Inspiration all around

Training for Frankfurt Ironman on 3 July 2016 can be lonely.  Over the coming months a lot of hours will be spent training on my own however this is essential.  You have to train your brain to be able to take the boredom.  Long runs, bike rides and swims where it's just you and your inner voice.  The voice that's always there keeping you company but you have to ignore it at times.  That's why on a Saturday morning I look forward to cycling with the club because while it's still hard work, average speed of 26.6kph on a hilly route, you're able to have some chat.  And this week was particularly good as one of last weeks Barcelona Ironmen was able to share the experience with us.
It's timely to hear of his adventure as I'm just putting the building blocks in place for mine next year.  So I know how he's feeling, elated and proud of a fantastic achievement but it only happened due to hard work and a steely determination.
We also had 3 team mates competing in the Glencoe marathon and others in the Great Scottish Run 10k and half marathon.  This weekend one of our team got a PB in the Berlin Marathon.  Everywhere I turn a team mate is doing something amazing so inspirational examples are all around which is so uplifting.
This week there were a couple of training sessions where I really couldn't be bothered.  This will happen from time to time but it's those sessions where you have to dig deep that get's me to the start line.  Juggling family life, business and training isn't easy but then if it was the prize wouldn't be worth it.  Bring it on.

...and so it starts

On Thursday this week I started my Ironman training.  That's 275 away from the event.  If you have ever wondered how you prepare a 53 year old body for a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 run then please follow my weekly blog.  As I write this my pals are just crossing the line in Barcelona Ironman in fabulous times.  Others were doing the Glencoe Marathon, the Glasgow 10km and half marathon - a busy day.  Completing an Ironman doesn't just happen.  It requires dedication to train your arse off 6 days a week.  The training time builds up but starts off getting your body ready for the hell that is going to be inflicted on it.  The hard bit is having done it twice before, I know what's coming!
My coach has laid out an online training plan and my garmin records every session.  The data downloads to the online website and Genevieve sees everything.  Therefore every stroke I swim is recorded.  Every revolution of the bike and foot strike in the run is there for her expert eye to analyse.  There is no hiding place.  And that's what I like.  Because when I'm not feeling up to the session, I know I have to give it my all or else I'll be getting my butt kicked!
Yesterday I went out on the bike with the guys and we did 83k at an average speed of 26.1km per hour which I was very happy with.  But today Genevieve turned up for a "social" 90 minute ride.  She "suggested" I could improve on this so we went out and smashed it - 28.6km per hour!  It's amazing how your focus changes when your coach is sitting on your tail.  A quality session.
I've a long way to go but I know tomorrow is my day off training and I think my body will appreciate it.  Since Thursday I have been doing exercises I wouldn't normally do and my body is telling me something is going on.  It sure is.  I'm being prepared for hell on earth and the reason is I'm doing this is simple.  Being in phenomenal shape impacts positively on all aspects of your life and at the same time I'll be raising money for Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres.  It doesn't get better than that.

Time in the saddle

Cyclists will tell you there are no short cuts to improving performance.  It's all about time in the saddle.  Following my training in Majorca I took the rest of the week to recover and I'm pleased I did.  On Saturday when I headed out I could feel some fatigue in my legs.  But I enjoyed 72km "in the saddle" while climbing 800m and increasing my average speed.  Incremental improvements is the name of the game and my average speed had improved from before my training in Majorca.  Also my "mental" approach to hills had improved as well.  I was attacking them rather than preparing myself for pain!
This morning I headed out with my coach Genevieve and her husband Colin for a "short quality ride".  Colin's road bike had been written off in an accident so he was out on a cx bike with thicker (slower) tyres - didn't seem to make too much difference to him, probably wouldn't have seen him for dust on a road bike!  We kept a steady pace for 50km while climbing 563m and when I looked at the data, again my average speed had improved - marginally.
The highlight of the day however was talking to Genevieve (while eating cake and drinking coffee)about my plan for the next 9 months.  My Ironman training officially starts on 1 October and I am so excited to have a plan to follow.  I know from my Lanzarote Ironman how she meticulously prepares the plan specifically for me.  It will start with building my core strength in preparation for what's to come along with "base level" training - building a solid foundation on which to build.  We've already decided that I will be entering the Swashbuckler half ironman on 16 May 2016 as a way of testing my fitness and rehearsing in a race my transitions between the swim bike and bike run which are so important.  Just getting this detail in the calendar is starting to make it real.  Bring on 1 October!  I hope you enjoy following my transformation from a weekend warrior to an Ironman!  Thank you for your continued support.

What goes on on tour....

I'm just back from 4 days training in Mallorca.  Fantastic.  30 degrees +, good road surfaces and car drivers and cyclists living in perfect harmony.  This couldn't be further removed from cycling in the UK and  loved it!
There were just 4 of us  ride and our leader (they will debate who that was but it certainly wasn't me!) had planned it well.  In the first day we had a few hours to ride and we didn't waste anytime.  We battered in 33 miles and 755m of hills and the heat made me realise it was going to be a hard slog.  Listening to Elvis, thought he was dead, that night was enough to send us for an early night! Day 2 started with a 600m sea swim as our "domestique" (Wilson) is doing his first Ironman and wanted some sea swim experience.  Then we hit the hills and 73 miles later I was busted.  Despite our domestique taking the brunt of the work at the front 1,230 m of climbing isn't easy, especially in that heat - it was great.  A few pints in the evening and another early night however we were planning an easy day tomorrow.
Thank goodness for a rest day.  1,800m swim, 26 mile ride with a 452 m  climb and lunch at a fabulous restaurant at a beach and then a 3km run the end.  This was a life saver as without it I wouldn't have made the best day's riding of my life.
Day 4 was brutal.  The warm up was a 1,900 m swim which was unbelievable in the warm salt water. The bike involved 81 miles and 2 big climbs, one of them a Cat 1 climb (big bugger in pros language!).  The big climb took 1hr 15 min but it was worth every pint of sweat for the views and the descent.  Technical and fast but our domestique decided towards the end to "rip the legs" off us.  I hid behind him and chewed the handlebars while trying to stay on his back wheel.  Along the flat road we did the last 5km in 8min 30 secs.  It hurt like hell but what a buzz.
Every day my max heart rate reduced which showed my fitness was improving and I pushed myself as hard as I could.  Ironman Frankfurt may be in July 2016 but there is a lot of work to be done between now and then.  I'll build on this training over the winter but in the meantime it's back to training in best the Scottish Winter has to offer.  My thanks go the Kenny (the real leader), Wilson (the domestique) and Donny (my hill climbing partner).

Experience prevails, eventually!

On Tuesday I headed back to the pool with the equivalent of "flipper" as my swim partner.  We worked on a set and while I didn't lose sight of her in the first 50 metres, I was lucky she hadn't lapped me by 400m.  Try as I might, every set we did I was a lot slower and was breathing out my bum!  Unfortunately any technique I had went out the "port hole" and it felt like I was wading through treacle.  When I went back on Friday I was all on my own.  So I decided to take it easy and continuously swim 1,600m - the most I had swam without a breather was 400m.  What a difference.  It was much easier for two reasons; 1 - I was going at a comfortable pace and not chasing anyone and 2 - I had set my mind that it was 1,600m without a break.  This doesn't mean I won't be swimming fast 100's in the next 9 months.  My programme starting in October will make sure of that, but I do need to keep my heart rate in check and maintain my form.
It's an identical story with my cycling on Saturday and Sunday.  Despite a blue van trying to wipe me out on a roundabout, I had to try and control a skid in the wet and jump the kerb to stay upright, I met up with the boys.  I knew it would be tough but was maxing out on my heart rate for 60 km while still keeping them waiting at the top of the hills.  It was holding them back and killing me so I cut the ride short at 60km so I could fight another day.
The following day I went out on my own for a different 60km with some tasty hills.  I kept a reasonable pace and monitored my heart rate to make sure I was in or as close to zone 2 as possible.  What a difference.  I enjoyed it, didn't breath out my bum and had the same average speed with a much lower heart rate than the day before - result! This is something I have known that to get fit and improve your endurance train in zone 2 on the long rides.  Looks like I'll have some lonely rides over the winter until I can improve my bike fitness.
Next weekend should be different as I head to Majorca for 4 days of cycling in the sun.  In preparation I've booked a sports massage tomorrow which will be a regular part of my training to keep my legs working.  It's not a pleasurable experience but to make it easier I'll be shaving my hairy legs tonight which will make the massage less painful.  The lengths I'll go to for Ironman!  At least the cyclists won't look disapprovingly at my legs anymore although I know what my wife's reaction will be!  I'll report back next week after some training in the sun.

AWOL

Sorry for the silence.  My blog a few weeks ago disappeared even though I'm sure I'd written it.  In summary it would have said two great bike rides.  A long one on the Saturday and then out to start some hill rep training on the Sunday.  In the 7 years I've been cycling hills have always been my weakness.  I arrive at the bottom with the bunch and it's like someone has cut an elastic band and they disappear up the hill while I grind it out.  So my hill climbing needs lots of work over the winter.
The following weekend I was away for my wife's birthday on a 3 day cruise with the family.  Normally I'd be concerned about putting on weight which has happened in my previous two cruises.  However this one seemed to be sponsored by weight watchers and I came off the boat the same weight I went on - straight home for a decent feed!  Despite the shortage of food we had a great time and my exercise amounted to absolute zero!  It was family time and we celebrated big style.
Back to work on Wednesday and with Thursday being "Cycle to work day" I headed off for the 26 mile return journey.  If I did that 3 times a week that would be great training but the logistics of getting my clothes and laptop to the office doesn't always work.  In addition winter isn't far away.
On Saturday I headed out for a 50 mile bike ride on Saturday with 4 others from the club.  The big decision was what to wear and I was the only one in winter gear.  That was fine at the start as it was cold but the sun shone and the heat built up so I was a sweaty mess by the end!  We're all at different stages in our training cycle with 2 in the last 4 weeks before Ironman so I knew it wasn't going to be easy.  As usual I paid for it on the hills and kept telling myself that in 8 months time I'd be performing better.  I also reminded myself that Ironman was 4 disciplines; swimming, cycling, running and transition between the disciplines where a lot of time can be gained or lost.  Running is my strength so on race day if I get left behind by the swimmers and the cyclists I know I can catch up on the run.
My legs were tired when I woke up this morning so I decided to test my foot and go a run.  It must be 6 weeks since I've run and I wanted to know how it would feel.  I managed 5km at a good pace and it was only when I stopped to talk to a friend did I notice any discomfort.  Once I started running again it was fine.  I'm getting some aches from the foot now so I'll leave it a day before trying the same again.  It was great to be back running but I am going to have to be patient.

You know it's going to hurt!

As promised in my last blog, I was heading back to the pool this week afetr a long lay off.  Despite having done this before and swearing I'd never do that again here I was doing it again.  To make matters worse it was the 50m pool!  Dawn had also had a lay off however she's a good swimmer but we agreed to do 10 x 100m with recovery breaks in between.  After 3 I was knackered but the breaks helped.  Then we were joined by Mark who is getting ready for the 10km swim I did last year so Dawn started chasing him and I was left to bring up the rear.  I decided we should extend the swim session to 15 x 100m and in the end knew I had worked hard.  It was good to have pals in the same lane but my swimming felt terrible and my lungs were burst.  Next day I was hurting in places I haven't in a while but I knew that was going to happen.
3 days later I returned to the pool and this time it was only 25m.  No pals this time so I went at my own pace and worked on technique.  I felt better and started to feel  being "supported by the water" rather than fighting against it.  I've a long way to go but now I've started there is no going back.  The club swim sessions start in a weeks time and I want to turn up without a rubber ring!
Today was the annual Strathaven 50 mile bike event (it's not a race).  450 cyclists turned up and it's a very tough route.  It's helped by 2 cake stops on route and the sun shone.  With so many cyclists on narrow roads the discipline of the cyclists is very important and one rider was weaving in and out of the groups.  It wasn't long before he came to grief and went over the handle bars and landed on his back.  Fortunately it was on a grass verge but he didn't learn from his mistake because I saw him later weaving in and out again.  Two of our guys went down on gravel but lived to tell the tail.  It just underlines how dangerous it can be on the roads.
ATHelite were well represented in our distinctive orange & black and for the finish straight 4 of us had stuck together and came in 4 abreast which was a wonderful feeling.  The running is on the back burner at the moment and I will concentrate on the swimming, cycling and yoga.  I'm feeling good as I make my way back to fitness before the serious training starts - only 321 days to go.