Iron-Parent

This week will be the official start of my training and racing endurance sport with a family (i.e. wife, child and dog).

Before March 1st, I had a wife and dog, and both of them were very supportive of my training and racing. Now I have a new family member that I am going to have to pay dues to, in order to get out the door to train and to pack up to go to races. At this stage she is giving the go ahead to all training sessions (I took her lack of response as consent…) and I am sure she will continue to support me as her beautiful mother does. But how will I cope with the time spent away from my family…? I have spoken with a few Iron-Dads and a lot of them say that even when they have the green light to train; they often drag their feet and find reasons to stay home. I can already feel that I am missing out, when I go to work.

I think it would be easy to put my training on the back burner or take time out, but I think my wife would concur that when I don’t train and sit around the house I go into hibernation and become less enjoyable to be around. I sleep for longer and do less around the house. I think that while my training may have to adapt to the new girl in my life (things are already more pink, that is for sure), it will continue be important to my well-being and to my ability to be a good parent (whatever that means).

P.S. As you may have picked up from this post, my baby daughter Alexandra (Ally) Wendy Duncan was born safe and sound on 1/3/09. Welcome to the Family Ally

In need of purpose

The longer I consider myself an endurance athlete the more I see that I am not in it for the joy of training.

I know that a lot of endurance athletes out there love to train and could train for the sake of training all year round.

Me, I train to race... I train to compete...I train to go faster than the guy next to me to catch the guy ahead of me and to hold off the guy behind me. Training is a necessary evil to race fast/er. Without a race on the immediate horizon and without the pressure to get prepared I am finding it hard to find some fire.

I am in need of purpose.

Being injured and unable to run is making it much harder too. Because I need to get my body in shape to train again before getting in shape to race. This is not how I pictured the early stages of the 09/10 campaign.

I have sucked it up and made an appointment to see the Physio. I am pretty sure I put his kids through college last year, and it seems that they will be awarded the Duncan Scholarship again this year... Also Mr Ibuprofen will be rubbing his hands together when he sees me coming again.

Ahh well, neither ‘getting rich’ nor ‘lengthening my life’ were on my goal list for 2009...

He lives!!

Just a quick post to say I am still alive and fully intend to get back on the blogging bandwagon. I went through an unmotivated patch there and will start to make an effort over next little while. In a bit of a slow period training-wise due to a back injury but should get moving again next few days. I have an Olympic distance race coming up next weekend which should be fun. Not the best build up with the back and all but smash! smash!

Hmm, I just realized this must be one of the most cliche posts in the blogging world, " I am still alive but I am a slack ass..." Ahh well...

More later.

The New Stead!

I know, I know, it’s been a while since my last post, which was my rant about my run in with the traffic. Update on this is that the body is fully recovered with only a few minor scars to show for it. More importantly, I have a new bike, care of (in part) the drivers insurance. I managed to get a good chunk of the cost of a nice upgrade bike, chipping in the rest myself. Here is a picture of the new stead.It’s a big step up from the old ride, in that it’s a dedicated time trial bike rather than what was essentially a road bike with aerobars. I was looked after really well by Anthony at CBD cycles in Melbourne (thanks), which made it possible for me to buy-up to this bike.

The Giant Trinity Elite comes stock with Zipp Flashpoints, I opted to swap those for a set of training wheels (har-har, yes I do need training wheels to stay on my bike….), as it made the bike affordable and I can pick and choose my race wheel combo next year when funds allow. The stock groupset is Shimano Ultegra, I have upgraded the front and rear derailers to Durace and had a set of carbon cranks fitted, to decrease weight and increase mechanical efficiency. I plan to upgrade my pedals as well next year, because as we know the biggest gains are made by decreasing the weight of rotating parts, and this is even more important with parts that move in bigger circles (i.e. wheel rims and pedals).

I’m happy with the colour, which is very important...

The setup is close to what I want, though I think a few tweaks are in order over the next week or so to get it how I would like it.

I am surprised that the saddle is not as comfortable as I expected. I have read reviews that rave about the Fizik Arione saddles, but I have to say my gooch (point of contact with bike saddle), disagrees at the moment. It is likely in part due to the more aggressive riding position, but I feel that the saddle on my old stead was more comfortable. I am going to withhold judgment until I get used to the overall position change, but the alternating burning and numb sensations in my gooch are not nice.

When it comes down to it I think I just need to HTFU (Harden The F**k Up).

I have a good feeling about the bike and I’m anticipating a significant improvement in my ride times due to the improved aerodynamics and weight of me and the bike and the psychological “look at me go fast on my red speed machine everybody!” factor. A set of nice race wheels will top it off nicely.

Training is generally going great, I am coming to the end of two “overload” weeks, injury free and coping. I say coping, as I am pretty tired and I’m noticing some carry-over fatigue each day, especially in the pool. I am working through in my head why I feel the fatigue most in the pool and the jury is out. I have a feeling that it reflects my lack of finesse in the water and that I muscle my way through the water with a background as a sprinter. I think that maybe if my technique was a little more solid I would be able to swim better when fatigued. I have a stroke correction workshop coming up soon, so hopefully I can continue to renovate my stroke and increase my efficiency in the water.

The coach says that training will ramp up again in the next few weeks and I say bring it on. I am looking forward to smashing it over the next three months so I can make a strong appearance in Tauranga in January.

Congrats to the guys and gals from ETPA that raced in the Cannibal Gold Coast Half Ironman last weekend.

43 days till Shepparton Half Ironman

90 days till Tauranga Half Ironman

97 days till the Wedding!!! Yikes…

Rolling along nicely

Training is ticking along nicely. I'm enjoying running without fear of knee pain, though I am definitely still hyper-sensitive. Hopefully this will pass. I am feeling good and can't wait to crank the intensity up and smash myself some, before Shepparton Half in 10 weeks time. Then I can 'iron out the wrinkles' and fly in January.

Don't have much more to say today.

Train hard!

Sleep better by getting up early (I hope)

Today is a rest day and I am sitting here typing at 5:00am, due to the cunning plan I developed at the start of the week. I have been finding it a real struggle to get up some mornings, especially the 4:40am starts to get to swim squad. I have found that even when I get in 7-8 hours I still battle for the first 30min or so to get moving. Now, I know this is probably common for most folks, but I thought I would see if I could make some changes to decrease the chances of the dreaded, 'reset and roll syndrome' (reset, as in the alarm, for later). One of the things that I often tell clients (I work as a child and adolescent psychologist) with sleep problems, is that having a routine is very important to getting quality sleep. I have found lately, that I haven't been getting up at the same time on any two consecutive days. It can vary by up to three hours between a swim squad day and a rest day. I think this may be a big part of the problem. So, because I can't move swim squad to a later time, I have moved my waking time to an earlier one. I try to be in bed by 9:30pm at the latest, which isn't too bad as I just watch TV or surf the net anyway in the evenings, so I get 7-8 hours each night. Now, I haven't had overwhelmingly positive feedback on my plan from those I have deigned to share it with (non-believers!), but that doesn't usually stop me anyhow. One of the benefits of my plan is plainly clear, on non-swim squad mornings such as this morning, I have a spare 2 ½ hrs to waste use constructively. Another is that I can go to work half an hour early and finish the same in the afternoon. So far so good (it has only been a few days), but I will see how it goes.

Training is going pretty good, I can run pain free, I just have to avoid the “its all better, who needs stretches and strengthening exercises” thing and I should be all good. Last night I had a pretty intense magtrainer group session, and my knee didn't have anything to say at all, so fingers crossed.

Hopefully my new early to rise routine will also mean more time to blog too, win win for everyone.

Back on track and ITB links

I am two days into my first, what I guess is a full weeks training. It seems to be going well, tonight’s magtrainer session will tell. I have become quiet 'knee pain paranoid' lately and any sensation in my knee is analysed and monitored. I have not had pain as such for a while but I have had sensations which don’t seem normal or at least, I don’t remember having them in the past. I also have caught myself using my left leg to do all the work at times, which I can imagine would lead to all sorts of problems if I let it carry on. I was considering writing a post on ITB problems, but really my heart isn’t in it. To tell the truth after all the panicked research I have done into it recently, I don’t want to think too carefully about it. What I will do though is share a coupe of links that I felt were the most helpful and that made sense to me. They matched up with what the professionals I have talked to are saying as well as matching up with what other athletes who have experienced the problem have been saying.

This one is about ITB and rehab:
http://trifuel.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7715&highlight=itbs

This is a site that has tonnes of great info on all sport related injuries and the rehab for them:
http://www.sportsinjurybulletin.com/

Recovering from injury and Ironman training envy

I just got in from a 50min run, all be it a very easy paced one and I had no discomfort in my knee at all. Yay. I have had no problems at all this week with my knee and I think if I keep on top of my stretches and core strength exercises then I will be able to say goodbye to the ITB issues (touch wood). I have heard a lot about people having ongoing issues and I'm hoping that if I don't get lazy with looking after my body then I won't have further problems.

My build back into training will be a gradual one. My main problem at the moment is training envy. Its gotten to the point where I don't want to ask the guys I train with how their training is going or how far they have been going. It makes me feel like a wuss. It also makes me think about the training I haven't done and how it would have helped for the races later in the season. I guess I need to focus on getting as much quality training in between now and my next race, rather than focusing on the missed training. It seems to be that external motivation thing kicking in again. I'm all about the comparing with others and at the moment my is definitely smaller than yours.

Injury/training update #2

Its the end of another week of slowly but surely rehabing my knee. It has been reasonably successful, despite being slower than I would like. I got through a 30min jog yesterday and a 2hr spin this morning on the bike. I rode an hour, to watch some of the people I train with doing a half marathon or 10km run. Congratulations to everyone that ran. I was jealous to be stuck watching, which was made worse by uncontrollable shivering due to the cold. I was consolated by a plate of warm pancakes and some jelly beans, that the race organizers were providing for the runners. I think they meant to spectators to be fed too... Well thats my story and I'm sticking to it. I was concerned after last week, that the cooling off while watching the run would give my knee a chance to flare up and cause me grief on the way home. I am glad to say it didn't. Though for the first 10mins the shivering was so bad I almost shivered my self off the road a couple of times! I have my program for the next several weeks and its a long slow build back to full Ironman training program. I am looking forward to increasing the volume and intensity, so I can feel like I'm actually making progress rather than maintaining at best. Lets hope everything remains positive.

Injury/training update

It's a bit sad to be doing “injury updates”, but such is life at the moment. This weekend I got through a 20min jog on Saturday, followed by a 15min cold water wade. It was interesting to see how a little thing like the camber of the footpath, played such a big part in my pain levels. I got through 10min reasonably well, then started running along a footpath with an, I guess, “reasonable” down to the right camber. Its my right ITB that is giving me grief and almost immediately the pain increased. I clicked after about a minute and moved to the part of the path sloping the other direction and walla! The pain went away within a minute or less. It really illustrates how small things can make a huge difference and how functional the injury is. I guess for the next while I will be sticking to the left hand side of the road, at least until I get this issue sorted.

This morning I joined the 2hr Sunday group ride, to see how I held up on the bike. We have made some significant changes to my saddle position that seems to have helped. The ride went pretty well, but ended in a frustrating fashion. One of the group got a puncture which is a common occurrence and cant be helped (to tell the truth I enjoy the break, though I was missing the few kg of body fat this morning brrrr!). In the five or so minutes we waited it seemed the part of my knee that swells when irritated got a good swell on and for the last 15min I was in a good deal of pain. At this point there was no way I found to be rid of it. I think, for the next while. no stopping and ice and anti-inflammatories immediately are the order of the day.

I am feeling pretty positive, despite the niggles, a few more weeks and I can get back to smashing it. As of todays date there are 133 days till my first, what I'd consider serious race. Yes I am counting it down already...

Injury interrupted week and new gadget

Its the end of a frustrating week of training interrupted by injuries. My body has been rebelling against the increased training load and it is annoying the hell out of me. I suppose it is better to be happening now rather than closer to Ironman race season, but its a pain in the ass just the same. I won't go into great detail on this topic because I don't want to bring you all down with my negative mood. Lets just say training is not on track and I need to take some steps to sort things out.

On a different note I have recently purchased an IrDA (standing for Infrared Don't Ask me what it stands for) adapter. It allows me to upload the heartrate data from my Polar heartrate monitor to my PC. So far it is interesting, but I really have no idea what to do with the information. I anticipate that when I have my heartrate training zones (coming soon), I will be able to see how successful I have been in sticking to them. I think I'll do some research into how else I might make use of the technology. I need to find some excuse for why I spent the money. I will keep you updated on what I find out.

James' 'Weight Update' #3

This morning, post ablutions, my weight was 82.4kgs. I seem to have plateaued since last update a little. I think my increased calorie intake over the big training weekend last week may be to blame. I was thinking I could/should eat more to keep my energy levels up and I may have overdone it. This weekend, I'll have a good recovery meal after each workout, then maintain the smaller meals for the rest of the day. Hope the numbers drop more next update. Still on track.

Sleep and Ironman training

I went out for an “easy ride” for 3hrs this morning. The group I rode with was a step up from what I am used to, which was great for the fact that it will benefit me greatly to train with athletes at a higher level than me, both for the physical step up and for the motivational,inspirational step up. I can learn from people doing Ironman well and apply this to my training.

What made this morning not so great, was, for the first time in months, I went out in the city last night. We went out for a great dinner, I highly recommend teppanyaki restaurants for a great time with friends. We then went out to a bar which was nice, but this meant we got home about 1:30-2:00am. I got up just before 6:00am to head out for this ride, and as I struggled along lacking any gas on the hills, I remembered a couple of good articles I had read, on the importance of sleep to Ironman training. They make some good points and you should check them out. I, for one won't be hitting the town again any time soon. I don't feel its worth the cost to my training. Of course special occasions will be celebrated, but the going out for the sake of it is not on my agenda for a while.

Sleep more, train better, race faster
Sleep Your Way to Better Performance

Training fatigue and hot/cold recovery

It has been a testing last few days, both physically and mentally, with the Saturday Morning Brick Session and the ongoing training since then. Yesterday I had one of the flattest Ironman training days I have had in a while. I felt tired when I woke for swimming and once in the pool I knew it was going to be a slog. I felt some residual fatigue from the 2km swim the night before and it didn't warm out. We did what I would usually find a pretty tame set of 12x100m on 1:30, I struggled from the get go and by the end was getting no rest, I felt like i was swimming in caramel sauce...mmm caramel sauce. It was hard on my body and probably harder on my ego. But, I have to look at it in the context of the big weekend I had and learn not to let individual sessions or sets overshadow the big picture. I am sure I am going to have a lot of sessions where it seems like I am going backwards or just don't have the energy to perform up to my expectations, but, who cares how fast I go for 12x100m eight months out from my goal Ironman...?

I had a couple of solid run sessions today, both including intervals building to max effort. On a positive note I felt pretty damn good this morning and not too bad this evening. I haven't felt any pain in the 'Old Rec Fem' in a few weeks and I'm continuing with regular physio appointments to improve my core strength and posture with a hope to keep future injuries at bay and to increase my performance.

I have been using hot/cold recovery lately and I feel that it is helping me to recover faster and train day in day out. I either do 3-5 sets in the shower of 30secs cold water and 1min hot water, or 3-4mins in a hot bath and 1min in a cold shower. The idea behind hot/cold recovery is that the repeated constriction and dilation of leg muscle tissues pumps wastes out of your legs and helps reduce inflammation and bleeding in the muscles. I am still unsure how much of a benefit it is. I feel it does help to a degree, it reduces the muscle pain I feel, which in turn probably helps me train harder. Whether it increases my performance or not, I'm not sure. One thing I am sure of is that I would like to find some sort of waterproof underwear, because, ice cold water is not welcome on some parts of my body no mater how therapeutic it is. I have considered cutting leg holes in a shower cap, but I would have to kick my own ass if I was getting around with a shower cap on for a nappy.

There has been some research into the benefits of hot/cold recovery, if your interested I have placed a link to a good article on the Peak Performance online website below.

Hot/Cold - Don't pour cold water over hydrotherapy

Saturday Morning Group Brick Session

Wow! I just got in from my first experience of the Saturday morning group brick session (bike/run). I t was a four hour session, which included some hill climb sprints, some longer hill climbs in TT position (on aerobars) and some longer hill climbs in TT position. This was follow by an hour ride, then we did a 10minute run, building to a strong pace followed by 40mins jogging. It was a step up in intensity for me and it seemed to be for a lot of the other people that were there training for Ironman too. As usual when we voiced how hard we were doing it, our coach who was taking part, told us how much longer and harder it was going to get in the future. I wonder whether that helps or not sometimes... I guess a realistic view of where we will go with our training is nice. The group atmosphere was great and I personally get so much out of doing these sort of trainings. When I'm by myself I can push to a degree, but because I am so extrinsic or externally motivated, having someone to catch or pass or keep up with does wonders for my training intensity. Of course on the down side, I find it hard to do easy when in a group. We numbered about 10-12 of us and we were spread in experience from multiple Ironman racers to one month into their Ironman training career and I think everyone enjoyed themselves and pushed their boundaries.

There is some schools of thought that say brick sessions are not necessary, and there have been a number of world class Ironman/triathlon competitors, who have not focused on this aspect of training. I personally feel that it is an important part of training for an Ironman or any triathlon. It is an opportunity to learn to run with that horrible jelly legs feeling off the bike, but more importantly it allows you to learn to run with the fatigue carried over from the ride. It puts you in the same physical state or as close to as you will be at the start of the Ironman run. This allows you to work at maintaining good running form with your cycling muscles fatigued.

I am glad that todays session is over and I think that now I have done one I will be able to be more specific in my feelings of dread leading up to Saturdays, as opposed to the fear of unknown I had this morning before setting out. But now, I'm going to put my feet up and relax.

VO2max testing for Ironman training and breathing sand

I did a VO2max test this morning at the university bio-mechanics labs, it hurt. Hopefully its worth it and it allows my coach to provide a more specific Ironman training schedule in the future.

I was a little nervous about the testing session, which wasn't helped by the email form my coach saying there would be consent forms to sign before the “smashfest” began. Also, as with most race or test type situations, I had the anxiety/excitement I usually get, which I think is part of the reason for doing this in the first place. I turned up as one of my training partners was finishing and he described it as “uncomfortable”, he is an under-stater so I expected some pain.

The test is done on a stationary bike with a heart rate monitor and a horrible breathing apparatus not unlike a scuba diving mask or a snorkel. These are connected to a big bunch of computers which strangely enough didn't beep once while I was being tested. It would have added to my impression if there had been some sort of beeping going on, but I guess they didn't think of that while designing the system. Just saying...

Once hooked up to the machinery, I was asked to stay still to get some “resting data”. I started to have performance anxiety right then and there....”Is my heart rate supposed to be that high?”....”am I breathing normally?”, “what is he writing?” and “how stupid do I look in this getup?”. Once satisfied with my resting data I began pedaling. The testing began with 3 x 3min intervals at reasonably easy tension, to get some “steady state” data....then the test proper began and the discomfort was shortly to follow. From then the tension or watts increased by 25, starting at 250 every minute. I was required to maintain an even rpm and to try to keep going as long as I could. It became pretty hard pretty quickly. Early on I started to note that the scuba mask attachment prohibited any swallowing or moistening of my mouth and throat. As a result everything dried out and gave the impression of breathing sand... Now this might sound bad,but the pain the emerged in my legs soon took my mind of the desert in my mouth. Apparently at some point the data indicated that the lactic acid started doing its thing in my legs and this was when it got tough. At the end I managed to do 30seconds at 425watts. Now I have no idea if that is good or bad but it felt tough. My VO2max is apparently around 51? again no idea what that means, now I could link you to a bunch of articles that explain it all that I have already pawed over but I won't. My coach will get a summary of my results soon and he will feedback the findings, using these to educate my Ironman training program. I think I will leave the explaining to him and feedback to you after that. I think at that point I will write a bit more about the point of the testing and the benefits to be had. Then I can tell you if its worth the $250 it cost.

Run technique group am, long horrible run pm.

I struggled to get up this morning but felt positive after the warmup at this mornings run technique group. We did some run throughs, followed by a main set of three five minute aerobic efforts + one minute max effort. They were pretty tough, all the time focusing on the three important aspects of running form. Making contact with the ground beneath the hip, pushing out the back and high stride recovery. This is almost a polar opposite to how I used to run and it is tough trying to develop a new style. I get a fair share of shouts from the coach and seem to have a million aspects to try and think about while I'm sure my brain isn't getting enough oxygen to do the job. I have too admit I feel more like a runner the longer I work at this, rather than one step above a power walker my old style was. The downer about this mornings run training was that from the start I had some tightness in my right quad that progressively got worse as the session went on. By the end it was pretty sore and I was concerned, but was making some good progress with my technique and didn't want to quit (enter the dumb athlete who knows all about “listen to your body” but ignores it all).

During the day my quad was tender but not too bad. I started this evenings run with a very slow jog, the quad pain was there but didn't get worse, nor did it get any better. I decided to keep going till it got noticeably worse. It stayed pretty constant. Tonights run session was a warmup jog, followed by 70 minutes of intervals – 2min easy, 2min moderate, 2min firm and 1min walk x 10. The firm was quite painful, and the walk seemed to make things worse. To add to my misery, I forgot to apply the long run prerequisite, of bodyglide between the thighs and plasters on the nipples. I paid the price, chafe city! But it didn't end there, there seemed to be some sort of bug convention along the road so I ate and breathed bugs for most of the run (I actually washed 5 out of my hair in the shower afterwards).

Today was one of those days that you want to forget, but the positive side is that despite the struggles I got through everything that was planned and can tick that off. Its the tough days that you get through and tick off that make the race seem that much more doable. Its a psychological boost to pat yourself on the back at the end of a day like this. Sometimes you have to pat yourself on the the back, Ironman is a sport where if you don't its unlikely anyone else is going to.

Free online training diary

I have found a great online tool that I think will benefit my Ironman training and may help yours, an impressive online training diary at just the right price.... free!

I have been searching for an online training diary for some time; this was part of the reason Ironman Cafe was born. Well, I just stumbled across a cool little site that I had to share, Buckeye Outdoors Training Site allows you to log your workouts for free! You can include run/walk, bike, swim, strength sessions, stretching sessions, rest days, races, heartrates and weather conditions among other things. You can create and save different training routes, save equipment profiles (keeping track of how far your equipment has gone as well as how far you have). You can also create reports of different aspects of your training. My favorite feature, which I am sure all you other blogging triathletes/ironpersons will love is the ability to display your training totals in a side bar on your blog. As you can see to the right hand side below my archived posts. Go check it out, whether you blog or not it is a cool little tool. Keeping a diary of your training can be both a great learning tool and a strong source of motivation. You can look for patterns in your training as well as getting the great feeling of writing down or inputting the latest “thrash” session into your diary for all (or just yourself) to admire.

Easter Sunday morning long ride

This morning was the usual Sunday long ride. I think it is a common part of most triathletes training. This mornings was a 5:50am start to ride for 40 minutes to meet with a riding group of about ten. We did two hours with the group then headed home again. It was cold to start off with but warmed up later. I felt good the whole way, and was happy with a solid 3:40 ride and done with training for the day. Now I can indulge in a few Easter treats and have no guilty feelings. Ironman WA is still a long way off, but I am feeling motivated at the moment. Hopefully over the net few days I can develop a few ideas for pieces to write to get this site rolling. I have lots of fleeting ideas which I must start writing down.

A place to relax in the scramble that is life training for Ironman

Technorati Profile
Greetings to you weary triathletes. You have stumbled upon the first post of my quiet spot to sit and rest your weary body, take a break from triathlon training and to feed your need for knowledge to improve your “personal best” or to just go that little bit faster. I will use this space as an outlet for my own obsessive hunger for knowledge that I hope will make me a faster swimmer, cyclist and runner. I will discuss the articles that tickle my fancy or that sound good or in some cases too good to be true. I will endeavor to review any wizz-bang go fast gadgets that I come across and to hopefully get interviews with other like minded (mad) Ironpersons. Also for the whats in it for me side of this, I will use this as an online training diary to chronicle my frantic progression towards Ironman glory. Hope to see you whenever you can spare a minute or two from your Ironman training. Think of it as training your mind while your body recovers.