Friday 19/12/08 - "Cruel Conditioning"

After a tough swim session yesterday and decent run in the evening - I was too tired to even make an entry into the blog. Well today saw the temperature hit an unthinkable 29 degrees celsius by 8:30am! To condition myself I have started running during the hotter periods of the day and as I set out with one of running buddies Dan Watts on what would 6.7km in 33 degree heat... we thought about going for a negative split over the distance but as it turns out - sub 4 minutes per kilometre over the first four before drifting towards 4 1/2 minutes per kilometre over the final stretch. I plan on going for a ride for an hour this afternoon at "silver" pace before heading off to work.

For your information I will refer to my paces as bronze, silver or gold.
Bronze = An light pace conducive for an effective warm up, cool down or recovery (during interval training)

Silver = 70 - 80% of race pace

Gold = RACE PACE!!!!

I have posted some stories from other triathletes some practical, some humorous and
some motivational.

Happy Training!

Wednesday 17/12/08 - Financial backing secured

I had a good reason not to train today, I swear. I spent the day negotiating an injury compensation settlement and received a favourable decision, a decision which will finance at least a year of triathlon training expenses (Pool entry/Track Fees/Coaching/Membership/Race nomination fees) with enough for a full carbon bike should I so desire - hmmmm... it is Christmas but I will hold off.

Stop the tisk tisking - I completed some cardio in an intense 7-aside soccer competition which is better than nothing and contrary to popular belief good interval training. Take a look at the stats of a soccer (football player) during a game and what percentage is spent sprinting, running, jogging, walking and running backwards. Note a soccer game lasts 90 minutes whereas a decent 10km race will be 40 minutes (less than half that) so the duration and ratio spent sprinting-running-jogging would most likely equate to at least 40 minutes depending on position.

I was watching the 2007 (I think - it was qualification for Beijing for some nations) ITU on foxtel the other night and paid special attention to the run and strategies employed by athletes. For example when athletes launched specific attacks (a la cycling) or whether they just completed it consistently fast. Javier Gomez was a prime example in his home country's race - he was about 200m behind the leader and gradually upped the tempo culminating in a 70m sprint to win by 2 seconds - he knew his energy levels and if he had sprinted the entire gap may well have no energy to continue to increase his tempo if his rival reacted. Worst case scenario - the South African would have only needed a slight surge to maintain the lead and ensure victory particularly over such a short distance. In comparison, I watched Emma Snowsill in a different race and she stuck to her individual gameplan and was 6th out of T2 and then put something like 10 or 20 seconds on her nearest rival over the 10km. She ran HER race, her PACE, her EFFORTS where she had planned them. There is so much information and so many contributing factors as to whether you RACE THE RACE or RACE YOURSELF such as fitness, confidence, energy levels, etc. The resources will shed more light on race tactics.

On Saturday I will publish an abstract of my training program / time bases and anything else I think appropriate as I will have a new training partner in Adele (if I can keep up :D ) so hopefully it will be informative.

Thanks for reading.

Joey D out.

Tuesday 16/12/08 - My first swim with Dan Atkins

I always find it hard psyching myself up for swim sessions as I'm sure everyone who has seen me swim will immediately confuse me with a drowning rat. This was made harder with the knowledge that Dan Atkins who has a reputation as tough coach was taking the sessions this week. Technically poor due to limited shoulder flexibility, my inefficient stroke and sometimes erratic breathing lets me down. Well, today was my first session under Dave Atkins and although a tough session I really enjoyed it. I persevered through the one hour midday or "tan" session as it also known clocking up kilometre after kilometre. Still not 100% I pushed through and saw out the "sprint" training which consisted of tedious 4 x 100m on 2 mins and 4 x 50m pull on 1 min. Easy you may say but it gets tough after completing 2 x 300m negative split.

In my spare time today I have been looking at and evaluating resources to add to this blog and have a few lined up although just waiting for the publisher's permission to link them to the blog. Resources such cycling and swimming pace charts, calculators and nutritional information.

Stay tuned and hopefully I'll have it up soon.

Monday 15/12/08

Still feeling slightly lethargic so spent most of the day hydrating and reading TMSM (Triathlon Multi Sport Magazine) and enjoying the wisdom it has to offer whilst at the same time being mindful that anything read needs to be critiqued. My coach Cath brought up a very good point - don't believe everything you read. There was a case where it was published in a magazine that running with one foot in the gutter was beneficial to conserving energy so over the 10km run - competitors were advised to change sides at 5km - needless to say there were numerous withdrawals due to injury in the following event. The publication published a retraction and apology. It seems like 'common sense' to you and I yet everyone wants the edge. My advice is don't be blinded by the lure of age-group glory and sacrifice your common sense and well-being for an article which needs to exist for publications to be printed.

This is no way is meant to imply that all articles are rubbish - it is just a reminder to all of us to be careful with and critique the information which we are provided with.

Ciao.

Sunday 14/12/08 - Body Alert

"Listen to your body" is one of the most crucial bits of information when evaluating your program. After being struck down by a bout of 24 hour gastro-entiritis, my body is devoid of any energy and it must be screaming at me to slow down. Well if I could run more than a kilometre without needing a bathroom - I'm sure I would have completed my planned 6.5km Southbank bridge run today. I am a huge believer in fate and that things happen for a reason and I'm still pondering this one... (if anyone can shed some light, please let me know).

I have been on clear fluids all day and am struggling "energy wise" without the sustainability which food permits. I think I will get a good sleep and re-evaluate a 5:30am Spin class subject to how I'm feeling. I am sure tomorrow will provide all the answers I need.

Until then, Ciao.

Saturday 13/12/08 - An eventful "rest day"

Today was supposed to be a rest day which to be honest, it wasn't really.

I spent most of the morning relaxing with my sick nieces, Hana (4) and Nami (10 months) and sister-in-law, Ayumi who are over from Japan for Christmas until I received a call. It was Bradley from Carina Cycles letting me know that my new bike was ready to go pending a few final measurements and tri bar adjustments. After simulating cycling stages on a wind trainer - the measurements and adjustments were made.

I was aching after a full-on Friday which saw me complete a 4km lunchtime swim, a 60km afternoon bike ride and finally a weights session orientated around the principles of 'volume training.'

Regardless of the fatigue, I played A grade Men's indoor soccer at West End. We won 8-2 so it was well worth it before I went to work and spent a few hours unloading cartons of soft drink off a pallet - hmmmmm....

So right now as I sit bleary eyed and write my first blog entry (it feels like I'm talking to myself), bed is calling for some well-earned rest before Sunday arrives.