body I plan on hitting up the bike test this weekend. I will then knock out the other bike workout on the opposite day. Then Monday I will do the run test. This will wrap up my Out Season and I will move into the Get Faster Block of training. I just need to decide what my focus should be. The focus will either be bike or run. I should probably focus on the run as this is the sport I am struggling with mentally. However, I also know that this means more running. I will figure it out this weekend.

Now it is time for breakfast and getting ready for a shortened school day.

Out Season: Week 14 - Mixing Things Up During Test Week

Alright, another crazy, tired, nonstop week of action. I have not updated my training every day like I normally do as I simply don't have the time. So here is a brief catch up of all things training which as you will see is SO not what the plans call for on the last week of November Out Season.

I will say that I have hit a wall with motivation which is why I have chosen to mix things up. Why did I not just wait one more week you ask when OS is done? I feared that waiting one more week would lead to complete disconnect. That cannot happen. So I made the change this week.

Monday - Swimming!

Since I did not race Sunday due to ice and snow I wanted to swim. I jumped in the pool and knocked about 1500 yards. I can tell it was my 2nd swim in 5 months. I need to get back to the basics and build the endurance up slowly.
Warm Up - 200 free, 200 kick, 200 pull
Main Set - 10 x 50 every 60 seconds
Cool Down - 100 kick, 100 swim with paddles, 100 pull, 100 free
Total 1500 yards

Tuesday - no training due to very poor sleep.

Wednesday CrossFit - I decided to give this a try. I needed something different and a new challenge. This was a great group of people and look forward to finding a way to make this happen more in my training.

Part 1)
Dynamic Effort Bench Press
On 45sec interval 3 Reps for 9 sets
50% of 1RM (3 sets at close grip) (3 at med grip) 3 at wide grip)
learn something with this speed!

Part 2)
5 Rounds
On the 2 minute Interval
5 Deadlifts (335/225) (255/175) (185/125)
15 Medball Cleans (30/20) (20/14)
scores are the time it takes to complete each round. score your fastest and slowest.
rest 5 min
50 ball slams for time
Part 3)
Banded Good Mornings
3X25 FAST

Thursday - I could barely get out of bed from Crossfit. Holy smokes I have not been this sore in a LONG time. I can barely walk. Instead of testing my bike today, I decided to hit up the Tuesday workout I missed just to loosen my legs and back up. I am glad I did not test as my legs and mind were not ready.

Tuesday workout done today

MS: 3 x 8' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard. Remainder of any time you have available (if any, not required) @ 80-85%/Zone3/Mod-Hard.

There you have it. 3 workouts. 2 not part of the plan, but 2 that I really enjoyed. I plan to do my run test tomorrow. It will have to be on the TM as it will be sub zero here in Iowa. My goal is to break 20 minutes despite not running in two weeks! We shall see what happens. My bike test will happen Sunday to wrap NOS! Here is to Getting It Done! and doing what you need to do to stay the course.

Out Season: Week 13 - End is Near and All I Do Is Bike?

So things have.......what shall I say, "fallen off the bandwagon".

I have been focused on diet and training after being spotty in early January.

Last Saturday I had my Lego Robotics State Competition with my students. That day and some other family matters sent my focus in a whirlwind. Making excuses, yep! But it is called life and life is something we all deal with.

Saturday I fell off track eating and ate like a pig, like 12 cookies, chips, 8 sanwiches of Jimmy John's platter, and various other debris of unhealthiness.

It tasted so good! This pretty much ended my eating clean process of the AdvoCare 24 day challenge. I was doing so good up until this point. I was good with cravings out the window and a system in place. From that point on I could not get back on track. I ate good from that point on, but each night I fell apart eating chocolate, drinks, or Cinnamon Toast Crunch before bed.

Added to that my treadmill quit working and I hit a wall of fatigue.

Monday I did the weekend bike workout that I missed out on from being out of town.

MS: 2 x 18' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard, 1 x 10' @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard. Remainder of any time you have available (if any, not required) @ 80-85%/Zone3/Mod-Hard.

On Tuesday I was back on track

MS: 12' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard, 18' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard, 12' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard.

Due to feeling extremely tired and worn out, a busted treadmill, and super busy schedule of life I did not get anything done Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. Saturday I got the bike workout out done, but did not have time to run

MS: 2 x 18' (4') @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard, 1 x 12' @ 95-100%/Zone4/Hard. Remainder of any time you have available (if any, not required) @ 80-85%/Zone3/Mod-Hard.

Sunday I was to do an Indoor Triathlon, but snow, ice, and sleet kept me from traveling. Not the best of training this week. Life deals you cards and you have to deal and adapt. The good thing is that my races are not until the summer and fall. The bad news is that I test next week and I have not ran in 12 days. I will see where I am!

Out Season: Week 12 Thursday Bike VO2 Ride

I had to really muster up some energy this morning. After doing my AdvoCare weigh in I had to get on the bike and ride. My legs were tired from the run last night. My knee was tender from the stupid treadmill.

I had to do the following workout

MS: 2 x (5 x 1/1) @ Vo2/258/Very Hard. Take 2' easy between each set of 4 x 1/1's. Remainder of any time you have available (if any, not required) @ 80-85%/172 - 182/Mod-Hard.

Rides - TrainerRoad http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/rides/163001

I got off to a late start and therefore the rest of the morning was a mad scramble to get out of the door in time. Thank goodness my kids are awesome and helped make ends meet. I hit all intervals except the first which I missed by one power.

Tomorrow I have to decide whether to hit the pool and swim at least one more time before my race next weekend or do the Sunday run workout as I won't have time to get both weekend workouts done. What shall I do?

Out Season: Week 12 Wednesday Night Run

I had to dig deep to get this run done. I really did not think it was going to happen. After getting the kids to bed we had to figure out the next phase in the AdvoCare 24 day challenge and what we can and cannot eat. I finally made it down to the treadmill around 8:30 and took some time to get set up and took off.

My treadmill is struggling lately. It kept jerking as I ran. It hurt my knee by the end of the run, but after about 30 minutes it finally stopped the sudden stop motions. I started off watching the pilot episode of American Horror Story, but had to change because that opening sequence was too much for me handle before bed. I hate scary movies and shows so this was not a wise choice. I went back to Breaking Bad and knocked out the workout.

The workout was a 60 minute run consisting of

MS: 1 x 200, 1 x 400, 3 x 800 all at @ IP/6:39/Very Hard with full recoveries between each.

Tip: Build your pace across each repeat here so that your final set is your strongest.

 My 800's were 6:17, 6:18, 5:58. I was way below my 6:39 pace, but it felt easy and for some reason my watch was not showing these numbers. It kept bouncing around at an above 6:39 pace. This was a blessing to see for me personally to see that numbers this low. I have not seen numbers this low in training ever!

I felt good to get this workout done. I know this weekend will be tough to get both workouts in as I am out of town with my robotics team competing at state. Trying to manage and coach ten 5th - 8th graders is a workout itself.

My knee was sore and I hope a rest day will do it some good.