Iron Pol

 
Why-o-metrics 02/03/2010
 
After two sick kids wiped out several days of training, I hit the track for a mid-week sort of long run this morning.  After pounding out a quick (slow) 10K, I decided to do a bit of strength training in the form of plyometrics.

Now, I'm well aware of the benefits of plyometrics.  And I want those benefits.  But does it have to be so painful?  Really, I did four laps, totalling just under a half-mile.  Each lap consisted of two sets of 20 steps of plyometrics.  The first four sets were deep knee lunges.  The second four sets were bounding.

Now, I can barely walk.  Honestly.  What is that all about?

The worst part was the final sets of the deep knee lunges.  It became a lesson in pushing myself past the "WHY-O-WHY am I doing this?  Certainly a 10K run is enough!"

Of course, that's what I find myself saying every time I work on strength training.  I really have to stop reading the articles that tout the benefits of strength training and call out those who try to logic their way out of doing it.

Then I could go about my training, happily ignoring strength training.

But Noooooo.  I love to read.  Even old Triathlete Magazine articles.  So, I do the plyometrics and wonder why.

I so better see benefits when I run the marathon in May.
 
Swimming Math 01/26/2010
 
If there's anything I'm worse at then swimming, it's doing math while swimming.  Apparently I leave my accounting skills at the door to the pool.

I was undecided about this morning's workout as I was in the pool both Sunday and Monday.  While I wasn't concerned about three days in the pool in a row, I didn't have a workout in my head.  I sat on the pool deck trying to decide what might motivate me and decided to do 400s.

After a quick 200 yard warmup, I started with 8x50 fast.  Well, fast for me.  I then threw in 400 easy (which will become a factor, later).  After the 400 easy, I did 4x100 with the first and last 25 easy and the middle 50 all out.  Somewhere around there, I started forgetting what I'd already done, as well as the total distance.  I did 2x200 to recover from all of the fast 50s, then tried to figure out of I was at 1200 or 1400.  I calculated it must be 1400, so pushed myself to do 600 yards to finish.  I did 400 easy, then cooled down with a final 200 yards to round out the 2000 yard session.

I was a put demoralized with my total time of 1:01 in the pool.  Even accounting for rest intervals, that's a bit slower than I'd like to see after my recent form and pace focus.

Of course, if your math during reading is any better than my math in the pool, you will have already found my math to be a bit fuzzy.  Five 400 yard sets plus 400 warm up and cool down doesn't equal 2000 yards.  Yeah, it was that easy 400 I did between the 50s and the 100s that I completely forgot about.  So, the point at which I pushed myself to finish out with 600 total yards SHOULD HAVE been the point where I said, "Gee, now is a great time to cool down."

Still, an extra 400 yards means I am much happier with my time.
 
To the Pain 01/22/2010
 
First, allow me apologize to anyone who had a heart attack after seeing two posts in the same week.  I really don't want any of the three of you to come to harm.

Today's workout was reminiscent of the final showdown in "The Princess Bride."  That's where Westley (or, if you prefer, the Dread Pirate Roberts) challenges Prince Humperdinck to a duel "to the pain."  Though there was no swordplay, and not much of a duel, the "to the pain" part was in play.

My focus for the past several weeks has been improving my pace, mostly through workouts consisting primarily of 100s.  Today, I decided to do sets of 100 yards on 2:20 seconds until failing to stay under two minutes for two consecutive sets.  My tenth set was 2:01, but I managed to get back under that on the next set, guaranteeing at least another couple hundred yards.  In the end, I managed 1400 yards before finishing.

With that under my belt, it's probably time to think about a 1000 yard time trial to benchmark things.  It's probably also time to think about more drill sets to help improve my form.  After all, there's a race season just around the corner.

And this year, I won't be wiping myself out in the first race.  There's a self-supported Ironman to be completed in September.
 
Hangin' 01/11/2010
 
The past few weeks have been dedicated to getting back into the swing of things, training wise.  Brilliant idea, trying to jump start training over the holidays.  Does anyone care to guess if I hit all my workouts?

There was, however, a positive side.  The high-tech (cheap) body fat scale says (guesses) my weight today is the same 186 it was before the holidays.  If I can make it through Christmas and New Year without significant gains, I'll call it good.  Of course, the scale could just be lying to me.  I wouldn't put it past it.

I've been working on base runs and swims.  In the pool, my main goal has been to remember that I DO know how to swim.  Some of the people who swim with me might disagree.  And they might be right.

Up until today, I've stayed in my lane.  I tend to take the "Medium" lane, as I am somewhere above "trying to avoid drowning" and well below "Flipper."  Most workouts have focused on 100 yard repeats, typically 10 sets.  Pace?  Let's not talk about that.

Today, I hit the pool for a short workout after a 5K run.  After all, I didn't want to overdo the running thing.  So, I headed to the pool and checked things out.  Water aerobics day, and you know they HAVE to take up one of the swim lanes.  Of the two left, I had to pick between uber-slow and hella fast.  The two in the slow lane were on seriously different paces, so I ruled that out.  That left Ms. Speedy Dolphin and the guy sucking up her wake.

I jumped in with them.  After all, I was only looking at maybe 500 yards.  They wouldn't pass me too many times in that distance.

Turns out they were doing 100s with 10 second rest intervals.  Well, 10 seconds for the guy.  Ms. Speedy Dolphin got more like 20-30 seconds.  So, I jumped in with them.  Who needs rest intervals?

I did the first 100 no problem.  In fact, it was awesome.  I swam something like 1:44.  I know that's nothing amazing for all you fish out there, perhaps even a bit pokey.  But for us 2+/100 swimmers, that's pretty fast.

The second 100 was a bit more annoying.  It was even faster (1:42), but I noticed water squishing through my ear plug.  Yes, it squished.  It's my ear and I say it squished.  After the set, I attempted to get a better seal, though I should have known better.  It's always been pointless to try.

The next 100 was more like 50.  Okay, it was exactly 50, but in a pretty good time of 50 seconds (shut up, that's fast).  Buttttttt, and it was a huge butt, my ear plug was completely useless and I had water gleefully leaking into my inner ear.  Really.  I heard it going "Wheeeee!" as it went through the holes in my ear drum.

I hopped out of the pool, ran into the locker room, tried (in vain) to get water OUT of my ear, and popped in a new ear plug.  I took the pack with me, just in case.

I jumped back into the rotation at a convenient point, and banged out four more 100s, all under 1:45.  Then, they switched to 50s.  Since I had already done 650 yards of a planned 500 yard cool down, I decided to only do two 50s with them, just to see how it went.  The first was great.  The second?  Let's not talk about it.

Needless to say, I decided that was a good time to stop, so I went to the hot tub.  NOBODY laps me in a hot tub.

I was a bit dejected when I got out of the pool, as I somehow deleted the swim set from my watch.  I was REALLY dejected when I got to work and realized that I had somehow deleted both the swim set AND my run set.  I remembered the time for the swim.  The run?  I just guessed.  It felt fast, so I went with a bit slower than my last 5K run on the track.

But who cares about the run?  I managed to hang with the dolphins without drowning or dying.  That's gotta count for something.
 
 
For anyone who hasn't checked, they DO still have water in the pool at the local YMCA.  I checked, this morning.  It's been so long since I did a swim workout there was the distinct possibility the water had all evaporated.

No.  Really.  It's been that long.

My last swim was the 1.2 miles of the High Cliff Half-Ironman.  In June.  Seriously.

I decided if I was going to keep calling myself a triathlete, I should probably start doing some swimming.  It might also be time to pull the bike down off the ceiling of the garage and throw it on the trainer.  To be fair, I have ridden since the half-Ironman.  Honestly.

There are some out there who take a bit of time off, say 14-16 months, after a race before they get back in the pool.  After an extended break, they get back in the pool and find their pace has slowed by a few seconds, all the way back to 1:30-1:35 per 100 yards.  Getting back into the pool is like getting back onto a bike.  No big deal.

For me, getting back into the pool is more like falling off the bike.  I can do it, but it's not pretty.

Today was little different.  I kept it easy and only did 1500 yards, including 500 yards of fin drills focused on improving my core rotation.  I figure if I'm essentially starting over, now might be a good time to work on bilateral breathing.

I'm sure I'll be feeling the results of the workout tomorrow.  Or tonight.  Or after lunch.  Okay, I'm feeling it, now, and will surely hate myself later.  Or now.

It's okay, though.  My body survived the first winter learning to swim, and I'm way ahead of THAT particular disaster.  January is when I will dig out the training plan I used for Ironman (from the awesome Coach Mike Ricci).  Coach Mike routinely pointed out that I'm a runner and I can hold my own on the bike.  My weakness is the swim, so that's what he focused on when putting together the training plan.

Well, little has changed.  Even undertrained I can put down 50 miles in a single run.  The bike will fall into place once I decide to get back on it.  But the swim...

Brutal.

So, for the next several months, that's what I'll be working on improving.  And when spring gets here, I'll work on it some more.  I'll continue to work on it during the summer.  And, hopefully, when September gets here, I'll be ready to swim 2.4 miles as part of mIronman, my self-supported 140.6 mile event.

Stick around.  Once again, there is the very real possibility I'll drown myself between now and April.
 
Iron Courier 11/23/2009
 
You can call me the Iron Courier.  Delivery under three (hours) or it's free.  Some background and details, perhaps?

Much like other days of the week, Sundays at our house have a bit of a routine.  One key part of that routine involves my kids asking to go to their grandpa's house after church.  I typically tell them to ask their grandfather.  He typically tells them to check with their dad.  Yes, it's a vicious circle.  It makes them laugh.

Yesterday was all boys.  My daughter went to church with my wife, leaving three generations of males from the Pol family to fend for themselves.  Of course, my son wanted to go for lunch at grandpa's.

It worked out well as it gave him the opportunity to read a story to grandpa as part of homework.  We ate lunch, watched the first half of the Packer game, and, according to my dad, did all the other things men can't do in mixed company (mostly associated with bodily functions, you know how guys can be).

At half-time, we hurried out the door so we could get home before the second half started.  And, of course, left my son's homework packet sitting on my dad's table.  He noticed it and called, just as I was pulling into the driveway at my house.

And, also of course, it needed to be turned in, today.  That left me with the challenge of juggling the rest of the Packer game, a 12-mile training run, dinner, and returning to my dad's house to get the folder.

Enter MapMyRun.  While watching the second half of the game, I mapped out the route I would take to my dad's house, if I were running.  Nine miles, one way.  A bit much when the plan called for a 12-miler.

Of course, that doesn't consider either the Ironman or the insanity factor.  As the Packer game wound down, I changed into my running gear and headed out the door.  I told my wife I'd be back in three hours, or the delivery would be free.

Eighteen miles (about four of which were not much fun) and 2:50 later, I walked back in the door, a sweaty pack on my back.  Thank goodness for the plastic sleeves they use to send the books/signature sheets home.

Iron Courier Service.  You call, we deliver.  And who needs the bike?
 
Remembering 10/08/2009
 
Getting back into the training thing, I'm pleased to note that my aerobic capacity hasn't suffered TOO badly.  After an easy seven mile run at 9:40 pace, I did three miles at 9 min/mile without having to break anything.  It's a far cry from 3:40 marathon pace, but not bad for being off six, er eight, okay, nearly 10 weeks.

There, is, however, a noticeable price I am having to pay.  My legs have forgotten how indestructible they are supposed to be.  After two easy runs, 10 miles total, I was feeling it in my legs.  Perhaps not to the extent experienced after my first marathon, but still...

These are the legs that do back to back 30 mile runs on a weekend.   These are the legs that did 50 miles under 10 hours.  These are iron legs.

Apparently, I need to bust out some rust remover.
 
 

I know, it's been a while.  Because of that, I'll refund everyone's dues for the month of June.  Keep an eye out for those reimbursements.

In addition to being busy, I wanted to keep the Run for Ron Charity event at the top of the page.  The donation link is still in my profile, and I hope you'll consider making a donation.

With just two weeks left until the High Cliff half-Ironman, I'm a bit concerned about race day conditions.  Rumor has it we're supposed to train like we race.  If that's the case, I hope it's rainy, windy, and cold enough to make snow a real possibility over the rain.  Because that's about all I've been training in, lately.

Though it's been tough commuting to work, I managed one such ride May 28th.  It was in the mid-40s the entire trip in, with a headwind and rain.  When I left the house, I had on my running tights with tri-shorts, a long sleeve jersey over my tri top, and gloves.  I was concerned with what I would do when I got to warm.

As if...

Late in the ride I became more concerned with how I was going to change a flat tire with frozen hands.  Apparently the answer is, "Not very well."  I barely avoided blowing my last spare tube when I inflated it with part of the tube outside the tire.  Thankfully, I did have one more CO2 cylinder than tubes.

It was somewhat better after work as I headed to a bike shop near the office to replace tubes and CO2.  Two minutes down the road I felt my foot slipping and figured I'd broke one of my cleats.  I "uncleated," looked down to see what was wrong with the cleat, and wondered where my pedal had gone.  All that was left was the shaft of my Speedplay.  Luckily, I found the pedal still in my cleat.

At the bike shop, I was able to replace the tubes, CO2 cylinders, and properly inflate my tire.  The weren't able to provide much help with the pedal, so I pushed it on and biked home hoping nothing else would go wrong.

Obviously, the wind had changed direction and I had the same headwind going home as I had going to work.  And home is uphill.

Saturday, I went out for my final long ride prior to the race.  I hoped to get in 60 miles.  When the rain started five minutes after I started, I shook my fist at the heavens to show my determination to stand up to the elements.

By the way, our high temp on Saturday was 53F.  That was the temperature at midnight as the temps fell through 50s into mid-40s territory, which is where they were at during my windy, rainy ride.  Fortunately this time, I only had a headwind in one direction.

So far, this year, only one of my rides has been in temperatures any warmer than 50F.  Most have been in the rain.

I am fairly confident that race day will be sunny, windy (during the swim and bike), and somewhere around 100 degrees.  I will burst into flames somewhere around mile 45 of the bike.  Luck will be with me as the wind prevents the flames from totally engulfing me.

That luck, and the wind, will die as soon as I step off the bike.  It is most likely I will spend the entire half marathon dumping cups of water onto my head to douse the fire as I continue to deal with spontaneous combustion.

Still, I will be there.  I will race.  I will have fun.  And perhaps, just perhaps, I'll live up to my expectations.

Not on that list, however, is a PR at the event.  The last time I raced here, I was a few short months away from Ironman and in a far different place.

 
It Wasn't Pretty 04/01/2009
 

But they WERE flip-turns.  And no, this isn't an April Fools' Post.

1800 yards with flip turns at the deep end.  I'm holding off on the shallow end until I'm more comfortable in the deep end, and a time when there are fewer people in the pool.

I figured that someone capable of completing and Ironman and ultramarathon should be able to handle somersaults in the pool.  It does appear I'll have to show some restraint on the push-off (I had issues with one ear plug early in the swim), but it's not too much different than pushing off during an open turn.

The biggest challenge?  Keeping track of my distances as I can't check my watch like I can when I touch the wall in an open turn.

 
Outside 03/15/2009
 

It's 50F and sunny.  That means the bike came off the trainer, and I headed out.  The kids took their bikes out at the same time.  I did just over 25 miles in 1:25.  It was a pretty laid back ride, meaning I've been seriously shorting my estimates for time spent on the trainer.  I've been using 15 mph for spin rides, and they've been much more challenging than today's ride, outside.  Of course, just being outside probably helped.  A lot!

I took this picture after I got home.  Most of the gear I have on is courtesy of someone else.  The cold weather cycling top and the gloves were Christmas presents from my in-laws, and the tights (that can't be seen) were from a gift certificate I got at the first triathlon I ever entered.  The Tri Fox cycling shorts are mine.