The Pain in the Mass Tour

 



Cool start to a long day

Day 1 of The Pain in the Mass Tour.   Looooong day in the saddle. 115 miles and over 8 hours and the hills were very tough and there were many as evidenced by 9500 feet of climbing. I am not a very good climber and as usual  Wachusett Mountain kicked my a$$. As part of this tour the climb up Wachusett was a timed event so I tried to give it my best to see how quickly I could reach the summit.  I tried to stay conservative on Mile Hill road (which I think is the toughest part of the  climb) but failed.  My heart rate was soaring and I knew it was going to be a slow ride to the summit.  I reached the summit and went through the timing mat and was smoked and had to get off my bike for a few minutes to let my heart rate slow down.  I couldn't stay to long as it was a little chilly atop the mountain. With that climb done it was on to Greenfield, MA via the Quabbin Reservoir area and the endless hill in Shutesbury, MA.  I have ridden The King's Tour of the Quabbin century before so I knew what to expect.  At this point in the ride I was just ridding easy and enjoying the view.  I must say that I am a little burnt out from the Ironman training and the 7 Mile swim the weekend before so it was time to smell the roses.  Once I reached the top of Quabbin it was pretty much down hill from there.  The route took us through Amherst, MA and through the University of Massachusetts campus.  I had never been there before so it was nice to see.   Once through Amherst, we followed the Connecticut River in to Greenfield, MA and Greenfield Community College and our day was done.   The event organizers did a great job having every detailed planned when we arrived.  Our bags we already in the hotel room and they had three 3 Massage therapist to provide relief to sore legs.  Then to top off the day, a nice pasta dinner to refuel for day 2. 

Climbing Wachusett

 

 

Day 2 of Pain in the Mass Tour. Wow what a difficult day of climbing. I have never seen hills like the hills I saw today. Today was a shorter ride but definitely harder.  Right out the door with no warm up after less than a mile, 3 miles of 10-12% grades. That will wake you up and the rest of the day was about the same.  It was like the event organizers searched and found some of the steepest hills in western, MA.  To me the toughest and most challenging part of the day was the half mile climb of Reservoir Road in North Adams, MA just before we  get to Mount Greylock.  It was so steep, I had to stop halfway and almost did not get out of my clip on pedals.  That hill was a bitch and we still had Greylock which at 3491 ft. is the state's tallest mountain. We ascended via Notch Road in North Adams which is the steeper of the two paved roads to the summit, with hairpin turns and some very steep sections in the first half of the climb I had to swerve back and forth to get up some them. As you can see from my average speed for the day (13 MPH) it was a tough day.   At the end of the day the views on top of Mt Greylock were awesome and we got some good group photos. 



I made it!

Beautiful Backdrop

Check out the Devil from the Tour de France

 

 

This event was for a good cause, The Home Away Fund and I want to thank all who made donations.  Your caring and generosity are always appreciated.  This ride is a very professional run event. Having ridden across the country, I have to say this was one of the most challenging rides I have ever done. I encourage everyone to give it a try next year. The best part of the ride is support to the home away fund. Thanks to Peter Femino and crew and all the volunteers for a great weekend. 

Merrimack 10.6k Swim Race Report

7 mile swim route

 

WOW!  That was a long time in the water, 3 hours and 9 Minutes!  My much anticipated marathon swim is complete and I can check off another endurance bucket list event.  The day started off a little chilly as I got out of bed at 5:00 am to 46 degrees temp.  I knew that the water would be warmer than the air so that was not going to be an issue.  The water temp was around 68-70 degrees and was perfect for the swim so I decided to go with my sleeveless wetsuit.  There were 20 other crazy individuals like myself doing the 2nd annual Merrimack 10.6k Swim in the mighty Merrimack River from Tyngsboro to Lowell.  For some reason I was a little nervous about this swim as the farthest I had ever swam before this event at one time was 3 miles. I did not sleep very well the night before as the anticipation of getting this done was on my mind.  

The event was low key and the start was relaxed as we all got in the water and the starter said "if everyone is ready then lets go" and we were off.  The first two or so miles seemed to go by really slow and I did not get the downstream current that I expected.  I guess that is because the river bends and curves.  I had never had to take nutrition on a swim before but this time I stuck two Powerbar Gels into my wetsuit and my kayak support held my bottle of Powerbar Perform.  My strategy was to have a Gel and some perform every 2 miles and that seemed to work well.   During mile 3 or 4 I did hit a good stretch where the current had me going at a very good pace and was hoping it would last to the end but unfortunately it did not.  I just kept relaxed and my pace consistent and I kept on going.  I knew that when I reached the Rourke Bridge there was one mile to go.  It seemed that the bridge would never come.  I told myself that once I could see the bridge I would take my last nutrition and finish the final leg.  As I approached the bridge I wondered if Mary lee would be on it and she was. As I was passing under I placed an order with Mary lee for Dunkin Donuts coffee for me and my Kayak support Jimmy Lombardi.  One mile to go from the bridge and it was the longest mile at least it seemed long.  I finally reached the finish and got out of the water a little wobbly but happy to complete another epic endurance event.  At the end of the day the 6.6 mile swim turned into 7 miles due to zig zagging on the course along the way. I finished 13 out of 21 swimmers but for me this was not a race, it was survival and making sure I could make it to the finish.  You can see my mile splits and map of the swim route by clicking this link: Merrimack 10.6k Swim (7 miles) by pschoenig at Garmin Connect - Details

Ready to go

Swimmers ready 

Approaching the Rourke Bridge in Lowell.  1 Mile to go.

Ordering Dunkin Donuts Coffee from Mary lee on the bridge

Finally done in a little over 3 Hours

Helping my Kayaker Support Jimmy before I cross the finish line

Ironman Lake Placid Race Report

Getting to the starting line

I always said that I had an Ironman in me and now it is complete.  5 months of training and in just under 12 hours the Ironman experience is over.  I am so happy that I committed to this endurance bucket list goal as the entire journey was awesome.  Those of you who know me understand that I will not commit to something unless I know I can be "all in".  For anyone considering doing an Ironman you must be able to commit totally to the journey and sacrifices must be made to ensure that your race day event goes smoothly.  Proper diet, proper rest, scheduling your workouts around your life events, being tired, being grumpy, all required to achieve your goal.  If you want to be a Ironman you must read "So you want to be a triathlete" it sums up the Ironman experience exactly.

Friday - 25 July

First thing on Friday morning I completed my 50 min recovery ride and 20 min recovery run.  Then Mary lee and I packed up the car and headed out on our 5 hour ride to Lake Placid.  We arrived in Lake Placid around 2 p.m. and could feel the excitement of Ironman as soon as we arrived.  We headed over to the convention center to register and pickup my race packet.  The registration and packet pickup was seamless and easy.  The volunteers the entire race weekend did an awesome job and deserve many kudos.  After packet pickup we went to the Olympic speed skating oval for the athlete meeting and listen to the voice of Ironman Mike Reilly explain the race day details. After the meeting I was able to grab a picture with Mike.  

                                                               

The Voice of Ironman Mike Reilly

From there Mary lee and I headed over to Mirror Lake to see the swim layout and to meet my coach Matt Curbeau of QT2 Systems.  Matt is a professional triathlete who guided me along this journey and I would not have been ready without his counsel.  Matt and I went over my race day execution plan and strategy.  Things we discussed were; swim wave seeding, power and heart rate goals on the bike, and pace and heart rate goals on the run.  This was also the first time I had met Matt face to face and thanked him for coming to the race as I was the only athlete he coached that was doing Ironman Lake Placid.  From there Mary lee and I went to the athletes welcome ceremony and then to dinner.  Just before dinner I had two very important phone calls to my kids to let them know I was about to do something very special and it had nothing to do with Ironman. 

After dinner, I talked Mary lee into going back down to Mirror lake to have another look at the swim location.  At this point in the day the sun had set and it was starting to get dark.  When we got to the base of Mirror lake right at the monument for the Ironman, I started talking about the commitment and dedication that the 2700 athletes had to have to get to this point and how I had that same commitment and dedication for her and that I loved her.  I got down on one knee and she says "what are you doing?"  After 4 1/2 years together I asked her to marry me and she said YES!.  The race was 36 hours away and I was already a winner. Newly engaged, we went and got some ice cream and the day was over. I love you Mary lee.

The spot where she said yes!

Saturday - 26 July

Saturday was going to be a long boring day for me as I needed to stay off my feet most of the day and relax.  Before that could happen I had to take care of some last minute details.  The morning started early with a quick swim in Mirror Lake before a nice big breakfast and pre race talk hosted by QT2 Systems.   After that it was off to drop my bike and bags in the transition area and then back to the hotel to rest all day long while Mary lee explored the Village of Lake Placid.

Morning Swim Complete

Mary lee at the spot of our engagement

ML showing off her new engagement ring

Sunday - 27 July

Swim Strong - 1:07

Can you find me at the start?

Race day is finally here and the weather does not look promising.  Driving to the start there was a slight rain and gray skies.  The thing with Lake Placid weather is it changes constantly.  As we await the start of the race, the sun tries to break through ever so slightly giving us hope that the rain will stay away.  The cannon went off at 0630 for the start of the age group swim and utilizing the new rolling swim start I was in the water about 2 minutes later.   I had seeded myself near the front of the 1:01 - 1:10 minute swim finish projection hoping to get a draft off a good swimmer.   Once I hit the water I immediately ran into traffic bumping into swimmers.  I then shifted myself to the right of the buoy's to get some clear water.  I  finally got into a rhythm and was knocking off buoy after buoy until I got to the turning buoy.  As expected it got congested again as all swimmers were diverging to the turn buoy.   I was able to get through without much fanfare other than an occasional foot tap or arm to the head.  It was a quick swim to the next turn buoy with the same congestion.  I again positioned myself right of the buoy's and headed back to the start.  I felt good and was swimming strong.  After 1 lap my time was 32:04 and I was very happy with it.
As I exited the water I spotted Mary lee in the balcony of the boat house and I waived to her.




Photo from local newspaper

 On to lap 2. I was still feeling great and swimming smooth but swimmer traffic was more congested. By now all 2700 athletes were in the water so I was doing lots of dodging left and right of swimmers. With about half a mile to go it got really dark out and it started to rain.   I found some occasional clear water and felt like I was swimming fast but by the time I complete my swim my time was 1:07:23 for a 2nd lap time of 35:19.  After the race when I downloaded my swim GPS data it showed that I swam 2.57 miles, .17 miles longer than the 2.4 mile distance.  All that dodging back and forth cost me some time.  I made it out of the swim and headed to transition in the rain.  The next couple of hours would be very interesting.

Bike Smart - 5:58:43
The distance from the beach to the transition area is the longest I have ever seen in a triathlon, just under a 1/2 mile.  Even though it's long it is awesome.  The crowds are so large along the way it is like being in the Tour de France.  I made it to the transition area, got my bike bag, headed to the changing tent and then headed out on my bike.  The transition went smoothly because of the great job that the race volunteers do.



Just a little bit of rain

As soon as I mounted my bike the sky opened up with torrential down pour with thunder and lightning and thought to myself that this is going to be a long day.   As I headed out of T1 to start the first 56 mile loop,  I immediately started my nutrition and hydration plan and pedaled easy for the first few miles and got my heart rate in check.  The rain was coming down in buckets which helped in the conservative start that was part of my race execution plan.  The first 6-7 miles after leaving town are all up hill and you don't want to smoke yourself right from the start.  I then got to the top of the hills and was ready for the fast 6 mile descent to the town of Keene.  That descent on a dry day is nerve racking enough but during this driving rain made the pucker factor a little bigger.  What made it hard is I had to squint my eyes as the rain was pelting me in the face.  I did my best to stay off the brakes but was riding them on a couple of areas.    Not a relaxing time as I was hitting speeds of 45-47 mph.  I finally reached the bottom without incident and made it to the flat section of the loop.  This was the best part of the course as we also had a little tail wind.  I got into a nice cadence and was easily riding 20-23 mph along this section.  I continued to drink as my coach told me I had to pee at least twice during the entire bike section and was worried if I did not pee I would be dehydrated for the run.  Well after 45 miles the rain stopped and on the last section of the first loop I finally had to pee and if you are a good triathlete you pee on your bike while riding to save time.  I could not do it so I used a rest stop.  Shortly after that I finally came upon the three hill section called Mama Bear, Baby Bear, and Papa Bear signaling the end of the first loop.  You could see the crowd of spectators in the distance along Papa Bear and it was great to have them there to cheer you on over the final hill of lap one.  Soon after that I was on Mirror Lake Drive heading into town where the crowds were enormous.  I soaked it all in and headed out to do it all over again.  Split of first lap 3:00:29.

Photo Credit: Steffo Photography

The second loop was not much different than the first except that it was dry and the sun came out.  After taking the first lap conservatively,  I went a little bit harder on the flat section on lap 2 to see if I could make up a little time and try to have a negative split which means doing the second lap faster than the first.  My race execution plan was working, I kept up with my nutrition plan eating every half hour and drinking two bottles of perform sports drink every hour.   I felt great and headed into town with a  second lap split of 2:58:13.

Run to Survive - 4:32:18

I hit T2 feeling good about my ride and knew that the hard part was about to start.  I jumped off my bike and handed it to another great volunteer.  My legs felt a little wobbly as I headed to get my transition bag and into the changing tent where another volunteer assisted me with my running gear and run nutrition items.  I switched shirts, got my shoes on and off I was to do a full marathon.  1997 was the last time I ran a marathon and I knew what was coming. The run course is two 13.1 mile loops.  My race execution plan called for me to go out slow running the first two miles at 9:15 per mile pace until my heart rate settled and got my legs under me and to do 20 second power walks at each water stop.  The first two miles are down hill and the crowds are big so I tried to keep calm and run slow.  I missed my targets; Mile 1 - 8:24, Mile 2 - 8:38.  I finally settled down and was doing fine as my goal was to run a 4:00 Marathon.  Split after first loop 1:58.  



 The second loop was not much fun.  At mile 15,  I started feeling nausea and could no longer take

Feeling good for now

eating my cliff shots bloks  which were part of my nutrition plan.  The sugar was just to much and I abandoned my nutrition plan and just took water and occasional sport drink.  The plan now was survival to the finish.  Run from aid station to aid station.  The 20 second power walks turned into 30-35 second shuffles pouring water and ice over my head while trying to keep focused on moving forward.  My mental toughness was being challenged and I walked more than I should have.  With 4 miles to go I had one hour left to break 12 hours for the day.  I kept telling myself, I got this, stay under 15 Min miles and your goal will be met.  I kept having a conversation with myself and having that internal struggle about walking versus running.  In the end I convinced myself that if I did not break 12 hours after all the work I put into getting here the day would be a failure and I would not be happy with myself.  All I had to do was get past mile 23 and 24, the two major hills on the run course which I walked on the first loop.  Once past them you are home free in town with the energy of the crowds and the anticipation of running into the Olympic Speed skating oval and on to the finish. Well I got through the hills and saw my coach and he asked me "what do you think of the Ironman experience"  My response "I'm smoked"
With two miles to go he sent me off with encouraging words "go and get it done"  With that I picked up the pace and headed for the finish.  Coming into the Olympic Oval was awesome and  I was all alone.  I made the turn and raised my arms while Mike Reilly announced my arrival and said "Philip Schoenig you are an Ironman" .

 After 5 months of training and a long day of racing the Ironman experience was over.  What I will remember more than the race itself is the 5 month journey that got me here.  The commitment and the dedication to the cause and the support of the woman I love.  Thank you Mary lee! Thank you for always being there for me and supporting every crazy thing I do and thank you for saying YES! I love you.  

ML and I 

4 Weeks to IMLP - Training Summary

All the hard work is done and like all us Ironman wannabes, the sweat sure did roll off the body these past two weeks.  I was both mentally and physically exhausted after my last workout sunday night and was overcome by the emotion of it all.   When I was running the fifth and last repeat mile I knew I was about to complete nearly 5 months of training that will take me into the battle against the clock at Lake Placid.  I had a sense of joy and accomplishment just getting to this point and there is still 3 weeks to go before I toe the line.  Like with all things that take a while to accomplish, you need to cherish the small victories along the way and I was enjoying having reached this point.  Some of the highlights of the past 2 weeks of training included a sub 7 min mile pace 5k I did last saturday,  (I have not been sub 7 in a long, long time) the monster set, the always tough 2 x 30 min Z3 Tempo ride and lastly the 5 x 1 mile repeats with 3 minutes rest between miles at best sustainable effort. 

It's now TAPER time!  Time to get the mind and body ready for the 140.6 mile journey.  For me that started with a nice massage today at Elements Massage in Acton, MA and it sure felt good to get all the soreness worked out.  I scheduled another four days from race day and look forward to that.  

I started yesterday with a quick 35 min open water recovery swim and had no workout today so it feels a little funny having almost two days off from training.  With that I need to watch what I am eating as these past two weeks allowed me to have lots of calories.  I don't need to add ten pounds of weight back before race day so as the TAPER acronym says above, I need to embrace the free time and adjust my calorie intake.  The biggest thing I will do now besides doing some specificity training is to rest and recover.  I need to get as much sleep as I can as that is when the body recovers best.  I am confident in the work I have put in and look forward to racing Ironman Lake Placid.  

Below is a recap of the last two weeks of training and you can view the results at Garmin Connect

Monday Jun 23, 2014

Swim

Zone R
Duration: 00:35:00

Open Water Recovery Swim

Swim at your perceived ZR pace in open water.

Tuesday Jun 24, 2014

Bike

Zone 3
Duration: 01:50:00

Tempo Ride (Z3)

Warmup:
20 min into Z1
Main Set:
2 X (30 min @ Z3, 5 min @ ZR/Z1)
Cooldown:
To final ride time @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)
**Keep cadence at 90 rpm throughout

Run

Zone 1
Duration: 00:40:00

Z1 T Run (LAST mile @ Z2)

Run the LAST mile at Z2. The rest will all be at Z1.

Wednesday Jun 25, 2014

Run

Zone 2
Duration: 01:15:00

Z1/Z2 Run - AM

Run 43 minutes at Z1, then 32 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the run and finish toward the top of Z2.

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 00:50:00
Distance: 2600 yds

Speed Set Swim

Warmup:
1000 continuous @ TT+10 sec
Main Set:
2 X (Best sustainable repeats of: 300 on TT+10 sec)
5 X 200 pull on TT+10 sec swam at TT+5 sec

Run

Zone 1
Duration: 01:15:00

Z1 Run - PM

Zone 1 Run. Make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout.

Thursday Jun 26, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:40:00
Distance: 4900 yds

Monster Set

Warmup/Main Set:
o Pull 1000
o 9 X 100
o 4 X 200 Paddles
o 7 X 100
o Pull 600
o 5 X 100
o 2 X 200 Paddles

All sets completed continuously on TT pace + 10 sec ; all 100's & 200's completed at Best Sustainable Effort **Record average pace for 100's and 200's**

Friday Jun 27, 2014

Bike

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:30:00

Speed Work

Warmup:
20 min @ ZR/Z1
Main Set:
8 X (2.5 min interval, 2.5 min recovery @ ZR)
**Use best sustainable effort through all intervals**
Cooldown:
to final ride time @ ZR/Z1

Run

Zone R
Duration: 00:20:00

ZR T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration @ ZR with a cadence of at least 88 steps per minute.

Saturday Jun 28, 2014

Bike

Zone 1
Duration: 01:40:00

Z1 Ride

**Make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout during base phase and 90+ during build phase!

Run

Zone R
Duration: 00:35:00

ZR T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration @ ZR with a cadence of at least 88 steps per minute.

RACE! 5K Best Sustainable Effort Duration

Distance: 5 km

Sunday Jun 29, 2014

Bike

Zone 2
Duration: 05:30:00

Z1/Z2 Ride

Bike 236 minutes at Z1, then 94 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the ride and finish toward the top of Z2. Keep cadence at 90+ rpm.

Run

Zone 1
Duration: 01:00:00

Z1 T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration at zone and make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout.

Monday Jun 30, 2014

Swim

Zone 1
Duration: 00:50:00

Open Water Steady Swim

Swim at your perceived Z1 pace in open water.

Practice:

Sighting by choosing an object (house, car, lifeguard chair, etc) to swim toward, and lifting head slightly every few strokes to check course

Tuesday Jul 1, 2014

Bike

Zone 3
Duration: 01:45:00

Tempo Ride (Z3)

Warmup:
20 min @ Z1
Main Set:
2 X (30 min @ Z3, 5 min @ ZR/Z1)
Cool down: To final ride time @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel) **Keep cadence at 90 rpm throughout

Run

Zone 1
Duration: 00:45:00

Z1 T Run (1st mile Z2)

Run the 1st mile off of the bike @ Z2 and the remainder at Z1.

Wednesday Jul 2, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:00:00
Distance: 3200

Speed Set Swim

Warmup:
1000 continuous @ TT+10 sec
Main Set:
2 X (Best sustainable repeats of: 600 on TT+10 sec)
5 X 200 pull on TT+10 sec swam at TT+5 sec

Run

Zone 2
Duration: 02:00:00

Z1/Z2 Run

Run 90 minutes at Z1, then 30 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the run and finish toward the top of Z2.

Thursday Jul 3, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:25:00
Distance: 4200 yds

Open Water Miles of Misery

Warm-up:
o 2 X (50 kick/50 fist/50 free/50 pull/50 no kick)
o 4 X 50 no kick (speed dictated by need to stay afloat), 10 seconds between sets.
Main Set:
o 2 x 1600 at sustainable best effort (2 minutes between sets). **Record time for each....combine time for score, make sure the second one is NOT slower than the first**
Cool down: 2 X 100 easy as 50 fist, 50 free. 5 breaths rest in between sets 1 X 100 easy kick

Friday Jul 4, 2014

Bike

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:30:00

Speed Work

Warmup:
20 min @ ZR/Z1
Main Set:
5 X (5 min interval, 3 min recovery @ ZR)
**Use best sustainable effort through all intervals**
Cooldown: to final ride time @ ZR/Z1

Run

Zone R
Duration: 00:35:00

ZR T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration @ ZR with a cadence of at least 88 steps per minute.

Saturday Jul 5, 2014

Bike

Zone 1
Duration: 06:00:00

Z1 Ride

**Make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout during base phase and 90+ during build phase!

Run

Zone 1
Duration: 00:55:00
Distance: 0

Z1 T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration at zone and make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout.

Sunday Jul 6, 2014

Bike Zone 1
Duration: 02:00:00

Z1 Ride (2 x 30 low cad)

**Make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout during base phase and 90+ during build phase! **Insert 2 X 30 minutes at Z1 and a cadence of 60-70rpm during 2nd half of workout, with 5 min at Z1 and 90rpm between each**

Run

Best Sustainable Effort
Duration: 01:30:00

Speed Work

Warmup:
30 min @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)
Main Set: 5 X (1 mile repeats, with 3 minutes recovery between each)
**Use best sustainable effort through all intervals**
Cooldown: To final run time @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)

Gotta Love the Monster Set

This workout is an ass kicker.  20,710 yards of swimming in the last 12 days.  Blows my mind that I have swam almost 12 miles in two weeks.    

 

 



6 Weeks to IMLP - Training Summary

This past week was a pretty light week as I had a 3 Mile Open water swim race on Saturday.  I completed the 3.09 miles in 1 Hour 28 minutes for a 1:37/100yd pace.  I was hoping to go a little faster as my swim training has been going well.  I wish I had set my watch to give me splits at 1.2 and 2.4 to see if the extra 6/10th of a mile slowed my overall pace.  At the end of the day I completed the swim and felt great during the entire race.   I also switched to a sleeveless wetsuit and felt much more comfortable and less restricted in the shoulders. 

I had a great brick workout going yesterday until the wheels came off 7 miles into my 60 minute run.  I was able to cover almost 60 miles at 20.2 mph on the bike and was averaging 7:45 per mile until I came unhinged. My nutrition plan was working well but I did not have any fluids on the run which is probably what caused me to slow way down.  Additionally, I had been researching the benefits of Beet Root Juice as it relates to stamina and decided to give it a chance as I drank a shot of a product called Beet-It, which is a British company that makes concentrated beet juice.  It is way to early to make any conclusions as the sample size is one but I sure had a great day yesterday. 

These next 2 weeks are going to be my peak training weeks in my 20 week training plan for Ironman Lake Placid. This week will be 19 hours of training and next week 20 hours.  I will be getting "comfortable with being uncomfortable."  I will continue to use and repeat my mantra for this Ironman training "Keep calm and be efficient".  

5 weeks to go until I toe the line at Mirror lake and I feel good about where I am with my training.  My body is holding up well and mentally I take one day at a time and focus on the next workout.  These next two weeks will be challenging and I look forward to the grind. 

 

6 Weeks to IMLP  - Training Summary 

Monday Jun 16, 2014

Swim

Zone 1

Duration: 00:30:00

Distance: 0

Open Water Steady Swim

Swim at your perceived Z1 pace in open water.

Practice:

Sighting by choosing an object (house, car, lifeguard chair, etc) to swim toward, and lifting head slightly

every few strokes to check course

Tuesday Jun 17, 2014

Bike

Zone R

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 0

ZR Ride

**Stay at the lower end of zone R if you feel you need the recovery. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout!

Run

Zone 2

Duration: 00:40:00

Distance: 0

Z1/Z2 T Run (as you feel)

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Start the run in Z1 and descend pace (if you feel

good) throughout the run into Z2. Finish toward the top of Z2.

Wednesday Jun 18, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 01:10:00

Distance: 4000

Specificity Set #1

Warmup:

none

Main Set:

15 x 50 best effort on TT+10

2 x 600 best effort on TT+10

10 x 50 best effort on TT+10

Cooldown:

1550 easy pull

Thursday Jun 19, 2014

Bike

Zone 2

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 0

Z1/Z2 Ride (as you feel)

Start the ride in Z1 and descend pace (if you feel good) throughout the ride into Z2. Finish toward the top

of Z2.

**Keep 90 rpm throughout

Run

Zone R

Duration: 00:20:00

Distance: 0

ZR T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration @ ZR with a cadence of at least 88

steps per minute.

Friday Jun 20, 2014

OFF

Duration: 00:00:00

Distance: 0

Rest

Saturday Jun 21, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 01:30:00

Distance: 0

Open Water 3 Mi Race

Bike

Zone R

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 0

ZR Ride

**Stay at the lower end of zone R if you feel you need the recovery. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout!

Sunday Jun 22, 2014

Bike

Zone 2

Duration: 03:00:00

Distance: 0

Z1/Z2 Ride

Bike 90 minutes at Z1, then 90 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the ride and finish toward the

top of Z2. Keep cadence at 90+ rpm.

Run

Zone 2

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 0

Z1/Z2 T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run 25 minutes at Z1, then 35 minutes @ Z2.

Descend the pace throughout the run and finish toward the top of Z2.

Quassy Rev3 Half Iron Distance - Race Recap

First big test of the year and I think that I am on track for Ironman Lake Placid with lots of work still to do.  This past weekend I completed Quassy Revolution 3 Half Distance on a very tough hilly bike and run course in 5 Hours and 26 Minutes.  The race was located in Middlebury, CT and the conditions for racing were perfect.

Race Week Taper

Race week started out nice and easy and I needed it as I was smoked from the previous week build phase.  I focused on rest and recovery for most of the week while getting ready for the trip down to CT.  Towards the end of the week I got with my coach to go over the pre race carb load protocol, race pacing and nutrition plan.  QT2 Systems has this all worked out for you and takes the guessing out of it.  They even have it timed out for you.

Pre Race Carb Load


The plan you see on the left is my Ironman pre race carb load which is a two day protocol.  For this 1/2 Ironman race my timeline started with the LARGE Dinner! 2 days before the race.  You will notice that there are no veggies and little fat during this time frame.  The day before the race I got up early and did my light bike and run workout and then headed to Bickford's Pancake house for my BIG Breakfast.  I have not had a breakfast like this in months.  I ordered a stack of three pancakes, 2 eggs, home fries, and white toast with a cup of decaf coffee.  The waitress said "you must be hungry"  To be honest I did not think I would eat it all but I did and I enjoyed every bit of it.   The rest of the day while driving down to CT,  I just followed the timeline.  It seemed like I was continually eating all day.  The only think I missed was the english muffin and jelly at 3:00 as I was at the pre race meeting.




Race Pacing Plan

Being that this race is really hilly on both the bike and the run, the focus was to swim steady, bike conservative and save the legs for the run.  That was the plan so lets see how well I did.

Race Day Nutrition Plan

I woke up at 0400 (not really as it felt like I never slept) and had my breakfast at 0415 which was 3 hours from my wave swim start.  The apple sauce, banana, protein mix has worked really well for me and I have been using it before my long weekend brick workouts.  I putzed around for about an hour getting my gear bag finalized and put on my race number tattoos and and headed down to lobby for a shuttle ride to the transition area.  I was a little early and was offered a ride from QT2 athlete Kendra McDowell and gladly accepted.  We arrived at transition with plenty of time to set things up and head to the beach for a warm up swim.  It was a cool morning in the low 50's but was going to warm up nicely.


1.2 Mile Swim - 33:33    

Swim Course

I got to the beach and headed into the water for a warm-up.  Within 2 minutes I had a head on collision with another swimmer with both of us going at full pace.  Wow, that really woke me up.  I still have a lump on my head from the impact.  It took me a minute or so to get my composure back. I then swam in a direction where there was no one else swimming to complete my warm up.  My wave had 100 starters for all males 50-59 and 58 of them were in my 50-54 age group and started at 0715 .   At 0700 I took my caffeinated power gel and 8oz of water and waited for the start.  at 0715 and I was off.  I took a position to the right close to the sighting buoy's and went out at a brisk pace to get clear of the traffic.  I tried to catch a draft but was unsuccessful as I was swimming faster than the person I was trying to draft off.  I settled into a comfortable pace and swam from site buoy to site buoy.  Things went well with sighting until my first right turn.  The sun was bright and made seeing the buoy's difficult and I went a little bit wide and that cost me a little distance and time.  I was able to get back on track by looking at other swimmers ahead of me and the life guards on paddle boards.  Sighting after the second right turn was not an issue and I was able to increase my pace a little.  I completed the swim in 33:33  and was happy with my effort.  After the swim, my wave place was 8/100 and age group place was 6/58

56 Mile Bike - 3:01:33 

Bike course and Elevation Profile

As I headed into T1 bike transition I started to get out of my wetsuit while trying to keep calm and be efficient.  I got to the bike and again I had a issue getting my feet out of the wet suit. I remained calm but it took me longer than it should have and probably cost me 45 seconds in transition.  I got my cleats, helmet and was on my way.  I immediately started my nutrition plan and started to drink.  My plan was for me to drink five 24oz bottles of power bar sports drink during the entire ride to ensure I was not dehydrated for the run.  Peeing once during the 56 mile ride would be a good indicator to know if I was hydrated enough.  I did not pee at all during the entire race so my fluid intake needs to increase.  Goal of the bike ride was to keep my wattage down during the hill sections of the course so my legs would not be toast for the run.  I did my best but my bike is a 9 speed 12x25 with a standard crank which caused me to have lots of low cadence and wattage spikes.  I did stay within my self and my heart rate was kept a manageable level.  There was one section of the course that included a 7

mile steady climb which definitely increases your wattage and lowers you average speed.  The rest of the ride was uneventful and I finished in 3:01:33.  After the bike, my wave place was 9/100 and age group place was 6/58. 

13.1 Mile Run - 1:47:13

Run Course and Elevation Profile 

I made my way into T2 and got my sneakers, hat and run nutrition and headed out on the run course.  The dreaded run was on my mind all week as I did not know what to expect.  The first two miles were down hill and my race plan called for me to run conservative as there were many hills coming.  My coach wanted my first mile to be around 7:45 and control my heart rate.  I came through at 7:35 so I adjusted my pace and settled in knocking off mile after mile and eating 1 cliff blok every mile.  Miles 4-7 is where the fun began with the sustained hill climb.  I just kept my feet moving and kept my heart rate steady.  When the down hill sections came I tried to gain some time back.  The middle of the course was rolling and manageable.  At about mile 9, we ran by the finish line which was a nice downhill and I was able to get in a 7:35 mile in.  Miles 10-12 were not to bad but mile 12 was a ball buster.  I kept moving but I may have been able to walk faster.  Once I crested that last hill it was a nice small down hill to the finish and my race was over.  After the run, my wave place for the entire race was 8/100 and age group place was 8/58.  Overall place was 122/745. 

Post Race Coaching Analysis

My 2001 Cervelo One Triathlon Bke

We all have this technology to record our data but if you do not use it is just data.  So a day after the race my coach went over the data to see what we can learn from it and use it in preparation for Ironman lake placid.  As you can clearly see from my power profile of the race,  the shaded areas are the areas of high wattage and low cadence and these are called "run killers"  in my case I had 9 miles of wattage greater than 300 and 19.66 miles of cadence between 25 and 75.  My run could have been better if I managed the bike better.  Granted the run course was hilly but there may have been gains to be had.  So what are the adjustments we made based on this data?  As I said earlier, my bike is a 9 speed 12x25 with a standard crank.  So the adjustment I made was taking the compact crank I had on my Fuji Altamira and put it on my Cervelo Tri bike, Both were shimano 105's.  I also changed out the 12x25 rear cassette to a 12x27 cassette.  This will now allow me to be able to spin more on the hills and control the high wattage and low cadence which will help my legs for the Lake placid run.  I will have my first ride with this configuration on Saturday which is scheduled to be a 4 hour ride.  We will see how it goes.  Another adjustment I need to make is drink more on the bike I will also do more of that in my training. 

At this point in my Ironman Lake Placid Journey (50 days to go) I am happy with my progress on all levels.  I started out the year at 213lbs and at this mornings weigh in I was 187lbs.  My original race weight goal was 190 but am now targeting 180.  The weight loss without a doubt has helped my running.  7 weeks to go and much more work needs to be done.  My next event in preparation for lake placid is on June 21st with the Mashpee 3 Mile Open Water Swim - Mashpee, MA  Thanks for following.

Phil

10 Weeks to IMLP - Training Summary

Felt great going into this training week but by the end I was smoked and had nothing in the tank for my Sunday workouts.  This was my toughest week so far and the end of build 2 as depicted in my training plan below.  This taper week could not have come at a better time. 

I think what did me in besides being old was the three workout Wednesday and the double on Friday.  Both of those workouts had some speed tempo work.  By the time Saturdays 2x30 Low cadence session came along I was starting to come unhinged.  I had no motivation and was not looking forward to my workouts.  It was tough getting through that session and Sunday was a total slogfest.  I rode only 3 hours of a scheduled 4:15 ride and was able to complete my 50 min run.

That was last week and time to move on.  The week is starting off great with a day off from training today, Memorial Day and I even got a massage.  This week is a total recovery/taper week as I race Quassy Rev 3 Half Iron on Sunday and see how well my training is going.    The highs and lows of training are all part of the journey that gets you there and at the end of the day the lows are what make you stronger. 

Total training hours this week: 14:30

Monday May 19, 2014

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 3000 yds

 

Big Set (Light)

Warmup:

o 400 swim/300pull/200 swim/100 kick

o 2 X 50 all out

Main Set:

o 400 Time Trial

o 100 easy pull

o 200 Time Trial

o 100 easy pull

o 200 Time Trial

o 100 easy pull

o 5 X 100 on TT + 10 sec as:

1st 100 steady, 2nd with last 25 hard, 3rd with last 50 hard, 4th with last 75 hard and 5th 100 as a time

trial.

**Record times for the 400, both 200’s and the last 100. Add them together for your score. Rest time

between

sets should be about 2-3 minutes as 100 easy pull**

 

Cooldown:

o 3 X 100 easy as 50 fist, 50 free. 5 breaths rest in between sets

 

Tuesday May 20, 2014

Bike

Zone 3

Duration: 01:30:00

Distance: 0

 

Tempo Ride (Z3)

Warmup:

30 min @ Z1

Main Set:

2 X (15 min @ Z3, 5 min @ ZR/Z1)

Cooldown:

To final ride time @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)

**Keep cadence at 90 rpm throughout

 

Run

Zone 1

Duration: 00:40:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1 T Run (1st mile Z2)

Run the 1st mile off of the bike @ Z2 and the remainder at Z1.

Strength

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 00:15:00

Distance: 0

 

TRX (upper)

All TRX exercises are for 2 sets of 10 reps. Take 30 seconds between exercises.

- Atomic Push-up

- Side Plank (work up to 30 seconds each side)

- Plank (work up to 30 seconds)

- TRX Back Extentions

- Single Arm Rotating Row

- Swimmers Pull

- Standing Y

- Swim Cord Routine (non TRX)

 

Wednesday May 21, 2014

 

Run

Zone 2

Duration: 00:50:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1/Z2 Run - AM

Run 30 minutes at Z1, then 20 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the run and finish toward the

top of Z2.

 

Bike

All Out

Duration: 01:00:00

Distance: 0

PPT's

Warmup:

20 min @ ZR

Main Set:

10 X (30 seconds all out at 105+ rpm, 2.5 min total rest)

Cooldown:

to final ride time @ ZR

 

Run

Zone 1

Duration: 00:50:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1 T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration at zone and make sure you descend the

pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward

the top by the end of the workout.

 

Thursday May 22, 2014

 

Swim

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 00:45:00

Distance: 2500

 

Strength Set

Warmup:

1000 Free @ Z1

Main:

10 x 100 ankle band -- speed dictated by need to stay afloat. chose an interval that gives 30 seconds rest.

Cooldown:

500 EZ paddles @ Z1

 

Friday May 23, 2014

 

Bike

Best Sustainable Effort

Duration: 01:45:00

Distance: 0

 

BST's

Warmup:

 

20 min @ ZR/Z1

 

Main Set:

3 X (10 min interval @ 55-60 RPM, 4 min easy recovery @ 90 rpm, 3 X (1 min @ 105+ RPM easy

recovery, 1 min @ 90 RPM easy recovery))

**Use best sustainable effort through all intervals**

 

Cooldown:

To final ride time @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)

 

Run

Zone 2

Duration: 01:10:00

Distance: 0

 

Over/Unders

Warmup:

10 min @ Z1

 

Main Set:

3 X (1 mile @ Z1, 1 mile @ Z2)

 

Cooldown:

5 min @ ZR/Z1 (as you feel)

 

Saturday May 24, 2014

 

Swim

Zone R

Duration: 00:30:00

Distance: 1800 yds

 

Timing/Rotation Drill Set

Main Set:

300 Swim, 100 Skate, 100 Pull

200 Swim, 100 Skate, 100 Pull

100 Swim, 100 Skate, 100 Pull

**For pulls, focus on good rotation will belly facing side of pool after each stroke**

3 times through:

2 x 25 right arm -- 5 seconds rest between sets

50 free -- focus on connecting shoulders to hips

2 x 25 left arm -- 5 seconds rest between sets

50 free -- focus on connecting shoulders to hips

 

Bike

Zone 1

Duration: 01:30:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1 Ride (2 x 30 low cad)

**Make sure you descend the pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone

1 and work your way toward the top by the end of the workout. Keep cadence at 95+ throughout during

base phase and 90+ during build phase!

**Insert 2 X 30 minutes at Z1 and a cadence of 60-70rpm after a 15 min WU, with 5 min at Z1 and 90rpm

between each**

 

Sunday May 25, 2014

 

Bike

Zone 2

Duration: 04:15:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1/Z2 Ride

Bike 205 minutes at Z1, then 48 minutes @ Z2. Descend the pace throughout the ride and finish toward

the top of Z2. Keep cadence at 90+ rpm.

 

Run

Zone 1

Duration: 00:50:00

Distance: 0

 

Z1 T Run

Start your T run within 10 minutes after the bike ride. Run duration at zone and make sure you descend the

pace by getting faster throughout the workout. Start at the lower end of zone 1 and work your way toward

the top by the end of the workout.