Today, I'm feeling something that becomes all too rare during the long, Wisconsin off-season (otherwise known as winter). No, I'm not talking about sun-burn.
I'm talking about the widely familiar burn our muscles feel after a solid workout. Many of my winter workouts are base building. And though base workouts are vital for a successful race season, there is something about the "feel good" pain associated with a challenging workout.
My current muscle aches are related to workouts from Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday's swim was scheduled to be a longish workout of 2500 yards. My earplugs weren't cooperating, and I was getting water into my left ear. That happens to be the one with the ruptured ear-drum, so letting water in is a bad idea. Lucky for me, I'm a right side breather, so I was still able to complete 1000 yards.
Since 1500 yards represents a bit more than 30 minutes of my time, I decided to make an extra appearance in the weight room for some core body exercises. I ran through a more rigorous series than I've done for some time. My abs and glutes are paying the price, even two days later.
Yesterday, I hit the track for my MWSLR (mid-week sorta long run). I put in two sets of 10 x 20 second strides, with 40 seconds between strides. For those unfamiliar with the term, strides are speedwork designed to increase turnover. For the 20 second stride, I target 33 left foot strikes, for a cadence of 100. As we get closer to the race season, I'll work on increasing the cadence toward 120.
I'll never race at that cadence, but doing the strides helps increase turnover during normal running. And it tends to push me toward LT, adding the benefits that provides.
Needless to say, 20 minutes of quality speedwork the day after a solid core body workout has my body feeling the burn. And this is a good thing. It means the long and boring runs of the winter "off season" are over.
And that means the race season is approaching rapidly. And that, my friends, is what all the work for the past several months is all about.
I spent last night racing against some of the world's best cyclists as they completed stage five of the Amgen Tour of California. And while I had a much easier (and shorter) ride than they faced, the sprinters still KILLED me at the end of the race.
Race season offers the opportunity to get in some training while watching the races. With the bike on the trainer, I started the workout watching E.R. Since I was a bit late getting going, I had to continue my ride after the show was over. I flipped over to Versus so I could "race" against the peloton in the ToC stage.
For the purpose of "realism" I established some simple guidelines for the workout. While the race was on, I had to be in the big ring with a low gear and keep cadence with the cyclists on T.V. That forced me to push my heart rate and work the legs. Commercials were for active recovery. That works really well, because it creates an irregular pattern of higher and lower heart rate efforts, while keeping a bit of control of the time spent at either level.
I was only about 90 minutes in when the peloton reached the finish line. Despite their being better than 100 miles ahead of me, there is NO WAY I could have kept up with them in the sprint to the line. Cavendish hit nearly 40 miles an hour in that final push. Amazing!
Regardless, using the race coverage translated into a more intense workout than might be achieved watching "regular" T.V. It might be time to invest in some cycling videos so I can use them when there isn't a race being broadcast.
In an odd twist of fate, yesterday started and ended much the same.
I was up early to get to the YMCA for a run workout. I got through 7.3 miles in an hour, and headed off to work. I had to leave work early in order to get to the Boys' and Girls' Brigade for an 8th grade ski trip. By reason of being the last experienced volunteer leader going with the kids, I was "in charge." (Anyone with a bunch of 8th graders in their care knows that "charge" can be very theoretical)
Years of military experience helped both leaving the building and arriving at the ski hill. We were able to move very efficiently and the kids were skiing in no time. All went well, until... (cue ominous music!)
About 30 minutes after the kids started skiing, one of the youth found me helping teach at the bunny hill. He let me know one of our group was at the first aid station with an injured arm.
That led to 90 minutes of calling parents and Brigade staff, working with the ski patrol to stabilize the young man's arm, and making arrangements to get him to the hospital. As soon as we got him into a car headed off the hill it was time to chase the rest of the group toward the bus so we could leave, ourselves.
After I got back home, I had to write out an accident report for the Brigade staff detailing the situation and then get my stuff ready for work.
Like I said, I started and ended the day the exact same way. Running around in circles, getting nowhere fast.
Member of Congress (insert your representative),
In light of the late availability of the full text of the final version of S.1, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Congress puts itself in the awkward position of being unable to represent any of the constituents they serve. With more than 800 pages of text and thousands of items containing extremely controversial expenditures, quick passage of this bill will do a disservice to all Wisconsin citizens, regardless of their political ideology.
As this bill comes to the floor of the United States Senate, your first and most fervent argument should be that the American public deserves time to read and comprehend what is being proposed. If a vote is forced prior to Monday, February 16th, your vote should be in opposition to forcing this into law without giving your boss, the voting public, time to review the bill in its entirety.
Having read nearly the entire original text, a great many aspects of this bill disturb me, personally. Many more are downright frightening. The American public needs to time gain understanding of the full bill prior to it being voted upon and signed into law.
Very Respectfully,
Iron Pol (use real name and address for actual communication)
With Congress dead set on passing a stimulus package, and three Republican senators at least initially supporting the effort, it was interesting to listen to Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) justifying his vote for the aptly named "Porkulus" supplemental spending (oops, I mean "stimulus") bill.
He said that given our current situation, he felt that some action must be taken. While not perfect, he prefers taking any action over doing nothing. It seems nothing anyone says will help him to see the complete lack of logic in his stance. Here's an analogy that might do the trick.
While driving down the road, you hear a loud bang and feel your car suddenly swerve hard to one side. The ominous thumping confirms you have blown a tire. You pull off to the side of the road and head to the trunk of your car.
It's obvious you can't continue in your current "circumstance." You need change. Sadly, when you open the trunk, you see the spare is missing. This is bad, because you really need change. Since you can't fix the problem properly, but demand change, you do the one thing left to do.
Grab your shotgun, and proceed to shoot out the other tires on your car. Ahhhh! Change.
One common feature in the houses of every member of my family is the presence of tissue boxes. Now, I understand that most people will have boxes of tissue in their homes. In our family, they can be found in just about every room of every house. You might call us a very sinus-deficient group of people.
Normally, it's just a fact of life. I take Claritin every day (and they're welcome to comp me for the free plug). I used Sudafed until stores started making me feel like a felon each time I asked for more than a week's supply of pills. Between allergy medications, tissues, and a reserved acceptance of being "the sniffle guy," I get by.
Sometimes, though, the allergies take over and everyone I meet is sure I have a cold. Now happens to be one of those times. Sadly, training suffers when it gets like this. Because few things are worse than trying to pound through a run or trainer ride without being able to breathe through the nose. Have you ever tried to take a drink from a bottle with completely clogged sinuses? It isn't pretty.
And one of those "few" things that ARE worse than a bike or run with a plugged nose is swimming with a plugged nose. I will confess that I can be quite a sight walking into the pool. Ear plugs, red and runny nose, watery eyes. Then, when I start swimming, it's impossible to breathe out through the nose, which creates its own comical situations.
So, for those of you out there struggling with allergies, colds, swimming related sinus issues, and just plain nasal nightmares, know you aren't alone. Others are sneezing and sniffling with you. And if you hear what sounds like a giant nostril, take a look and you just might see Iron Pol and his nose both running behind you.
*Disclaimer* A distinctly political post follows. I welcome any responses, and retain the right to remove any specifically disrespectful and unreasonable responses.
Today, President Obama announced plans to limit executive pay packages at companies receiving funds from the federal government. The goal is to limit annual compensation to $500,000. In announcing the limits and referencing recent multi-million dollar compensation packages, President Obama said, "For top executives to award themselves these kinds of compensation packages in the midst of this economic crisis isn't just bad taste. It's bad strategy. And I will not tolerate it as president."
Now, I can't begin to cover EVERY aspect of how this is wrong, so I'll limit myself to a couple. First, and most important, is that it is not the role of the President of the United States to determine what is or isn't appropriate in a compensation package for any individual that isn't directly employed by the Executive Branch of the United States government. President Obama has taken it upon himself to not only determine that a pay and compensation package is unacceptable, he claims the right to decide what package IS acceptable.
My first question for President Obama might be "What specific experience do you have with the management and oversight of a major corporation in the United States (or anywhere, for that matter)?" To the best of my knowledge, his experience in such matters is extremely limited. And the individual to whom he seems to have turned, newly confirmed Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner can hardly be considered a trustworthy source of reasonable information. Secretary Geithner is a former executive at Goldman Sachs, the company at the center of tremendous scandal involving decisions about which companies the federal government will and will not bail out. He was also proven to be incompetent in the simple task of filing federal taxes when working for the International Monetary Fund. Despite being provided with detailed documentation on tax liabilities and increased pay to cover required taxes, he failed to report those taxes.
In his comments, Secretary Geithner commented that taxpayers feel those with no responsibility for the financial crisis are bearing more of the burden than those who played a greater role in the economic collapse. His comments are true, but his actions are misdirected.
Through his comments, Mr. Geithner implies the entire economic situation can be layed at the feet of financial executives. While those executives certainly bear some of the responsibility, the greater share of culpability belongs to the federal government. The government that mandated looser lending practices. The government that mandated Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac buy up marketable securities created from loans made under those looser policies. The federal government that refused to acknowledge that the environment created by their policies could not be sustained.
And the federal government that decided to force a $700 billion bailout down the throat of the American taxpayer.
Once upon a time, bad business practices were rewarded with failure. Had the federal government allowed the market to determine what should happen to the various companies, they would have gone under. President Obama would have no need to chastise executives for billions in compensation because they would have received little to nothing as the value of stock crashed, revenues ceased to exist, and assets became worth little more than the paper on which they were written. Instead, the federal government put the American taxpayer into the position of funding failure.
President Obama also said, "This is America. We don't disparage wealth. But what gets people upset, and rightfully so, is executives being rewarded for failure, especially when those rewards are being subsidized by U.S. taxpayers."
You are right, Mr. President, but you have it backwards. The American taxpayer is upset about private companies once again being subsidized by their hard earned money. If the federal government wasn't rewarding failure, this discussion wouldn't even be needed.
Perhaps, rather than dictating the operations of private organizations, your administration can allow the free market to do what it has always done so well. Eventually reward those who work hard and play by the rules. And eventually punish those who forget how the free market system works.
Your plan is sure to have one effect. By limiting the compensation for the top executives of billion dollar companies, you ensure they will continue to be run by the very people who ran them into the ground. After all, what experienced and highly qualified executive is going to go to a company where they can earn $500,000 a year when there are so many others where they can earn far more?
Instead of getting out of the way, you have just made a move toward total control of the markets you claim to be "free."
As commented in the previous post, motivation can be a challenging thing to maintain during the long winter months. Especially when it's a cold, snowy winter that makes training outdoors difficult. This year, members of Evotri have a team challenge to keep things interesting.
Participants in the Evotri Iron Challenge have taken it upon themselves to log at least one Ironman each month, meaning the same 140.6 miles of an IM distance race are completed. Everyone is welcome to complete as many multiples as they want, and each successive success at 2.4 miles of swimming, 112 miles of biking, and 26.2 miles of running qualifies for another "entry" in the challenge.
We are using Plus 3 Network to track our training mileage. In addition to providing a convenient (and free) spot to document training, Plus 3 Network allows us to raise charitable funds for various organizations. For each training mile completed, various companies make small contributions to one of many local, national, and international charitable groups.
For increased motivation
Yeah, I know, it's an odd title. It is, however, fitting. It describes quite a lot in my life, right now. I'm experiencing quit a bit of "lack of," right now.
I have a lack of time as family, work, church, volunteer roles, and training take up time. Too many days I find myself crawling into bed, later than desired, wondering where the day went. Other days, I don't even make it to bed. I just fall asleep while reading bed-time stories to my kids. And if you want a good laugh, come by and watch as the kids try to keep me awake long enough to finish stories.
Lack of sleep is obviously another issue. My kids are now old enough to fight the 7:30 bedtime, and it is no longer an option to disappear into the basement while my wife wrangles kids to sleep. So, I find myself training later or missing workouts, altogether. It winds up being a bit of both, depending on how sleep deprived I feel.
Lack of motivation is always an issue during the winter. With the winter we've had, running outside has been less convenient than the past, and I'm only good for 10-12 miles on the track at the YMCA. I have more time on the trainer than last year, but that is affected by other things (see items one and two). Luckily, I have a half-Ironman on the horizon, and that helps ensure I focus on base workouts.
Lack of inspiration has slowed things down on the blog. Without major races, there are no reports to file. I haven't had any major events like nearly getting hit by a car or meeting famous celebrities to fuel the posts. Then again, the Tri Foxes are hosting Sister Madonna Buder at a series of events this coming weekend. In addition to our monthly meeting, she will be the official starter at the Valentine's Day 15K and will take part in our first ever "Run with the Nun."
So, I trust you'll now agree that "Lack Of" might be an appropriate title. And if that's the case, you might want to stay tuned for the next post, "Walk of Shame."
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