I'm Back From Puerto Rico - Part 1

I'm back from Puerto Rico.

This was a strange trip for me. It was mandatory for a couple of reasons that are irrelevant to this blog, but I had some enjoyment down there while I was away from the frigid Northeast.

I'll try to highlight my training while I was down there. I know that there is going to be a whole week's worth of training to catch up on this blog, so bear with me on this.

I was placed in the Hyatt Hacienda Del Mar, located to the west of Dorado, which is 45 minutes west of San Juan. The hotel is located in the middle of "Golf Course Central", accessed by a very narrow road with no shoulder. The hotel has a 2 mile scenic trail which was a paved road that intersected two of the golf courses on the way to the Dorado Public Beach. The hotel also had a 25 meter outdoor pool.
My first run that first day when I arrived was a 4 mile experimental run on the road accessing the hotel. I now call it the "Deathwish Run". It seems like there are more crazy drivers in Puerto Rico than there are in the United States. I almost got sideswiped THREE TIMES while I was running on the road. So the road was definitely out the rest of the week.

I was limited to the Scenic Trail the remainder of the week. It is a nice trail, with very few cars, some small hills in either direction, and was ideal for a week of running. Granted, I would have loved to do different sections of Puerto Rico, but my schedule and the remoteness of the hotel limited me.

The pool was nice. They needed no lifeguard, which meant that we swam at our own risk. Good, at least there are some people in this country that accept personal responsibility; I'm not limited to swim when I want. In New York, you cannot even swim in the beach without a lifeguard without being fined by the authorities.

So Saturday was the 4 mile death run. I'll continue with the rest of the week in the next thread.

191 Days to VT Ultra - Finishing the Week's Bike and Swim

Friday January 8, 2010:

I would only recommend this week's training to the most experienced enduarnce athletes. To everyone else, no way.

I managed to cram 100 miles of cycling on the Computrainer, 7000 meters of swimming and 16 miles of running into 5 days. Now this would be normal during the triathlon season, but during the offseason? Again, no way.

But I do have to pat myself on the back here! I mean, it really seems that I am starting to see some of the benefits of constant training again, and it's a great feeling! The running is coming more naturally, the spinning on the bike a little easier, and the swimming stroke looser and a bit faster.

Today, I finished the week of swimming with an easy 1500 meters of swimming. Where I was once very tight, my shoulders feel as loose as when I was in my 20s. I look forward to go to the pool every time now because of that alone.

The run today was only 4 miles on the treadmill, but I really didn't mind it at all. The running motion was a natural as ever. Now hopefully I can see the pace get naturally faster in the near future.

The bike, a huge 30 miles on 1) Prospect Park Course, and 2) the Columbia Maryland Course. I felt pretty strong and loose and never lost ground during the workout.

Despite the heavy week I feel quite well compared to last week. I went low intensity on many of the workouts, and it did wonders. I feel the effort and the increased volume on my body, but I am not worn down like last week.

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TRAVEL TO PUERTO RICO
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I fly out early to Puerto Rico tomorrow. Despite the fact that only 16 miles of running was involved this week, I will definitely make up for it next week as it is probably the only discipline I'll be working on starting tomorrow. I'm not sure if I will have web access, but I will try to keep this blog rolling next week.

Once I land in PR, I'll do a 4 mile run in the PM, followed possibly by a 15 mile run Sunday in the AM. This should put my run mileage for the week at a respectable 35 miles. That would give me quite a successful week of training and lays the foundation for a great week of running next week.

192 Days to VT 100 Ultra - How to burn 3000 calories effectively

Thursday January 7, 2010:

So, what did I do today? Actually, what didn't I do today? This is one of those days that I try to tell people to avoid unless there were special circumstances. Well, this whole week is a special circumstance that validates doing 3 workouts in one day.

I'll only briefly summarize each workout toady to keep this blog short.

First up was the swim. Totalling 3100 meters, this was mostly a low intensity affair with paddles and fins. The only timed set to note here was the 100 meter sprint in the end, going 1:12 in the set. Not a bad time.

Secondly was the run on the treadmill. It was only 4 easy miles at a 10 minute mile pace.

Third was the bike on the Computrainer, doing a hilly 8 mile course 2.5 times for a total of 20 miles in length. I only averaged about 14 MPH for the whole thing.

On top of that, I needed to work with my father today involving lifting heavy things for 3 hours in the afternoon. Of all the physical exertions I did today, the heavy lifting part was probably the most intense.

The reason why I'm doing 3 per day is because of the trip to Puerto Rico. I will not bring my bike down there, and I'm not sure if there is the availability of lap swimming down there, so I need to complete a week's worth of swimming and cycling by tomorrow evening.

In Puerto Rico, I will probably only be available to run, so I will definitely pick up the mileage next week.

Lastly, the week's totals... 5500 meters of swimming, 70 miles of cycling, and 12 miles of running. Don't worry about the running; it'll definitely pick up next week. :-)

193 Days to VT 100 Ultra - Zone 2 - 30 Mile Bike on Computrainer

Wednesday January 6, 2010:

Yesterday's bike workout was easy. So I saved a lot of energy. What did I save it for? Today's bike workout! This one is the toughest for this week, a 30 mile Zone 2 workout on the Computrainer. The course is the first 30 miles of Ironman Canada.

Just to fill you in on the zones I use, a lot of people use 5 zones for training. They can either be heart rate zones or subjective zones. I do use my heart rate monitor occasionally, I'm such an old dog at this training thing that I can easily judge what zone I'm in subjectively.

Zone 1 is very easy, low intensity workout. Not much effort at all.

Zone 2 is intense aerobic. The athlete can go long distances in this zone, but with significant effort. A workout here will need a small rest period to recover from a workout.

Zone 3 is what I call "red line" training. The athlete here is at the cusp of going anaerobic, and does so periodically from time to time. This type of workout requires a significant amount of rest to recover from.

Zone 4 is anaerobic or VO2 Max training. These are shorter in duration, possibly interval based, that challenges body and mind to tolerate the lactate "burn" in the muscles. Good for those who excel at shorter triathlons up to the half-Ironman.

Zone 5 is maximal effort or sprint. I seldom use this in running and cycling, and only occasionally use this in swimming.

The workout today is Zone 2, and is pretty long (30 miles), so I expended a lot of energy here. Since I am well rested because of yesterday's easy workout, I had the energy to do very well here. Try 192 Watts over the entire course. Nice.

Here are the criticals for this workout:

30 Mile Bike Ride on the Computrainer - Course: First 30 miles of Ironman Canada. Total Times was 1:38:48, or 18.2 MPH. 192 Watts total.

Totals for this week so far: 2400 meters of swimming, 50 miles of cycling, and 8 miles of running.

193 Days to VT 100 Ultra - Specialty Swimming

Wednesday January 6, 2010:

When I was a swimmer in high school, the 2 most favorite events were the 500 meter freestyle (and longer, if available), and the Individual Medley (IM). For those who do normally see swimming meets, this is an Olympic event that combines the 4 main strokes, butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle into one event, in that order.

Although all of my competitive swims are now freestyle (do you really think I will use the butterfly for 2.4 miles in the Ironman?), I frequently revisit the other 3 strokes in my training just to keep myself sharp on those strokes. Just in case I get the urge to attend a swim meet again.

This particular workout is all specialty strokes. After the 500 meter warmup I do several 100 meter IMs, then do some kicking drills for all strokes, then finish up with a more challenging 200 meter IM.

Times were very good for the 100 meter IMs (on 2:20); 1:33, 1:33, 1:33, 1:32, and 1:31. Negative splitting is key here. Second are the kicking drills. These consisted of 12x100m untimed intervals with fins and the kicking board, doing each of the 4 strokes 3 times. It is designed to strengthen and perfect the kicking stroke by channeling power from the core muscles.

After working on the kicks I then do the more challenging 200m IM. Every stroke was strong throughout the interval and finished 3:04, nearly the same pace as with the 100m IMs. Excellent!

In all, 2400 meters of swimming total for today.

194 Days to VT 100 Ultra - Just an Easy Ride - 20 Miles

Tuesday January 5, 2010:

Well, with the bulk of this week's load coming up, it's time to put the low intensity and easy workouts to the test. First up, the bike on the Computrainer.

For those of you are are inflicted with the "I need to go faster than this" training syndrome and end up pushing your low intensity workouts harder than they should, you need to discipline yourself and just "let go". Forget pacing, forget time, and just let the legs spin like they normally spin and not force the issue. Yes, your workout will be longer in duration, but in the end, if you do it properly, you should finish your workout energetic and not the least bit tired.

And that is what I did here. My Zone 2 workout's (intense aerobic pace) power output on the Computrainer is about 190 Watts. Today, the power output for 20 miles of simulated riding is only 148. Not the least bit tired. And ready for tomorrow's more challenging workouts.

The criticals on the bike ride: Computrainer, first 20 miles of the IMNZ course. Total Time is 1:09:49, Average MPH is 172 MPH, 148 Watts total output.

194 Days to VT 100 Ultra - 8 miles of running, 19 degrees. Brrr

Tuesday January 5, 2010:

Brrrr!

So today I spent the morning taking most of my winter gear out of my dresser and closet and trying to get the exact combination that was needed to run outside in these elements, and I settled for the following. 3 layers on top, 2 layers on thebottom. The 3 layers on top consisted of a thinsulate long sleeve shirt, followed by an Easter Mountain Sports Techwick shirt. All topped off with a pretty sophisticated North Face jacket that is impervious to the frozen tundra. The 2 bottom layers consisted of a thick Best of Times tights with North Face pants on the outside. The face had a balaclava topped with a thick wool cap, the socks were thick trail socks made for winter hiking, and the hands had gloves with liners in them.

I was ready to trek to the South Pole!

I ventured out into the frigid weather with some confidence that I will be back with all of my limbs intact. And I started running. After a while, the body helped heat me up to a pretty comfortable temperature inside my clothes, and I started to run with confidence.

The course is a hilly one, along Victory Blvd for those who know Staten Island. The first 2 miles is a long grind upward until I hit Slosson Ave, then downhill to Clove Rd., before grinding it uphill to the turnaraound point at Forest Ave. The way back is much easier (except for the hill between Slosson and Clove Rd.). My time climbing these hills were noticeably slower, but that is because of all the clothes I had on. The hills were not to tough and I managed to get to the turnaround point without killing myself.

The way back was fast, but on the cold side, since I wasn't expending a lot of energy going up hills. I wasn't dangerously cold, but definitely gave me notice.

Total time for the run was 1:10:10. (8:46 min/mile pace). Looks like I got the winning combination to beat the cold! Bye bye treadmill. :-)

Week of January 4. Second week of 1st mesocycle

Some lessons learned from last week. 1)My energy was tapped out by Friday and had to cancel some workouts in order to be good in others. 2) I'm not 20-something anymore and need to be a little more kind to my body.

So that leads me to believe there are 2 possibilities why I couldn't maintain training over the week. First, the volumes might be a little too aggressive. And second, I'm going too fast on some of the workouts.

I have serious doubts on the first possibility. I have been capable of going long distances for the longest time and the volume should not bother me. The second possibility is more plausible, that I'm going too hard on some of the training.

I was trying to hold off on the easy-hard training until I had a firm base, but it seems like I did the wrong thing. So this week I'm going to take it real easy when the workout warrants it. This way I can make through the end of the week without being run down.

This week will be strange. Monday I won't be training due to some work, so I start Tuesday. And Saturday I travel to Puerto Rico, so the bulk of the training will be in the middle of the week.

And this week promises to be frigid, so I have to find some way to run outside in these temperatures because there is no way, NO WAY, I'm going to run on the "dreadmill" all week.

Tuesday is an 8 mile run...we'll see how this goes in the cold...

196 Days to VT 100 Ultra - Swim Distance Sets - Good Stuff

Sunday January 3, 2010:

Feeling alittle worn from all the activities in the past week, I took a day off on January 2 to help me recover. I went to the pool this morning to attempt a couple of 1000m distance intervals.

When I was at my peak fitness back in the 90's, the set of 3x1000m swims with 1 minutes rest in between was a tough standard that I maintained, and a staple in distance swimming. It was an accurate way of measuring my stamina, so I kept with those sets frequently, even though sometimes they were a struggle to deal with.

Today, I hoped to do 2 intervals. And I did pretty well. I started off with an even pace and kept a good stroke throughout. The time for the first 1000 was 15:18. The second set was even nicer, as the arms were a bit looser than in the first set. I finished strong with 15:15.

Not bad progress. I'll take it. :-)

198 Days to VT Ultra - New Year's Midnight Run - 15 Miles

Friday January 1, 2010, stroke of Midnight:

Two well known runners in the area and I had arrived at the Moses Area clearing of the Staten Island Greenbelt with a six-pack of beer in tow. Temps were just about freezing with a little sleet in the air, but the trails weren't that bad at all. I was dressed in typical winter running clothes but one of my friends had the foresight to hand each of us a trash bag to wear over the shoulders to keep ourselves dry for the while we had to wait. In the darkness we counted down the last seconds of the old year and toasted the new year with a can of beer. It has always been unique to celebrate the coming of the New Year like this because it is so unlike what others do when the clock strikes twelve. We were in our element, the woods, in dark, with no one else around. It's just great.

Once we downed our beers we basically left the clearing via the Greenbelt Yellow Trail over to the intersection of Rockland Ave and Manor Road to drop the empty cans in a bin and start running in earnest. The course we took is mainly the White Trail that basically splits Staten Island in half from north to south. Since the wind came from the north, we decided to go against the wind and do the north section first.

One thing I always remember about trail running is that I can mainly see 2 dimensions of the course in the limited light. The third dimension, the depth, can be really hard to detect, and this can wreak havoc with your running. Knowing how far some rocks jut out of the path is as important as where they are so that you can clear those rocks effectively. The north look can be rocky at times and we basically took it very slow to prevent turning our ankles. This was an untimed run anyway, so the object was to have fun with this run; we can go as slow as we want.
With several breaks we ambled to the northernmost section of the White Trail, Willowbrook Park, paused to soak in the sights there, then ambled back toward the start.

The northern section took us a little more than 2 hours. We continued along the White trail to start the southern section, which is less rocky but with some pretty quick rolling hills. There were also some streets we had to cross here also, being very mindful that with New Years comes a flurry of drunk drivers. We conversed along the way about our goals for 2010. JG wanted to do the Philadelphia Marathon in less than 3 hours, and FJ wanted to finish his first Ironman. Of course mine was the 100 mile ultra, so we promised to support each other and help each other accomplish our goals.

Despite the drizzle, it was quite comfortable out there and we did very well. We finished the 15 mile run in a little more than 4 hours. We got back to the clearing, drank one more can of beer to our health and headed home for a well deserved sleep.

A perfect start to the New Year. Chalk up 15 miles of running!