In which I reveal myself to be a whiny baby

No Running - Week # 6.


Weeks of healthy running since Thanksgiving 5 out of 15 (according to my training log).


So this is my session to whine.  


Whaaaaaaa.


Ah, much better.


How did we get here?
Event #1 - the mother of all flus.  The weekend before Thanksgiving 2009, I started to feel a cold coming on.  At the time, OK, no big deal.  Take a couple days off, sleep a ton, get better on a few days.  Ha, ha, so young, so naive.  Of course we had visitors in town and it's Thanksgiving, so much for rest (oh yeah, drinking while sick is like throwing gasoline on a fire).  I took 2 solid weeks off - no physical activity whatsoever.  I also spent an additional 10 days slowly coming back as my symptoms took that long to work themselves out.  To be complete, I saw my doctor after 5 days and still strong symptoms.  He ran a bunch of blood tests - liver enzymes came back positive for a Mononucleosis-like virus (the Mono-specific test was negative, so doc suggested I had something in the Eppstien-Barr family of stuff).  So that was fun, but it's OK, it was November, time to rest anyway, right?


Event #2 - The big blowout
Started running again over Christmas break and things seemed to be going well.  Built weeks of 17, 25, 35, 34 and 40 MPW.  In retrospect, it may have been aggressive, but keeping in mind my weekly average prior to my illness had been 33 MPW (for 8 weeks), this seemed reasonable.  Then I did my first long run (16 miles) of the season with a group of folks on Ridge Rd on Jan 9.  Felt tightness and discomfort in my right hamstring and lower back, but it wasn't any stronger than I had experienced in previous runs - it had always cleared up after a good rest day. Not this time.  I was uncomfortable on my off day the next day.  Then big time pain during a short (6 mile) run on Monday.  Uh oh.  Tuesday cut short, Wed cut short and here we go.  Limping while walking.  Can barely take two running strides without keeling over in pain.


Besides the mileage build, I must also point out that I am riding a new bike in a new position.  Bought my first tri-bike in late December.  I got Paul to do a 2-d motion capture fit.  I have a lot of confidence in the fit since Paul has done bikes for me before.  But of course anytime you make a change like this, there is some additional stress involved.


Specific Symptoms:  Pain in my right butt cheek.  Weakness & instability in right leg.


Initial direction:  Pirifmormis


The Road Back
I'm still on this road, but I'll capture where I've been so far. Took 1 solid week - no running (week of Jan 18).  Continued a regular swimming and biking routine.  Neither of these activities seem to cause any pain or issues, so I've continued to hit those fairly aggressively.  Nice thing about Triathlon right?  Keep hitting the other sports while you rehab something (famous last words right?).


Finally went to the doc after 2 weeks of running & continued pain.  Got referred to a PT doc at ACAC.  First full PT session was on Feb 8 - so basically an entire month of pain & no running.  Yipee.


As of this writing, I'm in the middle of my 3rd week of PT.  We're doing: deep tissue, electrostim, stretching and strength work (cords, lunges, abs, etc).  After the session on Thursday, things seemed to loosen up.  Pain had been slowly subsiding in my rear end & was basically gone.  The strengthening seemed to be going well, exercises get easier and easier.


So, yesterday (2/15), after talking with my PT, I attempted to run for the first time.  Did a session of alternating 4 min walk, 2 min run for 30 minutes total.  My lower back got tight in less than 2 seconds.  I felt some discomfort (I won't call it pain since it wasn't anywhere near the pain I had been feeling) in the lower back and right leg while running.  During the walk session, I could feel everything loosen up and subside.  This morning, i woke up and felt fine, so no "morning after pain".  Also a good sign.


Meanwhile I have to say, it has been many years since I swam as well as I am.  So I've got that going for me, which is nice.

Time

"In 1966, Andy Dufresne escaped from Shawshank prison. All they found of him was a muddy set of prison clothes, a bar of soap, and an old rock hammer, damn near worn down to the nub. I used to think it would take six-hundred years to tunnel under the wall with it. Old Andy did it in less than twenty. Oh, Andy loved geology. I guess it appealed to his meticulous nature. An ice age here, a million years of mountain building there. Geology is the study of pressure and time. That's all it takes really, pressure, and time. That, and a big god-damned poster."

- Red, Shawshank Redemption

If you are under time constraints and don't feel like reading the rest of this diatribe. The above pretty much summarizes this post for you. This is how I view endurance sport training. Training for a marathon, or an Ironman, or any of those other crazy long events is like studying Geology - it is a matter of time & pressure.

Stated another way, the way to success in endurance sports - in my view - is a simple equation of the proper stresses applied over enough time. Sounds simple enough to me. What I think it means is that success in endurance sports can be achieved with a fairly simple approach of keeping workouts fairly moderate and applied day after day, week after week, month after...you get the picture.

It's a matter of "Go until you're tired, then stop. Repeat tomorrow. And the next day. And so on." As the days build to weeks and months, I find I go a little bit farther and I can do it a little bit faster. Not necessarily every run or bike is faster and longer than the day before, but over the weeks and months, what used to be a hard 5 mile run can become a hard 9 mile run. It just happens. Seriously, it just does.

Why does it happen? I'm not a doctor or phys science major. Those type have filled volumes explaining how we respond to different workouts. What I know is that, if I stay injury free and I find a consistent volume of training (in the case of triathlon, consistent runs, bikes & swims), then over time, I get better. A lot better.

And I find this fact particularly compelling.

Blind Samurai Race Report Vol.1 - CRC Fall Classic 10K Run

It's October and the Blind Samurai is getting ready for running season again! This is one of my favorite times of year. so to celebrate, I did the Fall Classic 10K run this morning.

The alarm went off at 5:30 AM and I rolled out of bed. First thing I did was check the weather. According toweather.com it was 69 deg, and drizzling. What? It's almost Thanksgiving! 69 deg at 6AM! Should be an interesting 10K. If anyone out there recalls, last year was the inaugural running of the Fall Classic 10K. However, last year it was really cold and rainy instead of warm and rainy - pick your poison. The Charlottesville Running Company folks put on a nice race again, as they usually do. Just like last year a group of pros (out of North Carolina?) showed up and dominated the race - not sure exactly what the winning time was yet, but I would guess it was in low very low 30s. Anyway, here's how the Blind Samurai made out. Splits are estimates from memory as my watch is circa 1988 & has no memory.

Mile 1 - 5:35 The first quarter mile is uphill right from the get go as you leave the start line from in front of the Charlottesville Running Company and turn right up Market St. The rest of mile 1 is flat to down hill. Probably out too fast, breathing is maybe heavy then I would like, but I'm feeling fairly decent through the first mile. The elite group of 5 men is about 30 seconds ahead. I am ticked in behind the group of 4 elite women. Although I use the term "tucked in" very loosely as they are approximately half my size.

Mile 2 - 11:20 Given that this mile is all downhill, you can see that Mile 1 was way too fast. I realize this as I see my split. Oh well. The next 4.2 is going to hurt big time! Yay! The 4 elite women are slowly pulling away from me and I am in a bit of no man's land along with two other runners.

Mile 3 - 17:15 This is interesting, that is the fastest I've ever covered 3 miles (and based on pacing, I will guess the first time I have ever gone sub 18 in a 5K). The route has turned off Market St and we're now running along the paved portion of the Rivanna Trail. Beautiful run, if you haven't been along this stretech, you are missing out.

Mile 4 - 23:20 OK. Now it's cut check time. First mile over 6 minutes. This mile finishes off the paced trail and then turns up toward River Rd. The 4 mile marker is at the base of a very steep climb up River Rd. This ought to be really fun! The two runners I had been going with extend a lead and I'm now pretty much on my own.

Mile 5 - 29:55 I hate that hill. I hate that hill. I hate that hill. Yup that one hurt. The hill starting mile 4 is quite short, but very, very steep. That plus my complete lack of disciplined pacing at the start results in a pretty painful 6:30 mile. Once up the hill, I'm just trying to keep it together and recover a little but. Basically trying to hold on until the finish. No one has passed me since midway through mile 3 those two runners ahead continue to extend their lead, I see little chance that I will catch them.

Mile 6 - 36:00 The rollers coming back down Locust Ave are taking their toll. At the end of Locust we drop down on Market Street and the go back up the hill on Market. This is like being on a damn roller coaster! Then we're turning on to the mall and I can taste the finish. I glance behind me and don't see the next runner, so now it's just a matter of finishing as strong as possible.

10K - 37:20 Done! Yay! PR by roughly 1 minute. Nice. Tired.

Hope everyone else who came out for the race had a great day!

2009 Charlottesville Boys and Girls Club Challenge Ride

Great ride today! Fund raiser for the Boys and Girls Club of Charlottesville. About 300 people started the day. Gang raised something in the neighborhood of $140K - what I remember hearing, please forgive the lack of accuracy.

A group of Challenge Riders - ages 7 to 17 - had spent the better part of the summer getting some coaching from some local road riders and looked like they had a great time. Talked to a 7-year old who had ridden 31 miles. About 20 minutes later he spotted riding around the parking lot popping wheelies! Ah to be 7 an have an endless reservoir of energy!

Here's the scoop on the ride. 2 loops. Total about 60 miles. ~2,300 ft of climbing. Gorgeous country!

Loop 1

Loop 2

Blind Saumrai Race Report Vol 1 - Patriot's International Triathlon

What a great Patriot's weekend! Good beer, good race, more good beer. How can you beat that?

By the numbers:

Swim: 21:16 (2nd out of the water - more on that)

Bike: 1:07:xx

Run: 41:40 (6:45 per mile - I forgot my watch, so I had no idea on my pacing, just went for it)

Total: 2:15:xx (13th overall)

Now, if you like reading, sit back and enjoy.

Swim: 21:16 (2nd out of the water, 3rd swim overall - someone from a later wave smoked me!)

I bought a wetsuit the day before the race. What a difference it makes! I'm speechless. For everyone out there who does not own a wetsuit & has any ambition of improving swim times - GO BUY A WETSUIT. The swim was in the James River - brackish and not too cold. The James at this point is also tidal with a pretty strong current. I set my self up to left of the group and just took off that a solid pace at the gun. I immediately found myself with open water and no one to swim behind. Interesting. Never had this happen before. I passed the first bouy and still have clear water. Well, I knew I wasn't not off course, I could see the orange turn buoy far ahead, so I must be near the front. Made a quick pivot turn at that buoy (pulling out the old water polo skills is fun!). Right after the turn I felt a hand on my feet. Great! Someone's decided to take a ride. Oh well. I'm feeling pretty good, so I carry on. Make the second turn and start heading for home. Pick my head up to sight to shore line and see - glare - that's it - no shore, no buoy - just sunshine! Then I felt those hands on my feet again, I get concerned. I slowed up and took 2 breast strokes trying to find a point to aim for. That guy on my feet goes right by with a quick glance. I call over to him - "don't follow me, I'm lost!" Don't know if he heard me, but he took off. I finally sighted the right part of the shore after several course corrections. As I approach the shore I see my drafter (draftee?) get out of the water. He's about 1 minute ahead. After check the final results later, it turns out my draftee was probably Rudy - not 100% sure. Rudy - do recall going by some goofy dude who was looking lost? That was me. :)

Bike: 1:07:xx (22 mph)

My transition was super slow since I had never practiced getting out of my wetsuit. BTW - if you don't use Bodyglide, you end up with these nasty, painful, hicky-looking welts on your neck. Joanna is still skeptical of my wetsuit explanation. However, I believe the net benefit even with struggling was positive. Jumped on my bike and started pedaling. The goal was to maintain a pace of 22 mph. I only have my cheapo little speedometer, so that's was the target for better or worse. This Patriots bike course was gorgeous. Loved the scenery. However, someone has to explain to me how and out and back ride can but uphill and into the wind both ways! I just don't get it. Nevertheless, jumping off my bike at the end of the 40K ride, I was pleased with my pacing. But my legs were feeling pretty dead. I could tell this 10K would be an adventure. During the ride, I had counted roughly 10 athletes who had passed me - about what I expected. Hopefully I can pass some of them back on the run course.

Run: 41:40 (6:45 per mile)

My goal going into this race was to accomplish two things 1) average 22 mph on the bike and 2) throw down a sub 40 minute 10K. After getting off the bike, I felt pretty good that I had accomplished goal #1. But I could tell right away goal #2 was in big trouble. Legs were tight and heavy right from the get go. After just the first mile, I'm wondering how many folks I'll pass. Oh, I had also left my watch at home the day before, so I was flying totally blind. No idea what my pacing is, don't really care, just trying to hold on and finish strong. Beautiful run course, not too many hills. I got passed by a couple more guys and pass one guy. Clearly more work is needed - both bike and run.

Total: 2:15:xx (13th overall)

All in all very happy with my first ever International Distance Triathlon! Lots of fun! Lucky 13!

Bike Madness Part II - The Bike Store

Visited Cville Bike & Tri yesterday to check start to learn more about TT bikes. Love the dudes at Cville Bike and Tri. They are very knowledgable and helpful. Yet somehow, I may have left the shop with more questions than answers. Actually not surprised at all by this. If I'm going drop several $Ks on a bike, I'm want to understand what the deal is pretty well.

So I got to try out two bikes. First up was the Giant TCR Trinity. The one I tried was the basic model with some Easton wheels and Shimano Ultegra components.

Nice bike. Felt cool to ride. Now, the qualifier is that this is the first time I have ever pedaled a TT bike before. So it felt pretty weird being in that type of a position. That's to be expected. I realized that trying to comapre these bikes based on feel is going to be challenging (OK, huge understatement), since the TT position is not supposed to be comfortable. It's supposed to be fast without causing actual pain. So, seemed like a pretty good bike. Very affordable price as well.

The second bike was the Specialized Transition Comp. Also very nice bike, but definitely not the entry model (carbon frame and Ultegra/105 components). Looked a lot like this one:

I liked how I felt on this bike a little better. But I can't say that I know why that is. The frame size might be a slightly better fit (I believe that is what Paul suggested). Maybe the seat was a little bit nicer. Maybe I was just getting used to riding bikes in that type of position.

Many more bikes to try and many questions to answer. Here's what seems to have come up so far:

Frames

What is more important in a frame aerodynamic design or material? What about weight? Many bikes offer bike models with most of the same aerodynamics in either aluminum or carbon options. Of course carbon is quite a bit more expensive, so the question becomes is carbon really worth it? The answer to that really includes what you mean by "worth it". Carbon is clearly better due to improved stiffness, a carbon frame generally will transfer more of the energy you use to pedal directly into forward propulsion instead of into flexing the frame. But how much is that worth to you?

Weight

Then there is weight. In general (though not always), when you make a bike more aerodynamic, you add a little bit more weight. This is because aerodynamic designs that mimic airpalne wings and fuselages tend to have elongated, smoother surfaces. Longer surface area means a little more bike material and thus a little more weight. But this is OK because the purpose of a TT bike is to get aerodynamic. It is all a quesiton of what you are going to use the bike for. TT bikes are designed to go mostly flat and mostly straight a fast as possible. Thus aerodynmics is most important. Weight seems to matter most in two areas - hill climbing and short sprints. In both of these cases the path to success seems maximizing to be power per weight (often measured in Watts/Kg). The higher this ratio is, the better you are at climbing and sprinting. Of course there are two ways to get better - more Watts or fewer Kgs. So for hills and sprints, obsessing over weight makes sense. But I'm not sure this is the case for a TT bike where you want to turn in a fast time over a flattish 50 mile course.

Components and Wheels

Oh yeah and by the way, it turns out that no matter what kind of bike you have, it might be pretty important to have aerodynamic wheels. And oh yeah, more relaible components may actually reduce the incidence of dropped chains and other shifting woes (which I have been dealing with all summer). So, you can buy a sweet ride, but if you go ghetto on the other parts of the bike, you are basically back at square one.

Fit

I've heard lots of folks ask - how does the bike fit? Well, it turns out this is not as easy a question to answer as you might think. Fit in a TT bike does not mean comfy. Comfy is how you describe this bike:

But you won't go fast on this bike. So fit in a TT bike really means - can you make the right adjustments to get into the most aero position possible. Which of course means you need to get the experts out with their tape measures, motion capture gadgets, computers and all the rest. For someone like me who is new to this game, I would not trust this decision on a feel. Not what this bike would be for.

But here's the trick, you need to know what bikes are going to be "in the ball park" so that the experts have the right things to work with in order to dioal everything in. And so, you need to know a little bit about the fit of the bike to know what will work for you. So now what?

Onwards and upwards...

Bike Madness

So it begins. Somehow, I have been sucked into the world of TT bikes. How did it happen? Who knows. I heard someone ones explain that the only difference between men and boys is the cost of their toys. How true.

I find this particularly ironic for me since I spend a solid amount of time being skeptical of all the fancy, expensive gadgets and toys that one can accumulate in the name of trying to get faster. At the end of the day, I'm just another sucker who'll fall for a good marketing campaign. If nothing else, I am a self aware sucker.

My journey began about one week ago with a visit to Ebay. I suppose that is not the normal place to begin a search for a bike, but I never claimed to be normal. I've spent way too many hours trolling E-Bay listings and building a watch list. Right now, I'm just seeing what used bikes go for. The hypothesis being that you should be able to save a bunch of $$ by cutting a good deal on a used bike. Works for cars right? We'll see. I'm not convinced just yet.

The second thing I did was start to understand what new bikes cost and what drives this cost. To this end, I am building a spreadsheet summary of bikes that seem like possible candidates along with data on specs and costs so I see the side-by-side comparison. You would think this comparison would be straight forward. Alas no...

Soon, I'll be visiting the local bike shops to talk with folks and ride some bikes around. Should be fun!

Next step is of course to actu