It's been a good week. Saturday I started with a nice easy Triple Time Trial @ Z2 to stay with my recent focus on recovery and Z2 work, and run emphasis for the marathon.
Saturday:
1HR Easy Swim + 5 min cool down
1.5HR 3x(5/Z1 + 25/Z2) Bike + 5 min cool down
1HR 2x(5/Z1 + 25/Z2) Run + 5 min cool down
So I got a nice 3:45 of mostly Zone 2 work in. Very refreshed and feeling good afterwards.
Sunday:
Unfortunately I went out a little late, and drank a bit much. I cut my long run to 11 miles from my planned 15, but it felt surprisingly good by the end. I'm still noticing my pace dropping rapidly at all heart rates due to more proper recovery workouts + more time in Z2 on my longer sessions.
Monday:
Monday it was time to take it easy. I did a nice 5.5mile easy run to keep my base going and clear my system of any crap left over. Once again I was pleasantly surprised at the pace at a very low HR on reasonably hilly terrain.
Tuesday:
Time to get crazy. I'm motivated to try to peak my VO2 Max so that I can see what I really made of as I haven't really focused on this very much. Today begins a 2 day VO2 Max Crush session.
Bike: 10min WU + 4x(5/Z4 + 2/Z1) Incomplete Recovery Intervals. Tough!
RT: 20 min Heavy upper body lift. No Lower as Bike Intervals were Tough!
Run: 1.8mi Uphill All Out Sprint Z4 @ 8:30/mi. WOW!
Wednesday:
Tired, but not Tired enough
Swim: 10min WU + 4x(200 All Out + 100 easy recovery). About 3:20 per 200. I can feel my stroke needs some work to continue speeding up.
RT: 20 minute HEAVY Upper Body Lift + 10min Crazy Core Workout.
Run: 3.6mi hard uphill run @ 9:30
Thursday:
Well I was supposed to just do some light recovery work to rest up from 2 days of high intensity hammering and lifting. I felt pretty good though, so I let my HR drift up in to Z2 after the first half hour. Once again startled at my fast pace (10:10) at low HR, especially after the hard days. A 10min/mi. marathon pace no longer seems unreasonable.
Friday:
Ok, so I really did need a break. Commuted a nice brisk 5 miles each way to work, with a nice easy swim mid day:
Bike: 10 mi. base commuting
Swim: 6x(100Free + 50Breast) + 6x100 Easy
All in all I'd say it was a good week. I seemed to handle the 2 intense days fairly well, with some tired soreness more appearing Friday then Thursday as Expected. Currently the plan will be to do some similar hammering next week, possibly with one extra crush day, and then a day or two of full rest as I go to oregon for Christmas week. The plan will be to mostly do base runs while up there, and then return on the 28th for another 1.5 weeks of hammering, and a nice taper for the Marathon on Jan. 20.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
Last Weeks Training
I'm continuing to relax as far as the bike goes. Commuted on my bike 4 days last week, til I fell at the stop light. Started swimming several 500s each workout, and adding drill. I also added 5x50 All out sprint with full recovery at the end of my second workout Thursday. As for running, the HR monitor is back, and having a big effect. My runs for the week:
A nice 8 mi base run. Started at 130, moved to 135, and then finished at 140. Nice slightly longer distance.
8mi. of nice hilly tempo intervals. Obviously down hill the way out. Stretched the breaks a little to allow for proper recovery.
A nice base run. Kept my HR at 140 for the (almost) hour. Hopefully this speed will push 10:30 soon and I can use 140 as my marathon base.
Some nice speed work. Couple loops around the office with intervals at 165BPM. I delayed this for a day to recover from my bum knee.
A nice long run. Ran at about 130 the first hour, and then did 4x20 min @ 140BPM with 10 minutes recovery between. Felt great afterwards, no soreness or aches.
A nice 8 mi base run. Started at 130, moved to 135, and then finished at 140. Nice slightly longer distance.
8mi. of nice hilly tempo intervals. Obviously down hill the way out. Stretched the breaks a little to allow for proper recovery.
A nice base run. Kept my HR at 140 for the (almost) hour. Hopefully this speed will push 10:30 soon and I can use 140 as my marathon base.
Some nice speed work. Couple loops around the office with intervals at 165BPM. I delayed this for a day to recover from my bum knee.
A nice long run. Ran at about 130 the first hour, and then did 4x20 min @ 140BPM with 10 minutes recovery between. Felt great afterwards, no soreness or aches.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Crazy Fire! Photos of Carlsbad, and our Semi-Burned House in Poway.
Look at the surrounding area. I can't believe ANY of our structure was left standing.
Here you can see a neighbors completely destroyed house:
Nothing but chimneys remain of another house.
My parents home to be definitely caught fire.
There were little burns from embers all over the structure.
Here's another view of some holes burned into part of the house.
This dumpster which was mostly full was nothing but a bunch of nasty wet ash. The portapotty next to it was melted and never to be seen again.
View of the sky up in Carlsbad at my parents current house. This area was evacuated as well.
Here you can see a neighbors completely destroyed house:
Nothing but chimneys remain of another house.
My parents home to be definitely caught fire.
There were little burns from embers all over the structure.
Here's another view of some holes burned into part of the house.
This dumpster which was mostly full was nothing but a bunch of nasty wet ash. The portapotty next to it was melted and never to be seen again.
View of the sky up in Carlsbad at my parents current house. This area was evacuated as well.
Death Valley Fall Century 2007
What a crazy ride.
Starting Line. I went out at 7:30 with the first wave of Century riders, and rode with the leaders for the first hour, til we hit the uphills and the winds started to pick up.
On our way. We left Furnace Creek Ranch, and we soon will leave behind the green surroundings of the little Oasis.
Rest Stop One. 18 miles out we stopped for some fuel. This was the end of the fun, as we turned to Scotties Castle here, and began heading straight into the wind, with constant 2-3% grades.
Rest Stop Two. At this point I really already wanted to quit. Somehow I kept myself going through persistent cramps for the last 6 hours of the ride.
Slow and Steady Climbs. You can see that we're on an incline, but I swear it was impossible to tell when you were riding. Everything was a big mirage.
Climbs are Getting Steeper. The final climb to Scotties castle was 3miles at 7% grade. Believe it or not, after the windy uphill, this was probably my favorite part.
Go Tom Go. Here I am about half way up the climb, trying not to cramp up.
Almost to Scotties Castle. This is the view as you approach the crest right before the half way mark.
A wild Coyote. Not as cool as the ones that ride bikes. The volunteers joked around about not feeding me because the rangers told them feeding Coyotes was forbidden.
Then of course I had to turn around and go all the way back! I'll be back in the Spring!
Surreal weather due to the SoCal Firestorm greeted the annual Fall edition of the Death Valley Century and Double Century on Saturday, October 27, 2007. The light smoke high in the air created a funky glow to the day, while also keeping temperatues below 80 instead of the predicted 93. This particular edition was the fifth in history to traverse the northern route of this event, heading to Scotty's Castle, Ubehebe Crater, Hell's Gate, and other roadside attractions. With riders representing AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, IA, IL, KY, MA, MD, MI, MN, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, RI, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, and WI, this event remains one of the most popular endurance rides in the country.
261 intrepid cyclists tackled the course. By the end of the day, 133 would complete the century, 95 would complete the double century, and just 23 would DNF one or the other distance, while 22 didn't sign in at the finish.
Starting Line. I went out at 7:30 with the first wave of Century riders, and rode with the leaders for the first hour, til we hit the uphills and the winds started to pick up.
On our way. We left Furnace Creek Ranch, and we soon will leave behind the green surroundings of the little Oasis.
Rest Stop One. 18 miles out we stopped for some fuel. This was the end of the fun, as we turned to Scotties Castle here, and began heading straight into the wind, with constant 2-3% grades.
Rest Stop Two. At this point I really already wanted to quit. Somehow I kept myself going through persistent cramps for the last 6 hours of the ride.
Slow and Steady Climbs. You can see that we're on an incline, but I swear it was impossible to tell when you were riding. Everything was a big mirage.
Climbs are Getting Steeper. The final climb to Scotties castle was 3miles at 7% grade. Believe it or not, after the windy uphill, this was probably my favorite part.
Go Tom Go. Here I am about half way up the climb, trying not to cramp up.
Almost to Scotties Castle. This is the view as you approach the crest right before the half way mark.
A wild Coyote. Not as cool as the ones that ride bikes. The volunteers joked around about not feeding me because the rangers told them feeding Coyotes was forbidden.
Then of course I had to turn around and go all the way back! I'll be back in the Spring!
2007 Triathlon & Race Results
Well....the 2007 Season is over. It was a good year with tough early season events like the Wildflower and Escape from Alcatraz. I completed my longest open water swim ever in the La Jolla Cove Swim Club's 5 mile Tour of the Buoys Swim. I finished the year with the Cancun 70.3 and the Death Valley Century ride.
Wildflower Triathlon 1.5K/40K/10K (5-6-07) 4:12:13
Escpate from Alcatraz Triathlon 1.5mi/18mi/8mi (6-3-07) 3:56:19
What a great event. The swim from Alcatraz was amazing. It's a little crazy jumping of with 2 thousand people into the bay. The course was incredibly Scenic, with a very challenging run, mostly on hill dirt trails, and some on the beach, including the infamous Sand Ladder.
San Diego International Triathlon 1K/30K/10K (6/24/07) 2:33:45
Tour of the Buoys 5mi swim (8/5/07) 2:49:13
Santa Barbara Long Course Triathlon 1mi/34mi/10mi (8/25/07) 4:34:23
Cancun Ironman 70.3 1.2mi/56mi/13.1mi (9/23/07) 6:36:06
Man what a tough race. The course was flat, but the Humidity was crazy high, and we had 3 45 minute bursts of torrential rain during the bike and run that came with gale force winds. It was definitely hurricane season in Cancun. I like this article from ironman.com about how tough the conditions and weather were.
Fall Death Valley Century 108mi Bike (10/29/07) 7:46:00
Well I came in well short of my goal of 6:30, but it appears only 3 people managed that feat, and my 7:46 was pretty respectable considering we were riding into the wind most of the ride in both directions.
Wildflower Triathlon 1.5K/40K/10K (5-6-07) 4:12:13
Escpate from Alcatraz Triathlon 1.5mi/18mi/8mi (6-3-07) 3:56:19
What a great event. The swim from Alcatraz was amazing. It's a little crazy jumping of with 2 thousand people into the bay. The course was incredibly Scenic, with a very challenging run, mostly on hill dirt trails, and some on the beach, including the infamous Sand Ladder.
San Diego International Triathlon 1K/30K/10K (6/24/07) 2:33:45
Tour of the Buoys 5mi swim (8/5/07) 2:49:13
Santa Barbara Long Course Triathlon 1mi/34mi/10mi (8/25/07) 4:34:23
Cancun Ironman 70.3 1.2mi/56mi/13.1mi (9/23/07) 6:36:06
Man what a tough race. The course was flat, but the Humidity was crazy high, and we had 3 45 minute bursts of torrential rain during the bike and run that came with gale force winds. It was definitely hurricane season in Cancun. I like this article from ironman.com about how tough the conditions and weather were.
Fall Death Valley Century 108mi Bike (10/29/07) 7:46:00
Well I came in well short of my goal of 6:30, but it appears only 3 people managed that feat, and my 7:46 was pretty respectable considering we were riding into the wind most of the ride in both directions.
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