Time to Start Running!

So its almost the end of January.  Its been 11 weeks since I have gone for a run.  Well, 11 weeks ago it wasn't just a "run", but a marathon!  I was going to take all of January off from running, but I just couldn't stand it.  I mean this is the Tri Runner Rick blog, right?  I had to get some new shoes, but first the week:

Swim
11,200 yards, 4 swims, 4:19.  Shoulder felt good all week. Rotate, Rotate, Rotate!

Bike
80.1 miles, 2 rides, 3:54, Plus 1hr on the Y trainer.  Some chilly rides this weekend.  28 deg on Sunday!

Run
6 miles, 2 runs, 0:42. Good runs for the first in a while.  3M on Sunday at 6:57 pace.  Felt winded but good.

Totals
92.5 miles, 9 workouts, 9:55


As I mentioned, I got new shoes.  I had been running in my current shoes since March of 2009.  Didn't put that many miles in during 2009 and 2010.  I'm an Asics man.  I only buy Asics, and I wear a size 9.  Makes it pretty easy to shop for some cheap shoes on the internet.  I've found that cheaper shoes do me better by not restricting my foot as much.  Don't interpret that as some nod towards minamilist running.  I run in orthotics and I need to (read: ITB syndrome).

Anyways, I scour the internet for Cheap Asics.  Usually not Ebay or Craigslist but I just search and compare 8-10 sites and see what their specials are.  I got my last pair from Eastbay, but they really didn't have any good deals this time.  So the winner this year was "OnlineShoes.com".









I ordered the shoes over the weekend, and voila: new shoes when I got home from work on Wednesday.  Pretty good service I have to say.  Surely helps that they shipped out of Ohio instead of California, like everything else I order it seems.  (The Yankz did not come with, I picked them up earlier).

They are Asics Gel Impression 3's.  Never heard of 'em before.  I really don't read anything past Asics Gel Size 9.  I like most websites now that you can search by size, brand and sort by price.  I've been using elastic laces for the last year and I've really grown to like them.  Just slip them on, no tying.  They also seem to help my feet on long runs (15+ milers).  I previously had to do a lace adjustment every few miles after 13M or so.  Now with the elastics, my feet feel great.  I stopped by Inside Out Sports to pick some up, but they didn't have the usual kind I get, so I picked up the Yankz brand.  Can't be that bad, I mean Macca won Kona in them, right?  At least that's what the ad said.

These "Yankz" are a little different than the ones I used before.  The previous ones were a bit simpler, but I like the concept of the Yankz.  Being able to tighten from the top or bottom will prolly come in handy.  I followed the instructions and laced them up.  Flipping the loop down onto the "triangle" was pretty simple.

My first run on Saturday felt pretty good in them. It always takes me a little bit of time to get shoes broken in, but I have plenty of time before Charleston in April.  The shoes themselves felt pretty good.  A little bit of a 'clodhopper' feel to them.  Kinda bulky, but good for a training shoe.  What do you want for $45 delivered?  I'm pretty happy with the feel for that price!

2012 Goals

We're now three weeks into the year 2012.  I've been giving my goals some thought and I've come up with a few for races and training.  But First, the week:

Swim
10,400 yards, 4 swims, 3:54.  Some good intervals this week.  Pool was pretty busy.

Bike
73.4 miles, 2 rides, 3:31. (Plus 1:15 on the Y trainer).  Some good cold rainy riding.  Rode some new roads on Sunday out to the Charlotte Airport.

Total:
79.3 miles, 7 workouts, 8:40

I managed to achieve all but one of my goals for 2011, so hopefully I'm not setting the bar too high in 2012 but we shall see.
Training Goals:
1) Swim 200 miles or 352,000 yards.  Really just the same as last year
2) Bike 4,000 miles on the road.  About a 25% increase from last year.
3) Run 1,500 miles.  Again a 25% increase.

Time/Pace Goals:
1) Ride 2:25 for 56M at Augusta (that's 23.17 mph avg)
2) Run 1:25 for 13.1M at Augusta (that's 6:29 per mile)
3) Ride 22:00 for 10M at CMS TT (that's 27.3 mph avg)
4) Run 1:20 for 13.1M at Charlotte Thunder Road Half (that's 6:06 per mile)
5) Don't drown in any Swim.

Race Goals
1) Top 5 AG at Charleston Half
2) Top 3 OA at Baxter Tri
3) Top 6 AG at Augusta (and Qualify for Vegas 70.3 Worlds)
4) Have fun at Rev3 FL Half

So obviously my year is geared toward Augusta 70.3 on September 30th.  Rev3 FL after that will just be a fun race that I can use some good fitness I hopefully have from training for Augusta.  Then the Thunder Road Half will be a bit of a measuring stick for my subsequent training for the 2013 Boston Marathon.

2013 Could be a fun 'championship' year as I've already qualified for Boston.  We'll see how the rest goes.

Resoluters: Admire or Admonish?

So its the New Year and time for all the couch potatoes to start working out (again).  Does it bother you or not?  First the week in training:

Swim:
9,600 yards, 4 swims, 3:40.  Put the intervals on the shelf Friday and did a 1,600 yard straight set.

Bike:
72.8M, 2 rides, 3:30. Plus 1hr on the trainer at the Y.  Good 45M on Saturday, struggled the last 15M

Total:
78.2M, 7 workouts, 8:10

As happens this time of year (every year) the Y gets packed.  It usually doesn't impact me too much.  I get in the pool at 5am where most of the Resoluters head upstairs for the weights, treadmills, stairclimbers, yoga and zumba.  Anyway I know enough people at 5am in the pool that if I have to jump in a lane with someone, I already know them.  As has become my habit, I just swim to one side of the lane anyways so someone can just jump right on in anytime.  One of my tri buddies typically does that.  Sometimes I didn't even realize he was in there.

So here's the rub: the locker room.  At 6am when I get out to get showered, it is packed.  On Tuesday all the showers were taken.  Never seen that before.  Then everyone is trying to get dressed at the same time at the lockers.  There were plenty of awkward and uncomfortable situations.  There was a bag in front of my locker.  I figure the guy is in the shower, no big deal.  I stand there unlock my combination lock, and then I have to move the bag to open the locker.  So I start to move the bag and the guy right next to me then grabs it.  It's his bag.  So why don't you grab it when you see me fumbling around with the lock?  Really? Don't give me the look like I'm inconveniencing you.  You could have grabbed your bag and I never would have had to touch it.

Anyways, I'm sure you've read the thread over on Beginner Triathlete regarding the Resoluters.  He basically says they should be admired for actually getting off their duff and trying to work out.  I think he makes some great points.  I think for the most part, I wish them well.  I hope they stick with it.  I still can't quite figure out people who work out for a few weeks and then that's it.  I guess they just have themselves convinced that all they have to do is show up at the Y and the pounds will come off or the fitness will just appear.  Its hard work, you have to have goals.  But as I say: Everything in Life comes back to a Seinfeld episode:

It's ok.  They'll all be gone by the middle of February anyways.

What Santa Brought Me

So what tri stuff did you get for Christmas?  Well I got a long sleeve bike jersey and some sweet Zoot tri shorts.  And then Santa got me a Speedfil A2 bottle!  So when I say Santa, I really mean ME.  Yeah, ok, so I treated myself to a little post Christmas present.  But I really wanted it.

But first the week in Training:
Swim
9,200 yards.  4 swims, 3:27.  Its January Fish time.
Bike
41M, 1 ride, 1:56.  Didn't ride on Saturday, as I had a Cub Scout commitment
Totals:
46.2M, 5 workouts, 5:23.

I've really gotten to like the BTA (Between The Arms, as Tri Rig calls it) bottle.  So the A2 offers me the ability of drinking (or hydrating, if you're really a tri geek) out of a straw with very minimal effort.  See now I don't have to pull the bottle out of the cage and tip it up and take a drink and then put it back in.  I just grab the straw, take my drinks, and tuck the straw back down.  The straw is just a really flexible tube.

Also, it has a 'no spill' cap, that flips open so you can refill it on the fly.  This is really nice as well, since I always seem to get some drippage out of my regular bottle BTA.  Not a big deal when I just have water, but when I have a Heed or make a mix with maltodextrin, I have to really clean the head tube and frame of my bike.




I had to kinda play around with my cockpit setup some to get it to work.  I had my BTA bottle so that it came out the front.  With the A2 I had to flip around my bottle cage.  I've always had my cage zip tied between my aero bars, so that was no big deal.  I just use some black zip ties and you can't even really see them.  So now my "carbon fiber water bottle cage from Singapore" (ebay rules!) is pointed toward me.  No big deal now, since I won't be taking the bottle out during rides.

As you can see, its pretty invisible to the wind and you look at it straight on.  The only issue I had was that I cut the tube about an inch too short.  I guess the lesson is that you should cut it long and test it and then cut it down some more.  Not a big deal as it just a little too short.

I also need to get some velcro or something to help hold the tube down.  It kinda was flopping around on me during my first ride.  I got time before my first race in April to get it all figured out!


All in all, it sure was nice on that first ride to just drink from the tube.  The bite valve works really well to keep the fluid at the end of the straw so its right there.  Really easy to get a lot of drink.  We'll find out more as the weather gets warmer.  I took a 2nd bottle, but didn't do a refill "on the fly" yet.  That will be more interesting.