I said after my win at Taiwan 70.3 that there "[was] SO much MORE to last Saturdays win than what simply went on in the 4h09min of racing..." I wanted to write about EVERYTHING that had gone into achieving that result, but decided to wait until after IM Western Australia as this helps give extra dimension and further "body" to all of it, maybe for some of you reading this, extra credibility too. You can read race reports for both those races below & on my website to hear about the race days themselves; what's here though, to me, is FAR more important and significant than the normal post-race waffle I might give about 'race strategy and the nutrition I took onboard etc'.
Both these race performances have been a LONG time coming and despite MANY setbacks, something I always believed I was capable of. Yes there has been a LOT of hard work and perseverance but SO many people have been involved in getting me through some very tough times and to those results... I'll try to mention as many as I can here and explain their significance. I owe a HUGE thanks to them ALL.
I should probably pre-empt all of this too by pointing out that the win in Taiwan on October 30th, was almost exactly 1 year to the day since I’d returned to training after an enforced 10 weeks of complete rest having been hit with chronic fatigue. 2007,08 & 09 had been incredibly draining years for me physically, mentally and emotionally; the stress of which had gone un-acknowledge by me. It all lead to a gradual deterioration in both training and race performance and eventually to me imploding in August of 09. I was an empty shell with nothing left inside but my faith that God was still in control and would use this for good somehow. He was, and did and I’m actually very grateful for this time as I learned some hard, yet important lessons and grew in lots of ways that I needed to. We can learn our greatest lessons from our biggest defeats, and I certainly did, leading eventually to 1 year on feeling like I had been restored and I hope, better for it all.
But back to the race report “bigger picture”…
Undoubtedly, without my parents none of this would have happened; not least because I was at the point where I couldn't actually afford to fully pay for the trip. Without their help I wouldn't even have boarded the plane to get to the race in Taiwan. But far more than this is the unceasing support they have given without hesitation in so many other ways. Always encouraging and believing in me... and trusting in MY self-belief EVEN through the really bad and low times, when MANY others didn't. Last year when I literally fell apart physically and emotionally with chronic fatigue, they never questioned or deterred me for continuing and they did ALL they could to help me try to fully rest and recover. I know I'm INCREDIBLY blessed to always have my mum, dad & brothers behind me. Coming to races to support, help and simply sharing the pressure, the early mornings, feeding me the HUGE quantities of food I consume :-) ...the list is endless, but personally NEVER goes un-noted.
My church 'family' too, have been wonderful over the last few years. Some VERY close friends have supported me, encouraged, prayed un-ceasingly and also believed in/with me when things didn't seam to be going too well. When, at 10.30pm, the night before the race in Taiwan I was STILL waiting for my bike to arrive they were back in the UK praying for me. This kind of support is hard to put a price on... you can't, but knowing I'm never "alone" when racing even when 1000's of miles away has been key to me being able to race closer to my potential. They understand my desire to use sport as a "missionary field" where I can hopefully show and speak about my faith. (You can briefly read more about this at www.ForHisGlory.co.uk ) I know they share in my delight as the results come and it opens doors - such as this blog - to speak about why my beliefs as a Christian are so important... THE MOST important thing. In particular Chris, Linda and Jen, have shared every hard and easy road as I walked (sometimes crawled) on it and I really can't thank them enough.
I'm also very fortunate to have a very big but close circle of friends most of which I've known since I was a very little kid. We've grown up (I hope ha ha) together and they've known me as the Wimbledon tennis ball-boy, footballer, the "lads holiday" boy etc... I know its quite unusual to have a large circle of friends whom have been together for over 2 decades but in recent times, when training and racing has meant sometimes 2-3 months between seeing them, I've realised how close and important they all are to me. They too have understood when it didn't make sense and never undermined what I was trying to do even if the evidence at the time didn't seam to back up what I believed. They've also come to races, helped when money got a little tight and very simply been good, solid, loving mates; even their parents have helped me at times! To quote one of them recently in jest (himself quoting Morrissey) "We hate it when our friends become successful and if they're Northern, well, that makes it even worse..."
Others like Wayne who has been a great mate, fellow tri-geek to waffle tri-world chat to, share dozens of website links about the latest bikes :-) GREAT massage therapist and also massive help during some tough times in the last few years. His treatment of my legs before Taiwan was critical I'm sure, to my legs feeling SO GOOD in that race despite the mammoth journey I made so close to race day. It's little things -well actually to me they're HUGE- like his giving me free treatment and helping so much when I was injured earlier this year, that kept me going when sometimes I didn't feel like it. When I've been feeling a little low, their belief in me has restored mine or simply given it added strength when maybe mine was waning. I know particularly with Wayne that he's struggled himself with his training and racing recently so I hope that my results will give him a little personal satisfaction too and encourage HIM to keep chasing his dreams.
I am also, very blessed to count one of the worlds current greatest athletes (in ANY SPORT in my opinion) as a close and dear friend. It's says something of what she has achieved in triathlon and increasingly beyond it too, in such a short space of time that as I write this she has just received an honorary doctorate from Birmingham University and today is preparing to meet the Queen to receive an OBE! [It's often said that the BIGGEST stars need only be know by their first name so...] Whilst Chrissie has been destroying world records, beating most of the men in the world and racking up World Titles she’s also been a CONSTANT supporter, encourager, adviser and friend. Earlier this year literally HOURS after she broken her own world record she emailed me to wish me good luck for the race I was soon to do! This kind of thing is what all the on-line wana-be's and "haters" don't know about her. They don't see her fighting my little corner whilst they write complete rubbish about her, as they hide behind on-line pseudonyms; but I can't tell you how much it helps to have her also showing complete belief in me, even when things were going REALLY badly at times. Others previously very close to me have ended up very negative and un-supportive, but when I’ve have the best in the world saying otherwise its helped pull me through and I can't thank her enough. She deserves her royal honour and continued success in the future more than anyone I can think of.
The more I think about it, the more people spring to mind. Friends overseas who paid for me to have a holiday with them when external issues left me exhausted and emotionally drained (thanks to my American "family" for that!). There are SO many and it stirs up within me a deep sense of gratitude, love and humility when I stop and take it all in.
Sponsors too, have been very supportive and this year PureTri, Powerbar, CompressSport, ProVO2, Greeper and DC Leisure have really made things much easier when it comes to equipment, kit & nutrition that I quite simply couldn't afford on my own. It's nice to be able I hope, to repay them if only a little so far with the results and increased exposure of recent times.
Finally though comes the single most important influence and helper and the one who deserves ALL the credit for anything "good" I'm ever able to achieve... as a Christian I KNOW (as I wrote in my IM WA race report) its ALL a gift of Gods grace; I simply get to enjoy it... When things have fallen apart, it’s been my faith in Jesus ALONE that has kept me going, given me hope and purpose both in and beyond triathlon. I explain this on the website I linked to earlier and I hope you'll take the time to read it... because its not just what suits ME and helps ME, my faith isn't a crutch I lean on when the #### hits the fan; its truth, its real and I hope I can continue to share this and show it through how I train, race, speak, think and live. The bible speaks very clearly about endurance (Hebrews 12:1-2), but importantly, enduring with a purpose and NOT wasting the suffering that we ALL go through (1 Peter 4:11-16). Knowing this truth makes suffering, failure, hardship and defeat (as well as victories and good times etc) things I'm actually able to rejoice in... I know that seams like a complete oxymoron, but it’s true. And just by way of an example, consider that not less than 7 years ago I did my first ever Olympic triathlon at London finishing not far off 3hrs. A lot has changed since then (I'm nearly twice as fast now and as I write this I'm currently ranked in the top 30 guys in the world for Ironman and 70.3 racing); weaknesses have been turned into strengths (Hebrews 11:34). I've seen so many answers to my prayers and His hand SO CLEARLY at work in my life during this time, but I've only become increasingly humbled by my awareness that its all a gift, and I need to look after each opportunity, this body I've been given, every word I get to speak and use them as God wants me to... to reveal HIS glory :-) Soli Deo gloria
So you see, it’s certainly not as simple as swim, bike, run but nor does it come to watts, heart rates and energy gels :-) I know that Taiwan and IM WA don't make me a big "star"... they are only 2 reasonably decent results, but I certainly hope the start of more. Whatever though, Gods in control and I'm just happy I get to see a little of "the ride". I hope next year I get to share more of this with you all.
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 09, 2010
IM Western Australia 2010 Race Report
Having been away from home for so long prior to this race (since just before my win at Taiwan 70.3 back in October) there's a LOT I could write around this race... but I'll save that all for a later post. In short though I'd had a fantastic 4 week build up to this race staying with my good friends Andy and Melissa (and their boys Noah & Lucas) on the Goldcoast. The weather was great - certainly better than the snow back home and with 50m open air pools, runs along the beach and awesome riding up in the hills I couldn't have asked for a better prep for my 3rd and I hoped 1st successful (result) Ironman.
I'd also had a great time with my Homestay hosts Dennis and Liz; who'd welcomed me into their home so warmly and run around after me all week. With the picturesque town of Bussleton as the setting for the race, perfect race conditions and a flat fast course, I had no excuses not to be excited before the race.
With everything going smoothly the morning of the race, I found myself standing on the white sands of the beach waiting for 5.30am and the Pro's swim start. I was putting no pressure on myself and instead of a swim warm-up, chose to stand on the beach and take it all in, reminding myself that success or failure, pain or pleasure it was all a gift of Gods grace that I was blessed to be able to enjoy. This was going to be my approach to the whole day!
So when the gun went and the 50 or so Pro's all launched into the washing machine frenzy that the swim start always is, I found myself incredibly relaxed and calm. I quickly found my stroke and rhythm and settled into the the 2.4mile swim up and around the famous jetty. Crystal clear, warm water meant a great view of the wildlife underneath us including plenty of jelly fish that I kept cupping in my hands as we swam. Finding myself leading a large-ish group that i assumed was the 2nd pack, alongside number 35. He seemed happy to be sighting regularly so I simply swam alongside him, with 10 or so others tucked in behind us both. For the first time in a while I really enjoyed the swim; I felt relaxed and smooth and happy the day was starting under control, so I was really pleased to see the clock still on 52mins as we finally exited the water onto the beach and ran through the crowds into the transition area.
As with Taiwan, I was only focusing on racing my race today, and so even in transition I tried to be quick but calm and relaxed. I lost a little time on my fellow swim companions due to this but quickly caught this back up once on the bike and heading out of town onto the 3 loop VERY flat 112 mile bike.
Sticking with the plan, I actually quickly found myself passing them all and by the first short out-and-back section at mile 8 I was clear of them and pulling away. I timed myself here to the leaders and they had about 6mins on me... that's ok I thought, but as normal now, instantly disregarded this info and just pressed on at my pace. The ceepo venom is such a great stiff bike and MADE for TT'ing on a course like this and it wasn't long before I was already heading back into town to complete the first 37mile lap. By this time I had passed more guys who'd now become shall we say "legal-ish" passengers behind me. Once we started the 2nd lap heading back out of town I caught and passed fellow Brit Scott Neyedli and good friend Guy Crawford (doing his first IM). We exchanged a few funny words as I went by and pulled to the front once again. I was now feeling fantastic on the road and with the wind picking up settled into a nice big gear and just enjoyed the ride. I was extremely surprised to see that within 15mins I'd dropped them all and was now on my own... but more surprising was that I was catching everyone apart from race leader Luke Bell, who wasn't pulling away however. "nice" I thought. The halfway mark came and went in 2h10 and the main chase pack of 3rd-8th came into sight. Catching them again without trying to actively pursue them was a great feeling, not least because current champ Patrick Vernay was leading this group. I decided to drop in at the back, but quickly changed my mind - the pace felt too slow and I wanted to stick to my pace. So I moved to the front and into 3rd place over-all. Now having caught most of these guys for at least 4mins over the previous 100km, I should have been able to ride away, but lets just say the 12m rule the race org was trying to enforce wasn't adhered to by all of them... ignoring this however I stayed true to the plan and just pressed on at my pace, now with a motorized camera crew filming me for company. The rest of the bike went by without an issue. I got all my powerbar nutrition down as planned and happily, eventually got rid of my "passengers" at about the 100 mile mark too. Coming back into town in 3rd place was a REAL buzz and I was now really looking forward to staring the marathon and seeing how my legs had REALLY faired during the bike...
The Newton trainers went on and I headed out of T2 through the massive crowd now packing the new 4lap run course around the town of Bussleton. The first short out and back loop down past the finish on Queen St was a very exciting place to be right now. I clocked the gap to 2nd at about 2mins but was still very happy to run at a pace that FELT right and just see what happened. However my speed work recently has been going VERY well and I knew within the first km I was running faster than I probably should and yet it felt comfortable. I checked my split at 2km... 7m30 WHAT!!! That was WAY too fast... even if it DID feel comfortable; but maybe the marker wasn't quite right or I hadn't started my watch early enough. Luke Bell soon came past on the return leg of the short westerly out-and-back; He looked strong and smooth. I went past the supporters starting to build along this section to first turn around and first aid station packed with super enthusiastic and helpful volunteers and took another split at the 4km mark... 7m40! Ok I was running too quick without question regardless of how good i felt. I consciously tried to ease back as I passed back though town, along the beach path and out to the longer easterly turn point. More and more crowds were lining the course and being in 3rd over-all I got such a buzz from the energy and noise they were ALL giving out. I couldn't help but remember what a privilege it was to be able to do this.
6km point came... and my pace split was slowing though still too fast. I decided to follow my good friends advice at this point and simply "make hay while the sun shines". At the far turn around point though I simply HAD to stop and "make use of the green facilities" -porta loo - hopefully it would help me restart the run at a more sensible pace.
For the first time in an Ironman the run didn't daunt me. I simply concentrated on ticking each lap off as a task in itself rather than a full marathon. As I headed back towards town one of the best parts of the run started... two young ladies at about the 8km mark shouted as I passed "great ass" (insert Aussie accent) I laughed and replied "shame about the coating of salt all over it!" Referring to the nasty white coating all over my 2XU race kit from the sea water... and my sweat.
I passed the transition exit point where I'd first started my watch... the 10.5km mark. 39m30 was showing on my watch and that INCLUDED the toilet break OUCH I'd seriously gone WAY too fast! I made a conscious effort now to run at what felt like jogging pace. Dennis (my Homestay) and his family cheered me onto the 2nd lap and he gave me a split that I was gaining on 1st & 2nd. The atmosphere in the town continued to build as the crowds grew and more runners came onto the course. The 2nd lap went by nicely and included another great boost from my 2 cheerleaders out on the run course. My efforts to slow were working though I still went through 21km in 1h22, still too fast, but i continued to feel ok. In fact for the first time in an Ironman I was actually racing the run and the distance of the marathon wasn't over-whelming. However, not long past the 21k mark, my quads began to say "hello", I could tell my pace was slowing beyond what i wanted and by the far turn around at about 27km I had to walk the aid station. This was the start of a rapid decline in my running and despite more amusement from my new supporters and Dennis still cheering me through town I knew it was now about survival. Marty Whyte passed me and Pete Jacobs and Patrick Vernay had closed the gap I'd built up, VERY quickly. As I started the final lap I was now reduced to walking each aid station and just past the 32km mark both Pete and Patrick passed me with no ability to respond in my legs. My quads were now KILLING me... odd I thought given what a flat course it was. I was now in 6th and it was about hanging on through gritted teeth to the finish. The walk run strategy worked well enough and on the final turn for the finish and 4km to go I had over 6 minutes to 7th place. I could afford to take it easy, which was about all my legs would allow anyway.
It was though, still with great delight that i re-entered the town and ran through the final few hundred meters and onto the packed Queen St for the finish. I died on the run more than I'd wanted for sure, but I'd finished this one, raced it most of the way and in a field THIS strong, I had plenty to be happy about. As I'd tried to focus on right from the very start, it truly was a day to be enjoyed as a gift.
Congrats to the other Brit who raced too (Scott, Jo, Tim and Lordy all had great results) and a HUGE thanks from me to Liz & Dennis, Mel & Andy and all my friends & family back home who were incredibly supportive over the past few days and weeks.
As ever, also a BIG thanks to my sponsors PureTri, Powerbar, CompressSport, Ceepo, ProVO2, DC Leisure and Sanctuary Church Guildford.
Now its time to go home, enjoy Christmas, some great food and times with friends and relax for a few weeks.
I'd also had a great time with my Homestay hosts Dennis and Liz; who'd welcomed me into their home so warmly and run around after me all week. With the picturesque town of Bussleton as the setting for the race, perfect race conditions and a flat fast course, I had no excuses not to be excited before the race.
With everything going smoothly the morning of the race, I found myself standing on the white sands of the beach waiting for 5.30am and the Pro's swim start. I was putting no pressure on myself and instead of a swim warm-up, chose to stand on the beach and take it all in, reminding myself that success or failure, pain or pleasure it was all a gift of Gods grace that I was blessed to be able to enjoy. This was going to be my approach to the whole day!
So when the gun went and the 50 or so Pro's all launched into the washing machine frenzy that the swim start always is, I found myself incredibly relaxed and calm. I quickly found my stroke and rhythm and settled into the the 2.4mile swim up and around the famous jetty. Crystal clear, warm water meant a great view of the wildlife underneath us including plenty of jelly fish that I kept cupping in my hands as we swam. Finding myself leading a large-ish group that i assumed was the 2nd pack, alongside number 35. He seemed happy to be sighting regularly so I simply swam alongside him, with 10 or so others tucked in behind us both. For the first time in a while I really enjoyed the swim; I felt relaxed and smooth and happy the day was starting under control, so I was really pleased to see the clock still on 52mins as we finally exited the water onto the beach and ran through the crowds into the transition area.
As with Taiwan, I was only focusing on racing my race today, and so even in transition I tried to be quick but calm and relaxed. I lost a little time on my fellow swim companions due to this but quickly caught this back up once on the bike and heading out of town onto the 3 loop VERY flat 112 mile bike.
Sticking with the plan, I actually quickly found myself passing them all and by the first short out-and-back section at mile 8 I was clear of them and pulling away. I timed myself here to the leaders and they had about 6mins on me... that's ok I thought, but as normal now, instantly disregarded this info and just pressed on at my pace. The ceepo venom is such a great stiff bike and MADE for TT'ing on a course like this and it wasn't long before I was already heading back into town to complete the first 37mile lap. By this time I had passed more guys who'd now become shall we say "legal-ish" passengers behind me. Once we started the 2nd lap heading back out of town I caught and passed fellow Brit Scott Neyedli and good friend Guy Crawford (doing his first IM). We exchanged a few funny words as I went by and pulled to the front once again. I was now feeling fantastic on the road and with the wind picking up settled into a nice big gear and just enjoyed the ride. I was extremely surprised to see that within 15mins I'd dropped them all and was now on my own... but more surprising was that I was catching everyone apart from race leader Luke Bell, who wasn't pulling away however. "nice" I thought. The halfway mark came and went in 2h10 and the main chase pack of 3rd-8th came into sight. Catching them again without trying to actively pursue them was a great feeling, not least because current champ Patrick Vernay was leading this group. I decided to drop in at the back, but quickly changed my mind - the pace felt too slow and I wanted to stick to my pace. So I moved to the front and into 3rd place over-all. Now having caught most of these guys for at least 4mins over the previous 100km, I should have been able to ride away, but lets just say the 12m rule the race org was trying to enforce wasn't adhered to by all of them... ignoring this however I stayed true to the plan and just pressed on at my pace, now with a motorized camera crew filming me for company. The rest of the bike went by without an issue. I got all my powerbar nutrition down as planned and happily, eventually got rid of my "passengers" at about the 100 mile mark too. Coming back into town in 3rd place was a REAL buzz and I was now really looking forward to staring the marathon and seeing how my legs had REALLY faired during the bike...
The Newton trainers went on and I headed out of T2 through the massive crowd now packing the new 4lap run course around the town of Bussleton. The first short out and back loop down past the finish on Queen St was a very exciting place to be right now. I clocked the gap to 2nd at about 2mins but was still very happy to run at a pace that FELT right and just see what happened. However my speed work recently has been going VERY well and I knew within the first km I was running faster than I probably should and yet it felt comfortable. I checked my split at 2km... 7m30 WHAT!!! That was WAY too fast... even if it DID feel comfortable; but maybe the marker wasn't quite right or I hadn't started my watch early enough. Luke Bell soon came past on the return leg of the short westerly out-and-back; He looked strong and smooth. I went past the supporters starting to build along this section to first turn around and first aid station packed with super enthusiastic and helpful volunteers and took another split at the 4km mark... 7m40! Ok I was running too quick without question regardless of how good i felt. I consciously tried to ease back as I passed back though town, along the beach path and out to the longer easterly turn point. More and more crowds were lining the course and being in 3rd over-all I got such a buzz from the energy and noise they were ALL giving out. I couldn't help but remember what a privilege it was to be able to do this.
6km point came... and my pace split was slowing though still too fast. I decided to follow my good friends advice at this point and simply "make hay while the sun shines". At the far turn around point though I simply HAD to stop and "make use of the green facilities" -porta loo - hopefully it would help me restart the run at a more sensible pace.
For the first time in an Ironman the run didn't daunt me. I simply concentrated on ticking each lap off as a task in itself rather than a full marathon. As I headed back towards town one of the best parts of the run started... two young ladies at about the 8km mark shouted as I passed "great ass" (insert Aussie accent) I laughed and replied "shame about the coating of salt all over it!" Referring to the nasty white coating all over my 2XU race kit from the sea water... and my sweat.
I passed the transition exit point where I'd first started my watch... the 10.5km mark. 39m30 was showing on my watch and that INCLUDED the toilet break OUCH I'd seriously gone WAY too fast! I made a conscious effort now to run at what felt like jogging pace. Dennis (my Homestay) and his family cheered me onto the 2nd lap and he gave me a split that I was gaining on 1st & 2nd. The atmosphere in the town continued to build as the crowds grew and more runners came onto the course. The 2nd lap went by nicely and included another great boost from my 2 cheerleaders out on the run course. My efforts to slow were working though I still went through 21km in 1h22, still too fast, but i continued to feel ok. In fact for the first time in an Ironman I was actually racing the run and the distance of the marathon wasn't over-whelming. However, not long past the 21k mark, my quads began to say "hello", I could tell my pace was slowing beyond what i wanted and by the far turn around at about 27km I had to walk the aid station. This was the start of a rapid decline in my running and despite more amusement from my new supporters and Dennis still cheering me through town I knew it was now about survival. Marty Whyte passed me and Pete Jacobs and Patrick Vernay had closed the gap I'd built up, VERY quickly. As I started the final lap I was now reduced to walking each aid station and just past the 32km mark both Pete and Patrick passed me with no ability to respond in my legs. My quads were now KILLING me... odd I thought given what a flat course it was. I was now in 6th and it was about hanging on through gritted teeth to the finish. The walk run strategy worked well enough and on the final turn for the finish and 4km to go I had over 6 minutes to 7th place. I could afford to take it easy, which was about all my legs would allow anyway.
It was though, still with great delight that i re-entered the town and ran through the final few hundred meters and onto the packed Queen St for the finish. I died on the run more than I'd wanted for sure, but I'd finished this one, raced it most of the way and in a field THIS strong, I had plenty to be happy about. As I'd tried to focus on right from the very start, it truly was a day to be enjoyed as a gift.
Congrats to the other Brit who raced too (Scott, Jo, Tim and Lordy all had great results) and a HUGE thanks from me to Liz & Dennis, Mel & Andy and all my friends & family back home who were incredibly supportive over the past few days and weeks.
As ever, also a BIG thanks to my sponsors PureTri, Powerbar, CompressSport, Ceepo, ProVO2, DC Leisure and Sanctuary Church Guildford.
Now its time to go home, enjoy Christmas, some great food and times with friends and relax for a few weeks.
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
Taiwan 70.3 Race Report Part 1 - "the bare bones"
This is part one of my race report and will be a very simple (but maybe not so short ha ha) "how the race went" type of affair. I'll post again soon with what I'll call "the bigger picture" race report as there's SO much MORE to last Saturdays win than what simply went on in the 4h09min of racing... and there's A LOT of people without who's help i couldn't have got there. Whilst i know this isn't the be-all and end-all in terms of results - its not Kona - it does mark a point (and i hope the start) that I've been working towards for A LONG time and so is incredibly valuable to me and SUPER exciting.
Taiwan 70.3
Riding the short 3 mile trip to race start at 4.30am and actually just happy to even have a bike full stop (mine had only arrived from delayed luggage on my flight at 11pm the night before!) i noticed two things: 1. it was still very, VERY WINDY and 2. my legs felt GREAT!
Having got to the transition area, racked my bike and set everything up i headed off for a short 15min jog to get the blood moving around the body. my observations from earlier still remained... it was still VERY windy and my legs still felt fresh and ready to go. As mentioned in my last blog post, one of the keys i wanted to work on during this race was the mental side of things and i was going to focus on positively impacting what could control and not to "over-think" everything. So with the wind, i simply interpreted this positively thinking that "i like it being windy, it will make the bike tougher, and i want everyone else to have a hard bike" - i couldn't change the wind, but i could change how i dealt with it.
Time past quickly before the race and we were lined up on the beach waiting for the start before i knew it. As we dove into the gorgeous blue, crystal clear waters it quickly became apparent that wearing a wet suit wasn't such a good idea all of a sudden. with the water temp at 24 degrees, it was optional (meaning a DEFINITE for weaker swimmers like me) but i found myself working harder to stay with the front pack than i wanted and i was soon seriously over-heating! i had no choice but to back off a little and conserve energy and try to prevent my race being wrecked in the first 1.9km swim. I tried to carry on the mental approach though and focused on turning this around positively. Swimming as efficiently and controlled as i could, remaining relaxed - positively impacting what i could control.
Not wearing a watch i had no idea of my time as i exited the sea and started the long run to T1. i knew I'd have lost time to the likes of Kieran Doe, but not knowing how much or worse still trying to guess meant i couldn't over-think things and put pressure (negatively) on myself. The 2XU wet suit was off quickly and i was out onto the bike course jumping on my Ceepo, heading up the first (of many) climbs up to the start of the 2 loop, 90km bike course.
The wind was still blowing strongly and gusts making me swerve quite a lot at times as my disc wheel got caught. I wasn't feeling great now and the over-heating during the swim had certainly had an impact, but again i turned this around in my head to simply focusing on riding as strongly as i could until the body recovered. No pressure to catch anyone any time soon, just focus on controlling what i actually could control and doing its positively. I could see my HR was able to get high enough, so i knew my body was OK, it just need time to settle.
After about 10km of the bike there was a short out and back section up a decent climb that would allow me my first change to see how far in front the others were. I as actually really pleased to see Kieran only 4minutes in front and the chasers behind him space between 2-3 minutes. this was less than I'd expected given how the swim had felt and very encouraging. Again it reminded me that who i was "feeling" wasn't always a reflection of the reality of a situation. I stuck to my focus for the race tough, which was "race MY race" and didn't set about chasing anyone down. i wanted to ride my effort level and we'd just see where that got me.
The bike course was relentlessly up and down and the wind continued to blow. According to BG (Belinda Granger) the gust's were stronger than Kona and i certainly felt this when at times, despite riding down hill, i felt like i was toe'ing an elephant! But again, i took this all positively; the harder it was fr me, the harder it was for everyone else. I told myself that it was hurting "them" more than it was me. And so i just keep focusing on riding MY race.
I seamed to be catching and passing guys ahead of me at regular intervals and shortly before the end of the first lap, i caught and passed 5 time Ironman Nice Champion Marcel Zamora. this was a HUGE boost to me, though given how positively i was thinking about everything, somehow didn't take me by surprise. As i hit the turn around point on the out-and-back look at the start of the 2nd lap, i clocked the gap to Kieran as only 2minutes and to the now only 3 guys in front, at just 1 minute! despite once again being hugely encouraged by this, i still stuck to the mental game plan of riding my race. It took me another 20km to catch and pass positions 4th, 3rd and 2nd though and i didn't manage to drop them when i did pass, so spending the last 10km with some "passengers" behind me. the course was a great one and other than nearly getting "totalled" by the occasional wild dog insisting on playing chicken with me in the road, it passed without incident. Turning off the main loop and heading back towards transition on the short 5km stretch my legs felt great, and i was looking forward to seeing how i could run having done exactly what i wanted to on the bike - ride MY race. A ridiculous head wind had one final swipe at us as we headed back to T2, but again, i just told myself that i would "hurt" everyone else much more than me... it was a positive thing (despite barely riding faster than 20kph downhill!!!
As i turned into transition in 2nd place (3rd and 4th just behind me) i saw Kieran heading out onto the run. He looked strong, but ii was now barely 1 minute down on him and HUGELY satisfied to have made up so much time on the bike. my recent bike "companions" were through transition quicker than me, but as with the rest of the race up until now, i wasn't stressed. The newton's went on, Greepers laces tied, visor on and i was off and running about 30m down on them by now. This distance was closed within about 60 seconds though and without letting anything in my approach to the race change ("my race,my pace" i was past and back into 2nd place and began pulling away. I could see Kieran about 500m up the hill, but put no pressure on myself to catch him. i settled into a rhythm and would simply see what happened and if my speed was fast enough to catch him.
The sun was out in full force now and compared to the 0 degree's I'd been running in, back in London only 3 days earlier, the 80 degree's felt like an oven. wit the first 5km almost completely uphill too, the body wasn't about to have it easy. Again though, focusing on just running my pace, i told myself that the harder it was, the better... it was hurting everyone else more than me. Of course at no time in the race, did i know this to be true... but mentally to have this frame of mind really helped me repsond to the tough conditions and course in a positive way.
I knew i wasnt running "fast" and that wit people like Marcel behind me somewhere, it would be a hard 21km run today, but by 7km i'd managed to catch up to and pass Kieran, moving into 1st place!!! this is always a big boost but i tried not to let this change how i was running. i didnt look back to see if/how much Kieran was falling away behind me or if for that matter anyone else was catching me though. I tried to clock off the km's and set the target of the next aid station in my mind and just keep looking at the lead police car escort i was getting at the front of the race (VERY cool!). Despite the heat, i wasnt suffering any cramping issues, which is testiment to my Powerbar nutrition. The race oganisers had done a fantastic job in every way in this race and with aid stations every 2km's it meant i had plenty of opportunities to get fluids on board. the helpers at each aid station seamed more interested in taking photo's of me as i apprached, than handing me cups of water; they found it imensely amusing too as i went through my routine at each station of water > mouthfull > spit > sponge > over head > over back > water gulp... carry on running.
Km's 1-5 flew by, 5-10 were OK to, despite probably 75% of all the running being uphill. 10-15 began to hurt and i knew my pace was slowing, but refused to look back to see if anyone was catching me. From that point on though, km 15-20 it seamed like i was running through treacle! SO much of the course was uphill and the aid stations were coming along more and more slowly. the run course was a point to point course, so didn't finish back near transition and it was only at 19.5km that there was a small loop back where I'd just come from towards the finish line outside the YoYo hotel. This was the first chance i had to see what kind of lead i had and if I'd need to sprint for the finish. with no watch on, i counted my steps until 2nd place went by the other way - 85 meant about 2 minutes... with now only 1km left i was pretty sure I'd done it... i was about to win my first IM 70.3 title. As i rounded the final bend of what felt like the longest km of my life i could see the read carpet of the finishing shoot, which was lined with cheering spectators. knowing i had enough time, i swerved and walked down this "high-5'ing" the crowds as i went and soaked up every second of the victory i could. Crossing the line in 4h09 it certainly wasn't my fastest time over the distance, but on that course, in that wind i could care less it was my first 70.3 win and i was over the moon letting out a massive yell of relief as i crossed the line to the cheering crowds and the bank of photographers and camera crews behind.
As ever, a HUGE tanks to my sponsors who help me SO much - PureTri, Powerbar, CompresSport, Greepers, DC Leisure and ProVO2.
Taiwan 70.3
Riding the short 3 mile trip to race start at 4.30am and actually just happy to even have a bike full stop (mine had only arrived from delayed luggage on my flight at 11pm the night before!) i noticed two things: 1. it was still very, VERY WINDY and 2. my legs felt GREAT!
Having got to the transition area, racked my bike and set everything up i headed off for a short 15min jog to get the blood moving around the body. my observations from earlier still remained... it was still VERY windy and my legs still felt fresh and ready to go. As mentioned in my last blog post, one of the keys i wanted to work on during this race was the mental side of things and i was going to focus on positively impacting what could control and not to "over-think" everything. So with the wind, i simply interpreted this positively thinking that "i like it being windy, it will make the bike tougher, and i want everyone else to have a hard bike" - i couldn't change the wind, but i could change how i dealt with it.
Time past quickly before the race and we were lined up on the beach waiting for the start before i knew it. As we dove into the gorgeous blue, crystal clear waters it quickly became apparent that wearing a wet suit wasn't such a good idea all of a sudden. with the water temp at 24 degrees, it was optional (meaning a DEFINITE for weaker swimmers like me) but i found myself working harder to stay with the front pack than i wanted and i was soon seriously over-heating! i had no choice but to back off a little and conserve energy and try to prevent my race being wrecked in the first 1.9km swim. I tried to carry on the mental approach though and focused on turning this around positively. Swimming as efficiently and controlled as i could, remaining relaxed - positively impacting what i could control.
Not wearing a watch i had no idea of my time as i exited the sea and started the long run to T1. i knew I'd have lost time to the likes of Kieran Doe, but not knowing how much or worse still trying to guess meant i couldn't over-think things and put pressure (negatively) on myself. The 2XU wet suit was off quickly and i was out onto the bike course jumping on my Ceepo, heading up the first (of many) climbs up to the start of the 2 loop, 90km bike course.
The wind was still blowing strongly and gusts making me swerve quite a lot at times as my disc wheel got caught. I wasn't feeling great now and the over-heating during the swim had certainly had an impact, but again i turned this around in my head to simply focusing on riding as strongly as i could until the body recovered. No pressure to catch anyone any time soon, just focus on controlling what i actually could control and doing its positively. I could see my HR was able to get high enough, so i knew my body was OK, it just need time to settle.
After about 10km of the bike there was a short out and back section up a decent climb that would allow me my first change to see how far in front the others were. I as actually really pleased to see Kieran only 4minutes in front and the chasers behind him space between 2-3 minutes. this was less than I'd expected given how the swim had felt and very encouraging. Again it reminded me that who i was "feeling" wasn't always a reflection of the reality of a situation. I stuck to my focus for the race tough, which was "race MY race" and didn't set about chasing anyone down. i wanted to ride my effort level and we'd just see where that got me.
The bike course was relentlessly up and down and the wind continued to blow. According to BG (Belinda Granger) the gust's were stronger than Kona and i certainly felt this when at times, despite riding down hill, i felt like i was toe'ing an elephant! But again, i took this all positively; the harder it was fr me, the harder it was for everyone else. I told myself that it was hurting "them" more than it was me. And so i just keep focusing on riding MY race.
I seamed to be catching and passing guys ahead of me at regular intervals and shortly before the end of the first lap, i caught and passed 5 time Ironman Nice Champion Marcel Zamora. this was a HUGE boost to me, though given how positively i was thinking about everything, somehow didn't take me by surprise. As i hit the turn around point on the out-and-back look at the start of the 2nd lap, i clocked the gap to Kieran as only 2minutes and to the now only 3 guys in front, at just 1 minute! despite once again being hugely encouraged by this, i still stuck to the mental game plan of riding my race. It took me another 20km to catch and pass positions 4th, 3rd and 2nd though and i didn't manage to drop them when i did pass, so spending the last 10km with some "passengers" behind me. the course was a great one and other than nearly getting "totalled" by the occasional wild dog insisting on playing chicken with me in the road, it passed without incident. Turning off the main loop and heading back towards transition on the short 5km stretch my legs felt great, and i was looking forward to seeing how i could run having done exactly what i wanted to on the bike - ride MY race. A ridiculous head wind had one final swipe at us as we headed back to T2, but again, i just told myself that i would "hurt" everyone else much more than me... it was a positive thing (despite barely riding faster than 20kph downhill!!!
As i turned into transition in 2nd place (3rd and 4th just behind me) i saw Kieran heading out onto the run. He looked strong, but ii was now barely 1 minute down on him and HUGELY satisfied to have made up so much time on the bike. my recent bike "companions" were through transition quicker than me, but as with the rest of the race up until now, i wasn't stressed. The newton's went on, Greepers laces tied, visor on and i was off and running about 30m down on them by now. This distance was closed within about 60 seconds though and without letting anything in my approach to the race change ("my race,my pace" i was past and back into 2nd place and began pulling away. I could see Kieran about 500m up the hill, but put no pressure on myself to catch him. i settled into a rhythm and would simply see what happened and if my speed was fast enough to catch him.
The sun was out in full force now and compared to the 0 degree's I'd been running in, back in London only 3 days earlier, the 80 degree's felt like an oven. wit the first 5km almost completely uphill too, the body wasn't about to have it easy. Again though, focusing on just running my pace, i told myself that the harder it was, the better... it was hurting everyone else more than me. Of course at no time in the race, did i know this to be true... but mentally to have this frame of mind really helped me repsond to the tough conditions and course in a positive way.
I knew i wasnt running "fast" and that wit people like Marcel behind me somewhere, it would be a hard 21km run today, but by 7km i'd managed to catch up to and pass Kieran, moving into 1st place!!! this is always a big boost but i tried not to let this change how i was running. i didnt look back to see if/how much Kieran was falling away behind me or if for that matter anyone else was catching me though. I tried to clock off the km's and set the target of the next aid station in my mind and just keep looking at the lead police car escort i was getting at the front of the race (VERY cool!). Despite the heat, i wasnt suffering any cramping issues, which is testiment to my Powerbar nutrition. The race oganisers had done a fantastic job in every way in this race and with aid stations every 2km's it meant i had plenty of opportunities to get fluids on board. the helpers at each aid station seamed more interested in taking photo's of me as i apprached, than handing me cups of water; they found it imensely amusing too as i went through my routine at each station of water > mouthfull > spit > sponge > over head > over back > water gulp... carry on running.
Km's 1-5 flew by, 5-10 were OK to, despite probably 75% of all the running being uphill. 10-15 began to hurt and i knew my pace was slowing, but refused to look back to see if anyone was catching me. From that point on though, km 15-20 it seamed like i was running through treacle! SO much of the course was uphill and the aid stations were coming along more and more slowly. the run course was a point to point course, so didn't finish back near transition and it was only at 19.5km that there was a small loop back where I'd just come from towards the finish line outside the YoYo hotel. This was the first chance i had to see what kind of lead i had and if I'd need to sprint for the finish. with no watch on, i counted my steps until 2nd place went by the other way - 85 meant about 2 minutes... with now only 1km left i was pretty sure I'd done it... i was about to win my first IM 70.3 title. As i rounded the final bend of what felt like the longest km of my life i could see the read carpet of the finishing shoot, which was lined with cheering spectators. knowing i had enough time, i swerved and walked down this "high-5'ing" the crowds as i went and soaked up every second of the victory i could. Crossing the line in 4h09 it certainly wasn't my fastest time over the distance, but on that course, in that wind i could care less it was my first 70.3 win and i was over the moon letting out a massive yell of relief as i crossed the line to the cheering crowds and the bank of photographers and camera crews behind.
As ever, a HUGE tanks to my sponsors who help me SO much - PureTri, Powerbar, CompresSport, Greepers, DC Leisure and ProVO2.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Update from Taiwan
I'm sat on the bus leaving T1 heading back to the race hotel for the "carbo dinner" and thought I'd use the time for a brief blog update.
I'm in the first few days of a pretty long trip away, culminating I hope with a great performance at IronMan Western Australia in December. That race is the main focus of this trip, with 4 weeks of training prep in Australia near Brisbane leading into it, but first I've "stopped off" in Taiwan for the 70.3 race here this weekend.
I've not "tapered" for this race and as IM Oz is the focus, nor has my training focused on a "peak" performance. However IF I can have one of "those days" that you sometimes get during training (when you feel really good) then hopefully I can have a decent race.
The last 2 days haven't in truth been ideal for a great race though. A LONG journey in time, distance, flight changes and energy drain so close to a race isn't the best. Worse still is that as I sit here now, my bike STILL hasn't arrived. Building my bike (assuming it gets here tonight) at near midnight, then racing on jet-lag and hardly any proper sleep, well its about as poor as preparation can be. BUT I'm not bothered by any of that and certainly won't be using it as excuses for whatever happens out there tomorrow. One of my favourite sayings is "you always have a choice even if you don't have control". It's about making choices with what I CAN control. So I'll do all I can, to do everything as well as i can. And most importantly, I'll do it all with a positive attitude and expectation.
I've been trying in the last few weeks to really work on getting "mentally fitter", having realised that this was an area I'd grown weak and sloppy in. Tomorrow should serve to really test all of that and I'm quite looking forward to it. Keys to this will be not to over-think and over-analyse everything, especially external factors. And if/when the tough moments come, just to try and focus on positively impacting what I can control.
So... food (i hope at least some of it gluten free) awaits and then a night of as much sleep as possible and bike building, followed by a really great race. I'll report back soon on how it all works out. :-)
Blogged VIA email...
I'm in the first few days of a pretty long trip away, culminating I hope with a great performance at IronMan Western Australia in December. That race is the main focus of this trip, with 4 weeks of training prep in Australia near Brisbane leading into it, but first I've "stopped off" in Taiwan for the 70.3 race here this weekend.
I've not "tapered" for this race and as IM Oz is the focus, nor has my training focused on a "peak" performance. However IF I can have one of "those days" that you sometimes get during training (when you feel really good) then hopefully I can have a decent race.
The last 2 days haven't in truth been ideal for a great race though. A LONG journey in time, distance, flight changes and energy drain so close to a race isn't the best. Worse still is that as I sit here now, my bike STILL hasn't arrived. Building my bike (assuming it gets here tonight) at near midnight, then racing on jet-lag and hardly any proper sleep, well its about as poor as preparation can be. BUT I'm not bothered by any of that and certainly won't be using it as excuses for whatever happens out there tomorrow. One of my favourite sayings is "you always have a choice even if you don't have control". It's about making choices with what I CAN control. So I'll do all I can, to do everything as well as i can. And most importantly, I'll do it all with a positive attitude and expectation.
I've been trying in the last few weeks to really work on getting "mentally fitter", having realised that this was an area I'd grown weak and sloppy in. Tomorrow should serve to really test all of that and I'm quite looking forward to it. Keys to this will be not to over-think and over-analyse everything, especially external factors. And if/when the tough moments come, just to try and focus on positively impacting what I can control.
So... food (i hope at least some of it gluten free) awaits and then a night of as much sleep as possible and bike building, followed by a really great race. I'll report back soon on how it all works out. :-)
Blogged VIA email...
Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Getting Retul'd
Those of you that follow the world wide side of triathlon will have heard the word “Retul” a lot recently. Over the past couple of years it has been more and more widespread to hear of some of the best athletes in the world seeking out the advice of the specially trained Retul bike fitters to tweak and perfect their positions. The likes of Norman Stadler, Craig Alexander and Mirinda Carfrae cant be wrong and more recently the newly formed Trek / K-Swiss Triathlon team (including top Brits Julie Dibens and Fraser Cartmel) have been publically showing off their new bikes whilst receiving the Retul treatment.
But what is all the fuss about and what exactly does it involve? Fortunately, through my new sponsors this year ‘PureTri’ I was recently able to head up to VeloMotion in Milton Keynes and receive a Retul bike fit for my Ceepo Venom. Right now in fact, PureTri are offering either a FREE Retul bike fit with every “Blue Triad & Triad SL” or a discount of £40 with all other “Blue” Bikes purchased from them. Check out www.PureTri.co.uk for more details.
It's been a long time since my last proper bike fit and in that time, like most people, I’ve slowly tried to get lower, narrower and more aggressive in my position in the pursuit of being more aero and therefore, I hoped, faster. I was interested to see what the initial assessment of my position would be.
So having arrived at the fitting centre, my Ceepo was put onto a platform on a turbo and I was donned with numerous small sticky balls all linked together by a wire. Sitting side on to the measurement camera I pedalled at various intensities whilst the camera took thousands of readings from each sensor, every second and began to calculate various measurements and angles. I repeated the procedure facing the other direction so that both sides could be analysed and calculated. (We DID turn the bike around too of course!)
But what is all the fuss about and what exactly does it involve? Fortunately, through my new sponsors this year ‘PureTri’ I was recently able to head up to VeloMotion in Milton Keynes and receive a Retul bike fit for my Ceepo Venom. Right now in fact, PureTri are offering either a FREE Retul bike fit with every “Blue Triad & Triad SL” or a discount of £40 with all other “Blue” Bikes purchased from them. Check out www.PureTri.co.uk for more details.
It's been a long time since my last proper bike fit and in that time, like most people, I’ve slowly tried to get lower, narrower and more aggressive in my position in the pursuit of being more aero and therefore, I hoped, faster. I was interested to see what the initial assessment of my position would be.
So having arrived at the fitting centre, my Ceepo was put onto a platform on a turbo and I was donned with numerous small sticky balls all linked together by a wire. Sitting side on to the measurement camera I pedalled at various intensities whilst the camera took thousands of readings from each sensor, every second and began to calculate various measurements and angles. I repeated the procedure facing the other direction so that both sides could be analysed and calculated. (We DID turn the bike around too of course!)
Once this had been done, Mike, the Retul engineer let the system process all the data and then brought it all up on screen. There was an abundance of numbers, angles, graphs and lines displaying knee tracking and every little movement I’d made during the testing. He then began to very precisely explain to me what each number meant and represented and most importantly if things needed to change and why.
He explained that I was riding too low at the front, preventing my hips from being open enough on the down-pedal stroke, and too closed when at the top of a pedal stroke. This would lead to un-necessary fatigue in these muscle and a reduction in run performance… crucial for race results where increasingly, even at 70.3 and IM races, it really is coming down to running FAST off the bike. Interesting I thought… I’ve long had cramping issues when stretching these muscles and if I swam the same day as I’d already ridden.
He ran through everything that needed adjusting specifically for me and (without me now giving away too much info) began to outline all the changes that he felt needed to be made. Interestingly enough, some of them would undoubtedly reduce my aerodynamics, but the increased run performance, lung capacity and nutrition absorbance of the stomach that would be achieved would more than off-set this reduction in pure speed from wind resistance.
I jumped off the bike, sat on the sofa and mike set about working on it all. He changed my saddle height by a fraction, put a new stem to change the reach at the front end and made some adjustments to my cleats too. 15minutes later and I was back on the bike trying out all the new tweaks and the Retul sensors were pulling in the data once again.
After a repeat spin from both sides, the same data was reproduced but with slightly different numbers. Just as Mike had said, I now had more open hips and could feel less “cramped” around my mid-rift. I was also much more relaxed in my upper body; both the ease with which I now felt I could breathe and also the comfort of my arms and shoulders at the front end.
I left a short while later with high hopes for the impact the changes would make on my race performance and particularly my run speed off of the bike. Having raced a Sprint Triathlon (F3 midweek Sprint) the night before the Retul fitting and with a Human Race ‘Eaton Super-Sprint’ coming up at the same venue in the next 3 days, I would have the perfect opportunity to see how the changes felt and improved (hopefully) my race performance.
Prior to that though and with bad weather hitting Putney for a couple of days I was back on my turbo in “Hambro Institute of Sport” for a couple of bike sessions. Being someone (maybe the ONLY one) who actually enjoys turbo sessions… my 3 hour ride with half ironman race pace intervals was a great first eye-opener to the improvements of the Retul changes.
I instantly noticed that there was NO saddle soreness kicking in like usual after the first 45minutes. I was able to happily stay on the aero-bars without even shifting my weight around and remain completely comfortable for ages! This was really good sign! Having been in Mike’s words “toe-y” in my pedalling style, due to my cleat position, the new more central i.e. further back cleat position took a little getting used to, but even here I could feel that the leg muscles I wanted to remain fresh, were now getting a little reprieve that they hadn’t done in the past.
So with two very encouraging and PAIN free turbo sessions done, I headed to Eaton for the race on Saturday morning. After an “OK” swim, I hit the bike course with the same aggression as I had on the previous Wednesday evening. Riding my same, slow cadence and grinding the big gear I was delighted to find that I was riding faster, the legs felt fresher and the back was perfectly happy to remain tucked on the aero-bars without any stiffness throughout the hard riding of the 20k flat, fast course. As I racked my bike in T2 I knew that the run would be were I would hopefully see some of the biggest gains… or at least feel them. And true to Mike’s prediction, the legs felt great. I was able to run seriously hard, but felt in complete control all the time, largely I’m sure because my legs (and particularly the hip-flexors) were in better shape after the hard bike. I managed to polish of the 5k run in 16:29… about a 15second improvement on Wednesday night. Not huge you might say, but over 5k that’s pretty significant, but most importantly for me and the longer distance races I’m focusing on, I knew my legs would be in MUCH better condition for a 21 or 42km run in my forthcoming “A” races.
I really can’t stress enough… if you can’t stay on your aero bars for more than 15 minutes without your back aching, or if you REALLY struggle with saddle sores, or if you find certain muscles such as hamstrings, hip flexors or calves get tight, cramp or tired… then you really need to consider getting a proper bike fit done.
And of course, if you’re considering a new bike any time soon, why not get it with a new bike from PureTri!!!
I jumped off the bike, sat on the sofa and mike set about working on it all. He changed my saddle height by a fraction, put a new stem to change the reach at the front end and made some adjustments to my cleats too. 15minutes later and I was back on the bike trying out all the new tweaks and the Retul sensors were pulling in the data once again.
After a repeat spin from both sides, the same data was reproduced but with slightly different numbers. Just as Mike had said, I now had more open hips and could feel less “cramped” around my mid-rift. I was also much more relaxed in my upper body; both the ease with which I now felt I could breathe and also the comfort of my arms and shoulders at the front end.
I left a short while later with high hopes for the impact the changes would make on my race performance and particularly my run speed off of the bike. Having raced a Sprint Triathlon (F3 midweek Sprint) the night before the Retul fitting and with a Human Race ‘Eaton Super-Sprint’ coming up at the same venue in the next 3 days, I would have the perfect opportunity to see how the changes felt and improved (hopefully) my race performance.
Prior to that though and with bad weather hitting Putney for a couple of days I was back on my turbo in “Hambro Institute of Sport” for a couple of bike sessions. Being someone (maybe the ONLY one) who actually enjoys turbo sessions… my 3 hour ride with half ironman race pace intervals was a great first eye-opener to the improvements of the Retul changes.
I instantly noticed that there was NO saddle soreness kicking in like usual after the first 45minutes. I was able to happily stay on the aero-bars without even shifting my weight around and remain completely comfortable for ages! This was really good sign! Having been in Mike’s words “toe-y” in my pedalling style, due to my cleat position, the new more central i.e. further back cleat position took a little getting used to, but even here I could feel that the leg muscles I wanted to remain fresh, were now getting a little reprieve that they hadn’t done in the past.
So with two very encouraging and PAIN free turbo sessions done, I headed to Eaton for the race on Saturday morning. After an “OK” swim, I hit the bike course with the same aggression as I had on the previous Wednesday evening. Riding my same, slow cadence and grinding the big gear I was delighted to find that I was riding faster, the legs felt fresher and the back was perfectly happy to remain tucked on the aero-bars without any stiffness throughout the hard riding of the 20k flat, fast course. As I racked my bike in T2 I knew that the run would be were I would hopefully see some of the biggest gains… or at least feel them. And true to Mike’s prediction, the legs felt great. I was able to run seriously hard, but felt in complete control all the time, largely I’m sure because my legs (and particularly the hip-flexors) were in better shape after the hard bike. I managed to polish of the 5k run in 16:29… about a 15second improvement on Wednesday night. Not huge you might say, but over 5k that’s pretty significant, but most importantly for me and the longer distance races I’m focusing on, I knew my legs would be in MUCH better condition for a 21 or 42km run in my forthcoming “A” races.
I really can’t stress enough… if you can’t stay on your aero bars for more than 15 minutes without your back aching, or if you REALLY struggle with saddle sores, or if you find certain muscles such as hamstrings, hip flexors or calves get tight, cramp or tired… then you really need to consider getting a proper bike fit done.
And of course, if you’re considering a new bike any time soon, why not get it with a new bike from PureTri!!!
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Ironman Pro changes...the proposal
Below is a statement/email that's been sent to all IM Pro License holders concerning proposed changes that the WTC wish to implement to "improve" the sport. I'll post my response and thoughts, along with those of others tomorrow... but for those who haven't read any of this elsewhere on the internet here it is... This has HUGE potential to be VERY good... or VERY VERY BAD!!! (I'm afraid some of the formatting isn't great as it requires tables so I've put them in as a image file - click on this to see it in more detail)
PROFESSIONAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING,
PRIZE MONEY & POLICIES
Athlete Comment Distribution Draft
Ironman Professional Athletes
Introduction
WTC is circulating this document to all its pro members. The policies and rules changes stated in this document are not final.
Before announcing a final version of these rules and procedures, WTC will take into consideration all constructive comments from our pro members. Comments must be submitted to promember@ironman.com no later than July 2nd, Tampa USA dateto be considered. Please include your name and pro number on all comments.
WTC intends to publish the final version of these rules and policies on July 9th with the changes having an effective date of September 1st 2010.
These new rules and polices are the product of long-hours of debate and consideration by WTC's pro working committee. The committee concluded that the current pro incentive policies, which have been in place for over 25 years, are outdated and that the new rules and policies are best calculated to achieve these five primary goals:
Rewarding the sport's best athletes for their performances
Creating income opportunities for new and regional pros
Qualifying the most deserving athletes to the World Championships
Controlling the number of athletes qualifying for the World Championships to assure fair and exciting racing
Creating additional media interest in pro races through points standings and more frequent head-to-head racing
I. WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING
Overview and Philosophy/Rationale
The objectives in creating a points based World Championship qualifying system for pros are to assure that the most deserving athletes qualify and to limit the number of athletes in order to assure fair and exciting racing.
Pro Qualifying Program - Kona World Championships
Definitions:
"Kona Qualifying" means qualification to the Ford Ironman World Championship held in Kona, Hawaii each year.
"Races" means Ironman branded full-distance and Ironman 70.3 events worldwide that are authorized by the World Triathlon Corporation.
"Qualifying Year" means the period between September 1st and August 31st.
"Kona Pro Rankings" (KPR) means the ranking system to determine pro athlete eligibility to race at Kona.
Effective Sept. 1, 2010, the single-performance slot based system will be discontinued.
Beginning with Races on Sept. 1, pro athletes will earn points for Kona Qualifying correlating to their finish position. The top 50 male and top 30 female pros* in the KPR at the end of each Qualifying Year will qualify to race in Kona.
(* The proportion of male to female pros may be adjusted in future years to reflect the then current percentage of registered male and female WTC pro members.)
KPR will be determined as follows:
Athletes will be ranked according to the number of points that he or she has accumulated during the Qualifying Year. See the Points Table below.
Each athlete's five highest scoring Races will count toward their KPR. All lower scoring Races will be "thrown out".
Athletes may accumulate points from any combination of Races PROVIDED that each athlete completes a minimum of one full-distance Ironman race during the Qualifying Year. A maximum of three Ironman 70.3 races are included in an athlete's score.
Athletes are not required to do more than one full-distance Ironman race in the Qualifying Year to be ranked. Athletes may score five full-distance Ironman races.
Athletes finishing the Ironman World Championship (Kona) race will be awarded points that are retained during the Qualifying Year.
Scoring points in Kona DOES NOT fulfill the requirement that each ranked athlete must score in a full-distance Ironman during the Qualifying Year.
No points carry forward from one Qualifying Year to the next.
The 5% rule is no longer applicable.
Automatic Qualifiers - Kona
Past Kona champions will receive an invitation/exemption to enter the pro division in Kona for a period of three years after his or her last championship. Past champions will not be required to qualify during this three-year period. Past champions entering as pros will be required to validate their entry by completing a full-distance Ironman race during the Qualifying Year.
In keeping with the tradition started by Valerie Silk, past champions will continue to have a lifetime invitation to race in their appropriate age group category. Past champions making this election will not be required to qualify or validate their entry. Past champions must abide by all WTC, national and international federations rules regarding professional and age group status and switching between these categories.
Automatic Qualifiers will be accepted into Kona in addition to the 80 available pro slots. If, for example, a returning champion is ranked in the top 30 women, the 31st ranked woman will qualify for Kona.
Entry & Roll-Down
The final KPR will be published as soon as possible after the last Race of the Qualifying Year (end of August) but not later than September 1st. Qualified athletes will have until September 3rd* to complete on-line registration for Kona. An on-line roll-down will be held for any unclaimed slots with entries rolling down to the next highest ranked athlete. Details of the roll-down procedure will be made available at a later date.
(* Tampa, Florida USA date)
Wild Card Entries
In 2011 and following transition years, WTC retains the right to award "Wild Card" pro entries into Kona. While Wild Card entries may be awarded at the sole discretion of WTC, these entries, if used, are intended to "fix" any holes in the new qualifying system. Wild Card entries are not intended to provide any athletes relief due to injury, illness or other external factor.
70.3 World Championship Qualifying
Pro qualifying for the 2011 Ironman 70.3 World Championship will be based on a similar format with the primary difference being that full-distance Ironman races will not count in the pro rankings for this Championship. Details will be announced as soon as the 2011 Ironman 70.3 World Championship race date is announced.
II. PRIZE MONEY POLICIES
All Ironman races will comply with these prize money standards (This does not include the two World Championship events which have separate prize standards)
Championship Events
Ironman $100,000+ (Paying through 10th Place)
70.3 $75,000+ (Paying through 10th Place)
Including Asia Pacific 70.3, U.S. 70.3, European 70.3 and regional Ironman championships to be announced
Ironman Series Events
Ironman Series events will offer total prize purses in one of two amounts:
$25,000 (Paying through 5th Place)
$75,000 (Paying through 8th Place)
70.3 Series Events
Ironman 70.3 Series events will offer total prize purses in one of two amounts:
$15,000 (Paying through 5th Place)
$50,000 (Paying through 8th Place)
Notes:
The total amount of 2011 prize money will exceed the total amount of prize money offered in 2010.
At minimum 2010 events will pay prize money as advertised.
The 8% Rule is no longer applicable.
The prize money break-down for each prize purse amount and the 2011 event listing will be provided at a later date.
III. ADDITIONAL POLICY CHANGES
A one-day Pro License will be offered to allow local and regional pros to compete at events in areas of the world where there is only one Ironman race such as 70.3 Philippines. A one-day license will be more affordable for these athletes to participate in one event. The suggested one-day fee is $250 USD for 70.3 races and $500 USD for full Ironman races. One-day licenses may be "upgraded" to an annual license with the one-day fee credited toward the annual $750 fee.
A Pro membership 'scholarship' program will be available to waive or reduce membership fees for athletes from developing countries who can't afford to pay the membership fee. Local Ironman race directors will recommend deserving athletes.
IRONMAN KONA QUALIFYING POINTS TABLE
IRONMAN RACES
70.3 RACES
PROFESSIONAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING,
PRIZE MONEY & POLICIES
Athlete Comment Distribution Draft
Ironman Professional Athletes
Introduction
WTC is circulating this document to all its pro members. The policies and rules changes stated in this document are not final.
Before announcing a final version of these rules and procedures, WTC will take into consideration all constructive comments from our pro members. Comments must be submitted to promember@ironman.com no later than July 2nd, Tampa USA dateto be considered. Please include your name and pro number on all comments.
WTC intends to publish the final version of these rules and policies on July 9th with the changes having an effective date of September 1st 2010.
These new rules and polices are the product of long-hours of debate and consideration by WTC's pro working committee. The committee concluded that the current pro incentive policies, which have been in place for over 25 years, are outdated and that the new rules and policies are best calculated to achieve these five primary goals:
Rewarding the sport's best athletes for their performances
Creating income opportunities for new and regional pros
Qualifying the most deserving athletes to the World Championships
Controlling the number of athletes qualifying for the World Championships to assure fair and exciting racing
Creating additional media interest in pro races through points standings and more frequent head-to-head racing
I. WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING
Overview and Philosophy/Rationale
The objectives in creating a points based World Championship qualifying system for pros are to assure that the most deserving athletes qualify and to limit the number of athletes in order to assure fair and exciting racing.
Pro Qualifying Program - Kona World Championships
Definitions:
"Kona Qualifying" means qualification to the Ford Ironman World Championship held in Kona, Hawaii each year.
"Races" means Ironman branded full-distance and Ironman 70.3 events worldwide that are authorized by the World Triathlon Corporation.
"Qualifying Year" means the period between September 1st and August 31st.
"Kona Pro Rankings" (KPR) means the ranking system to determine pro athlete eligibility to race at Kona.
Effective Sept. 1, 2010, the single-performance slot based system will be discontinued.
Beginning with Races on Sept. 1, pro athletes will earn points for Kona Qualifying correlating to their finish position. The top 50 male and top 30 female pros* in the KPR at the end of each Qualifying Year will qualify to race in Kona.
(* The proportion of male to female pros may be adjusted in future years to reflect the then current percentage of registered male and female WTC pro members.)
KPR will be determined as follows:
Athletes will be ranked according to the number of points that he or she has accumulated during the Qualifying Year. See the Points Table below.
Each athlete's five highest scoring Races will count toward their KPR. All lower scoring Races will be "thrown out".
Athletes may accumulate points from any combination of Races PROVIDED that each athlete completes a minimum of one full-distance Ironman race during the Qualifying Year. A maximum of three Ironman 70.3 races are included in an athlete's score.
Athletes are not required to do more than one full-distance Ironman race in the Qualifying Year to be ranked. Athletes may score five full-distance Ironman races.
Athletes finishing the Ironman World Championship (Kona) race will be awarded points that are retained during the Qualifying Year.
Scoring points in Kona DOES NOT fulfill the requirement that each ranked athlete must score in a full-distance Ironman during the Qualifying Year.
No points carry forward from one Qualifying Year to the next.
The 5% rule is no longer applicable.
Automatic Qualifiers - Kona
Past Kona champions will receive an invitation/exemption to enter the pro division in Kona for a period of three years after his or her last championship. Past champions will not be required to qualify during this three-year period. Past champions entering as pros will be required to validate their entry by completing a full-distance Ironman race during the Qualifying Year.
In keeping with the tradition started by Valerie Silk, past champions will continue to have a lifetime invitation to race in their appropriate age group category. Past champions making this election will not be required to qualify or validate their entry. Past champions must abide by all WTC, national and international federations rules regarding professional and age group status and switching between these categories.
Automatic Qualifiers will be accepted into Kona in addition to the 80 available pro slots. If, for example, a returning champion is ranked in the top 30 women, the 31st ranked woman will qualify for Kona.
Entry & Roll-Down
The final KPR will be published as soon as possible after the last Race of the Qualifying Year (end of August) but not later than September 1st. Qualified athletes will have until September 3rd* to complete on-line registration for Kona. An on-line roll-down will be held for any unclaimed slots with entries rolling down to the next highest ranked athlete. Details of the roll-down procedure will be made available at a later date.
(* Tampa, Florida USA date)
Wild Card Entries
In 2011 and following transition years, WTC retains the right to award "Wild Card" pro entries into Kona. While Wild Card entries may be awarded at the sole discretion of WTC, these entries, if used, are intended to "fix" any holes in the new qualifying system. Wild Card entries are not intended to provide any athletes relief due to injury, illness or other external factor.
70.3 World Championship Qualifying
Pro qualifying for the 2011 Ironman 70.3 World Championship will be based on a similar format with the primary difference being that full-distance Ironman races will not count in the pro rankings for this Championship. Details will be announced as soon as the 2011 Ironman 70.3 World Championship race date is announced.
II. PRIZE MONEY POLICIES
All Ironman races will comply with these prize money standards (This does not include the two World Championship events which have separate prize standards)
Championship Events
Ironman $100,000+ (Paying through 10th Place)
70.3 $75,000+ (Paying through 10th Place)
Including Asia Pacific 70.3, U.S. 70.3, European 70.3 and regional Ironman championships to be announced
Ironman Series Events
Ironman Series events will offer total prize purses in one of two amounts:
$25,000 (Paying through 5th Place)
$75,000 (Paying through 8th Place)
70.3 Series Events
Ironman 70.3 Series events will offer total prize purses in one of two amounts:
$15,000 (Paying through 5th Place)
$50,000 (Paying through 8th Place)
Notes:
The total amount of 2011 prize money will exceed the total amount of prize money offered in 2010.
At minimum 2010 events will pay prize money as advertised.
The 8% Rule is no longer applicable.
The prize money break-down for each prize purse amount and the 2011 event listing will be provided at a later date.
III. ADDITIONAL POLICY CHANGES
A one-day Pro License will be offered to allow local and regional pros to compete at events in areas of the world where there is only one Ironman race such as 70.3 Philippines. A one-day license will be more affordable for these athletes to participate in one event. The suggested one-day fee is $250 USD for 70.3 races and $500 USD for full Ironman races. One-day licenses may be "upgraded" to an annual license with the one-day fee credited toward the annual $750 fee.
A Pro membership 'scholarship' program will be available to waive or reduce membership fees for athletes from developing countries who can't afford to pay the membership fee. Local Ironman race directors will recommend deserving athletes.
IRONMAN KONA QUALIFYING POINTS TABLE
IRONMAN RACES
70.3 RACES
Thursday, March 11, 2010
The Hurt Locker
With “The Hurt Locker” doing so well at the Oscars recently I thought I’d write a little about the phrase used as the award winning films title, that is generally part of my day to day life. It has also been inspired somewhat by a recent photo my friend over in the states posted from his first race of the season.
Mikkel was doing an Olympic distance triathlon (1.5k/40k/10k), and finished the 10k final run without any noticeable pain in his foot… well not that wasn’t being over-come by the general pain you endure (by choice – we are a strange breed) during a triathlon and the adrenaline that accompanies it. It was only after finishing that someone pointed out to him that his shoe was literally saturated in blood! Upon taking his running shoe off, he discovered that somehow, the flesh between his little toe and the next one in, has completely split between the bones!!! As you can see from the “after” photo below… it was nasty!!!
I’m well known by my friends for having bad feet, but Mikkel, you’ve well and truly won that one mate. Rest up and recover quickly… and see you in a few days in L.A.
So how on earth can that kind of thing happen without even realising, let alone race 10k’s after riding 40 and swimming 1.5? Well that’s where the regular visits to “The Hurt Locker” come in. This sport is my job and so I have a number of different offices…. Below is one of them, which has been affectionately named “Hambro Institute of Sport” by Liz, my landlady.
It's the scene of many an hour spent riding my bike, doing my job of trying to grow stronger, faster, fitter…. Sadly in order to grow in these ways, the body responds best to being pushed beyond its current abilities and then adapts so that the next time, it can cope better. So my daily routine is to do just that, push beyond what I think I’m capable of and the recover so that I’m a little stronger. It's called “super-compensation”.
It's by choice then, that I climb onto my bike, or do up the laces on my Newton trainers, or don the speedo’s and dive into the pool knowing that part of the next few minutes or hours is going to hurt; sometimes REALLY HURT! There are of course sessions and days when this isn’t the case. Just like the film, you need down time to let your body and mind recover from the punishment it's just been dragged through. It's interesting in the film to see how the bomb disposal men let off some of this steam. I’m generally quite happy to watch a movie, or hang out with friends without it ending in a little free-for-all scrap like the movie. But there are also days when I take myself away from everything, switch off the phone, computer… and just go for a LONG walk in a local park, spend time with God praying… maybe have a whole day of complete mental and physical relaxation – my silence and solitude days. They are bliss and something that I realised with my over-training woes of last year, are just as important to my improving as an athlete (and indeed a person) as any training session is.
With this kind of recovery, I can mentally put myself back into the hurt locker again in the next hard session, run myself so hard that I throw up and almost faint (sorry to those people at Wimbledon Park track who had to witness this the other day – I was enjoying it, honest!). Almost every day there will be a time when I want to stop, get off the bike, take that extra 10seconds rest before pushing off the pool wall… but each time I manage to ignore that voice I know it helps make my ability to stay in “The Hurt Locker” that little bit easier, the size of the locker, that little bit bigger. Someone once said that “pain is just weakness leaving the body”. I’m not sure I think it's quite that simple, but when the stars are all I can see in the middle of a hard interval on the bike, it certainly gives a purpose to it that helps to endure it a bit longer.
Just like the main character in the film, who is addicted to being exposed to the pressure and stress of his job… it can become addictive to train hard. It's nice to do when you’re feeling strong and fit; you can feel your body working efficiently, as it's designed to do; you can feel the power you’re generating. When you’re unfit and out of shape, as I was back in November after my 10 weeks break, it's horrific and the suffering feels 10 times as bad. But the satisfaction of conquering it is always the same and always makes it worth while. Hopefully I’ll see some of the fruits of time spent in the locker at races in the near future… though of course I’ll spend a considerable amount of time IN the hurt locker during those races too…. There’s no escaping the “locker”.
Late addition: having just had a massage this evening after writing this earlier on… I can also add any time on my friend Wayne’s’ massage table to the list of “Hurt Locker” locations… it will feel great tomorrow I know but MAN it HURT tonight!!!
Mikkel was doing an Olympic distance triathlon (1.5k/40k/10k), and finished the 10k final run without any noticeable pain in his foot… well not that wasn’t being over-come by the general pain you endure (by choice – we are a strange breed) during a triathlon and the adrenaline that accompanies it. It was only after finishing that someone pointed out to him that his shoe was literally saturated in blood! Upon taking his running shoe off, he discovered that somehow, the flesh between his little toe and the next one in, has completely split between the bones!!! As you can see from the “after” photo below… it was nasty!!!
I’m well known by my friends for having bad feet, but Mikkel, you’ve well and truly won that one mate. Rest up and recover quickly… and see you in a few days in L.A.
So how on earth can that kind of thing happen without even realising, let alone race 10k’s after riding 40 and swimming 1.5? Well that’s where the regular visits to “The Hurt Locker” come in. This sport is my job and so I have a number of different offices…. Below is one of them, which has been affectionately named “Hambro Institute of Sport” by Liz, my landlady.
It's the scene of many an hour spent riding my bike, doing my job of trying to grow stronger, faster, fitter…. Sadly in order to grow in these ways, the body responds best to being pushed beyond its current abilities and then adapts so that the next time, it can cope better. So my daily routine is to do just that, push beyond what I think I’m capable of and the recover so that I’m a little stronger. It's called “super-compensation”.
It's by choice then, that I climb onto my bike, or do up the laces on my Newton trainers, or don the speedo’s and dive into the pool knowing that part of the next few minutes or hours is going to hurt; sometimes REALLY HURT! There are of course sessions and days when this isn’t the case. Just like the film, you need down time to let your body and mind recover from the punishment it's just been dragged through. It's interesting in the film to see how the bomb disposal men let off some of this steam. I’m generally quite happy to watch a movie, or hang out with friends without it ending in a little free-for-all scrap like the movie. But there are also days when I take myself away from everything, switch off the phone, computer… and just go for a LONG walk in a local park, spend time with God praying… maybe have a whole day of complete mental and physical relaxation – my silence and solitude days. They are bliss and something that I realised with my over-training woes of last year, are just as important to my improving as an athlete (and indeed a person) as any training session is.
With this kind of recovery, I can mentally put myself back into the hurt locker again in the next hard session, run myself so hard that I throw up and almost faint (sorry to those people at Wimbledon Park track who had to witness this the other day – I was enjoying it, honest!). Almost every day there will be a time when I want to stop, get off the bike, take that extra 10seconds rest before pushing off the pool wall… but each time I manage to ignore that voice I know it helps make my ability to stay in “The Hurt Locker” that little bit easier, the size of the locker, that little bit bigger. Someone once said that “pain is just weakness leaving the body”. I’m not sure I think it's quite that simple, but when the stars are all I can see in the middle of a hard interval on the bike, it certainly gives a purpose to it that helps to endure it a bit longer.
Just like the main character in the film, who is addicted to being exposed to the pressure and stress of his job… it can become addictive to train hard. It's nice to do when you’re feeling strong and fit; you can feel your body working efficiently, as it's designed to do; you can feel the power you’re generating. When you’re unfit and out of shape, as I was back in November after my 10 weeks break, it's horrific and the suffering feels 10 times as bad. But the satisfaction of conquering it is always the same and always makes it worth while. Hopefully I’ll see some of the fruits of time spent in the locker at races in the near future… though of course I’ll spend a considerable amount of time IN the hurt locker during those races too…. There’s no escaping the “locker”.
Late addition: having just had a massage this evening after writing this earlier on… I can also add any time on my friend Wayne’s’ massage table to the list of “Hurt Locker” locations… it will feel great tomorrow I know but MAN it HURT tonight!!!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Back on form
Well, my goodness me, even by my standards it's been a long time since I’ve posted. For many of you who know me or follow triathlon in the UK, you’ll know the reason; but for those who don’t I had to take a LONG extended break from pretty much everything last autumn when it became clear I was suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome. I could barely get out of bed some days I was so exhausted. It was a real test of my faith and resolve for a long time… but so much was learnt through it too. I’ll post more on it all in the next few weeks, the when’s, how’s and why’s etc.
For now though a quick update on things currently.
Outside of triathlon much in my life has changed. Some good some bad, some easy some not so easy. But change opens as many doors as it closes so I’m excited about this next year. I’ve moved out into “Hombro Institute of Sport” as we affectionally call it. It's basically this great MASSIVE house in Putney, SW London that is something of a home from home for triathletes. Complete with turbo room in the basement next door to a cinema room and a sauna… NO joke! It's perfect for any lycra loving, gluten avoiding (Liz the owner of the house is also a Ceoliac) athlete. Currently myself, Chrissie and her boyfriend Tom wonder the huge halls and rooms, with a former swimmer (now coach) making up the house guest numbers. It's about ½ a mile from my gym and pool and has HUGE larders, fridges and freezers too… so pretty much everything I need in one place. It's been hard to move out of home after so long with my hugely supportive parents; without whose help in recent years I wouldn’t have been able to race full time at all. I really miss not being around them more, but I think the change will help me re-focus on my job and knuckle down to the serious training required to bounce back from last years problems and make this year a real success.
And so that’s basically what I’ve been doing for the last 5 weeks. Ticking off each session one by one, each day… then each week. It's proving to be working too as I’m hardly missing a single session now and feel in better shape than ever before for this time of year. Being in an environment (similar to Boulder I guess… only without the 90 year old naked men in the Jacuzzi at the pool) where it's so keyed into and easy to focus on training and rest is really helping.
When I first returned to training back in November after my 10 weeks of complete rest I was not in good shape. I could honestly barely manage 200m in the pool without stopping and I think my first session back totalled 1600m… and I was SHATTERED! But one of the lessons I’ve learned from last year is the need to be patient and so this is what I’ve been trying to do. Building slowly and accepting I can’t run as fast as I want to just yet. Letting the strength and speed actually come before I do the intervals I want to do. It's been tough at times and I’ve been forced to eat large slices of humble pie on regular intervals… knowing you’re not able to push a gear 3 levels easier than you used to, doesn’t do the ego much good… but that’s not a bad thing of course
So I’ve found myself here in the middle of February feeling really good physically. I’ve got to try and do everything I can to not ruin all the hard work though, remaining patient and continue to let the fitness come instead of forcing it. I’ve also accepted that rest is KEY. Not just from the physical exertion of the exercise, but from other external things too. Some personal issues that have been on-going for some time now have meant that there have been days (including today) where I’ve just accepted that my body and mind are telling me to give them a break. Though it breaks with the program I now know I need to listen to them. It will mean that Friday and Saturdays training will be far more positive and beneficial than if I try to force myself through it.
The first target for the year is California 70.3 at the end of March which I’m really looking forward to. It will be the first 70.3 race I’ll go into confident with my swimming and genuinely optimistic that I won’t spend the entire bike trying to catch the front people. We’ll see, but with 6 weeks to go the anticipation is already building… New exciting sponsorship opportunities are on the horizon too; many things are looking really good right now. Despite so many things in recent months not being… God has been faithful and good throughout and I truly believe this year will see some real fruit coming
For now though a quick update on things currently.
Outside of triathlon much in my life has changed. Some good some bad, some easy some not so easy. But change opens as many doors as it closes so I’m excited about this next year. I’ve moved out into “Hombro Institute of Sport” as we affectionally call it. It's basically this great MASSIVE house in Putney, SW London that is something of a home from home for triathletes. Complete with turbo room in the basement next door to a cinema room and a sauna… NO joke! It's perfect for any lycra loving, gluten avoiding (Liz the owner of the house is also a Ceoliac) athlete. Currently myself, Chrissie and her boyfriend Tom wonder the huge halls and rooms, with a former swimmer (now coach) making up the house guest numbers. It's about ½ a mile from my gym and pool and has HUGE larders, fridges and freezers too… so pretty much everything I need in one place. It's been hard to move out of home after so long with my hugely supportive parents; without whose help in recent years I wouldn’t have been able to race full time at all. I really miss not being around them more, but I think the change will help me re-focus on my job and knuckle down to the serious training required to bounce back from last years problems and make this year a real success.
And so that’s basically what I’ve been doing for the last 5 weeks. Ticking off each session one by one, each day… then each week. It's proving to be working too as I’m hardly missing a single session now and feel in better shape than ever before for this time of year. Being in an environment (similar to Boulder I guess… only without the 90 year old naked men in the Jacuzzi at the pool) where it's so keyed into and easy to focus on training and rest is really helping.
When I first returned to training back in November after my 10 weeks of complete rest I was not in good shape. I could honestly barely manage 200m in the pool without stopping and I think my first session back totalled 1600m… and I was SHATTERED! But one of the lessons I’ve learned from last year is the need to be patient and so this is what I’ve been trying to do. Building slowly and accepting I can’t run as fast as I want to just yet. Letting the strength and speed actually come before I do the intervals I want to do. It's been tough at times and I’ve been forced to eat large slices of humble pie on regular intervals… knowing you’re not able to push a gear 3 levels easier than you used to, doesn’t do the ego much good… but that’s not a bad thing of course
So I’ve found myself here in the middle of February feeling really good physically. I’ve got to try and do everything I can to not ruin all the hard work though, remaining patient and continue to let the fitness come instead of forcing it. I’ve also accepted that rest is KEY. Not just from the physical exertion of the exercise, but from other external things too. Some personal issues that have been on-going for some time now have meant that there have been days (including today) where I’ve just accepted that my body and mind are telling me to give them a break. Though it breaks with the program I now know I need to listen to them. It will mean that Friday and Saturdays training will be far more positive and beneficial than if I try to force myself through it.
The first target for the year is California 70.3 at the end of March which I’m really looking forward to. It will be the first 70.3 race I’ll go into confident with my swimming and genuinely optimistic that I won’t spend the entire bike trying to catch the front people. We’ll see, but with 6 weeks to go the anticipation is already building… New exciting sponsorship opportunities are on the horizon too; many things are looking really good right now. Despite so many things in recent months not being… God has been faithful and good throughout and I truly believe this year will see some real fruit coming
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