Monday weigh in

So... how about that weather? Whenever it's nice like it has been for the last few days, I always feel I have to go out and run because I know the nice weather isn't going to last forever - so I better bank a few extra K's when I can. That being said, even though today was a damned fine day, it was a scheduled off day. Sometimes it's difficult to force myself to take a day off - but it must be done.
Last week was a good week:
Run: 85k
Spin: 2 hours
Weight: 164
Add my usual 2 hours of stretching and core work and November's mileage is shaping up rather nicely. The last 4 weeks of run totals look like this: 75k, 77k, 80k and 85k. A very gradual increase in mileage and I'm feeling great. I'm happy I'm comfortably over the 80k/week mileage mark and the body seems to be soaking up the miles without any problems. So, since it did what I wanted, it's time to reward it with an easy week. The plan for this week is to run no more than 50k and spin 3 hours.

QOTD:
"Whatever you are, be a good one." - Abraham Lincoln

Sunny happy Friday

Not a heck of alot to report, except that today was absolutely beautiful. To commemorate such a great day I went for a run - in my shorts. Yes, it's November 24 in Canada and it's shorts weather. To cap it off, this weekend is looking even better. Hopefully I'll get some extra running K's in. The week so far:
Mon: off
Tues: run 7.5k spin 1 hour
Wed: run 13.5k
Thur: run 12k, spin 1 hour
Fri: run 14.5k

I'm keeping all my run heartrate efforts in the low 140's. The one thing I've noticed, is that's more difficult to maintain a 140 heartrate on the bike. Aerobically it's no big deal, but the cycling legs just aren't there. So typically, I'm averaging 5 beats less while spinning.

There is a Computrainer on Ebay that's going for 1200 bucks. I talked it over she-who-must-obeyed (Sally) and we figure if used ones are selling that high, might as well get a new one. So I'm working the finances and with any luck I'll score one by Christmas. Yay! I'm excited at the prospect of getting a new toy. I'm such a kid.
Have a great weekend!

Monday weigh in

I've pretty much slid back into a workout routine, which is good. I find whenever I start to train, there is about a 6 week time frame that goes from "ug, I don't want to do this" to "hmmmm, I want to more." I've past the 6 week hump, so now it's a question of finding an early season balance of pushing a bit more and getting lots of rest.

The running is coming along. Last week I did 80k, which is OK because I'm keeping my longest run to only 1:30 -1:45. Yesterday, I capped off a 13 day in a row run-fest with an 18k'er. I actually dusted off my Garmin and verified my pace, speed and distance. Here's the low down: 18k in 1:33 for a 5:10/km pace and an average heartrate of 143. On one hand I'm happy I can run 5 minute K's with a low heartrate, on the other hand I ask myself why can't I run that fast for the marathon portion of an Ironman? I know, I know.. I need a bigger aerobic engine and running a marathon after you've biked 180k and swam 3.8k is an entirely different animal. But I find running at this pace so easy in training and so frikin hard during an IM.

I'm currently lusting after a computrainer. I've done some minor modifications to the 'boy cave' and I could set one up quite nicely. Now it's just a matter of selling it to Sally (I need this..) and finding a good deal on the used market. This year I've logged about 120 hours on the bike trainer, so I think a computrainer would add some much needed fun to spinning. Hey, it's fun and it's functional! Sally, you're reading this, right? :)

To recap the week:
Run: 80k
Spin: 1 hr
Weight: 164.
Plus my usual 2 hours per week of stretching and core work. That's all for now, happy Monday everyone!

Tardy mileage report, hike-n-run

Hey!
Sorry for the delay, I usually post my mileage reports on Monday, but life got in the way. Hey, it happens.
Last weeks mileage was 77 running K's and 1 hour of spinning. The high point of the week came on Sunday when a good friend of mine made the journey north and we hiked/ran a 24k section of the Bruce Trail. It wasn't the length of the run that made it challenging, it was the elevation. After 24k and a couple of thousand feet of elevation, we were pooched. A good tired though - at least in my mind.. I've yet to hear from Ian, perhaps he's avoiding me now! :)

I had Monday off work and it was a scheduled off day. However, since I didn't have to walk my regular 9-10k on the beat (I'm a letter carrier) and my legs were actually feeling pretty good from Sunday. I went for a short recovery run of 7.5k. Yesterday was 12.5k on the road and today was 12+k on the trails.

This latest running block is going to consist of 13 days of running in a row - I may not be logging huge K's but at least I'm adapting to running frequency. I believe the main reasons why I'm adapting well to the increased frequency is 1) 50% or more of my runs have been on trails. 2) average heartrate has consistently been 140-142. So, by keeping the impact and the intensity low, getting 8+hrs of zzzz's a night = good recovery.
4 days to go....
Cheers!

HRM tales & going batty

Ever since I started to train more 'serious', I generally used 'perceived effort' to gauge a workout level. I didn't want to become one of 'those guys' who if their heart rate monitor broke down in a race, they'd go off the rails. I just didn't want to become too reliant on technology - I'd rather rely on myself first. As time went by, I succumbed and bought a Garmin GPS unit. A geeky toy that keeps track of pace, miles logged etc.. Even though I shunned alot of the gadgets available, the geek inside of me still thinks some of them are cool. I've had the Garmin for a couple of years and now I rarely use it. I just know how far and how fast I've run. Yes, it still has it uses, especially for long runs, lap times or tempo runs but it's by no means a necessity.

Which brings me to the HRM. Each year I learn a little more and vow to train more/better/smarter the following year. Enter the heart rate monitor. I figure if I'm going to set out and build a bigger/better aerobic engine, I should try to be smart about it. Perceived effort and knowing myself has taken me far, but I want to take it to another to the next level. So this week was my first week training with a HRM.
Two major things I noticed. 1) my perceived effort was pretty much spot on. That shoudn't have suprised me, but it did. Well, by spot on, I mean maybe 90% of the time. 2) Even minor hills can cause substantial HR spikes. Ok, this suprised me. Sure I should know this intuitively, but it suprise me on how fast my HR spikes and how small of a grade can actually cause it.

FYI, I'm using the maximum aerobic power calculation to determine my optimal heartrate. If it's good enough for Mark Allen and Gordo, it's certainly good enough for me. :) More on MAP can be read here. The vast majority of my workouts this year, will be solidly in the aerobic/fat burning zone. The HRM is great tool for making me have the discipline to slow down. Whenever heartrate is over 145 bpm, I back off, walk if necessary. I now understand why the HRM could be considered the most important gadget. I'm also looking forward to doing some testing to see at what heart rate I experience 'stomach shut down'. Yea, that sounds like a fun test, doesn't it?

Workout update: Mon: off Tues: run 12.5k Wed: run 11k Thur: run 12k /spin 1 hour Fri: run 10.5k

As I mentioned before, a good chunk of my runs is on the trails. Fairly often I'll see wildlife, which I always think is cool. Hehe, I always feel like nature is opening a window and letting me peek in every so often. I like that. Earlier this week, during a mid-day run, I saw a bat. Odd. I've rarely seen bats even at night, yet here was one fluttering around in the middle of the afternoon. Neat. Two days later, I get to see him again. Same spot and roughly the same time of day. I'm going batty...

Weekly mileage report, Lance, 10 Ironmans in 10 days.

If October was a 4/10 on the workout scale of difficulty, November will be a 5/10. My motto is 'just run'. Get home from work, peel off the work clothes, immediately put on my run gear and head out the door. I was able to do that all week and logged 75k, of which 80% was done on trails. Throw in an hour on the spinner and the week is done. I feel good, I feel healthy.

Tomorrow is a scheduled off day, but the weather is looking very nice, so I may make Tuesday an off day. If I run Monday, that will 8 consecutive days of running - for me, a milestone of sorts. Either way, some very easy workouts are in the schedule for the week ahead.

The Sunday morning running crew met up this morning, this time we ran in Heart Lake park. Dana, who has plantar faciitis, wasn't able to run with us, so she mountain biked instead and was our support crew. Good on her. Next weekend could be fun, something a little more epic is in the works - a trail run/hike - nothing too crazy, a good 25 or 30k jaunt near Hockley Valley or a point A to point B run is on the works. As usual, email me for details..

I see Lance did a sub 3 hour marathon in New York City. Good on him. He sure does raise the 'event profile'. It's good for Lance, his charities and in this case, marathon running. However it does take away from the real marathoners - all the sports casters are worried about is how Lance is doing or following the 'Lance cam'. Oh yea, and the winner was..... umm, you get my drift.
I'd still love to see him do an Ironman though..

Now a moment for the truely insane.. Starting tomorrow, there is an event down in Mexico that is known as 'The Deca'. Participants have the option of competing in 2 Ironman Triathlons in two days, all the way up to the gargantuan, incredibly insane 10 Ironmans in 10 days. That's not a misprint. You know what? I'm just going to leave it at that, I don't know what to say. Oh yea! I almost forgot, it's a closed loop course and each bike portion is 93(!) laps and each run portion is a mere 22 laps.
I'm getting dizzy..