Week 17 Summary

Totals for this week: 22 hours 41 minutes
Swimming: 1:00 (1.6 miles)
Cycling: 17:41 (308 miles)
Running: 4:00 (23.1 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Activity: Road Cycling, Brick
Distance: 146.5 (mi)
Click on map/chart to view details.

Surprisingly sore/tired from my efforts at Steelhead and this directly effected my run and swim volume for the week. Work and personal commitments have also been adversely effecting my training hours and focus, though hopefully these issues will be resolved shortly after the start of the new school year. Got in some decent bike miles, though even these felt like less than stellar efforts until my long ride on Sunday. Experimented with pure liquid calories (20 gu), salt tabs and water on the long ride and felt pretty good overall. Had some minor bloating around miles 60-70 as I got a little ahead on calories, but after sticking with water for a while things got back on track. This was a decent test result, especially with the warmer temps.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 16 Summary - Steelhead 70.3 RR short

Totals for this week: 10 hours 32 minutes
Swimming: 3:08 (6.14 miles)
Cycling: 4:50 (101 miles)
Running: 2:33 (19.7 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Benton Harbor, Michigan
Activity: Whirlpool Steelhead Ironman 70.3 Triathlon, Bike Segment
Distance: 56.5 (mi)
First race of the season and sticking with the idea that this entry will also contain a race report, selecting one of the legs of this race was an obvious choice.
Click on map/chart to view details.
For each individual leg, follow the link below:
Swim | Bike | Run

The week leading up to this race was a mini taper with limited time put into biking/running to insure that the weekend's racing would provide a decent gauge of fitness. Work commitments and details surrounding my upcoming apartment move have proven to be more of a distraction than I'd like and have also contributed to lack of training hours this week. Will need to get this back on track and regain focus over the coming weeks.

Whirlpoool Steelhead Ironman 70.3 Triathlon Race Report

Now that's a mouthful, and it's not even the full official title! I don't typically write race reports as I usually find them pretty boring or self-serving, so I'll try and spare anyone reading this the typical "I was totally on pace to go sub-something terribly impressive until...." Whatever. Just because I can run a sub-4 minute mile pace for thirty seconds doesn't mean I can run a sub-4 minute mile. And as much as you might like to weight one part of a race heavier than others, I haven't been to a race yet where they let you pick and choose the parts that get counted. The time you get when you cross the finish line is what you were on pace to do and if this doesn't represent the pace you wanted, it's either a failure in execution or a failure in planning. No more, no less.

The Short(ish) Story:

2006 results:
Swim: 32:24
T1: 3:53
Bike: 2:26:51
T2: 3:37
Run: 1:58:46
Total: 5:05:28
Place: Overall - 277 Div (M30-34) - 54/179
Clearwater Ironman 70.3 World Championship qualification via roll down.

Last year I did this race with a lot less cycling fitness and had a shoulder injury that severely limited my ability to train in the pool. This lack of cycling fitness translated to terrible leg cramps on the run, and my transitions were also very slow. This was all very good news in planning for this year's race as there were lots of areas to improve very easily. My goal was to run a a 4:45 or less. I figured with more consistent swim training a 30-31 should not be a problem. With much improved fitness on the bike I figured at least a 2:30 would be doable and with far less effort than last year. With a 1:40 run and cutting out a couple minutes off my transition times, this would get me there. No problem... right.

Couple minor wrenches in the plan: beach start instead of pier would change the swim venue and add an unknown variable; the transition area had been moved to a sand/grass mix area instead of the parking lot could mean possibly slow(er) transition times; my age group was one of the last waves to start which meant a crowded course and lots of congestion in all three legs; the growth of the this race had an announced 2300 + participants, another unknown.

These variables ended up having minimal effect on my plans, and I was able to meet my overall pre-race goals of 1). a 4:45 70.3, and 2). a possible re-qualification for Clearwater, and 3). probably the most important goal, establishing a baseline fitness level to help formulate some goals for Kona.

2007 results:
Swim: 32:55
T1: 3:36
Bike: 2:23:36
T2: 2:47
Run: 1:40:49
Total: 4:43:40
Place: Overall - 95 (near top %5 for finishes) Div (M30-34) - 23/191
Clearwater Ironman 70.3 World Championship qualification via roll down.

The (too?) full report to follow.


My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

Have not been very good about keeping up with my daily nutrition journal, but it is what it is.

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 15 Summary

Totals for this week: 11 hours 22 minutes
Swimming: 1:00 (1.9 miles)
Cycling: 5:23 (113.5 miles)
Running: 4:58 (34.6 miles)

This week's totals were influenced by several work commitments, my apartment search for next year and by reducing the weekend volume in anticipation for a semi-taper for the Steelhead 70.3 race next weekend.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 14 Summary

Totals for this week: 20 hours 49 minutes
Swimming: 2:20 (4.9 miles)
Cycling: 14:15 (253 miles)
Running: 4:14 (30.4 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 13 Summary

Totals for this week: 22 hours 36 minutes
Swimming: 2:50 (5.74 miles)
Cycling: 13:00 (242.5 miles)
Running: 6:45 (45.4 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 12 Summary

Totals for this week: 5 hours 38 minutes
Swimming: 1:20 (2.74 miles)
Cycling: 0:00 (0 miles)
Running: 4:18 (26.4 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 11 Summary

Totals for this week: 23 hours 18 minutes
Swimming: 3:25 (7.05 miles)
Cycling: 13:32 (256 miles)
Running: 6:21 (46.6 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 10 Summary

Totals for this week: 21 hours 51 minutes
Swimming: 2:30 (4.25 miles)
Cycling: 12:40 (230 miles)
Running: 7:07 (49 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 9 Summary

Totals for this week: 17 hours 20 minutes
Swimming: 4:40 (7.9 miles)
Cycling: 7:04 (143 miles)
Running: 5:36 (37.1 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Plymouth, Michigan
Activity: Road Cycling, Brick
Distance: 70.89 (mi)
First attempt at a race sim brick. Bike went well (although stopped to assist a stranded rider--whom I unfortunately was ultimately unable to help--with a flat), and in the following run I completely exploded. High temps, limited shade and high humidity good for simulating Kona to a degree. Expect to be faster, but cycling is progressing nicely. Will need to figure out where I went wrong in the run though: fitness? nutrition? hydration? Hopefully this summer will remain sunny, hot and humid enough for me to get it right.
Click on map/chart to view details.

This week was a little disappointing as I missed the long bike ride on Sunday which is a critical part of my training, but Father's Day commitments and others got in the way. Always feel a little guilty missing out on some good training opportunities, but part of achieving the balance necessary to meet long term training goals means missing out on some workouts when other areas of your life demand attention. Fortunately I also hit it pretty hard in the earlier stages of the week and my total training volume was not too adversely affected.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 8 Summary

Totals for this week: 18 hours 22 minutes
Swimming: 1:30 (2.6 miles)
Cycling: 12:06 (217 miles)
Running: 4:45 (33.5 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Activity: Trail/Road Running, Brick
Distance: 10.26 (mi)
Trail and road mix run out to Argo trails, Barton Hills and Huron River Drive. This is the second leg of my long brick workouts which will be the key weekly workouts for the next several weeks. This was also my longest run after my recent injuries.
Click on map/chart to view details.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

My nutrition digest:
http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.html?Owner=kansaiben

Week 7 Summary

Totals for this week: 20 hours 05 minutes
Swimming: 3:05 (5.5 miles)
Cycling: 13:42 (263 miles)
Running: 2:11 (14.1 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Activity: Road Biking
Distance: 112.5 (mi)
Bicycle ride out to Northville, including two loops along Hines Drive to Dearborn.
Click on map/chart to view details.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

Week 6 Summary

Totals for this week: 10 hours 40 minutes
Swimming: 1:45 (4.2 miles)
Cycling: 5:49 (112 miles)
Running: 3:11 (22 miles)


Highlighted Activity:
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Activity: Street/Trail Running
Distance: 11.04 (mi )
Run featuring the UM stadium, arboretum, Gallup Park and North Campus.
Click on map/chart to view details.

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

Week 5 Summary

Totals for this week: 8 hours 26 minutes
Swimming: 1:30 (3.37 miles)
Cycling: 4:41 (86.13 miles)
Running: 2:15 (16 miles)

Highlighted Activity:
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Activity: Street Running
Distance: 9.29 (mi )
Click on map to view details.


My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

Week 4 Summary

Totals for this week: 15 hours 45 minutes
Swimming: 2:35 (4.92 miles)
Cycling: 8:11 (153.41 miles)
Running: 4:37 (32.12 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/

Week 3 Summary

Totals for this week: 7 hours 15 minutes
Swimming: 0:45 (1.25 miles)
Cycling: 2:45 (50.75 miles)
Running: 3:18 (22.78 miles)

My training digest:
http://kansaiben.motionbased.com/