Post Ironman

It takes a few days for the hype and excitement of Ironman to wear off. The pain in your legs reminding you of your accomplishment may last even longer...but it's sooo worth it!

I have to say my favourite part (no matter how tired I felt) was going back to the finish line for that last few hours of finishers. If you ever have this opportunity, don't miss it. The energy of the crowd, the look of relief and sometimes disbelief in the finishers faces, and the collective chant "YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!" is something I'll never forget. You really have to be there to fully appreciate it.

I won't go into the race too much, that is something you have to learn about on your own. In the end I finished 5th in my age-group and 88th overall in a time of 10h:04m:27s. At the finish line, there was classic Smoke's poutine and locally brewed beer that wasted no time enjoying.

After a few weeks off with minimal training, the body finds itself forgetful of the pain it had endured. I'm sure if you could remember the sensations vividly, no one would race more than once. Once registration opened for 2013, I found myself signing up again for the full Ironman and the 70.3. I knew I could improve and what a better way than to practice on the same course. The weakest part of my race is definitely the run. I'm going to have to put a lot of work into my technique and efficiency if I'm going to have any chance at qualifying for Hawaii next October.

Look to my next post to get a summary of my winter training and progress.

Ironman Village

So if you've never been to an Ironman event before...it's nothing like any other triathlon. Everyone here is jacked and has smooth legs, everyone has a sweet bike, and everyone looks like they could kick your ass on the course. At least this is the first impression I got on Thursday when I arrived here. 

Now that I've had more time to watch other athletes, they don't seem that frightening. Looks can be deceiving - I've realized this when competing in smaller triathlons and super fit looking people finish waaaay behind me. So a small hint to everyone out there; don't worry about anyone else because you look just as fast and awesome as everyone else.

If looks are deceiving, this guy should win!

The routine we've been following since we've been here has been: swim at 9:00, ride and or run at 10:00, finish exercising by 11:00 am to have the rest of the day to relax and buy stuff. It's been freezing at night so it will definitely be a wetsuit swim. The weather is still calling for sunny and 21 degrees during the day so the bike and run should be glorious! I'm so excited for the race to start.

The Athlete dinner last night was pretty good and it was really cool to be in a giant tent filled with 2,586 crazy people (you have to be a little crazy to do this). Mike Riley will be here to announce those 4 words I look forward to hearing tomorrow and David Orlowski, who finished 3rd in the very first Ironman in 1978, talked about his first race and how much the sport has evolved. He had to carry money in his pockets so he could stop at grocery stores and McDonald's as nutrition during the bike - epic!

This is David racing in his new cut-off jeans.

Today is a fine tuning day. We found out that the mass-start swim will be a beach start, so we will practice beach starts this morning followed by a short ride and short run. Our bikes and transition bags have to be checked in by 4:00pm so we have to make sure we have everything ready today. I bought hotdogs for my special needs bag in-case I get a little hungry on the course (they have been life-savers on some of my long rides). 

I feel ready, as should everyone here. I have so much confidence from my team and I can't wait to see them all on race course. 

This is where the magic happens.

Game Face

5 Days to Go...

This is a game face!

I hear a lot about people getting more and more nervous as the race start nears. If you said you didn't feel nervous you would be lying. How do you deal with it...every time I think about race day I want to bite off my whole finger.

First you need to realize what you are actually nervous about. Are you nervous about finishing, beating a personal best time, getting a flat tire, the swim, stomach issues...the list can literally go on and on. Once you have written down everything that makes you nervous, separate the factors you can control from the ones you can't control.

You'll probably notice that most of the things that make you nervous are out of your control. You can't stop a flat tire from happening, you can't make the waves smaller, you can't change the weather, you can't decide that your stomach will handle everything you put in it. What you CAN do is practice fixing a flat, start the swim at the edge of the pack, put clothes in your special needs bag, practice eating what you will eat on the race course... Don't stress about things that you CAN'T control.

Instead of getting nervous, I've found myself getting excited. This is, after all, for fun and we shouldn't forget that. I know I've trained enough like everyone else who will show up on the start line. I know I will finish and I know I will have a good race. I've planned my bike set-up, practiced fixing flat tires, swam in huge waves, eaten all sorts of foods while training and in all kinds of weather. I know what to do and what not to do to get me through the race. 

The hardest part is believing all of this. This is when we need to put on our game faces. Tell yourself out-loud that you are ready, that you are fit, and that you are one tough MO!#3RF&@$er. If you say it enough, you will believe it.

When you're getting stressed and nervous, repeat that to yourself and think about putting on your game face. Nothing but you can stop you.

This will be you.

House Keeping

Training for Ironman has given me a new appreciation for the Taper. Finally I have time and workouts are easy and confidence building, or at least they should be.

A lot of athletes find it difficult to taper because they fear losing fitness, or they want to cram in a last few hard workouts. In the last weeks leading up to the race, you won't lose your fitness or strength, but you could start moving backwards if you don't approach the taper properly. I like to call this part of my training "housekeeping".

We need more Lemon Pledge.

The main housekeeping goals of my two weeks leading up to Ironman are as follows:

1. Staying Injury Free
It's too close to race day to recover properly from an injury so the most important thing for me is to make sure I don't get injured. This means I'm not trying any new workouts. Warm-ups and cool-downs are very important, and I stay clear of activities that can cause injury.

2. Staying Healthy
When workouts decrease, diet and hydration become more important. I can't eat greasy food and pop and just go for a long ride to work it off anymore. Eating is now a big part of my training. Everything I consume is for nutrition to help me on race day. It's also important to not let my immune system weaken. Now is a time when many athletes get sick so it is important to wash your hands often and get lots of fluids, vitamins, and rest.

3. Equipment Check-up
Now is the perfect time to get your gear fixed or cleaned or whatever you need to do. New chain, new tires, new shoes, new clothes...there's two weeks to make sure everything is going to go smoothly on race day. I recently changed my chain and brakes on my bike and I will make sure my shoes and wetsuit, etc. are all in good condition before it's too late to change. Don't worry if you are trying new equipment because you still have two weeks to break it in. 

4. Race Day Nutrition
Start thinking about your race day plan...and practice it! I plan on eating 2 gels, oatmeal with milk, toast with peanut butter, coffee and maybe a yogurt before leaving to T1. Then sipping on perform from breakfast to swim start and having another gel or two within 15 minutes of the start. For the next two weeks, I'm going to practice this breakfast first thing in the morning so that I am confident it will agree with me race morning.

5. Confidence
If nothing else, these last two weeks should be when you build confidence in your training. The work has been done and now you can sit back and appreciate your efforts over the previous months. Workouts should be smooth and pace-work be disciplined. Go over mental processes during these last training sessions and practice transitions, eating, and drinking during your workouts.

6. Have a race week plan
The stress of travelling, training, registering, eating, sleeping, and preparing during race week is insane. Have a plan starting with the travel. I get extremely stressed before races when I don't have a schedule so I will make sure to plan out meals, training, registration, and rest ahead of time. This doesn't have to be concrete, but it will save a lot of stress later when you have a schedule to follow.

I will spend the next two weeks perfecting these things so that come race day, I can do all of the little things easily and smoothly. Should anything go wrong, I feel prepared enough that I can deal with solving these problems quickly on the course. If everything goes as planned, I can put all of my energy and focus into racing. 

Everything I do is to hear those 4 words

Believe

With only 4 weeks, 5 days, 14 hours, and 37 minutes (give or take) to Tremblant, it's hard to focus on anything else. I have one more Olympic race this weekend at the Muskoka 5i50 to mix up my training a bit. My goal is to improve from Guelph Lake earlier this year. I went into that race tired and didn't have the energy to race like I can. Hopefully a mild taper this week will make a difference.


Now to the more relevant stuff.


"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." - Eleanor Roosevelt.


If you're doing an Ironman, it likely started out as a dream. Whether that dream was to finish, have a best time, qualify for Kona, or be a Champion, it is the reason you will be at the start line. 


I truly love the psychology of sport and learning what it is that makes people tick. There are hours of interviews with Ironman athletes online and hundreds of different reasons for why they are there, but they all have one thing in common - they believe they can do it. 


To be any level athlete you have to believe you can do it, but it's what you believe you can do that makes you a champion. Craig Alexander, Simon Whitfield, Chris McCormack, Natascha Badmann, Chrissie Wellington, the best athletes in the sport all dreamed they could be the best. They believed they could train the best, deal with pain the best, and push themselves harder than anyone else. 


Goals are what gave them direction toward reaching their dream. Goals should be stepping stones to make sure you stay on track. I dare everyone to set goals - beat a personal best time, run through every aid station, have faster transitions, I even had a goal to smile when I crossed the finish line because I was tired to looking like a grumpy asshole in my finisher photos. It's good to keep your goals simple and in your control. You can control your pace, your effort, your emotions, your focus, going to practice, eating well, but you can't control other racers, wind, waves, heat...etc. If you focus on the things you can control, the results will follow.


All you need to be an Ironman is to believe you can.

Big Miles

If you like sports, then you probably like watching sports. Last week was the   US Olympic Swimming trials and the US Olympic Track and Field trials. This week is the Tour de France. At the end of the month is the Olympics - I can't wait!

My favourite rival to watch this year...go Lochte!

All of this sports action builds my motivation to train and get strong. In my own training, the miles have started to increase. Last weekend included two 150-180K rides and a split 36K run. This weekend will be a 180K ride on Friday, a swim/bike/run on Saturday, and another 180K ride on Sunday. The key to this ridiculous mileage is eating (a lot) and sleeping. 

Six weeks to Ironman...oh man. The team went to race the Tremblant 70.3 at the beginning of the month and do some reconnaissance on the course. Looks AWESOME! A huge way to relieve stress for me is to know what I'm dealing with. The unknown is my biggest stresser before a race so I'm spending lots of time looking at maps, reading articles, talking to teammates about the course, and watching videos of the course (love Youtube). If I've already "seen" the course before I get there then there is one less thing to worry about come race day. 

For every uphill, there better be a downhill

Like I said - eating and sleeping. From now on, it's all about nailing this part of my training. Make sure I get the calories after workouts and recover properly. This means no fast food and less beer (cutting out beer entirely is craziness). This is the best way to prevent injuries and prevent that blah feeling you get from over training. 

It may also be hard to keep the long runs and rides exciting. No one wants to ride back-to-back 180K, so how do you motivate yourself? I try and set goals for each training session. Breaking them up into smaller parts is much more manageable than thinking of it as one huge ride or run or swim. Make mental checkpoints, practice what you will think about on race day, pick new routes, and enjoy the scenery. This is a great time of year to stop for a bit on your long workouts and enjoy yourself. These little tricks make my training way easier.

Every workout at this point should be focused, but enjoyable. If you can't have fun while you're training, it will make race day really difficult.

Guelph Lake

This weekend was the Guelph Lake One Triathlon, my first race of the year. I love this event because all 3 legs are tough and the field is usually strong. If you've never done Guelph Lake, I would highly recommend it.

A few years ago I found a TV Broadcast of the 2002 Guelph Lake One Pro Race, with a local pro Jeff Beech competing in the field. It's really inspiring watching your coach race, and race so fast!

Last year I finished 5th overall in a time of 2:08:58. This year I had the swim of my life getting out of the water in 21:09, and good bike in 1:03:55, but the run was dreadful. I now understand why Macca had so much trouble at the beginning of his comeback to ITU Triathlon. Ironman training makes you strong, but if you want to go fast you need to train fast. Also, with the volume of training that Ironman requires, it takes a lot more time to recover to get ready for a fast race. I finished 14th overall and 2nd in my age-group with a time of 2:09:57. 

Looking ahead to the time I have left, I start to realize how important every training day is. Each time I put on my goggles, helmet, or shoes I think about race day. 5 weeks until my second race in Muskoka, then 4 weeks to Ironman.

When pressure builds, I find a lot of people start to take things too seriously.  

I mean come-on...we all want to win but is it worth losing your shit over?

Every time I get frustrated or overwhelmed I try and find something to laugh at. Hopefully I can find something funny on race day to get me to the finish line - and if I can't, I'll just withdraw things like this from the memory bank.