Taking This Blog To A New Level In 2015

"Life is about love, last minutes and lost evenings,
 about fire in our bellies and furtive little feelings,
 and the aching amplitudes that set our needles all a-flickering,
 and help us with remembering that the only thing that's left to do is live.
 After all the loving and the losing, the heroes and the pioneers,
 the only thing that's left to do is get another round in at the bar."
Frank Turner
I Knew Prufrock  Before He Got Famous

I am going to be that guy right now.....

I am sure I am not the first & I won't be the last to post their training totals for 2014. Now,  I won't bore you with a race by race breakdown but I can say, other than Ironman Eagleman 70.3, I was very pleased with my 2014 race season. Taking the 70.3 race out, I had 5 podium finishes in all races, either for overall finish or age group finish. Aside from the usual aches, it was a healthy & injury free year! Here are the final numbers for 2014:

Training Totals

Bike - 7429 miles/ 353.18 hours/ 21.03 mph

Run - 1292 miles/ 164.61 hours/ 7:39 per mile

Swim - 114 miles/ 52.25 hours

Total - 8835 miles/ 570.04 hours

Like posting my training totals, I am positive I am not the first or the last to post my goals (resolutions) for 2015. I have goals related to my training & racing, my blog & my coaching business (aside from SU). I guess, in some way all my goals are related to my training & racing. With no further ado:

Goals for 2015

1. Get back to having fun with the blog & making it entertaining. I understand that reading about training, especially base training, is extremely boring. How do I make my blog more entertaining, you may ask? In a humorous way, point out the stupid things that we (myself included) as multisport athletes do, that make us easy targets for ridicule from other athletes.
2. Along the lines of making the blog more entertaining, I feel jumping on my soapbox, when the time warrants, is another way to make the blog a little more readable. For future reference,  things that make for soapbox moments are doping scandals, excessive diet choices, mask that are supposed to stimulate altitude training, so called coaches professing bad training information & media who endorse this bad information. (All have been warned)
3. Put a concerted effort to build my coaching business, Tri It Coaching Service. I have had the linked website for a year now but have not put the effort into building my client list to make money with it. Aside working with runners, I am looking to expand into coaching of multisport athletes. Locally, I will be looking to organize some group workout opportunities & clinics for exposure. How does this goal tie into training & racing? While I enjoy coaching my athletes at the university, I understand I am not going to make millions & with the crazy race entry fees nowadays, I have to be able to afford my addiction! 
4. Race a full Ironman distance race. In a perfect world (no money or time restraints) I will be competing at Ironman Texas on May 16th with the hopes of qualifying for Kona. As much as I want to qualify for Kona, I am set on racing the distance. I do have some backups such as Challenge AC, Ironman Boulder or Ironman Maryland (just to name a few). I am also going to focus more on the 70.3 distance & Ironman distance races. (full race schedule to be set in the coming weeks)
5. Like I finished 2014, I will continue to eat healthier. Now, you won't see me go to any extremes as I need to have my coffee, ice cream & beer to keep me sane with all the training. Plus with all the training that will go into preparing for an Ironman, I can afford to have my coffee, ice cream & beer!
6. Train smarter not harder! My focus will be on quality training & not just training for the sake of padding numbers in my training log. I will be continuing my own personal experiment with MAF Training, as it has been very effective thus far during the early parts of base training.
7. Wear Sunscreen! No more Mohs Surgery procedures for me!

 

More Podium Finishes For 2015

Winding Down 2014

"Now young faces grow sad and old and hearts of fire grow cold
 We swore blood brothers against the wind
 I'm ready to grow young again"

No Surrender - Bruce Springsteen 

Blogging & training doesn't take a holiday! 

Sitting back in the Grove (Selinsgrove, PA) after a busy 6 days of holiday travels, I was kind of at a loss about what to write about this week. Last week I jumped back on my soapbox & promised to use it more often but decided for this week to stay in the holiday spirit & play nice (for now). We will see how long the holiday spirit last!

This week's training went very well with all of the holiday craziness. I was able to hit my mileage & volume goals. I made the most of my one swim day and tested my current endurance in the pool. Not sure why but I decided to see how long it would take me to swim 2500 yards, if I could swim that far given my longest swim in the past 2-3 months has been 1900 yards. I was very pleased to average 1:32/100 for the distance! It gives me a lot of confidence as I move forward in my Ironman training.

Eight Weeks Of Base Training @ MAF:

Bike - 33 rides/ 1076 miles/ 50.35 hours/ 21.4 mph

Run - 26 runs/ 192.25 miles/ 26.28 hours/ 8:12 per mile

Swim - 15 swims/ 14 miles/ 6.39 hours

Total - 74 workouts/ 1282.25 miles/ 83.02 hours

(8 Suspension Training sessions)

Per Week - 9.25 workouts/ 160.28 miles/ 10.38 hours

This week starts another two week cycle with increases in my long run and long bike ride. My long run increases to 1 hour & forty minutes and the long bike ride increases to 2 hours & 45 minutes. Base training continues for 5 more weeks, so all training will remain at MAF. With the campus being on winter break, the pool will be closed and there will be no swimming until January 5th. Now, I will be able to get into the weight room & get back to my suspension training. Even if I cannot get into the pool, the suspension training has been just as valuable in keeping my swimming strong and improving! Even without swimming, my total volume should be close to 11-11.25 hours (bike & run). I am looking to hit 145-150 miles on the bike & 28-30 miles running. 

With the official start of 2015 a few days away, it is time to start officially setting a race schedule. But I will save that for another post......(I know, the suspense is killing you!! )

Stay tuned!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 

Going to have some fun with this in 2015! (Beware!!!)

4th Place Finish @ Denville Sprint Triathlon

Drugs Are Bad.....Mkay!

"Oh my broken battered body,
 In the days when I was younger,
 Used to fix itself quick sharp
 After every slip and stumble.
 But these days I'm collecting scars that don't seem to fade,
 Cuts and bruises that won't go away."
Losing Days - Frank Turner

Maybe there is hope for all of the hard working, clean competing athletes out there! 

WADA Code Changes

Given the recent news of athletes failing drug test for Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs), some of these changes are long overdo.  Here are a few examples of the recent news: 

Jon Drummond

Mo Trafeh

Rita Jeptoo

Team Astana

USADA List  

Telegraph Story 

OK... I think you get the point. 

But like many clean athletes, I am tired of these stories! I am tired of being skeptical of any great performances in sports. I am tired of top athletes claiming to be clean then testing positive for PED's. I am tired of convicted dopers coming back after suspensions to only test positive again. I am tired of the conversations with my athletes about which athletes we believe are clean and who are not. I am tired of governing bodies overlooking or covering up positive drug test of the stars! I am tired of player unions fighting drug testing for HGH, because they know most of the league is on it! I am tired of all the excuses athletes give when they test positive instead of taking responsibility and just admitting they cheated! I am tired of athletes who try to explain why the decided to take a PED even though they knew it was banned. I don't care why....plain & simple, you cheated!!!!

Now some the changes WADA is implementing in this new code for 2015 may help. I think the 4 year suspension on the 1st offense is better. I don't think we will ever get to the point of one and done but 4 years may seem like a lifetime to some of these athletes. I like the rule of extending statute of limitations and storage of samples from 8 to ten years! As better test are developed by testing agencies, we can now go back and nail the dopers. I think the prohibited association rule will rid sports of a good amount of cheats as they won't be able to be coaches, agents, nutritionist or trainers. I know we are responsible for making the right decision on PED's but the influence of people in these roles can cloud a person's judgement. 

Will all these changes rid sports of PED's or stop athletes from trying to cheat? Unfortunately, we all know this answer, NO! Some people will always believe they can beat the system. There always be a "so called" new undetectable drug. There will always be a coach or athlete blinded by glory and money. But if it can deter a few athletes from not using PED's, it is start. And it can't hurt to have dopers away from sports a bit longer than current suspensions.

Thank you WADA for taking a big step in the right direction. Drugs are bad!

Evident by my training, No Doping here!

Base training continues to go well and the volume is building. With no traveling for meets or holiday, I was able to complete all scheduled workouts Now this will only last a week as travel for the holidays and the closing of our pool are hitting this week. And after 7 solid weeks of training, being at a slightly lower volume this week isn't the worst thing in the world.

Here are my training totals thus far:

Seven Weeks Of Base Training @ MAF:

Bike - 28 rides/ 935 miles/ 43.66 hours/ 21.4 mph

Run - 22 runs/ 166.25 miles/ 22.74 hours/ 8:12 per mile

Swim - 14 swims/ 12.50 miles/ 5.75 hours

Total - 64 workouts/ 1113.75 miles/ 72.15 hours

(8 Suspension Training sessions)

Per Week - 9.14 workouts/ 159.11 miles/ 10.31 hours
 
Oh yeah....before I forget, WEAR SUNSCREEN!#SkinCancerSucks

MY SCAR

Done For Now!!! (I Hope)

"And I still believe in the need
 For guitars and drums and desperate poetry
 I still believe that everyone
 Can find a song for every time they've lost
 And every time they've won

 So just remember, folks
 We're not just saving lives
 We're saving souls
 And we're having fun"

Frank Tuner - I Still Believe

Surgery was a success!

For now, my last post regarding my Mohs surgery. Like I expected, the surgery went well & it took two diggings around my neck to get all of cancer. The digging part of the procedure took about 2 hours, including the time to observe the samples under the microscope to make sure all the cancer was removed. The last part of the procedure involved the doctor stitching closed the hole in my neck. This part of the procedure took about 30 minutes also as I was pretty sure, the doctor was attempting to stitch a sweater on my neck. When I finally removed the bandage to look at the stitches/scar, I could not believe how big it was. The line of stitches was over 2 inches long & the spot itself was barely the size of a dime. 

My New Scar

Hopefully this will be my last post about a surgery but it won't be my last post on skin cancer & protecting oneself. Yeah, 2 Mohs surgeries in 4 years might be enough to scare anyone enough to use sunscreen but seeing how many others were going through the same procedure that day adds a little more pertinence to my change of heart! I have to admit, it was very depressing to see all the people in the waiting room with bandages waiting to find out if they had to go back into the room to have more cancer scraped out of them. 

Wear SUNSCREEN! 

 

Six Weeks Of Base Training @ MAF:

Bike - 24 rides/ 697 miles/ 37.24 hours/ 21.4 mph

Run - 19 runs/ 140 miles/ 19.15 hours/ 8:12 per mile

Swim - 11 swims/ 9.75 miles/ 4.48 hours

Total - 54 workouts/ 946.75 miles/ 60.87 hours

(6 Suspension Training sessions)

Per Week - 9.0 workouts/ 157.8 miles/ 10.15 hours

This week starts a new two week cycle in my base training. First, I am hoping to be able to get back in the pool this week but that may have to wait till mid-week depending on my stitches & mobility in my neck. My long run extends to 90 minutes (11.25-11.5 miles) & my long ride extends to 2 hours & 30 minutes. My total volume (if swimming happens) will range from 11.0-11.25 hours: 6.25-6.50 hours biking; 3.4-3.5 hours running & 1.25-1.50 hours swimming. And like the previous 6 weeks, all training will continue to be completed at MAF. My paces at MAF have improved the past few weeks & the body continues to feel fresh especially with the increases in volume. 

Seven more weeks of base!!!

Dose Of Reality (It Can Happen To You)

"No need to run and hide
 It's a wonderful, wonderful life
 No need to laugh and cry
 It's a wonderful, wonderful life"
Wonderful Life - Smith & Burrows 

Mohs Surgery

Tomorrow morning at 8:00AM, I am scheduled for my 2nd Mohs surgery in 4 years to remove a bit of basal cell carcinoma in my neck. The procedure, itself, has potential to take just over an hour depending on the first round of cutting. If unsure of what Mohs surgery entails, the above link will take you to a page to describe the procedure in more details. Basically, the procedure involves removing layers of skin cells until the margins of the skin cells appear cancer free under a microscope. For basal cell carcinomas, the cure rate of Mohs surgery is 97-98%, so that is a number to feel really good about going into this. While on paper the procedure looks very effective & less invasive, I do hope some people, who may actually read this blog, learn from my ignorance & laziness and use sunscreen.

It felt good to have a normal week of training after two crazy weeks (NCAA's & Thanksgiving). I accomplished all my volume goals in the three disciplines but was only able to get one session of suspension training. My goal is to consistently get two suspension training session each week but I guess one is better than none. The biggest impact of suspension training has been in my swim. I have basically doing endurance swims of 1500-1800 yards over the past 4-5 weeks & I have been able to maintain 91-92 seconds per 100 where I would have been closer to 93-94 seconds per 100 yards prior to suspension training.

Five Weeks Of Base Training @ MAF:

Bike - 20 rides/ 657 miles/ 30.71 hours/ 21.4 mph

Run - 15 runs/ 114.5 miles/ 15.69 hours/ 8:13 per mile

Swim - 11 swims/ 9.75 miles/ 4.48 hours

Total - 46 workouts/ 781.25 miles/ 50.88 hours

(4 Suspension Training sessions)

Per Week - 9.2 workouts/ 156.3 miles/ 10.18 hours 

 

This week is scheduled to be a duplicate of this past week. My swim workouts this week will ultimately depend on the Mohs surgery & the stitches afterwards. At most, I am hoping that it will only cost me one swimming day this week. I will be able to get back to completing two suspension training sessions this week. My overall time volume goal for swimming, biking and running is 10.5-10.75 hours this week. If I am able to hit every trainingn session, the week will look like 6-6.25 hours of biking, 3.15-3.3 hours of running & 1.25-1.33 hours of swimming. I have started to notice improvements in my paces at MAF & will perform a MAF Fitness Test over the winter break. 

 

 

Heading Out On The Run