Goal Setting Revisited

It’s been a long time since I’ve written a blog post and it’s not too late to back away and stop reading… NOW!

A few weeks ago we had a clinic for our team on goal setting. We’ve done this with our athletes every season that we have coached as it’s one of those important things that can easily be overlooked. As we prepared for the clinic I said to Linda, “Hey, I need to do this myself.” I realized that I’d lost my focus, gotten away from zeroing in on what I wanted to accomplish, and just sort of ‘carried on’ in autopilot mode. This has meant that while I still have had the same intention all along, I have not had a laser focus on what my goals are.

I’ve finally worked on that, actually following step by step, our S.M.A.R.T goals worksheet. I know this isn’t the ONLY way to define your goals and to convert some pie-in-the-sky dream into an achievable goal but it certainly is an effective tool in helping you look intelligently at what you want to accomplish and helping you to define where you want to go. Defining your goal, no matter what it is, is an important step in converting a dream or wish into a goal that you work towards accomplishing.

Merely thinking about something you’d like to do or talking about it does not yield results for most people. Most people need to define their goal, determine what it will take to achieve success, anticipate obstacles, be accountable, and be reminded of the goal every day. I encourage you to take the time to do just that. Goal setting can be done at any time and for many things. Though this is about triathlon goals, the same applies to anything in life that you want to achieve, be it something to do with a relationship, with work, or with self-improvement.

If you want to review what this is all about and get serious, feel free to reach out to me for support.

Finding Success on the Run - Ironman 70.3 - Half Iron Distance

How do you have a successful run segment in a half Iron distance triathlon? This is one of many questions a 70.3 first-timer may ask. And it's something we all think about when we try to plan our race and reach our goals. So, for the half Iron newbie AND for the veteran who may experience a bit of amnesia (especially if you tend not to write a race report), here are some thoughts.

There are many opinions and many ways to answer this question of having a successful run at the end of a 70.3 half Ironman. Without a doubt the answer has to start with "it depends". How you approach the run depends on many things: your strengths and weaknesses, your training, how closely you followed your training plan or you're coaches' advice, your race experience, how well you know yourself, and what your goals are, to name a few variables. 

In general, the first and most obvious way to have a good run is to make sure you don't expend high amounts of energy (and stored glycogen) on the bike. If you have a "great" bike split but you unexpectedly have to walk most of the run means you actually had a bad bike split. It was bad because it didn't allow you to perform on the run. 

Triathlon includes all 3 disciplines - swim, bike, run - and to push so hard in one segment that it significantly impacts another segment means you paced things "wrong". The idea is to ride "smart" so you set yourself up for a good run. That will mean different things to different people but assuming you're not being challenged by the cutoff time, it's generally best to avoid pushing hard on any climbs or in windy conditions, to ride steadily and at a relatively comfortable but not easy pace. Resist the temptation to push during the first 1/4 or 1/3 of the ride. You may be excited and pumped to be out of the water and on the bike. This boost of adrenaline can lead to a bad decision. Hold yourself back. Starting out in zone 2 is probably smart. You can gradually let this creep up as the ride progresses. If you're still feeling good with a 1/2 or 1/3 of the ride to go, then pick it up some (zone 3) but never lose sight of the run to follow. 

Seasoned veterans and pros can dial in their appropriate intensity much better than those with little or no experience. In every circumstance I can think of (except if you have an injury and plan to NOT run!) it's generally best to err slightly on the side of riding too easy because your legs will thank you when you start those final 13.1 miles.

Okay, enough about the bike... sort of! When you start the run it's pretty common to have tired legs that aren't necessarily thrilled to be running, even if they're happy to be off the bike. If you executed excellent pacing on the bike then you may feel pretty good. Regardless, you may experience the same feelings you had when you first got out of the swim and out on the bike - excited and adrenalized. It's my belief that you need to rein that in for the first few miles. (Again this advice "depends" - see above.) 

The first mile, more or less, your aim should be to keep the effort and heart rate under control and to "get your legs under you", as they say. In other words, get over that jelly-leg feeling and get into the flow. Monitor your heart rate if you know your zones and monitor your breathing so that you can likely tell when you're going too hard. (I believe a low tempo/zone 3 effort is approximately right for most people, though there's nothing wrong with zone 2.) Hold back more than you think you need to during the first 1/2 of the run and then build from there. The final few miles (1, 2, 3, or so) you can push even harder (ending up in zone 4?) and aim to make it hurt, if that's part of your goal.

One more thing to point out: if you've heard Coach Linda and I speak about the mental game of triathlon you know that one of the ways to get through the race is with something called chunking. Chunking means to break something (e.g. the swim or the run leg of a triathlon) into manageable chunks. In many respects it's difficult to think about the entire 13.1 mile 1/2 marathon at the end of a 70.3 half Iron distance race. It can be easier to manage if you chunk it into mile increments or into segments that go from aid station to aid station. 

Make sure you run through a check list in your head as you do each chunk. Manage your heart rate/perceived effort so that you are running at an appropriate effort at whatever stage of the race you're in. Keep up with your nutrition: hydration, calories, and electrolytes. Follow your strategy for dealing with terrain/elevation/hills. Manage your core temperature as best as you can. And use whatever techniques you've practiced to eliminate negative thoughts and self-talk if things aren't going as planned - affirmation questions, mantras, affirmations, etc.

There are lots of opinions out there on how to perform at your best by having a good run. These are mine. Feel free to disagree or have your own point of view.

#sladecoaching #getsladed 

San Diego Half Marathon - Plan, Results, Consequences, and Quiet Goal

I signed up for the San Diego Half Marathon at the last minute. Linda and Corey were doing the 5K so I wanted to be supportive, especially of Linda's 60K For Sixty goal for 2016. The picture below is of her three 5k medals. 3 down, 9 to go! And it was her best time on a very much downhill course.

I had a 19 mile run scheduled as part of my training for a marathon (May 1 - which is still definitely a questionable proposition as my plantar f-ing-itis is rearing it's ugly head with all this run training. I'm still up in the air on this marathon plans.)

3rd 5K for Linda's 60K For Sixty

The goals for this run were:

1. Run my 19 miles one way or another.
2. Run the first 8 miles at a moderate, slower-than-marathon zone 2 effort/pace.
3. Run the final 5 miles at goal marathon pace of 8:37/mile.
4. Finish at around 2:00.
5. Come out of this race able to train the next day - if I race it my quads will be painfully sore for 3-4 days. (Half marathons tear me up, as do most events that I actually race.

Goal 1 fell by the wayside when I only got a mile in prior to the start of the race. The atmosphere and excitement got the best of me and dampened my enthusiasm to do extra - I only got 1 mile in before the race. I achieved the 2nd goal, staying in Zone 2 heart rate for 8 miles and even taking a quick bathroom break. It felt very easy. Goal 3 had to be modified because the GPS watch was not showing mile splits. Instead of pace I resorted to monitoring heart rate and staying in Zone 3 in spite of the hilly terrain. Goal 4 was met with a 1:57:10 finishing time.

Goal 5 was only partly achieved. My quads came out of this run in good shape with just minor soreness. My plantar f-ing-itis was quite angry though. I also woke up with a small knot in my back between the ribs. It didn't bother me at all during the run but by the end of the day it was tight enough to keep me from training. With 3 weeks until Ironman California 70.3 Oceanside my priority was to be healthy so I skipped 2 days of training, saw Dr Ott my Chiro, rolled and "ground" the knot, and a good massage.

I haven't given up on my desire to do a marathon on May 1st. Caitlyn is my inspiration. When she finally did her first marathon in January of 2015 AND ran a Boston Qualifying time to boot, I decided to look up what the qualifying time was for my geezerly 60-64 age group. It's a 3:55. With my one and only stand-alone marathon at 4:29 done in 2008, a 35 minute time drop, especially after doing a 1/2 marathon in 1:47, seems possible. Plantar F-ing-itis may be the limiter though. I don't want to sacrifice my Ironman Arizona race (and Mission 16/60 goal) in November where I very likely need to win my age group to qualify for Kona. So, following through with an attempt to qualify for Boston is still to be decided.

GPS file from race. The mile paces, according to this file, line up well with goals 2 and 3, especially when considering the hilly terrain during the final 5 miles.

#getsladed #sdhalf #sladecoaching

Palm Desert Half Marathon race report

Palm Desert Half Marathon/5K
Linda and I thought about doing this race a couple of days prior to race day Sunday. We were going to see how we felt on Saturday and then decide. I had a 10 mile run to do anyway but could have just done that as a training run. The only taper I did was to not ride or swim on the weekend. Other than that, last week's training went as usual, including strength training/weight lifting on Friday.

Linda signed up for the 5K and I registered for the 1/2. I was excited to be doing this race with Linda again. We've done this is the past on a Valentine's Day weekend and had fun.

The weather was a perfect ~50* f. with the sun out and not a lot of wind at 7am. The course was essentially flat as well with just a few rises and drops, aka 'false flats'. The course was uncrowded just under 600 1/2 marathoners and an even smaller number of 5K-ers. Linda did the 5K and started 15 min. after the 1/2. After the race she felt inspired to do more 5K's this year and is hoping some will join her. (Details to come.)

I maintained a good pace throughout my race, using heart rate as a confirmation of my perceived effort (see below for further explanation). I held a consistent and gradually descending pace and effort with the biggest pace variations coming from the undulations of the course. Finished strong. In the end I had a PR by over 7 minutes.

Observations/Coaching recommendations: 

• Take the shortest route! When the course curves around to the right or left, move towards the cone side or the gutter side of the lane and run the shortest distance you reasonably can. Some people just blindly run a line no matter what.
• In a headwind, draft! I ran behind a bigger guy (red, curly hair - easy to spot) whenever we had a headwind during the first few miles. During the 1st half of the run he was going slightly faster so I purposely accelerated to catch him when we hit the windy sections.
• Don't get carried away by the excitement! Run slower off the starting line than you think you should. Ignore all the other runners around you. The more people there are the more likely you'll be swept away in the moment, run too hard, and then finish much slower than expected.
• After around a mile or two or three, don't think, "Hey! I'm feeling really good. I think I'll push the pace and see what I can do." Most of the time this ends in disaster. Most people DO feel good early on, once they get moving. That DOESN'T mean they're going to be able to maintain that pace and continue to feel good. Better to start off at the pace you planned and speed up at the end than it is to start fast, "bank some time", and hope you can hang on in the later miles. You probably won't have as fast a time with using the "banking time" strategy.

Boring time splits, heart rate averages, and stats(with an short HR explanation):

1:47:10 (13.19mi by gps) - previous best 1:54:26 Carlsbad, Jan. 2015

8:08/mi average pace; 139 average Heart Rate

6th of 24 in age group

73rd of 243 males

111th of 589 overall

Splits:

1 mi - 8:31, HR ave ???

2 mi - 8:15, HR 132 (caught myself feeling good and pushing too hard too early)

3 mi - 8:30, 131 (back off a little from the previous mile)

4 mi - 8:27, 135

5 mi - 8:16, 136

6 mi - 7:41, 136 (some downhill)

7 mi - 8:41, 137 (some uphill) 

8 mi - 8:08, 138

9 mi - 7:48, 141 (some downhill)

10 mi - 8:02, 142

11 mi - 8:19, 142

12 mi - 7:44, 148

13 mi - 7:32, 153

13.1 mi - 7:18 pace, 154

At 59 years old, my aerobic Zone 2 heart rate is around 110 to 128-ish. Zone 3 (tempo) is around 128 to 138-ish. Zone 4 is 144 to 154-ish. My MAF heart rate is at 132. Through training and experience I know that I can do a 1/2 marathon-type event in Zone 3, allowing it to drift upwards toward the high end as the miles pile up. Towards the end I know I can be in Zone 4 for a reasonable amount of time. How long depends on how well I paced the earlier miles. One note: even though mile 2 heart rate was at a reasonable rate, it takes time for HR to come up and for me to settle into a comfortable pace that is sustainable.

#getsladed #halfmarathon #sladecoaching #racereport #palmdeserthalfmarathon #Mission1660

Ironman Texas - Should I Stay or Should I Go?

It’s coming down to decision time. If you know what “Mission16/60” is about then you may remember that my goal is to qualify for the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii in 2016. I have to decide whether to enter Ironman Texas (my goal race if I follow through) or not. There are pros and cons for what I should do.

Ironman Texas 2012 Expo

Here are the cons:

• Linda dislikes the heat, humidity, and venue.
• Because I AM aging up there are ½ the slots of my previous age group – only one. That means I have to win my age group. You never know everyone who will show up.
• Linda dislikes the heat, humidity, and venue.
• I know one of my competitors and I know his time from last year’s IMTX (faster than my best time by 30+ min.) as well as his athletic history. Let’s just say he is an excellent endurance athlete.
• The cost of entry and travel is not insignificant.
• Linda dislikes the heat, humidity, and venue. (yes, I’ve listed this 3 times because it is an important consideration.)
• The race falls mid-May, just 3 weeks before the end of the Team Challenge (Bass Lake Tri) season.

Here are the pros:

• I age up to the 60-64 age group next year and feel my best chance to qualify for Kona will be 2016.
• I’ve raced at Ironman Texas twice before, once with good results.
• I know the course and the area.
• Texas is a course that plays to my strengths:
• 1. It has weather conditions that I can usually tolerate better than many.
• 2. At a time of year that gives someone living in a relatively mild winter/spring climate an advantage over people who live in the cold and have to do a lot of training indoors.
• 3. Texas has a flat bike and a flat run course.
• My best time was done with minimal run training and a fairly significant amount of walking.
• Knowing at least one of the people I have to beat, attaching a name and face to my competition, adds fire to my desire to train hard, train smart, and prepare well to have every opportunity to win.

So there’s the key factors I/we (Linda and I) need to consider. The decision has to be made in the next few weeks before Ironman Texas sells out. Thoughts?

Note: Should I Stay or Should I Go – The Clash (1982)

Get Sladed!

I've been asked what "Get Sladed" actually means. Get Sladed has at least 3 meanings:

1. Verb - to be coached by Skip and/or Linda Slade and be exposed to their belief in your ability to overcome (possibly imagined) limitations and to their philosophy of joy and gratitude. (Alternative spelling: GetSladed. Past tense: Got Sladed) Example: Linda taught me how to swim and I moved up from the "Minnows" right to the "B" group. I Got Sladed!
2. Verb + adjective - to be physically exhausted from a workout but feeling happy to be done and happy to have survived. Example: I Got Sladed today when I did a 5 hour hilly ride and followed it with a 45 minute brick run.
3. Alternative: Noun - a group of people cheering, supporting, and being "spectathletes" when Skip or Linda is racing in an event. Example: I went to Ironman Arizona and spent the entire, long day spectating as part of the Get Sladed Nation. I should have trained for it!

#getsladed

Team Challenge Triathlon - Coaching Each of You

At somepoint after the race Saturday, someone asked me what it's like for Linda and I to be the coaches of the Team Challenge – Tri SD team and have so many people be so successful and happy because of us? This person was NOT discounting or ignoring all the amazing support by the mentors, fellow teammates, or manager(s), they just wanted to know how it was for us. At the time I found it hard to give a complete or thoughtful answer. Looking at our team, all gathered together for dinner that night post-race, I was inspired to thinking about and share an answer to the question with all of you who are part of this wonderful team. I can’t answer for Linda but I know she has many similar feelings as I do.

When you get down to the core of it our relationship with you, as athletes and as people - we feel responsible for you.  In many ways it feels like a parent-child or teacher-student relationship. We teach, we coach, we prepare, and we offer tools for you to be successful. Then we turn you loose to take on a triathlon. At that point we hope you have learned well and will succeed. We are there on the sidelines, cheering, encouraging, advising, distracting, and sometimes yelling at you.

But when it’s all said and done, when you cross that finish line, your success is your doing. Sure you had teammates, mentors, managers, and coaches there who cared and who encouraged you along the way but you had to make every arm stroke, every pedal push, and every step to get to the finish. (Don't discount that!)

We look on with pride and sometimes amazement to see what you’ve managed to do. Having personal relationships with most of you on some level, we are aware of what many of your challenges have been along the. We have seen some of your setbacks. We know of your disappointments, worries and concerns. You come into this having your own unique background and bag of experiences. You may have even shared with us personal “non-triathlon” concerns that we’ve tried to help you with or advise you on. With all of these variables we do our best to tailor our coaching, our support, and our answers to your questions, to suit your needs and help you be successful.

Part of our goal is to build a team with a tradition of loving, caring, supportive, fun-loving individuals. We also want people who will go above and beyond their own, narrowly focused self-interest and consider that they are part of something bigger. We want people to be part of a team that not only supports each other but also supports the Crohn’s and colitis mission in some way. We want people who want to be part of the pretty cool tradition that's been built here that leaves a legacy of caring and support in its wake.

As your race day unfolded, I smiled and I cried and my heart was filled with joy at various times. I love to see your success. I love to see you happy with your effort. I love to see you support each other. I love to see you overcome your challenges and to put plans into action. I love to see you striving for your goals. I love to see your expressions of joy and gratitude. I may be focused on the nuts and bolts of triathlon all season long but from my point of view, all of what happens over these 14 weeks adds up to a team of people who happen to be triathletes who, in their own ways, are making the world a better place because they are in it. I can think of nothing better.

Am I Swimming Yet? - Mission 16/60 Update

I'm frequently asked, "How's your shoulder?" My answer is always that it's slowly getting better. It's been about 2 months since my self-inflicted bike crash. I've been to the ER and to Urgent Care. I've seen multiple physicians and had multiple x-rays. I've also been to a physio for rehab. Except for some specific admonitions at the beginning and (presumably) accurate diagnoses and advice on the injury, I've mostly self-directed my progression.

At first I could only swim with one arm, which is what I resorted to so I could participate in
California 70.3 Oceanside. I've gradually added more and more strength training as my shoulder allowed, progressing slowly with the level of work. Range of motion was frequently tested and limits were cautiously challenged.

I have not been perfect. Early on I quickly realized that controlling the pain and relegating workouts to a lower priority were necessary. Yes, at times I was stubborn, but Linda wasn't shy in reminding me what was important. Over the weeks I've sometimes gone a little too far or done a little too much, leaving some pain in it's wake. Of course that's a sign to back off the next time. Running and riding have progressed much faster than swimming (really? no kidding! shocking!)

Though it's slower than swimming one-armed freestyle, I've finally progressed to being able to pull with my left arm and recover it over the top of the water. Certain angles still cause mild pain so I continue to be cautious. How cautious? Me, who keeps track of nearly every repeat interval I swim in the pool, is not paying attention to the pace clock except to help me count how far I've gone. Time hasn't mattered and it won't start mattering until I'm actually able to swim freestyle without feeling pain on every stroke.

On Saturday I swam 1100 yards using both arms. I was amused at how excited I was to have done this since normally that's barely more than a warm up! I am not usually this patient when it comes to such things but the reality is that it makes no sense to force things. I AM challenging my CURRENT limits as I pursue returning to form. My key triathlon races aren't until October and November so I also have the luxury of time. I have faith that I will get back to where I was thanks to the slow, steady progress so far. I'm fortunate that I can see that progress. Sometimes athletes don't have that good fortune, must trust in the process, and believe things will come together in the end. In those times a coach can prove invaluable. Thanks to the knowledge and experience I've gained over the years of being involved in swimming and for the 8 1/2 years of being in triathlon, I feel like I've done a pretty good job of coaching myself along this road to fully recovering (with Linda of course being the voice of reason when I occasionally lose track of the big picture!)

-------------
Cycling update: while I've been back on the bike for over a month, physical endurance and speed have been slow to return. It's a bit frustrating but I believe some consistency over time will get me back where I want to be. In the meantime I'm covering fewer miles and struggling to make it up the hills. Step by step... pedal stroke by pedal stroke.

California 70.3 Oceanside

I came home from the race today and Son2 said, "How's the point five (0.5) Ironman?" (Then he helped care some of my stuff to the house.)

Today was Ironman 70.3 California (Oceanside). We had 4 Team Challenge kits out there on the course, along with at least 20 spectators and volunteers who represented TC Tri with nothing but class and enthusiasm. I can't thank them enough for their support today.

It was a particularly tough race today for me (not unexpected). With a bike crash 6 weeks ago that took me out of training just as it was (sort of) starting to resemble my normal self. Pain management was the top priority after the crash; training came 2nd (sometimes Linda had to "remind" me). Add to that a bout with pouchitis (like ulcerative colitis) for the past 10 days and I was pretty much in survival mode. It was a one-armed swim, a very tough bike ride, and a struggle to run after that ride.

Friday night just before I went to bed, Coach Linda wished me good luck and told me she knew this race wasn't going to be anything like I had in mind. Race for the people who can't. Those words came back to me a time or two during the race. I finally got to bed (late) just a few minutes past 10:00pm. Tossed, turned, and visited the bathroom multiple time (DAMN pouchitis!) and finally fell asleep after midnight. Up at 4:00, wondering how the day would go.

The swim was "interesting". I used a sleeveless wetsuit that was a little big for me in order to accommodate my shoulder. The water turned out to be a comfortable enough temperature. If it hadn't been a race I think I would have thought it was cold - funny how that works! I didn't lineup in the front of my wave like usual but stayed back and wide right to avoid contact. I still had to jockey for position now and then. Even though I struggled to swim straight it was amazing how far off line some people would get. I at least had the one arm excuse! Learn to sight, swimmers! I couldn't resist using my bad arm 3 or 4 times to get out of tight quarters. I just didn't want anyone kicking that arm/shoulder and doing more damage, but I was cautious. There were some swells out near the turnaround point but not too bad. I got run over a few times. Well, more like surrounded by swimmers from a later wave. A new experience for me. I did just like anyone should - just keep swimming.

I got out of the swim in :39:19 (in 39th place) feeling more out of balance than usual, probably because of the one-armed swimming. This was more than 10 min. slower than my previous best splits. Walking and jogging to T1, I got the wetsuit off without much problem, and then started putting bike stuff on. Spent extra time drying off better than usual as well as slipping on my disposable arm warmers. Experience tells me it's worth the time because otherwise I suffer during the early part of the bike, sometimes going too hard to get warm. I got out of the VERY LONG transition area in 8:10.

The bike started well, as it usually does in this race. There are some rollers but the big climb doesn't come until the 2nd half. I felt pretty good. I passed the spot of my bike crash without incident, except for a couple random visualizations/flashbacks. I overrode those thoughts quickly and let them go. As I got to about the hour and a half mark realized that my lack of training was catching up with me. It's easy to do on this course because the challenge don't come until about 1/2 way through. I dialed it back a little but really it was too late. The first climb (at least 10% grade, I think) just about killed me. I let ego keep me from getting off the bike and walking up the hill but that ego also meant I would suffer more on the run for being dumb. People passed like I was standing still, which is how I felt. The hills and rollers that followed were not a pretty sight.

At about the 45 mile mark I had a mental meltdown. I was struggling, it was hard to see myself getting through it, and I was way more tired than I should have been. The demons took advantage. I had visions of throwing my bike into the bushes, against a tree, onto the asphalt, and walking away. I didn't care who was waiting at transition, who was cheering, or that, besides being an athlete, I was a coach setting an example. I didn't care about any of that. I was never doing one of these again!

It took at least 2 minutes to regain my focus and get back to ticking off each remaining segment. I went back to my mental game training that I learned from Kirsten Lewis (coach for WeTri outside Sacramento.) I started asking myself questions like "What if this is so much easier than I think?" and "What if there's nothing wrong?" I also changed that negative voice into a ridiculous sounding "slow motion" voice. I never got to a good place during the last 10 or 11 miles but at least I stopped thinking the worst and accepted things as they were.

Bike nutrition was another issue. I've struggled to find the key after being successful for about the first 2 years of going long. As it was i took in probably half the calories I needed - around 450 from Osmo and a Lara bar. This probably contributed to my poor start on the run. I got plain water at the 3rd aid station and that helped some. However, I pretty much stopped taking calories during the last hour. I happily dismounted the bike after 3:14:10 (in 55th place ) averaging 17.30mph ave) - 24 min slower than my previous 2 bike splits at this race.

Instead of the usual "take my feet out of my shoes before getting to the dismount line", I went ahead and dismounted with them on. The run to rack my bike was done in the bike shoes because it was all on carpet and was at most 20 yards. I spent 5:18 in T2, not at all fast, but got to see the Team Challenge Bass Lake Tri team there to cheer for me. I was obviously not on my game. I walked and jogged to the "Run Out" and stopped for a few seconds to have some sunscreen applied by a wonderful volunteer.

I thought I'd suffered on the bike but the run was a different story - it was worse. How was I going to run 13.1 miles after riding too hard AND not fueling properly?! It seemed like I took walk breaks every 200-300 meters that first mile. I also powered down 100 calories of Sport Beans, followed by water at the first aid station. I worked at "chunking" the run, not thinking of the whole 13.1 miles, but I admit it was daunting. I also tried to stop at a portapotty but it had been "wet down" by an in consider male athlete and it had no toilet paper anyway.

Mile 2 didn't get better. It turns out that the 3rd aid station had 2 things I desperately needed. First, team member Bev was volunteering there. When I saw her I was struggling just to go forward. She let me give her a wet, sweaty hug and I lost it. I usually save the tears and long hug for Linda AFTER the race! I guess it's a measure of how bad I felt because when I get emotional like that I remind myself to stay even, not getting too high or too low. The goal is to "be in the moment." Anyway, Bev said something about my being a badass with great support and enthusiasm. I pulled myself together and gradually began to walk less, run more, and finally get some semblance of what could be called a run. The 2nd thing at the aid station? An empty portapotty with a loose roll of paper. Relief was wonderful! From experience I've learned that with no colon and just an internal pouch that I can't let "the plumbing" back up or I pay for it in poor performance later.

Still, I wanted to quit and I didn't care about anyone else but me at that point. With more mental game thoughts overriding the negative talk, mile 4 and onward were a bit better. I didn't get splits the entire run, a good thing considering. I just pushed myself to the next house or next fire hydrant, making deals with myself about how far to run and when to take my walk breaks. I walked every single uphill and ran each little downhill.

I saw other athletes, TC spectathletes  and volunteers out there and gave hugs, finger points, or fist bumps but I was mostly unable to speak or yell to anyone. I saw Linda, Mom and crew around the 1/2 way point and gave Linda a big, longish hug before carrying on. For nutrition I took in water, ice, RedBull (bad boy - something new on race day!), 200 cal. of ShotBloks, and one 100 cal. GU Roctane gel. It all helped although I have no idea how many calories I got in.

While I haven't seen my GPS/Garmin file, I'm pretty sure I must have negative split the run. I finished the run slower than I predicted (no surprise there!) with a 2:27:54 and an overall 53rd in my age group out of the 132 who got bib numbers. I averaged 11:17/mi, which is no indication of how hard it was. 2:04 was my only previous run split for this race. My final time of 6:34:51 is over an hour off my personal best time. While I don't have a finish line picture I happy to say that Linda did a great job handing me the Team Challenge flag so I could unfurl it and display it as I came down the finishing chute.

I could write more details but this should suffice. Perhaps a follow up will get posted if there's a need.

What is a good takeaway for you? Your day ebbs and flows when you do a triathlon. The longer you are out there the more likely it is that you'll hit high points and low points. You'll not be able to receive those high points if you don't keep going! If you quit then not only did you let the demons, the negative talk, that low point win, but you prevented yourself from finding a high point later on. Learn strategies to deal with the rough spots and low points and not letting the high points make you go crazy is critical to a successful outcome. That leads to lows that are very hard to reverse. By the way, we teach many of these tools to our Team Challenge athletes.

Above all, race with joy and gratitude (I fell short in that department though I'm very grateful now), smile, and embrace whatever comes your way, good or bad, and deal with it. JUST KEEP GOING!

An Injury is a Setback - Mission 16/60

I'll be honest - having an injury sucks! And I'm not exactly doing a perfect job of dealing with it. As you may know I had a solo bike crash on February 14th. It was yet another challenge to deal with Mission 16/60. Everyone has challenges to face any time they undertake something new or difficult. With triathlon, especially with the longer distances (70.3 and 140.6 miles), the amount of training and time that goes into preparation is significant. And even though you may have goals and ambitions, LIFE happens. Illness, injury, family concerns, job concerns, other commitments - there are just so many things that can derail you or change plans or interrupt what you thought you were committed to.
as I have been working towards my short and long term goals, including

The biggest challenges, until the bike crash, have had nothing to do with triathlon training. The loss of my "day job" after surviving an incredibly stressful 12+ months has proved to be a significant disturbance in my mindset and mental health. In the process I've been reminded that I thrive on structure and routine and not having that makes everything a little more challenging. Seeing the job loss as an "opportunity" was easy to say but taking action on that opportunity is something else altogether.

On the day of the bike crash some of those feelings - anger, disappointment, regret, and especially frustration - were still hovering there in the background. I rode on my own that day in order to enjoy a little of the freedom that going on a 60 mile ride under your own physical power on a beautiful day can provide. The crash happened so fast that there wasn't time to avoid it. It was a silly mistake mainly caused by a lack of attention.

These past few weeks have been very frustrating. At first the frustration stemmed from knowing I made a mistake that could have been avoided. The feelings have also included regret knowing that while Linda is here for me, helping me "pick up the pieces" and get back to normal, it is something I wish she didn't have to do. There is also  a bit of sadness and disappointment because I know I can't be 100% for Ironman California 70.3 (Oceanside) as training takes a back seat to healing and recovering.

When you train for triathlon, especially when you start doing 70.3's and fulls, you begin to view yourself as superhuman in some ways. You think, "I swam 2 and a half miles, rode a bike 112 miles, and then ran a marathon. That was hard and I did a LOT of training just to prepare. How hard can it be to get back in the pool now and swim a couple thousand yards and then go ride for a few hours?" If you've been sick, or injured, or sidelined for whatever reason, the answer is that it can still be damned hard!

You are NOT immune to having normal human responses to training. Just because you rode your bike 100 miles on 6 different occasions while you trained for a race last year doesn't mean you can just jump back on the bike and crank out another 100 miles now if you haven't done a proper build up to do it. Just because swimming 4000 meters in about an hour is something you can go back into your training log and find that you did more than once doesn't mean that swimming 2500 yards in the pool after 3 weeks off is going to be easy. It is remarkably hard to remember this when you've grown accustomed to being able to do these things. However, starting back up exactly where you left off is going to catch up with you. You are inviting injury or other setbacks if you don't properly prepare the body, even if your mind is prepared.

Take the time to build back up to where you were before the injury or setback. Allow for more recovery time. Don't sacrifice your future progress for a quick, feel good workout that makes you believe (falsely) that you can just pick up where you left off. There has to have been an erosion of your strength and conditioning. How much depends on where you happened to be with your training when the set back occurred. Maybe it will be just a few days or maybe it will take many weeks to get back to where you were. Patience is critical, as is forgiving yourself for "losing ground".

With all of this said I must admit that I am not a poster boy to hold up as an example. I'm in the midst of trying to claw my way back into training, probably too quickly if you ask Linda. It is, and will continue to be, anything but a straight line back into "normal" training.