Chasing the Kona dream and a Mai Tai cocktail

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 05-08-2010 12:22pm #1

Thought I would put pen to paper and start my own training log. A bit of background I was unhealthy, overweight by 2 stone and totally unfit last year and decided to turn things around at the start of this year.
My first goal was to loose at least two stone which i completed and the second was to train for a marathon which I completed in Cork back in June (just under 4 hr). From there I have set some goals for this year and into 2011 such as running the DCM in under 3.30 and an Ultra or Iron Man. In terms of fitness I am probably 80-90% of the way there and I am totally hooked on the whole exercise regime sometimes training 5/6 days a week in some format and sometimes two sessions a day.
Weekly training generally consists of,
Two cycles probably covering around 80-90km
Three/Four runs probably covering around 40-50km
Two/Three gym sessions focussing on weight training and core strenght
Indoor Footie
Swimming

I will try log my journey and I have a few up and coming events with one major goal this year...to run the Dublin City Marathon in under 3.30 (26 mins off my pb)

So some events I have coming up
8th August - Kilomarathon in Kildare, a 26.2 km run/race
29th August - Sean Kelly Cycle, undecided on the 90km or 160km version
25th September - Wicklow Adventure Run (WAR) which is a 7 stage race covering nearly 50km of cycling, 1.5km kayaking and 20km of running with 6km uphill mountain running.
03rd October - 3/4 Athlone Marathon, a 19.65 mile run/race which will be a good training run for DCM.
25th October - Dublin City Marathon, a 26.2 mile run/race which I hope to run in sub 3hr 30mins.

Will try keep this updated.

tunney · 05-08-2010 2:42pm

Good luck with this. If you are planning on a 2011 IM distance race you had better enter very very soon as most are already full.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 05-08-2010 3:57pm

tunney wrote: »

Good luck with this. If you are planning on a 2011 IM distance race you had better enter very very soon as most are already full.

Is there any you would recommend i was thinking of doing a half before i do a full Iron Man.

tunney · 05-08-2010 4:13pm

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Is there any you would recommend i was thinking of doing a half before i do a full Iron Man.

St. Polen 70.30 comes highly recommended.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 05-08-2010 4:29pm

tunney wrote: »

St. Polen 70.30 comes highly recommended.

Thanks Tunney this looks perfect and plenty of time to prepare for it.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 30-09-2010 11:20pm

I had these up on another site and forgot to keep this updated. Here is some of the events covered since August.

Kilomarathon in Kildare
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43694088

Really tough course with the warm weather around 23 degrees and hill after hill after hill. There was a good few people around the course complaining about the hills but hey what goes up must come down.
I ran a 2.16.54 in the end, a good 7 mins off my target time. All was going well up to mile 6 in terms of pacing but the hills between 2.5 and 8.5 miles took a lot out of energy out of me and it would appear everyone else around me so i had to revise my plans.
Like most hilly courses you can take advantage of the declines but the hills took that much out of me i was not pulling sufficient time back on the declines to keep up the 8min mile pace. I decided to drop the pace for the last 10 mile trying to keep it around the 8.30/8.40 mark.
I was in stitches laughing at some guy around mile 6 who commented ah ffs not another fcking hill what are they trying to do kill us!! A valuable lesson learned....must study the routes before i run a race.

So back off holidays and straight into Lap the Lough race today. I did 4 gym sessions and 2 runs over on holidays which were less than expected but at least kept me in reasonable shape. The diet sort of went out of whack for the two weeks with rich food and plenty beer/wine. I will be giving the beer/wine a miss until after the Dublin City Marathon as it really does **** up the fitness.

Lap the Lough Cycle
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/46737719
The race in Lap the Lough went reasonably well. It is a flat course and the weather was pretty poor for the first 2 hours with wind and rain which was not helped by me forgetting my waterproofs but at least it picked up for the remainder of the race. I completed the 140km course (actually only 133 km on my garmin) in 5 hours and 8 mins at an average pace of 2.19 per km and an average speed of 25.9 km/h. I burned a total of 4500 calories and felt fairly tired afterwards, 90km through 115km were tough going but I finished strongly which was good.

Joe Loughman Wicklow Cycle
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/48694690
Today’s spin only got a measly 150 runners across the three distances with probably less than 30 doing the long route of 123km. I waited at the start for a decent group to get started and headed off with a group of 20 for the first 30km.
The first climb we hit was around the 22.5km mark, it was more of a long drag that went on for around 11km with an elevation gain of 190 metres. There was 7 of us broke from the larger group and we started drafting and reaching speeds over 40 km/h for the next 25kms through lovely scenery until we reached the main food/drink stop around the 55km mark. At this stage I had taken on two full bottles of sports drink, 2 energy gels and 1 energy bar so I just tucked into a banana, a few sambos and chockie biscuits.
We left shortly after in the same group that cycled in but unfortunately 5kms down the road all 6 turned off to the right as they were only doing the shorter course. The parting advice “was take it easy up Slieve Mann it’s a monster of a climb”.
I hit Slieve Mann at the 60km mark, it lasts for just over 5.5 km with a total elevation gain of 320 metres. To say Slieve Mann was tough would be an understatement, the fact I was tackling it on my own into a wind did not help matters. There were parts of the climb which were very steep but I just about kept the bike moving up it.
I had a nice 4k downhill section were I reached speeds of over 50km/h. I near came off the bike towards the end of the descent as the course took a sharp left at the bottom and with me motoring along I hit some loose gravel when braking and my heart was in my mouth (near emptied the drawers).
The next climb was straight into Brown Mountain lasting 4 kms with an elevation gain of 180 metres, although it was not much of a climb I still had Slieve Mann in my legs so I struggled up this section. Next on the list was the dreaded Shay Elliot climb. I actually found this slightly easier than Slieve Mann, it lasted for around 3.5kms with an elevation gain of 240 metres. Thankfully there was another food/drink stop at the top so I quickly refilled the bottles and had a quick bite to eat.
The last 38kms had two quick descents and some rolling hills near Roundwood. I really struggled with the last 20kms but just kept the pedals churning over.
I finished in 5hrs 2mins although there is 4kms missing from my Garmin as I forgot to switch it back on after the stop at Shay Elliot. Total Elevation Gain was 1653 metres, average speed was a measly 23.7km/h, average pace was 2.32 per km and total calories burnt was 4720. I really enjoyed this scenic but very demanding route and the weather was fantastic. At least I know what to expect on the bike section of WAR in two weeks.
Need to get myself sorted with clip pedals and cycling shoes. Some of the lads on the cycle said it would increase my pace by at least 10/15%, not sure if there is any truth in this.

Dublin Half Marathon
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/49505846
I ended up running this along with another 8000 crazies which on reflection was pretty stupid tbf. I went to the physio yesterday and he felt the back pain was brought on by my hamstrings. After half an hour with him I was feeling much better although his advice was best off to leave the race alone.

I woke up this morning feeling slightly tight and sore so went for a quick 2k to see how i felt, which went well. Soon after I found myself driving down to the Phoenix Park!!

The course is fairly flat and although carrying a slight injury I still went off with the sub 1.40 pacers as I wanted to post a pb (again stupidy). All was going well until around the 3.5 mile when I got the back pain again. I had been on the shoulders of the 1.40 pacers up to then but decided to drop it back a click to see how the back would fair out. I ran the next 3 miles or so at a slower pace and then picked up the pace for the the last 7 miles. At one stage I seen the 1.40 pacer balloons about two minutes ahead and for once I made the right decison not to go after them.

I ended up finishing fairly strong and in a time of 1.41.37 which considering the circumstances I am happy enough with as it was a pb (previous 1.43.23 Enniscorthy). I reckon i would have been close to a 1.38 on that course so that gives me plenty of confidence for the sub 3.30 in DCM.

Even though I had a good stretch after the race I am really hurting now so resting up now for a few days and probably more physio on Monday.

Wicklow Adventure Run
Stage 1 - 10k Kirikee Mountain Run
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50472958
No softly softly approach here and straight into a steep climb for about 4km. I ran the first 3km and walked the last k to the summit due to the steep climb (everyone else walked). Coming down the other side of the mountain was fun and I picked up some decent speed, at some points I was running speeds of 22km+.
I finished this in 59mins 20secs and the transition time between the run and bike was just under 4 mins which was pretty dire.

Stage 2 - 22k cycle covering Shay Elliot and Slieve Mann climbs
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50472960
The first couple of km was ok with around 1.5km off-road which I decided to run as I did not want to risk a puncture. Around the 9km we started off on the Shay Elliot climb which lasted for around 5km.
I was pretty much fcked after 2km of this climb and decided to get off the bike and walk a bit, at this point I noticed the back break was rubbing off the wheel (probably caused by the off road section). After a quick fix I hoped back on and completed both climbs at a steady pace. I passed out a good few struggling on the second climb which was good.
I finished this in 1hr 30mins 10 secs which was a good bit off the time I had planned. Transition time between bike and run was better at 1min 44secs

Stage 3 - 7.5k run up and over Croaghanmoira Mountain
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50472964
This simply put was insane. The terrain and the steepness of this mountain climb was very tough. There was a good few people at the summit either waiting on help with injuries or simply just exhausted. I fell twice coming down sections of the mountain so decided to walk some of it rather than risking injury. I did enjoy doubling back on the route and watching all the people suffering behind me
I finished this in 1hr 17mins 47 secs, I had this originally planned for 55 mins but I completely underestimated it. Transition time from run back to bike was 2min 40secs.

Stage 4 - 19k cycle down Slieve Mann to Glenmalure.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50472969
At this stage I was feeling sick before the last cycle from all the energy gels/bars and contemplated making myself sick but decided against it as I would have feck all energy left. The last 19k cycle was much easier than the first cycle with a bit of downhill and just one significant drag which went on for around 4.5km. We had to take parts of the descent handy due to bad roads, one section we were allocated 5 minutes to pass through due to loose gravel.
I finished this in 55mins and 32secs and was happy to be so close to home as the finish line was right beside the last section. Last transition came in at 2mins 6 secs.

Stage 5 - River run and obstacle course
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/50472972
This was more or less done for the novelty factor. The river was bloody freezing and up to waist height. The obstacle course was very short with just a few crawl nets and jumping/climbing over a couple of hay bales. I finished this in 7mins 11secs.

I crossed the line in 5hr 26secs (on garmin) and an official race time of 4hr 58mins covering 59kms. I won my prop bet with my mate which was sweet as he finished 35 minutes behind me. The garmin said I burnt 3000 calories I think it’s more like 5000 calories, I have not stopped eating since the race finished.

I really enjoyed my first adventure race and plan to do a few of these next year. I am not sure of finishing position but results should be up tomorrow.

....Now i have this up to date I must try keep it updated

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 02-10-2010 9:31pm

Managed to get the 20 miles in very early this morning, it was a nightmare getting up at 6am but had to be done. The legs were heavy from mile 15 through to 20 and ran the full 20 miles at 1 minute per mile slower than PMP (aiming for sub 3.30). The feet were fairly swollen after the run (first time) and I managed to loose a toenail in the process:eek:
One more week and then into tapering down....cannot wait the body is starting to hurt from all the training and events the last few months.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 27-10-2010 3:49pm

Today was a disaster for me and one i want to forget quickly. Set out with the 3.30 group and was slugish for the first 3 mile or so but quickly got into a rhythm and was feeling good. Ran the next few miles with Menoscomo who was also trying for his sub 3.30 (good to put a face to the name).

Bang mile 11 my right hamstring started to get very tight and i tried to run it off through mile 12 and 13 but to no avail (horrible feeling seeing them balloons drift away). Had to pull up at the physio tent at mile 15 and seek some attention, hard to tell but they reckoned it was probably a pulled hamstring.

Tried to walk/jog and it was too painful with every step, contemplated just binning it around mile 16 as i was pissed off and the thoughts of having to walk another 10 mile. I decided to plough on, walked most of it and ran the last 2 mile as i wanted to get it over with and not let the kids see Dad hobbling around the corner of College Green. My two lads ended up running the last 200 mtrs with me which was the only high point of the second half

To have little or no injuries this year and get the training spot on for my race of the year it is truly dissapointing how the day went. The garmin tells the story, almost 3 hours spent hobbling the second half of the marathon to finish in a horrible 4hr 42 some 48 mins slower than Cork this year.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/54337313

Went to the Physio yesterday and they confirmed it's a Grade 2 hamstring injury. Pretty much guessed this was the case as the area started to bruise up. It appears there is some damage to the muscle fibres around the biceps femoris. I had planned in my own mind to have another go before Xmas but i can pretty much rule that out unless i make a miraculous recovery.

catweazle · 27-10-2010 4:03pm

Sorry to hear things went pear shaped Jacky. Look at it on the bright-side, you have had a long year so the break will do you good before you head into an Ironman year. From the title of your log, the Ironman is your main focus so all the running you have done for Dublin is in the bank anyways

You were doing a serious amount of training and events from your opening post, I wonder did you take too much on too soon.

Stick a pull bouy between the legs and get some swimming into ya.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 27-10-2010 5:15pm

catweazle wrote: »

Sorry to hear things went pear shaped Jacky. Look at it on the bright-side, you have had a long year so the break will do you good before you head into an Ironman year. From the title of your log, the Ironman is your main focus so all the running you have done for Dublin is in the bank anyways

You were doing a serious amount of training and events from your opening post, I wonder did you take too much on too soon.

Stick a pull bouy between the legs and get some swimming into ya.

Looking back possibly should have left the WAR event alone but what's done is done. I was thinking of doing something like that on the swimming to stop me going completely stir crazy as i am used to training at least 15+ hours a week.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 29-10-2010 11:16pm

Close to finalising my Iron Man training plan...properly this time. This book
really is the business and is giving me a great insight on picking up the necessary skills and techniques required through each element during training.
The big difference is basing your training on time rather than distance and it's all focussed around HR and training in aerobic and anerobic state. I am following the Competitive training plan as i believe i would not do myself justice following the easier "Just Finish" and "Intermediate" plans.
I will be hitting a peak of 20 hours a week and on average it works out at 12 hours so when you start to look at a typical week it does not leave much free time so i will need to get some early morning and lunchtime sessions in to make the plan workable

168 hours in a week
20 hours training
42 hours sleeping
14 hours washing/eating
60 hours working
8 hours kids activities/clubs
24 hours free

I originally planned to kick off the training at the middle of November but this will be sometime in December dependant on how the injury heals up.
I went for another physio session last night and he found another small tear on the inside of the leg. He will be carrying out some laser treatment next week to help with cell reproduction and i am hoping this will help with recovery time although i am not going to rush back into it. Just going to do some pulls in the pool and upper body gym work to keep some level of fitness from next week.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 21-11-2010 7:58pm

Monday 15.11 - 10 mile Run
This was the real tester to see if the hamstring is fully recovered and thankfully no problems after the run. I had initially planned to run a 6 miler but instead of turning for home I decided on adding another 4 mile. Need to get myself a headtorch as I could not see in front of me running along the Boyne River with the mist rolling in. Really glad to be back at it.

Tuesday 16.11
18 hour day in work put a stop to any training being completed.

Wednesday 17.11
3 mile run at lunchtime in 22.06
Mile 1 - 7.41
Mile 2 - 7.45
Mile 3 - 7.40
30 minute turbo on the bike with 1 minute cool down. 23.47km / 45.4 km/h / 116 avg watt, most of this was in zone 1 hr with 3 spurts in zone 3/4 hr thrown in.

Thursday 18.11
Gym session at lunchtime consisted of a 15 minute metcon (military press, chin ups and 2 arm kettlebell squat raises) Done bench and stuggled on 70kg due to lack of practice over the last few weeks. Done 4 sets of 500 mtr rower in total around 7.45 exluding the minute recovery in between. Quick session but it was a busy one.
Done a quick all out interval session in the evening as I was heading out for a meal, 3x1 miles with 1 minute recovery in between around the footie pitch.
Mile 1 - 6.23
Mile 2 - 6.17
Mile 3 - 6.49 - struggled on this probably from my earlier gym session

Friday 19.11
Took a long lunch today at work to get a swim and run session in
Swim - 3x500 mtr b/stroke with 2 minute recovery. in total it took me about 37 minutes excluding recovery although not accurate as my stopwatch battery went dead.
Then headed out for a run just under 5 mile and kept it at 7.44 pace

Saturday 20.11 10% IM distance.....just to see like:rolleyes:
Total time was 9.33 min swim, 40 min bike and 20.21 on the run....1.09.54 in total. Transistion between bike and run took about 4/5 minutes, darn gps watch loosing its signal when coming into the house to change into running gear
Swim
Completed a 200mtr warm up and cool down. The 400 mtr took me 9.33, I rotated the swim 1 fc/1 bstroke.
Bike
Actually got out on the bike rather than the turbo and rode out on an undulating course. I knew it was going to be tough and the legs felt fairly tired. Dissapointed with the time of 40 minutes and will work on getting this down to under 36 minutes.

Run
20.21 on the run, again I think there is a few minutes to come off the run. It does take a while to get used to running after coming off the bike.

All in all pleased enough considering tired legs this morning.

Sunday 21.11
Went out for a 2 hour cycle this morning in perfect weather albeit slightly cold. Done the full 56km in zone 2 heart rate did peak into zone 3 on a few occasions on some of the climbs. Feels really slow doing it zone 2 but thats what it takes to get around the IM distance, I felt fresh coming off the bike which shows there may be some merits in what the experts say.

Weekly Summary
15-21 November|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|11|8:06|137.5km
Swimming|2|0:55|2.3
Cycling|3|3:22|97.7
Running|5|3:04|37.5
Conditioning|1|0:45|Strengthening Work - Gym

Lessons on swim start next week, hope to start making some serious progress in this area.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 23-11-2010 12:10am

Monday
Had the alarm set for 6am this morning to get the swim out of the way but felt tired so slept on and done it at lunchtime today.

Started with a 250 mtr warm up (breast stroke)
8x50 mtr drills (front crawl) covering one arm, kick, pull, fist and catch up with board
Followed this with a 1km b/stroke and a 150 mtr cool down
Total distance: 1.8km
Total time: 46 mins (boy I am **** at swimming)

Time for a 24 hour rest period.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 24-11-2010 11:44pm

Tuesday
Gym session - 1 hour
5 minute warm up on bike
Leg Curl - 35x8, 40x8, 45x8
Leg Extension - 40x8, 45,8, 50x8
Leg Press - 90x9, 100x8, 110x8
Bench Press - 50x8, 55x8, 60x8
DB Shoulder Press - 17.5x8x3
Single Arm Row - 17.5x8x3
Tricep K/Back - 10x8x3
Hyperextension - 10kg weight/15x2
Situps 30x3
5 minute stretch and cool down.....after a busy session
Swim Lesson
Swim lesson was a disaster, this was meant to be at an advanced level obviously not after two people had to be saved from drowning from the guy running the lessons There was no way I was wasting 10 weeks on this so a got a refund and a switch to lane sessions from next week. There is only 4 in the group and it should be more what I am looking for so I can get my front crawl technique sorted.
In sheer frustration I stayed on and completed 4 sets of 150mtr f/crawl in under 11 minutes.
Today
8.97km run this morning in 45:47, Z2 avg hr 151 and 5.06km pace
Brick session this evening
Bike - 30 minutes on turbo (flat), 28.97km, 203 avg watt, avg speed 56 km/h, zone 2 avg hr 139
Run - 3.75km in 17:55, avg hr 154 and 4.46km pace

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 25-11-2010 10:52pm

Thursday
Swim
8x50mtr drills front crawl, breathing and technique is improving but very slowly:(
2km swim b/stroke in :44 mins, this was done at a steady pace and I was considering pushing on to 2.5km but was short on time. This would translate to a 1:21 IM swim....good to fall back on!!

Bike
Another :30 min session on the turbo in Z2. I set the fortius turbo to a constant 6% climb and whilst it was a struggle to keep it in Z2 I did manage. Total distance 6.13km, avg cadence 80, avg watt 169 and avg hr 149.

45 min Z2 run planned for 6.30am in the morning:o

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 27-11-2010 4:56pm

Friday
I only managed 30 minutes for my run yesterday due to the icy conditions, nearly went over a few times.
6.2 kms in 31:15, avg 5.02 per km pace

Saturday
Not a chance of getting out today with the conditions so made do with the turbo.
53.81km in 1:47:00 resulting in an avg speed of 30km/h, cadence 91 and I kept the heart rate in zone 1 128. The route had 3 nice climbs in it, total climbing was around 700 mtrs.

I hope the weather clears up for my long run tomorrow as the 10k Heath race has been put off ideally want to get 15kms in.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 28-11-2010 1:59pm

Sunday
Took my run down to Oldbridge in the snowy conditions as running on paths was not an option. Enjoyed my running this morning, hip flexors were slightly tight for the first few km but quickly got into a comfortable pace.
17.16km in 1:32:22 resulting in 5.23km/8.40mile avg pace and heart rate at 154.
Some lovely views with the snow this morning (M1 bridge in the background)

Week 2 Summary
22-28 November|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|12|9:14|129.79km
Swimming|3|1:50|4.8
Cycling|3|2:47|88.9
Running|4|3:07|36.08
Conditioning|1|1:00|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|1|0:30|Swim coaching

Totals so far
15-28 November|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|23|17:20|267.29km
Swimming|5|2:45|7.1
Cycling|6|6:09|186.61
Running|9|6:11|73.58
Conditioning|2|1:45|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|1|0:30|Swim coaching

shotgunmcos · 29-11-2010 3:09pm

Good work going on. I see you are doing Waterford half too, best of luck!

Nice neat looking table format there by the way :P:)

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 30-11-2010 6:59pm

shotgunmcos wrote: »

Good work going on. I see you are doing Waterford half too, best of luck!

Nice neat looking table format there by the way :P:)

The old copy and paste worked a treat. I struggled trying to do one for a while and then remembered yours from the log. Are you also running the half?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 01-12-2010 12:07am

Monday
Swim
300 mtr warm up, 8 x 50 mtr f/crawl drills, 12 x 100 mtr (8 b/s and 4 f/c) and a 200 mtr cool down
Total distance: 2.1km in 49 minutes.

Tuesday
Run
Recovery run on the treadmill at lunchtime (hate treadmill running)
Total distance: 6.5km in 34 minutes, 5.40km/9.07mile pace and avg hr 127
Swim
1/2 hour lane session with instructor, much better than last weeks mess and focussed on f/c technique. Slowly but surely getting there.
Gym
45 minute weights session similiar to last week, not doing heavy weights as i don't want to risk injury. Had another assessment tonight as September was my last one, current weight is 157lbs/71kg and 9.7% BF (finally single digit figures:))
That is a total weight loss of around 39lbs/18kg since this time last year so i have lost the same weight as what my 4 year old son weighs:eek: Want to be around 68kg come IM race day.

Abhainn · 01-12-2010 1:38pm

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Had another assessment tonight as September was my last one, current weight is 157lbs/71kg and 9.7% BF (finally single digit figures:))
That is a total weight loss of around 39lbs/18kg since this time last year so i have lost the same weight as what my 4 year old son weighs:eek: Want to be around 68kg come IM race day.

That is some weight loss in 1 year.! Has anyone asked you if you've been sick yet?
I 'm sure your goal race weight will be met come race day. What IM event are you targeting?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 01-12-2010 5:07pm

Abhainn wrote: »

That is some weight loss in 1 year.! Has anyone asked you if you've been sick yet?
I 'm sure your goal race weight will be met come race day. What IM event are you targeting?

I have had a few comments alright from friends/family i have not seen for a while:). Registered for IM UK next July, looking forward to the challenge.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 01-12-2010 9:56pm

Wednesday

Planned for tonight was a brick session which ended up being a reverse brick session. Not a chance I could get out for a run tonight as my place is under a few inches of snow and cannot tell what i am running on.
I went to the gym with the intention of doing bike and then run but it was closing in half an hour so completed the run on the threadmill and then quickly back to the house and onto the turbo (about a 10 minute transition)

Run
Sort of an interval session, 4.5k in 20:25, 4.32km/7.18mile pace. I reckon 2 of the kms was close to 4.00km pace but hard to tell on the threadmill.
Bike
Completed part of the Ventoux course on the turbo, 26.3km in 41 mins whilst maintaining a cadence of 101. No hr as i left the monitor in work, starting to concentrate on cadence more on the bike rather than just heart rate in isolation.

Given the day in it happy to get this session in, even if a little backward!!

shotgunmcos · 02-12-2010 10:57am

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Completed part of the Ventoux course on the turbo, 26.3km in 41 mins whilst maintaining a cadence of 101.

:eek: 38.5kmh

I know you said last year you were out of shape and unfit etc.. but do you mind me asking what your real background is?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 02-12-2010 11:48am

shotgunmcos wrote: »

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Completed part of the Ventoux course on the turbo, 26.3km in 41 mins whilst maintaining a cadence of 101.

:eek: 38.5kmh

I know you said last year you were out of shape and unfit etc.. but do you mind me asking what your real background is?

I previously had a good fitness level in my early twenties and trained 4/5 times a week but generally it was gym/footie/gaa training. Only took up running properly in the last year and now progressing onto tri/IM events. Do not get carried away with the 38.5kmh as there was some descents in there which may skew the numbers slightly (avg gradient i think was -0.3%:) I am more likely to be hitting close to 30/31kmh in a real life/race scenario (dependant on course obv).
I always seem to be able to push it a bit more on the turbo that and the fact you do not have to contend with weather/road conditions etc. I use one of these and i find it well worth the money particularly keeping yourself entertained on a long ride.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 02-12-2010 11:54pm

Thursday
Swim
2.5km in 61 mins
Was not properly fueled for this session due to missing lunch in work and it showed as i felt weak throughout. Ordering my wetsuit tomorrow and will try it out next week in the pool doing f/crawl. A guy in the lane next to me was wearing one and he was zipping along.

Bike
Zone 1 - 45 min session
Got properly fueled for tonights turbo session. I kept the heart rate at an avg of 122 (roughly 63% of max hr) dipped into zone 2 for 5 minutes near the end when i changed from low to high gearing. I kept it on the aero bars for the full session and concentrated on maintaining even cadence in the 3rd lowest gear, session felt fairly easy tbh which i suppose it should be in zone 1:rolleyes:
avg watt -150, cadence - 95, avg speed - 29.7kmph, distance - 22.29km

shotgunmcos · 03-12-2010 11:15am

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

avg watt -150, cadence - 95, avg speed - 29.7kmph, distance - 22.29km

150watts = 29.7kmh

I'd normally need about 190 watts to hit that. What kind of turbo are you using?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 03-12-2010 4:45pm

shotgunmcos wrote: »

150watts = 29.7kmh

I'd normally need about 190 watts to hit that. What kind of turbo are you using?

Tacx Fortius Multiplayer, link above in an earlier post. Will post the output graph later.

Abhainn · 03-12-2010 9:31pm

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

I have had a few comments alright from friends/family i have not seen for a while:). Registered for IM UK next July, looking forward to the challenge.

Hope to see you there then:)

shotgunmcos wrote: »

150watts = 29.7kmh

I'd normally need about 190 watts to hit that. What kind of turbo are you using?

I've only been on my TACX 1680 4 times now but I reckon I have to reach 30.5kph to reach 200watts which would be similar to the above.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 03-12-2010 10:52pm

Abhainn wrote: »

Hope to see you there then:)

I've only been on my TACX 1680 4 times now but I reckon I have to reach 30.5kph to reach 200watts which would be similar to the above.

Cool see you there then.

On the turbos with different makes you are always going to get different readings. Factor in someone pushing a big gear with low cadence versus someone in a lower gear with a higher cadence you could experience a difference in wattage but i have no idea. Perhaps the five minutes pushing the big gear and maintaining around 240/270 watts may have distorted the averages over the 45 minutes.
Here is the output from last nights session.

Friday
After a tough week in work and the gym closing early i could have easily skipped tonights 1hr z2 run, glad i chose not to. It was a very slow 10.44km in 1:01:06 which is a paltry 5.51km pace but have to say running in the snow gives you a good workout.
Plans for tomorrow is a long bike on the turbo, going to try and get the gps mapped across onto the turbo and ride a lap of the IMUK bike route. Long run planned for Sunday and then recovery week next week.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 04-12-2010 2:28pm

Saturday
After a few trys i managed to create the UKIM bike route on the Turbo, well the outleg and first lap of it. Felt good throughout although it was hard work to keep the heart rate in check on the 7km climb which must be Sheep Lane. The few kms after Sheep Lane seem perfect for recovery and getting the speed up so thats good to know.

Now i know what i am doing with creating my own GPS routes i am going to get some climbs downloaded so feel free to hit me with some suggestions. For now i think i will download the Shay Elliot & Slieve Mann climbs in Wicklow for some hill training next week.

Summary: 2 hours, 64.45km, 32.2km/h, 140 hr, cadence 95, watt 193 with about 600 mtr of climbing.

shotgunmcos · 04-12-2010 11:51pm

Abhainn wrote: »

I've only been on my TACX 1680 4 times now but I reckon I have to reach 30.5kph to reach 200watts which would be similar to the above.

Sounds about right

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Now i know what i am doing with creating my own GPS routes i am going to get some climbs downloaded so feel free to hit me with some suggestions. For now i think i will download the Shay Elliot & Slieve Mann climbs in Wicklow for some hill training next week.

Does the turbo then change the gradient(brake) automatically for you to simulate the climb? Do you have a visual of it then on the computer/tv screen?

Just wondering how I could do manual simulations of climbs?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 05-12-2010 12:23am

shotgunmcos wrote: »

Sounds about right

Does the turbo then change the gradient(brake) automatically for you to simulate the climb? Do you have a visual of it then on the computer/tv screen?

Just wondering how I could do manual simulations of climbs?

Yes it simulates the climb automatically dependant on the gradient via the brake and it feels very accurate. I have it hooked up through the laptop to the TV and it really kills the boredom on the long sessions. It is probably the nearest you will get to simulating outdoor cycling as there are a number of real life videos you can ride along with making up your own routes.
Not sure how you can manually simulate climbs on your model, does it have any resistance settings?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 05-12-2010 10:56pm

Sunday
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/58887726
I had planned a 2 hour LSR at Z2HR which turned out to be 1:51 due to a mis calculation on my route:rolleyes: Felt relaxed throughout and enjoyed it apart from dodging a silly cow in her car on the mobile paying no attention around the 5km mark, ending up with me having to jump/fall into a ditch. I covered off 21.1km with an average heart rate of 154. Only the last .5km felt tough which was uphill and underfoot conditions were dangerous.

Week 3 Summary
29- 05 December|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|11|10:17|160.1km
Swimming|2|1:50|4.6km
Cycling|3|3:26|113km
Running|4|3:47|42.5km
Conditioning|1|0:45|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|1|0:30|Swim coaching

Totals so far
15 Nov-05 Dec|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|34|27:37|427.4km
Swimming|7|4:35|11.7km
Cycling|9|9:35|299.6km
Running|13|9:58|116.1km
Conditioning|3|2:30|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|2|1:00|Swim coaching

shotgunmcos · 06-12-2010 12:05pm

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Yes it simulates the climb automatically dependant on the gradient via the brake and it feels very accurate. I have it hooked up through the laptop to the TV and it really kills the boredom on the long sessions. It is probably the nearest you will get to simulating outdoor cycling as there are a number of real life videos you can ride along with making up your own routes.
Not sure how you can manually simulate climbs on your model, does it have any resistance settings?

Cool thats one way to get through sessions. Mine has some slope settings too but other tan sticking it on a particular setting and doing a rep like a gym bike, I see no simulation application to it

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 06-12-2010 12:21pm

shotgunmcos wrote: »

Cool thats one way to get through sessions. Mine has some slope settings too but other tan sticking it on a particular setting and doing a rep like a gym bike, I see no simulation application to it

You know what to ask Santa for now:D

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 08-12-2010 3:54pm

Into recovery week after block 1 of base training,

Monday
Rest day

Tuesday
30 min Z1 Recovery Run
5.9km in 30 minutes on the dreadmill conditions are improving again so hopefully this is the last run indoors.
30 min swim coaching
Fully focussed on front crawl for the half hour and it's starting to click. I have the bilateral breathing almost perfected the big issue i had i was not breathing out under the water and when coming up for a breath the inhale was too shallow and not filling the lungs enough. Body position is still not perfect with the hips being low but we will sort that out soon enough.
No more b/stroke just got to get on with it my sessions doing f/crawl and stop fannying about.

Wednesday
Lunchtime
Received my wetsuit in the post so thought i would try it out in the pool all i can say is it feels like cheating. Bumped into two guys at the pool and got chatting, they completed France IM earlier in the year and are planning to do South Africa next. They asked me to join the session and i went along with it even though the guys are well ahead of me in terms of swimming ability. We have planned to meet up to do some more sessions over the next few weeks which is good, training in numbers helps to boost performance if you are with like minded people.
We went out and done a 200 mtrs warm up followed by 6x100s a 200 straight followed by another 6x100 and 5x50 bursts with a 200 cool down at the end.
Total distance covered 2.1km in 47 mins.....bloody wrecked after it but feel great as i can sense making real progress on the swim side of things.

Tonight will be a brick session, 30 min bike and straight into a 15 min run.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 09-12-2010 12:54am

Wednesday PM
Brick session planned for tonight. I was not in the mood for this session as i did not get started until after 10pm due to Santa shopping for the kids.:rolleyes:
Bike: 30 mins
Added some climbs into the session tonight but it was laboured throughout and did not feel great on the bike. 13.3km covered and stats below.

Run: 15 mins
Quick transition off the bike, put 3 layers on along with a hi-vis jacket.
This went slightly better 3.4km in 15:25 which equates to 4.32km pace. I checked the outside temperature when i got back in as it felt cold out there....-10 degrees brrrrr.

griffin100 · 09-12-2010 2:45pm

After a few trys i managed to create the UKIM bike route on the Turbo, well the outleg and first lap of it. Felt good throughout although it was hard work to keep the heart rate in check on the 7km climb which must be Sheep Lane. The few kms after Sheep Lane seem perfect for recovery and getting the speed up so thats good to know.

The hard part of Sheep lane starts about 2km into the drag. Dont be fooled by the descent of Sheep Lane though, its not that long, is on a poor enough surface and ends with a 90 degree left hander (or it did last year due to road works) into a steep hill (wrong gear here equals thrown chain). Having done this race this year IMHO the course elevation doesn't show just how tough all the little drags on the laps are. Apart from 3 longish downhill sections the rest of the course is a mix of short sharp hills and long drags. It really takes a lot out of you (or it did to me anyways). I had done 180km in training on an undulating course is just over 6hrs; IMUK took me 7.24hrs. As soon as the weather gets better you need to get your ass up some hills:) (there is a slight chance I will be going back again in 2011, if so my bike training will consist mostly of hill repeats of Mount Leinster;)).

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 09-12-2010 6:56pm

griffin100 wrote: »

The hard part of Sheep lane starts about 2km into the drag. Dont be fooled by the descent of Sheep Lane though, its not that long, is on a poor enough surface and ends with a 90 degree left hander (or it did last year due to road works) into a steep hill (wrong gear here equals thrown chain). Having done this race this year IMHO the course elevation doesn't show just how tough all the little drags on the laps are. Apart from 3 longish downhill sections the rest of the course is a mix of short sharp hills and long drags. It really takes a lot out of you (or it did to me anyways). I had done 180km in training on an undulating course is just over 6hrs; IMUK took me 7.24hrs. As soon as the weather gets better you need to get your ass up some hills:) (there is a slight chance I will be going back again in 2011, if so my bike training will consist mostly of hill repeats of Mount Leinster;)).

Thanks for the heads up Griffin how did you find the swim/run around the route. Where did you stay?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 09-12-2010 11:13pm

Thursday
Gym session - 1 hour lunchtime
Gym was fairly quite today so no waiting around
5 minute warm up on bike
Leg Curl - 45x15x2
Leg Extension - 45x15x2
Leg Press - 100x15, 110x15
Bench Press - 50x8, 55x8
Hyperextension - 10kg weight/15x2
Situps 30x3
20 minute core work, really starting to focus on working the LPHC area
10 minute stretch and cool down

Bike - 40 minute zone 2
On the turbo again this evening, really cannnot wait to get out for a proper cycle once the weather changes. Decent enough effort tonight and i included a nice 5.8km 245mtr climb just to make it a bit more challenging.
Distance: 19.74km
Avg speed: 29.5kmph
Cadence: 96
Power: 221 watt
Avg HR: 136

griffin100 · 10-12-2010 1:40pm

Thanks for the heads up Griffin how did you find the swim/run around the route. Where did you stay?

The swim was in a murky lake full of duck crap and algae with zero visibility:D That said the water was lovely and warm and there was loads of room with a well marked out course. You are allowed to do a practise swim on the Friday and Saturday mornings which I'd reccomend.

The run is not too bad. If its the same route as 2010 then the first bit out of transition is uphill and offroad followed by a flat bit to the start of the 3 'lap' bit. There are 2-3 biggish hills into / out off Bolton but they're not too bad. Its probably hillier then Dublin but flatter than Conn. Biggest issue on run (and bike) is the complete absence of distance markers on the course and salty foods at the aid stations.

I stayed in the Holiday Inn in Bolton. Its only a 2 minute walk from the finish line. The big problem with IMUK is that everything is in a different location: T1 / T2 / Finish / Registration / Race Briefing. A car with a sat nav is a must. On the day there are buses from the Reebock stadium car park to the start and from the finish back to the stadium again. I didn't use the buses and instead got a taxi to the start (about £15), walked back to the hotel at the finish and then drove back to get my bike from T2 - you have to have your bike removed by midnight apparently.

Hope this helps.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 11-12-2010 11:44pm

Friday
Run - 45 minute
Out at lunchtime for a decent run with plenty of hills and a small bit of cross country. A few of the kms were under 4.15 which is fast for me.
Distance: 9.1km
Time: 44.45
Pace: 4.55km/7.54mile

Swim - 60 minutes
Feeling a bit more confident about my f/crawl from my earlier session in the week and this session helped the confidence further, really feel that the technique is getting there. I am not going to follow the don fink swimming plan until i get the endurance up so plan on building up the distance on each set week on week.
5x200@20 sec rest, 1x400@30 sec rest, 5x200@20 sec rest
Distance: 2.4km
Time: unsure forget to start stopwatch around 51/52 mins

Saturday
Bike long ride- 90 minute zone 2
Nothing like spending your Saturday evening on the turbo....not!! I normally like to get my long runs and bike done early at the weekends but given the fact i was at a XMAS party last night the usual am spin was out the window. Decent effort and worked up a good sweat.
Distance: 58.9km
Avg speed: 39.2kmph
Cadence: 98
Power: 220 watt
Avg HR: 133

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 12-12-2010 10:29pm

Sunday
Run - 90 minute LSR
Suffering with a touch of man flu:o so took it easy enough out there today. I found the last few km a bit of a struggle which was strange as the pace was easy.
Distance: 17.2km
Time: 92 mins
Pace: 5.21km/8.37mile
HR: 149

Week 4 Summary
06 - 12 December|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|11|8:51|132km
Swimming|2|1:39|4.5km
Cycling|3|2:40|91.9km
Running|4|3:02|35.6km
Conditioning|1|1:00|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|1|0:30|Swim coaching

Totals so far
15 Nov-12 Dec|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|45|36:29|559.4km
Swimming|9|6:14|16.2km
Cycling|9|12:15|391.5km
Running|17|13:00|151.7km
Conditioning|4|3:30|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|3|1:30|Swim coaching

Into block two of the build phase next week.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 16-12-2010 1:13am

Awful start to the week, funeral, man flu and the busiest week of the year in work means this is going to be a very tough week without missing a session:(
Monday
Swim - Planned 60 minutes
I had planned a 60 minute session which i binned half way through due to a combination of my head not being in it and generally just felling like ****. My stroke was terrible and i was generally just so so slow.
6x200@20 sec rest
Distance: 1.2km
Time: 31 mins

Tuesday
Run - 45 minute
Out on Tuesday evening as i had a funeral to attend for most of the day. Felt good to get out and really enjoyed the run as it cleared the head. It was a planned recovery run but it was a slightly quicker pace than expected.
Distance: 10.2km
Time: 45.30
Pace: 4.27km/7.10mile
HR: 155

Wednesday
I had planned to do the swim early morning or at lunchtime but not to be with work so changed it around to a full swim/bike/run brick session. I got home from work around 8pm just in time for kiddies bedtime, got the turbo setup and then my swim/cycle/run gear ready heading off for the gym at 9pm.
Swim
Swim was miles apart from the Monday session. I increased to sets of 250 and in fact completed 500 straight. I think this is the fastest i have gone so far for my f/c sessions so pretty happy with that. Had my cycle gear with me and the gym is around the corner so a quick enough transition of 15 minutes considering changing and driving back to the house.
4x250@20 sec rest
1x500@60 sec rest
4x250@20 sec rest
Distance: 2.5km
Time: 55 mins
Transition time: about 15 minutes
Bike
HR was fairly high but probably explained from the HR still being above 100 after the swim. Split the session into 5 minute flat/5 minute slight gradient x 3. A quick dry down and change of clothes in a 3 minute transition to run.
Distance: 17.2km
Avg speed: 34.1kmph
Cadence: 98
Power: 219 watt
Avg HR: 148

Run
HR finally settled down even though my pace was quick enough
Distance: 3.6km
Time: 15.25
Pace: 4.20km/6.58mile
HR: 152

20 minute stretching after

I will sleep like a baby tonight!!

shotgunmcos · 16-12-2010 1:51pm

Aliya Wailing Bench wrote: »

Tuesday
Run - 45 minute
Pace: 4.27km/7.10mile
HR: 155

Wednesday
got the turbo setup and then my swim/cycle/run gear ready heading off for the gym at 9pm.
I will sleep like a baby tonight!!

I say you did, that was a tough workout last night so late. Your run paces for T runs are very good. Whats your LSR pace generally?

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 17-12-2010 11:49am

Thursday
Due to time constraints again i combined my gym workout and bike session (hate gym bikes).
Gym - 75 minutes
5 minute warm up/stretches
Leg Curl - 45x15, 50x15
Leg Extension - 45x15, 50x15
Leg Press - 110x15, 120x15
Bench Press - 50x8, 55x8, 60x8
Hyperextension - 10kg weight/15x2
Situps 30x3
30 minute core work, abs are killing me this morning...probably focussed on them too much last night.

Bike - 45 minutes Zone 1
Could not face showering/changing and then going home to do the turbo so decided to do this in the gym.
Distance: 27.4km
Avg HR: 129

10 minute cool down and stretch followed by steam/sauna.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 17-12-2010 11:54am

shotgunmcos wrote: »

I say you did, that was a tough workout last night so late. Your run paces for T runs are very good. Whats your LSR pace generally?

LSR pace is generally around 4.50-5.20 km depending on how i feel. It normally works out around 40/50 secs per km slower on the LSR's.
Yes that session was tough particularly after a long gruelling day in work, has to be done though!!

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 20-12-2010 12:18am

Friday
Swim - Planned 60 minutes
8x300@20 sec rest and 1x500
Distance: 2.9km
Time: 64 mins

Run - Planned 60 minutes
Headed out before a Xmas party and it was brass monkeys out there even with 4 layers on!! I had a couple of close calls on the ice but thankfully stayed upright.
Distance: 11.8km
Time: 58:14
Pace: 4.55km/7.54mile
HR: 151

Saturday
Run - Planned 105 minutes
Woke up so hungover and did not get out until around 2.30pm for the run. I really struggled for the first few kms and the HR was unusually high for the effort but thankfully i ran the hangover off and continued with the run. Took in a few snow trails and got home just before it got dark. I was that tired after this and coupled with last nights boozy session i had to have a nap when i got home:)
Distance: 19km
Time: 1:41:11
Pace: 5:19km/8.34mile
HR: 157
Summary

Sunday
Bike - Planned 105 minutes
Back to back Xmas parties is never a good idea let alone trying to get your BT sessions done. Loaded up the UKIM route again and wanted to beat the 2hr time i posted 2 weeks ago, ended up taking nearly 8 minutes off the last time.
Distance: 64.4km
Avg speed: 34.3kmph
Cadence: 99
Power: 223 watt
Avg HR: 149

****ty food selection and the boozy nights will be knocked on the head straight after Xmas.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 20-12-2010 12:17pm

Week 5 Summary
13 - 19December|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|11|10:39|160.2km
Swimming|3|2:30|6.6km
Cycling|3|3:15|109km
Running|4|3:39|44.6km
Conditioning|1|1:15|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|0|0:00|Swim coaching

Totals so far
15 Nov-19 Dec|# sessions|Time hh:mm|Distance kms
Total|56|47:09|719.6km
Swimming|12|8:44|22.8km
Cycling|12|15:30|500.5km
Running|21|16:40|196.3km
Conditioning|5|4:45|Strengthening Work - Gym
Other|3|1:30|Swim coaching

Given the week i had pretty chuffed to get all the sessions in. Legs very stiff this morning but swim planned for today.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 21-12-2010 10:24am

Monday
Swim - planned 60 minutes
Planned a straight session of 2k but allowing myself a few lengths of b/s recovery in between as i would struggle with endurance to complete the full distance doing f/c. In the 80 lengths of the pool about 65-70 were done f/c and the rest b/s so extremely happy with that although technique was off coming towards the end of the 2k. If someone told me that i would swim 2k straight mostly f/c a few weeks ago i would have laughed at them so i am pleased with the progress i am making. Whilst the time is not great it's all about the endurance for now but i would like to get under the 40 minute mark for this distance. When i started training for IM the swim was the biggest concern, could i get around without drowning? Now i am asking myself how quick can i get around:)
Distance: 2km
Time: 1k split: 23:25, 2k split 22:49 (Went off too easy on first 1k), 46:14

Chasing the Kona dream and a Mai Tai cocktail

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