Sunday, November 16, 2008

Winter Pineapple Classic 2008




Fueled on chocolate chip oatmeal cookies I baked this morning and fear I lined up with my 3 JFT2 compadres at the 2008 Winter Pineapple Classic 5k for a rough and tumble 3.1 miles. Decked out in out gorgeous mumu's we were obviously in it to win it. Teams of 4 in waves of 20 left every 60 seconds to tackle the obstacle course of doom while maintaining possession of the team pineapple for the duration of the race. The layout of the course and tropically adorned elite competitors made for an formidable set of opponents but in typical fierce JFT2 style we brought it and crushed the competition passing dozens of teams with a cry of "MUMUS ON YOUR LEFT"...ruffles and flowers flying. We were passed by no one and feared by all.

We did not all survive unscathed..there were band aids on knees..oh yes. But no crying..none!

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Base Training Update

It has been a long time since my last post. I spent a good week recovering from Nationals and planning out the rest of the year. Mid October found me at the Salmon Days Festival in Issaquah running the 10k. The morning did not start well. I woke up covered in hives for some reason..nice. Took a few swigs of Benadryl on the way to the race and met up with fellow JFT2'ers. Started too fast of course. HR up to 197...yikes! Ran pretty much balls out the whole way and crossed the like in 57:02..sprinted to the porta potty and hurled. Yuck.

Next up is the Seattle 1/2 Marathon November 30th.

I have been taking a bunch of tests to get ready to start with the coach full time in January. Swim tests, bike testing and most recently..a visit to Seattle Performance Medicine for their "triathlete testing package"

Got to the facility at 8:00 a.m. where I handed my bike to a lab tech and got dressed for the bike. I was put into a room where I laid on a table while they put a bunch of electrodes on me as well as an oxygen/co2 mask. I had to lie there for 30 min so they could calculate my resting metabolic rate. That was the easy part.

Next up was the Vo2 max and blood lactate tests on the bike. They had removed the pedals from my bike and measured the distance of the pedals to the floor and then placed these on their ergometer bike. They measured my seat height and reach as well. Got on the bike with the oxygen mask thingy and they basically would increase the tension on the bike until I was pushing 250 watts in order to gauge my VO2 max. This was really freakin' exhausting but it only took 15 min. I had a rest, drank some calories and did a second lactate test to determine at what point lactate seeps into my legs and makes them feel like lead. Fun!

I got off the bike and after a 10 min. break I changed into run shoes and hit the treadmill. The mask was still on and I was put at a very slow jog (4.9 m.p.h.). They started the test and began to increase the incline every 3 min. by 3%. The test ended when we reached 15% and I gave the thumbs down that I was going to die.

Another break and again on the treadmill for the last test. I was started at 5.0 m.p.h and kept on a flat run with just an increase in speed every 2 min. 5.5,6.0.6.5.7.0, 7.5....DONE!!!

I was told to shower and change while the tester prepared a report. I showered and changed and had enough time to eat before meeting with Brady to go over the results.
Briefly went over the tests with Brady and then met with Dr. Cooper who analyzed the results and gave me some great information.

This had to be the most valuable tool I have ever used in triathlon. They were able to tell that my Vo2 max is good for both the bike and run and that I am definitely at the level of an athlete which is cool! They determined what my AT (aerobic threshold) is at both the bike and run. These numbers will be critical going forward for my coach to design my program. These numbers also showed that I am really pushing at much too high an intensity and I need to slow way down to build up my base. I have been ordered to spend the next 17 weeks swimming, biking and running at nothing greater than zone 2-3 or roughly 10 below my AT. I need to build this long slow distance base to prepare my body for what will probably be a 14-17 hour race in August.

I also learned that my Resting Metabolic Rate is ok at 1759 calories but that I am burning waaaay more protein than I should be. This is due to several factors. I am not consuming enough calories to sustain my training. The doctor wants me to increase calories by at least 1000 and eating before and after the workout is critical. My body is basically running out of carbs and converting my lean muscle mass to carbs to use for fuel which is obviously not good. I am also not burning fat since I am working at such a high intensity.

The report was forwarded to my coach who will use all these numbers to set my intensity levels from here on out.

So while I am still doing 12-15 hours of training per week, the difference is that I will be doing 3 hours of weight training and the rest will be a swim, bike and run an a slow and boring pace. Hopefully after 17 weeks I will have a good base of fitness and be able to start adding speed into the mix.

I sat on the trainer for 2 hours today spinning fast and dreaming about climbing those hills that I love so much. All in good time.