June 30, 2009

Malibu Triathlon Training: Day 6

June 17
I've played enough sports in my life to know that when you take a long layoff, it takes time to get your endurance back. But when I took a "long layoff" in the past, it usually meant a couple months. And I was in my 20s. With that said, something really weird happened when I hit my mid-30s. For starters, I had a kid. While he is the sun of my universe (haha ... punny!), being a parent pretty much takes up all my free time. And what little free time I do get, I'm not exactly out there running 5-minute miles.

So when I started training for this triathlon, I fooled myself into thinking I'd get back into shape in a couple of weeks. Ya know, like I did when I was 18 and basketball season was starting up. I was very, very wrong. Liz -- who is my wife, and also pretty smart it turns out -- was quick to notice my shock and disappointment when, after two whole weeks, I wasn't logging 8 miles in 30 minutes. I think she first noticed it when I came home after a ride, lay down on the living room floor, and asked her to kill me in between desperate wheezes.

"Don't worry, honey," she said in a very Mrs. Cunningham sorta way. "You'll find your groove really soon and then it'll be fun!" I nodded in agreement, but deep down I just wanted her to rip my lungs out through my mouth.

Of course, it turns out she was right (as she is 99% of the time. Yeah, that's right, I'm staking my claim to that 1%). And it was on Day 6 that I hit my stride. I went farther than I had up to this point, and I did it faster than any of my previous rides. And on top of that, I was my normal shade of pasty when I walked into the house afterward.



In truth, I only went .13 miles farther than I had gone on Day 5, which is only about 2 football fields and a few first downs. But I shaved 36 seconds per mile off the pace, which made me feel like I was actually making progress. At this rate, I'd be logging 4-minute miles in a matter of days and would be on target to meet my tentatively set goals. Which is a story for another day.

June 29, 2009

Malibu Triathlon Training: Day 5

June 15
Day 5 was a fairly uneventful ride; I was back to what seemed to become my default route. Down, around and back up again, finishing with the Hill From Hell that continues to kick my (fat) ass. Despite being more of the same, there are a couple pieces of trivia worth noting in my quest for endurance, efficiency and the ability to not want to pass out at the end of a ride:

1) I passed the 4-mile mark, traveling 4.01 miles, to be exact
2) This was my first ride with only one day's rest



These are fairly insignificant facts in the bigger picture of trying to go 18 miles, but they're milestones nonetheless and I'm not going to downplay them. I will point out that I'm now realizing the Grand Canyon-esque difference between being 28 and 38. While I didn't fell all that much different at 38 than I did when I was 28 (unless the early Alzheimer's has already kicked in), my body made it very clear very quickly that I will not be getting in shape easily, and that "rest and recovery" is a very, very real (and vital) part of training!

June 26, 2009

Malibu Triathlon Training: Days 3 & 4

June 9 & 13
Day 3 was pretty similar to Day 2 in terms of total distance and time, but I can't report on specifics because Runkeeper got screwed up and somehow thought I went 8.2 miles in 21:05, with a top speed of 68.43 mph at one point. With that said, I'll move on to Day 4.

If any training day could be called a clusterfuck, this would be the one. I had been using a foot pump to keep my tires inflated, and it had crapped out on me a few days earlier. Sensing that my tires were having a hard time supporting my fat ass, I figured I needed to add some air. Naturally, my first thought was to ride down to our local gas station (a little over a mile down the hill), fill the tires, and continue on an as-yet undetermined route. So I loaded up my Presta valve adapter (my tires don't have the Schrader valves like you see on your car tires, they're the super-thin Presta) and patted myself on the back all the way down to Mobil. And that's where it all went to hell. Turns out those air compressors at gas stations aren't like the pumps you use at home, and the adapter was useless. Not only did I not put more air in my tires, I actually lost air -- but I did give my hair the "wind blown" look, as I ended up with the compressed air blasting me in the face.


Anyway, I ended up improvising my ride, and when you're not all that familiar with where you're riding, this can be troublesome. And this is sad, considering I've lived in this neighborhood for close to four years; but that's a story for another day.

I ended up going back UP the hill, and took a left instead of a right at the top, just to see where that would take me. As it turned out, it took me slightly downhill in a half-circle and put me halfway back down the hill. Did I mention this was on under-inflated tires? Fun. And what's really sad is that I wasn't 100% sure where I was, so I turned around and backtracked to the top of the hill, and then continued the ascent until I hit homebase.

In terms of distance and pace, I was pretty much even with the previous two training days. This was a pretty good sign, considering I did much more uphill this time. On the down side, smoke was coming out of my mouth as a result of the fire burning in my lungs.

June 25, 2009

Malibu Triathlon Training: Day 2

June 6
My second day of training was a little better than the first, in that I was able to actually ride the entire route. Except I had to stop halfway up the Hill From Hell, in order to avoid falling over into the street and becoming roadkill. At this point I'm still really learning my bike, and which gears work the best for various situations. On this day, I wasn't getting much "bang for my buck," as I was spinning but not really accelerating.


The stats on the map pretty much tell the story. I went slightly farther than I did on Day 1, but I was also a little bit slower. I think part of the reason is that I was riding during the day, when it was a little warmer than my night ride three days earlier. I was also low on energy; we had spent the morning at Dash's swimming lesson, and then running around before getting home in time for his nap, and I hadn't really eaten much up to that point.

So it was a good day, in that I was able to go farther and ride the entire distance. But I was also reminded that using energy requires prior intake of energy in order to stay conscious. I just hope that lesson sticks with me!

June 23, 2009

Malibu Triathlon Training: Day 1

June 3
Being horribly out of shape, I decided to take things a little easy on my first "official" training ride, as the last thing I need is a pulled hammy on Day 1. And since my time with the family is fairly limited on a daily basis, I decided I would do the bulk of my riding at night, after Dash was in bed. So that means that on most nights, I'm not leaving the house until around 9:00 pm, which is actually not too bad because the weather is really nice at that time in these parts.

So anyway, here are the vitals:

Distance: 3.18 miles
Duration: 16:42
Avg. Pace: 5:15
Avg. Speed: 11.43 mph
Climbed: 212 feet

As you can see on the map, I basically just did a "lap" around our neighborhood. It starts with a slight climb, then goes downhill pretty quickly at the end of Mile 1 (I maxed out at 32.7 mph). The second mile is fairly flat, with a slight climb starting at the end of Mile 2. Around the 2.8 Mile mark, things start to get much more interesting. For approximately the next mile, it feels like riding up a 60-degree incline. The total elevation change over that mile is 185 vertical feet, and on this night, I couldn't make it much past Mile 3 (which explains the abrupt end of my route on the map). Out of breath with a cramp developing in my left calf and my legs feeling like spaghetti, I decided I had had enough for Day 1 and walked the rest of the way home.


I wasn't exactly setting the world on fire -- or even causing much of a spark, for that matter -- but all I really wanted to do was break a sweat, put some wear on my tires and get used to moving my body again. So in that regard, mission accomplished!


June 21, 2009

Banjo Brigade: Part 1








While at a glance this may look like a snuff film, it's actually me playing the banjo. I made this about 4 years ago, when I was just starting out and had a lot of free time (my son was born about a year later). But I wasn't a huge bluegrass fan before I started playing, and I wasn't familiar enough with the song to know that my timing was slightly off. So if you know "Old Joe Clark," you probably won't recognize this rendition. If you don't know "Old Joe Clark," then get ready to watch the greatest interpretation of the song ever made!

June 18, 2009

The Countdown







Since my son Dash was born about three-and-a-half years ago, just about the only exercise I get has been chasing him around the backyard with a light saber. I've always considered myself an active person, but having a kid and a 90-minute daily commute pretty much sucks up all my time and energy. I really do want to move my body and get my sweat on, but it seems the longer I'm inactive the harder it gets to motivate.

So when a co-worker announced that he was putting together several relay teams to participate (note I did not say "compete") in this year's Malibu Nautica Triathlon, I saw it as an opportunity. Of course, I knew there was no way I would be able to get myself in shape in time to complete all three events, so I signed up for a relay. I decided to take on the cycling leg, which is an 18-mile jaunt along PCH.


The reasons I picked cycling are threefold:
1) I don't have easy access to the ocean
2) Running and I have a hate-hate relationship
3) I already own a bike


Of course, said bike has been collecting cobwebs for close to 10 years, so I knew it was going to take some time to get it road-ready. I replaced the tubes and bought a foot pump and lights, since I knew I'd have to do most of training at night. I started my training on June 3rd, and I'm using an (Apple) iPhone app called RunKeeper to track my progress, which has already been a great motivator.

I'm going to be posting my progress as my training continues, and hopefully in the next 12 weeks I'll feel ready to tackle the triathlon.