Week 9: Running is suprisingly simple.

Haven’t updated because there hasn’t been much to update. I’ve been running. Putting one foot in front of the other in rapid succession. Pretty darn simple. The only tough part is doing it everyday.
My first long run after I did my ultra was horrible. I barely could run 3 hours, but after a few more days of rest, my body began to snap back and the next week I punched out a solid 26 miles.

Last week I ran 28 miles with 2200 feet of elevation in 5 hours, which I’m proud of. That effort is a sign of progress, but I still have a long way to go. I NEED to get more elevation into my runs. Elevation will be my death knell in the 100 miler. I will get close to 10,000 feet of elevation during that race. Which is A LOT (for me).

Tomorrow I have a seven-hour long run. Hopefully I can break 40 miles again. Don’t worry I have some audio books and friends to keep me entertained.

Thanks for tuning in, I’ll hit you back up over the holidays.

Week 6: 42 Miles IN DA BANK

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*This blog post was not edited by Val. She’s been killing it on the school front and didn’t need to be distracted by this stupidness. Love you dear.

GATHER ROUND ye unwashed masses and listen to my tall yarn of skinned knees, dehydration, starvation, bruised toes, and glory!
The race kicked off at 6am sharp in the dark. There was very little talking. Everyone was focused on the keeping their heart rates low and retying their shoe laces. It was very zen.

Week 5: Race Week

Last week I had the best long run of this training block. It was also the coolest day of this entire training block, which undoubtedly had something to do with it. I felt good. I didn’t walk until after mile 17 which was a first, and I was able to push until mile 24.5. It was encouraging to see some progress. 

So this week, I just need to double that distance. I’m running 42 miles this weekend at the Austin Rattler Ultramarathon race. 

Week 4: The best flavor of popsicle

Hey look, I ran again. Wow. Revolutionary, if you ask me. Which no one did. Want to know what else no one asked me? What’s the best popsicle flavor.
Answer: It’s orange and grape. Because their flavors are the most satisfying for the longest amount of time. Red and Blue tie for mediocrity in second place, with any of the green flavors being the absolute worst. Search your heart. You know this all to be true. I’ve been eating a popsicle after a run while I cool off for months.

Week 3 & 4: 19 x 2 = PAIN

I’m three weeks in and I’m already combining weeks. That’s a bad sign. My brain has been wrapped up in writing the last few chapters of my newest novel. (More info at the end.)

Best post run meal: A toasted ham and cheese with a mug of milk.

But let’s get down to the miles and smiles.

Week 2. My big run consisted of 19 miles. I did my normal 6 mile loop and felt pretty well, until mile 17. Then I started to feel it. On my third and final loop I had switched to only eating Cliff blocks (Basically large gummy blocks stuffed with nutrition). Those were NOT enough. The last two miles HURT. Which is also expected because, ya know, that’s a freakin long way.

Week 1 of 20: Running a 100-mile Ultramarathon

“If you’re not going to write 2,000 words a day, might as well run your brains out.” Said someone who is definitely not me.

I signed up for a 100-mile ultramarathon and a 66k (42 miles) race. This can’t be a bad idea, right? Not any worse than any of my other ideas.

The funny thing is…I don’t actually like running. It’s boring. I don’t float like a bee, I stomp along like a manatee who grew legs to enact revenge on boats. But I know I can put in the time. As long as I work equally as hard to stay healthy, i.e foam rolling, stretching, I’ll be fine.

Despite my proclivity to stomping like I’m a peasant at a winery, I’m excited about the challenge. Earlier this year I biked 1,000 miles in one month. This is a lot like that, but instead, I’ll just run my brains out. Maybe by the end of it, I’ll actually like running.

Week 20: Race Day

Pre-race: I felt good. I had a healthy amount of sleep and felt light and springy as I got ready for the race. Racing alongside my girlfriend (who I met at my first Ironman), my brother, his wife and plenty of great friends lifted my spirits. The morning promised fair weather and it felt like it was going to be a great race day.  We wished each other good luck and then dove into the water.

The swim (2.4 miles): I started the swim strong and not too fast. I didn’t let my nerves and adrenaline dictate my pace, but kept it within my limits. The swim seemed the longest of all the disciplines. I kept stopping and looking over my shoulder to see how far I had come and how far I needed to go. It seemed to drag on forever, but eventually I finished and reached shore. I finished in a good time (1:09:04 a PR) and my legs were steady as I exited the water and made my way through transition 1. I snatched my bike gear bag, put on my helmet, stopped by the sunscreen station before hopping on my bike.

The bike (112 miles):  I got on the course and settled into a firm pace. The temperature rose quickly and every time I went through an aid station I grabbed a cold water bottle and sprayed it all over myself. I started off drinking only Gatorade, but when this started to make me feel queasy I switched to water and immediately felt better. This almost killed my race. At mile 70 I pulled off to the side of the road and vomited. Everything came up murky brown.

Thankfully a medic came by in that instant and helped me out. He gave me some salt and that got me going instantly. My legs stopped shaking and my stomach began to settle. I jumped back on the bike. The dip in my salt levels cost me quite a bit of time. I finished the bike strong, rushed through transition 2 and got onto the run as quickly as I could.

The run (26.2): Right out of the transition tent I heard the cheers of my friends and family. It spurred me on for the first mile as I tried to hit my goal pace of 8:30. That goal faded before the second mile. I had spent too much energy on the bike to sustain it. The run was a mix of short spurts of running and longer and longer spans of walking. I vomited again on the run, but eventually I did cross the finish line. My older brother waited a few minutes for me and we crossed the finish line together. That ending made a sucky day worth it.

I didn’t hit my dream time of 10:30:00, but ended up finishing in 12:37:15. I did finish before the sun went down this time and that is a pretty big win.

It was a tough race. The combination of the dry heat and intense, unrelenting sun cost me a lot. I left everything out there and I am proud of my race.

Thanks for everyone who went on this journey with me. I appreciate you all. A big congratulations to everyone else who raced. You are a part of the tri-fam now.

Crossing the line with my older brother Justin

The statistics: Here are the numbers for my chip time as well as all the hours I spent training for this race. It was quite the journey…

Official race time: 12:37:35
Swim time: 1:09:04
Bike time: 5:56:26
Run time: 5:24:14

Total hours and miles spent training for Ironman Boulder 2018. 

Total swim: 66.7 miles
Total bike: 1,571.85 miles
Total run: 373.47

HOURS TOTAL: 222:23:38

What motivated me this week

Racing with these special people was super awesome. (I started with a larger group, but due to the course we got separated and I rarely saw anyone else besides Valerie and Justin). These two have pushed me harder than anyone else this year.

 

 

Week 19: Taper week

This week was fairly light. As I have said numerous times, training for a triathlon is not like studying for a test. Instead of ramping up your training like you would before an exam (or in this case a race) you taper, lighten up on your training, so that you are fresh and ready for the big day.

The big day is SO CLOSE!

The statistics: As I said above, this was purposefully light so my body can be ready for race day.

Total hours: 9:30:00
Total run: 15.3 miles
Total bike: 4:60:00 hours
Total swim: 4.65 miles

What motivated me this week:

Next week is race day AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Week 18: Screaming helps

This was the last “muscle building” week. Unfortunately, triathlon is not like school where you can cram a semesters worth of Shakespeare knowledge right before a final exam. In long distance triathlon you have to tone down your workouts well in advance so your body is ready for the big day.

This week was not tough physically, but the mental strain of the past month carried over. Screaming helps. As the saying goes, “When the going gets tough, the tough get yelling.” You’ve got to alternate between a roar and cuss words. Trust me, if you’re not using language that would make the prim old ladies on the front pew of a Baptist church blush then you aren’t working hard enough. 

The key to screaming is imagining it sounding cooler than it is. You’ve got to picture yourself as Rambo or Captain America or a Jedi using the force. It’s bigger than you are,  primal, and older than time itself. You’re not saving the day, but you’re struggling against an evil giant that must be beaten…yourself. 

The statistics: This was fairly light. There was a good workout day on Saturday, but for the most part all of the muscle building is over and now it is time to taper.

Total hours: 10
Total run: 18 miles
Total bike: 5:66:00 hours
Total swim: 3.48 miles

What motivated me this week:

Valerie and I ordered a pizza by phone from a new restaurant and we had no idea it was the size of the table!! And yes, pizza as good as this is motivating.

 

Week 16 & 17: Mind/Body Negotiations

These past two weeks were the worst. It felt like I had to negotiate every step of every workout with my body. Here’s what a common mind/body negotiation looks like.

Body: I want to quit now. 

Me: Me too. This sucks and I’m not doing very well either. How about we shave a few laps off today?

Body: That sounds great. I love being lazy. How about we be lazy now??

Me: Yeah that sounds good.

And then I would quit the workout, but I have found a small trick to winning the negotiating. The key is to stay positive about what you are doing in the moment. You have to tell yourself that you are doing good. Not because your pace is great or because it feels good, but just because you are out there doing it. You are out there persevering.

This is how the negotiations should go:

Body: I want to quit now. 

Me: Me too, but I’m doing good right now. It feels good to be doing good. 

Body: Being lazy feels better…

Me: I know and I can be lazy after these thirty minutes are up. 

Body: I hate you. 

Call me crazy, but that conversation happened every single workout these past two weeks. Most times I kept it positive and kept going, but sometimes I failed and let my body win. It’s best not to keep score and to keep on keeping on.

The statistics: These two weeks were absolutely brutal. I feel entirely spent, both physically and mentally. I’m so ready to start tapering for the race.

Total hours: 27
Total run: 33.68 miles
Total bike: 18:38:00 hours
Total swim: 8.64 miles

What motivated me this week: I was on the bike trainer for 6 hours last weekend. Even with a laptop in front of me, it gets pretty boring. These inspirational videos helped alleviate some of that boredom. “Whatever you do don’t walk” That’s what I’m going to be telling myself on raceday!