Recovery Day

Perhaps this is an addendum to yesterday's blog, but today I can't help but think about my ability to recover from this weekend's training sessions.

Just a few months ago, the notion of running 15 miles one day, cycling 50 the next and then "recovering" with a five-mile run and one hour of weights training the day after that would make me crawl into a fetal position.

Today, I rather enjoyed it!

What the hell is wrong with me?

The run portion of the workout, which I completed on the treadmill, was pretty tough at first. In fact, it took me about 30 minutes to loosen my legs before I began my 20 minutes of tempo running. Somewhat surprisingly though, I didn't feel the effects from this weekend's training as much during the weightlifting. Certain leg exercises were more difficult than others, but overall, I wasn't overly sore. It may have helped that I lifted immediately after the run, since this afternoon and evening have been filled with meetings, a dentist appointment (filling, ugh!) and a dinner that I'll be en route to shortly.

I'm already looking forward to tomorrow's workouts. I never thought I'd say it, but I'm excited to get back in the pool. It's been four days since I swam, but it feels like longer. I used to hate swimming... now I look forward to it. Weird!

It just goes to show that with enough practice and repetition, your mind and mindset can adapt. Routine, as dull as it may sound, can become sublime. Even invigorating.

Therapeutic? Perhaps.

When I set after my quest for Ironman, I thought triathlon would dramatically expand my physical capabilities. I never expected that the sport would take my psyche along for the ride and give it a tune-up along the way.

295 days and counting.

I See You

I had an "a-ha!" moment in training today. Not necessarily a good one, mind you, but incredibly important nonetheless.

Halfway through my 2.5-hour run around Brentwood/Santa Monica early this morning, I was informed by Coach Gerardo that I have been confusing heart-rate zones. I've been using my bike HR parameters on my runs as well as the bike. That would explain why I've been feeling like I'm going slower than my compatriots during our training runs. I was chaining myself unnecessarily to a much lower beats per minute count (by a factor of nearly 10 bpm).

Oh.

The second half of my run today was much better, needless to say! Now, I think I may have a shot at beating my personal best half-marathon time last year (1:50:10). I'll get the chance to find out next week in Huntington Beach at the Surf City Half-Marathon. Now, I can't wait.

After finishing the 15-mile run and a Governator sighting (driving a red convertible Hummer with Secret Service vehicles in tow), I sped home to get ready for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary lunch. My sister and I were co-hosting, and as the clock ticked down to T-minus 1 hour, I had images of showing up breathless and stinky because of the typically horrendous 405/101 Freeway traffic.

Fortunately, these fears didn't materialize and we had a fantastic afternoon of reminiscing with my parents' friends. The most poignant moment, for me, was my mom's toast to my dad. She actually quoted Avatar, which I'm still wrapping my head around, and the way the N'avi say "I see you" to each other as a way of identifying with the other's soul.

I'm preparing for bed now (big bike ride tomorrow a.m.) after hanging out with my sister and her boyfriend. I'm absolutely sure they will have a terrific life together because they "see" each other clearly.

One day, I will see someone too. And they will see me. But I am honored that I've had relationships where I've clearly "seen" a special someone, and they've seen me too. I look forward to that day again, and am fortunate to have two parents remain together through many ups and downs over the years to show me what that statement really means in the terrestrial world.

Right now though, I'm seeing my bed. And it's seein' me.

Happy Anniversary, mom and dad.

298 days and counting.

Pizza as Performance Enhancer

Pizza, apparently, is my new performance enhancement drug.

Am I a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?

Pizza is the only way I can explain today's especially strong workouts. I ate up and spit out 2,200 yards in the pool early this morning, reaching all-time bests in cadence (45 strokes per minute!) and consistent sub-T pace (less than 2:05 per 100 yards)

Then, a few hours later, I crushed an hour run on the treadmill with a series of hill sprints at a 5% grade. I was hungry for more by the time the workout was over.

More training. Not pizza.

The night before, I enjoyed a work-related social event where a few of us got together in the studio for pizza and to watch a movie indirectly related to a project we're working on. (Yep, I know there's a few studio fans who read this, hoping for a scoop. Sorry to disappoint, but no clues today!)

Lately, I've been especially conscious of what kinds of nutrition I'm putting into my body. Even after my meeting with the nutritionist a couple weeks ago, who said I could stand to drink a milkshake or two, I've been hesitant. I'm happy with my appearance, and I have an irrational thought that if I let up on the healthy living for a minute... I'll go back to not looking the way I want. (Yes, I am a little concerned about how that last sentence sounds too, but if you saw how I eat throughout the day, you'd put those worries aside!) But, last night was an exception. Pizza sounded too damn good to pass up. So I splurged. A lot.

I figured I'd be sluggish in the pool as a result, but I felt the exact opposite. Light. Fresh. Strong.

And I have pizza to thank.

OK, maybe two months of consistent training and steady diet may have had something to do with my performance, but c'mon, if pizza did wonders for four turtles then I think we know what really happened here today.

300 days and counting.

Trudy Wins

Can you hear that knocking?

That constant banging noise... you can't hear it?

If you can, that's the sound of my head banging against the desk in my office at home. Because I just lost my housing association appeal against Trudy and Bam-Bam's successful brand of noise-driven psychological warfare.

And General Noriega thought he had it bad.

So it turns out there's this thing called the Fair Housing Act that covers "discrimination" against parents of children in condominiums such as mine, for noise-related cases such as this.

Considering Trudy can make a plausible case that she's not playing loud music, breaking association rules about doing laundry too late or early, or having wild parties into the night, I've got no real recourse. In other words, I'm in an unfortunate, yet unwinnable situation.

I suppose in some twisted way I'm grateful for Trudy. Without this noise issue starting at 5:30 a.m. most days, I'd have less motivation to train. But, since I'm up, why not?

If that's not learning how to see the fucking sunny side of life, I don't know what is.

Speaking of training, I had a solid day. My Monday Malaise was long gone, replaced with a Tenacious Tuesday. I enjoyed an interval "cruise speed" run at Balboa Park for more than an hour early this morning. Of all the times to have a camera with me the past two months, this would have been it. The fog from the man-made lakes and creek beds in the nature preserve contributed to a menacing mist that might have given Stephen King chills. I was literally running through clouds of fog, just waiting for Freddy, Jason or Michael to pounce from the brush.

My workout continued at lunch with an incredible strength session at my work gym. I highly recommend this 45-minute program for anyone trying to get an intense full body workout.

2 sets, 15 reps, all done as supersets:

-- 10 minute warmup w/ treadmill or stationary bike

-- Lat pulldowns, dumbell lunges

-- Pushups, step-ups w/ dumbells

-- Close-grip pull-ups, squats

-- Alternating cable bicep curls, cable rope overhead extensions

-- Dumbell kickbacks, calf raises

-- 4x45 second planks

-- 3x20 medicine ball leg raises

-- 5 minutes of abs work

I lumped the planks and abs work together as another superset due to time issues (gotta do some work at the office, right?). This was by far one of the best workouts I've had in a gym since training with the Shan Clan.

Tomorrow, I've got a rare early morning yoga class and an optional bike spin in the evening. Since I missed a workout on Monday, I'll likely do both.

I'm already excited for the day to begin. What a difference a day makes.

Even if that day starts at 5:30 in the morning thanks to a noisy neighbor.

302 days and counting.

Calm Before the Storm

Forget all this triathlon stuff for a second.

I'd like to point out that I correctly predicted the Super Bowl match-ups. That doesn't happen often, even though I listen to sports talk radio during my morning commute and my TV should have the SportsCenter logo burned into the screen by now. So, when I actually get something right like sports picks, I gotta gloat just a little!

OK, now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

I had a "leisurely" brick workout today. Leisurely because there were no Fortius group runs or bike sessions, meaning I could actually try to sleep in a little (which I needed after a fun night out last night at my new favorite local hangout, the Blue Dog Tavern). Today's scheduled included a one-hour running time-trial, followed by a one-hour swim featuring two sets of six 100-yard intervals with descending finish times.

This time, like my Super Bowl picks (last time, I promise), I got the time-trial right. My lactate threshold for the latter 20 minutes of the 30-minute run was 168 bpm, which was 13 beats faster than my TT earlier this week. This time, I ran harder while staying within the limits of zone 4 instead of zone 3.

My reward? New HR zones, courtesy of Coach Gerardo. Not by much, but a couple minor adjustments.

My pace was somewhat troublesome. I ran 9:05-minute miles. I know I'm faster than that and I've run much faster in actual races (anywhere from 7:30-8-minute miles). But, I guess I need to keep trusting this "slower is faster" mantra and believe that in the Surf City Half Marathon in a few weeks I'll be faster. It should be a good test.

The swim was terrific. I didn't feel winded except for the two final 100s at the end of each interval set, when I was trying to reach my 2:05 threshold-pace. I hit them each time, but I was pushing a little to get there. At the end of the workout though, I felt relaxed and refreshed -- comfortable knowing I could go for longer if I needed to.

That's probably the biggest difference my training has made over the past two months. I can tackle more training and not feel nearly as tired, sore or winded the next day.

The rest of the day has been relaxing and leisurely. Though as I lay in bed typing, it seems like I spent a good portion of it racing around town trying to get chores done before for the next series of storms hits Los Angeles on Tuesday. I did laundry, got gas, picked up groceries, paid bills, cleaned my bike... and even managed to watch an entire NFL football game. Believe it or not, I've rarely done that this entire summer, fall and winter, thanks to the training schedule.

Surprisingly, that last part hasn't bothered me really at all. I've noticed something different this year about myself. As I grow older, I've realized that I can either sit at home watching other people do amazing things on television, or I can go out and try to do amazing things myself. And when you realize what amazing feats your body is capable of -- which I firmly believe is true for all of us, watching TV becomes less and less appealing.

Maybe that's why in marketing the coveted 18-34 year-old demographic ends at 34 and not 35.

And with that, I kill the lights and call it a weekend.

304 days and counting.

Time Trial Fail

I screwed up today.

I hate screwing up.

It was a time-trial run day; one hour total with 30 minutes of going as hard as my body could sustain consistently. I didn't quite grasp that last point. Instead, I tried to maintain an even pace where I knew I had fuel left in the proverbial tank, and so my heart-rate was at a low zone 4 (154-168 bpm) by the end of the run.

For most of the 30 minutes, I ran at an even pace between 6.0-6.3 mph, and my heart rate was typically in zone 3 (142-154 bpm). I felt great. The run was pretty easy, in fact. I had a lot more fuel left to burn, which I thought was the point going in. Like yesterday's swim trial. I felt so good that I felt guilty there wasn't a second workout today.

I suppose that should have been a sign that something was amiss.

Coach Gerardo wanted me to run harder. He was surprised that my speed was so low and that my heart-rate average for the 20-minute monitored portion was 155 bpm.

Apparently, I screwed up.

Did I mention I hate screwing up?

Now, I'm re-doing my time trial this Sunday. It's like doing homework over again because you screwed up so bad (there's that phrase again!) that the teacher wants you to start from scratch.

Ugh!

The rest of the day matched my mood following that notification. Damp. Dreary. Blah. (You can see for yourself in the image above, my view today from our Burbank-based offices.) And then to top it off, I read my dad's blog post about being average. Arrgh! However, today was momentous in that I celebrated my sixth-year anniversary working at my company. My job is fantastic. It allows me to grow the position the way I deem fit, while growing my career in exciting new ways. It's challenging, rewarding and flat-out fun. And it gives me the opportunity to train for Ironman guilt-free.

In this economy and at this point in my life, I never lose sight of how lucky I am.

Tomorrow, I'm swimming at the crack of dawn again. This time in Westwood at Equinox with my friend Anat. We both have swims planned, so why not do it together, we figured. With this drippy weather, we need all the motivation we can muster to get out of bed so early.

308 days and counting.

50 Posts...What I've Learned Since Day 1

Wow, I just noticed I've made 50 blog posts.

Thinking back, I've learned a lot in a pretty short amount of time. In fact, in the spirit of all the recent late night talk show drama, here's my Top 10 Things I've Learned About Ironman Training So Far:

10) Pack your car key securely in your runner's belt. Or, it may fall out. Like it did today.

9) Keep a spare car key in your glove compartment. Like I didn't today.

8) Slower eventually equals faster. I can especially see improvement on the bike hill climbs.

7) Kiss Saturdays goodbye. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. equals training.

6) A 9-hour training week (like what I have this week) is now considered easy!

5) Chlorine is not the latest Calvin Klein cologne. It just seems that way.

4) Swimming in the rain is delightful. Running, on the other hand, is not. Cycling is just plain crazy.

3) Triathlon training is expensive. Golf has nothing on this sport!

2) Training with a group like Fortius makes the hours pass quickly.

1) The long hours and sacrifice are totally worth it... I'm an Ironman addict!

***

Set a new personal best today with an approximate 14-mile run (no footpod to confirm though). The Fortius group ran all up and around Griffith Park just hours before the rain hit the Southland. Prior to meeting up with the group, I went on a 30-minute warmup jog and felt tight after yesterday's brick (go figure). Fortunately, teammate David is a sports massage therapist who runs his own practice. He offered to work on my IT bands for a few minutes and it made a huge difference for the remaining two hours, 15 minutes. If you're looking for a good sports massage, I suggest you give David a try. I will again soon.

The run ended uneventfully, until I realized that somewhere along the trail my car key popped out of my running belt holder. Total fail. Fortunately, Coach Gerardo dropped me off at home after breakfast and my buddy TJ brought me back to the car with my spare key. All's well that ends well.

I was then able to drop off some used shoes at Sports Chalet in support of its Soles 4 Souls effort for Haiti earthquake relief. Sports Chalet is accepting used shoe donations through tomorrow, so hurry over there if you have some extra footwear and want to make a difference.

That's it for now. Layin' low and stayin' dry for the rest of the night.

311 days and counting.

Training Saves the Day

Yesterday, my training almost killed me. Literally.

Today, it probably saved me.

I awoke this morning to the soothing sounds of rain splatting downward from the rooftop drains. It was dark, drizzly, and delightfully miserable.

Perfect weather to stay in, rationalize not training, and be a little mopey.

Instead, I donned a hoodie, track pants and my trail runners and took off for Van Nuys-Sherman Oaks park for a damp, muddy one hour, 20-minute training run.

I didn't want to go, I was already warm and comfy inside. But I knew I needed it. Not just the running aspect for my upcoming marathon, but the endorphin rush that came with it.

I didn't sleep well last night. It felt like Phase I of grieving my lost relationship (Denial) had ended and I was spiraling rapidly into a combination Phase II-IV (Anger, Bargaining, Depression) "triple whammy" scenario. Not good. Not healthy.

But, I fought the urge to give in to that dark place. I'd rather fight the rain than the pain, so to speak.

I'm so glad I did. In fact, the sun poked out for a bit about 20 minutes into my slogging/jogging, right after my eight, 20-second hill sprints. It almost felt like a metaphor for me right now in my life... if you accept what appears to be a crappy situation and try to make the best of it, the sun may poke through when you least expect it.

The same thing happened this evening. I had a dentist appointment at 4 p.m. (I need to fill a cavity, dammit!) and found myself with free time around 6. I was at home and could have stayed there, but once again I felt a case of the doldrums closing in. It would have been so easy to sit on the couch and stare at a wall thinking "woe is me!" but I grudgingly rallied and drove to Calabasas to swim 2,800 yards worth of intervals.

Once again, I'm so glad I did. My outlook now is 1,000 times better than when I started fighting traffic on the 101 Freeway to get to the pool. And, I'm physically exhausted, so I should sleep a little better tonight.

In fact, I'm signing off now to go do just that.

315 days and counting.

Progress!

The Valley Coach group met this morning at 8 at the Cheseboro Park in Old Agoura, the site of my first trail run.

The first time I ran it this past November, my IT bands were bothering me around the 12th mile, I had succumbed to peer pressure by running more than I was assigned to, and I ultimately regretted it all day with soreness. In short, not a very fun run.

Not this time.

Decked out in my new Asics 2140GT trail runners and Amphipod running belt, I was ready to run. Perhaps part of the eagerness stemmed from the large contingent of Valley Coach athletes, LA Tri Clubbers and friends of the group who showed up. The energy level was high, as were the jokes and smiles. Even if it was chilly by my own weather-wuss standards, it was a great way to start the day.

The run itself was even more pleasant than expected. What I mean is that after last Sunday's depressing solo jog, I've concluded it's far more fun to chat with friends throughout the duration of the run. Keeps me from thinking about the run itself, or anything else remotely negative. Today, I got to know Lisa (now in her seventh triathlon season) and Paul (a former producer at Electronic Arts responsible for NBA Street, one of my favorite PlayStation 2 games).

Of course, it was still hard to watch most of the runners take off ahead of me from the start. Fortunately, Gerardo's brother Ray stayed with me and kept me company. I'm still confined to zones 1-2 on flat ground and zone 3 heart-rate on the hills, although I'm not sure it would have made much of a difference. Still, I know I'm hitting my goals from Coach Gerardo's workout plan. And I earned some validation from Christina, who said I should be stoked on my weekend performance considering I essentially cycled 60 miles and swam nearly two miles back-to-back, and followed that up today with what was probably at least a 13-mile run. She thinks I could be ready for an Ironman in four months if I wanted to, but that I'll be in spectacular shape by Ironman Arizona. Considering she's done two Ironmans, that praise was very flattering and encouraging.

As the run concluded, I realized that I hadn't bonked, my legs weren't tight or in pain, and that I was still hydrated (for the most part).

Progress! I felt much better than just a month or so ago doing the same run. What a feeling of accomplishment.

After the run, I had my bike tuned up at Bicycle John's in Agoura. If you are local and looking for a great cycling shop, Bicycle John's is my favorite. The staff is knowledgeable and friendly without being pushy. The shop has a nice frequent buyer's plan so you can earn discounts along the way, and the selection of parts, bikes and apparel is first-rate.

From there, I caught up with one of my closest friends, TJ, who was back in town from his Florida vacation. It was nice to reconnect again after two weeks.

Finally, the weekend wound down in what I think will become a new tradition: a "restorative yoga" session at Black Dog Yoga. If you haven't taken a restorative yoga class, especially on a Sunday night, it's the perfect way to segue from the weekend into the week ahead. Most of the poses are relaxing stretches held for long periods of time. The intensity is low, but the relaxation factor is very high, enhanced with aromatherapy oils by request.

The best part of the class is focusing on your inner intention for the moment, and if you'd like, the week ahead. I vowed to take it easy this week on myself in terms of letting go some of the angst from my last relationship, and to take it easy on others should I find my patience running low.

I will try to carry that intention out.

318 days and counting. Namaste.

"He is Beginning to Believe..."

There's a scene in the original "The Matrix" where Neo realizes what he's capable of doing with his mind. It's at that point when his mentor, Morpheus, says, "He is beginning to believe."

That's sort of how I feel about my training right now.

Not that I'm "The One" like Neo. Far from it. What I mean is that after a long workout today of swimming 2,800 yards worth of intervals followed by sprints and heart-rate zone 3 running, I can notice I'm performing better and recovering a little quicker. That's with an increase in swim distance and length while adding some intensity to the run workouts.

I'm beginning to believe that by the time Ironman Arizona rolls around, I will be in better shape and better prepared than I can possibly imagine right now. That's very, very exciting.

It's like knowing I'm about to learn a bunch of kick-ass new powers if I just free my mind, so to speak. I am ready to do that.

I also did today's workout as a brick since I took the day off from work. My buddy Frank offered me his extra ticket to the BCS title game between Texas (he's a UT alum) and Alabama at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

Yes, the same Frank whom I accidentally let a refrigerator slam into his shoulder when we were moving it to his new home. Who's still forced to wear a sling and can't cycle for several weeks.

I'm glad he doesn't hold grudges!

Despite the injury to quarterback Colt McCoy early in the game, Texas fought hard throughout in their 37-21 loss to the Crimson Tide. I was especially impressed with the Longhorns' backup QB, Garrett Gilbert. He's a true freshman and was thrust into the biggest game of his life having only thrown 26 passes his entire college career. It took him a while to believe too (probably the entire first half), but eventually Gilbert got into a rhythm and kept the game closer than it should have been.

Look out for this kid in a couple years. I think he'll be something special.

Of course, as I prepare for bedtime, I checked my upcoming training schedule for the weekend. Just when I'm beginning to believe I'm about to head to that proverbial next level of fitness, that I'm getting the hang of this training regimen...the plan changes. Doesn't it always?

After my day off from training tomorrow (Friday is my new favorite day of the week!), Saturday will feature a four-hour bike ride through the Calabasas-Oak Park area followed by 3,100 yards of tempo-training swim intervals.

Ugh.

Now, I feel like Neo as he leaps off the building thinking he can make it to the other side... only to fall flat on his face on the ground.

Guess that's the only way to get better, right?

Neo dusted himself off and tried again eventually. So will I.

Texas dusted itself off after losing Colt McCoy and fought hard against 'Bama. So will I.

321 days and counting.