Improved mindset

For those of you who have followed my progress over the last 3 years on my blog, you know how difficult I have found swimming.  It's worth going back to the blog where I describe sessions where I walked out, devastated and holding back the tears - that's how tough I found it.  In the last few months my attitude has changed and I've started to see the results.  So tonight at our coached training session there was a break through.
We were doing a hard session and after a particularly tough drill we were told to repeat it.  The "swimmers" were all waiting on me to make a negative comment.  I just smiled and started the new drill much to the surprise of the others.  I didn't realise the significance of it until we finished the 3,300m session.  I may not be a great swimmer but I can knock out 3,000m plus on a regular basis and when Ironman comes along, I'll complete the 3,800m swim without worrying too much about it - basically it's a warm up to the bike & the run.  But that doesn't mean it doesn't deserve respect.  One kick in the face and the race could be over. I'm pleased to say I now look forward to my swim sessions!

Resting doesn't come easy

This is the second day of rest before I start my recovery week and although my legs are appreciating the break, my head isn't!  I've already been onto my coach asking about this weeks activities as I need to know what I'm doing - sitting around isn't easy.
So tomorrow I will be swimming & stretching, Wednesday an hour and a half on the bike with 6 hill climbs followed by a 30 minute run off the bike and a gym session, Thursday a swim session including 20 x 100m timed laps plus stretching, a 50 minute run and core session on Friday and 1 hr 15 min including 2 x 10 time trial on the bike a 5k run and stretching on Saturday.  There you have it, A RECOVERY WEEK!
Fantastic can't wait, bring it on.  After that we only have a few more intense weeks before we start to reduce the training in the run up to the event.  I know I will start to feel stronger and have more energy as the event approaches which is exactly where you want to be.  But none of this would be possible without a plan and a cause.  Thanks for supporting me and Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres (www.justgiving.com/Derek-Stewart0) - if you've been touched by cancer you'll understand how important they are in helping the patient and their family.

A day of rest

Sunday was a rest day for me or should I say, a day with no training!  An early 6am start to watch the Grand Prix with my son followed by last minute Mother's Day shopping before off to his football match.  Back home to relax and watch the footie - Kilmarnock beat Celtic in the cup which shows how the under dogs can win when they are all playing as a team - I was happy!  Then I cooked dinner for the Mum's.
A beautiful day and let's hope that spring has sprung.  Bring on the lighter mornings, it was reasonable at 6.15 am, and that means I can get out on the bike or running earlier!

Mental toughness

In training for an endurance event there are some key sessions that put "a marker" down against your progress.  Today was that day.  A major session which involved a 92 mile bike ride (was meant to be 80 but there was a diversion!) which involved a 50 mile time trial in the middle.  This was all to be done in certain heart rate zones as we are now getting closer to Lanzarote Ironman and managing your heart rate is essential.  So after 5 hours and 49 minutes I got off the bike and pulled on my running shoes so I could run for 40 minutes.  I had to break the ride down into 4 sections to allow my mind to cope with the full session, including the fact I was running off the bike when knackered.
This is a called a brick session and you need to practise these as your legs don't feel like they belong to you at the beginning of the run and you just have to get used to it.  I managed the run in a good time and part of that success is due to having continually fed myself and hydrated on the bike.  I also had to convince my mind that everything was fine and forget that I'd just spent almost 6 hours non-stop on my bike.  At least 50% of Ironman is won or lost in the mind!
So after getting cleaned up and washing the bike, I got the full compression gear on which will help me recover quicker.  This was followed by as much food as I could find.  Tomorrow is a rest day and next week is a recovery week when I will only train once a day and half the amount of training.  So tonight I will treat myself to a curry and a couple of beers with loads of water to keep me hydrated.  This is a treat I won't be having in the run up to the Ironman but today, I think I've earned it!

Friday feeling

Aren't Fridays great?  I love them but then again if I was working the weekend I might not be so keen!  So today it was a tough interval session in the pool.  This was good for my legs which were feeling a bit stiff from yesterdays 15 mile run.  The  swim distance was the same as Tuesday i.e. 3,000m but a very different session.  300m warm up, 4 x 50m drills, 2 x 500m, 3 x 300m, 2 x 200m (all timed) and a 200m warm down.  It's funny when you break a session up like that as these shorter targets make you swim faster rather than the more consistent pace over the long distance.  The objective is that being faster over shorter distances will make you quicker over the long distance.
I have found this to be the same in projects in the corporate environment.  Certain people tend to lose interest if the goal is too far away or don't realise that if they slacken off say in the middle it will have an impact further down the line.
So if you are struggling with a project see if you can break the milestones up to create greater focus and re-energise the project.  Everyone will win out of it as I did this morning with my swimming.  Have a good weekend.

Energised!

What a start to the day.  I gave my Mission Ironman talk to the Institute of Directors meeting in Glasgow at breakfast and the energy in the room was buzzing.  When you are talking to successful people there is generally a high level of energy but once they understood the secret to "achieving results beyond your wildest dreams", a five step process, the energy was tangible.
That set me up for a great day and in my 2 hour run later on I ran the fastest I have for a long time over that time period.  I covered just over 15 miles with a pace of 7mins 54 sec per mile.  Considering the hilly course this was a good time.  I was also trying out the clothing I hope to be using in Lanza.  It gave me a bit of chaffing but as long as you know this you can take precautions and after a wash the fabric should be more forgiving.  As I've said before you leave nothing to chance and NEVER wear new gear on race day.
So hopefully after today's IOD meeting there will be individuals setting themselves some stretching goals and using the five step plan to help achieve them.  Good luck and enjoy the journey.

Back in the pool

It's been over a week since I was in the pool as I was sea swimming in Lanza last week so I was slightly apprehensive about how I'd get on with my 3k timed swim.  The target was 1hr and 2 min and I was bang on!  I think I could have been slightly faster as I "went to sleep" in the middle but I'll get faster in the coming weeks as I get back to swimming 3 times a week.
Tonight I will either be out on my bike or running for a couple of hours.  It just depends on when my meetings finish today.
Tomorrow morning Mission Ironman will be talking at an Institute of Directors meeting in Glasgow so I am looking forward to spreading the work on how you can achieve things beyond your wildest dreams.  It really isn't as difficult as you think and certainly my experience in Lanzarote last week reinforced that message.  Remember every journey starts with a small step.  Why not make one today?