Race Report #1

Special thanks to blog follower #48: Dick Withrow for sending me the link to this very humorous—and all to close to home—video that someone created on xtranormal.com. If you are a triathlete, or put up with one, you'll really appreciate this. Coincidentally, I hope Dick does not mind me telling everyone that he is the inspirational 68 year old triathlete I was speaking of in my last post.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Perspiration, Inspiration

Inspiration: I went to the Y yesterday for a shoulder workout and a 5 mile run outside, but I did not feel great, and ended up doing 1000 yards in the pool with one of my old piano students, Noah. Noah swam competitively in high school (he is now in his junior year at Cornell University.) It was great picking up a few tips from him in the pool.  I felt like I was coming down with a little something yesterday—scratchy throat, runny nose—and sure enough, this morning I felt terrible. My head was pounding, and unfortunately, I had to scratch my morning run with Vanessa.  I am going to take it easy today and see if I can convalesce quickly enough to start my IM training on time.

Also, while at the Y yesterday, I spoke to a man in the pool that I have seen several times. He is a lifetime runner, and an age group triathlete that has participated in several triathlons, most recently, the Beach 2 Battleship Half. I love talking to senior athletes that are still going at it. Sometimes, you can pick up the most subtle things about training, mental attitude and perseverance from them. Dick is no exception. Talking to him in the pool yesterday, I thought he must have been in his mid-50's, perhaps early 60's. I hardly believed him when he told me he was 68 years old. The dude is in amazing shape. I looked at Noah and said, "this is what I want to look like when I am 68 years old," to which Noah replied "I want to look like him now." It is great inspiration meeting athletes who are well into their 60's, 70's and 80's who are still doing it. I believe it is a testament for keeping active.

Perspiration: It has been great being able to be home the last week with my family. I have been able to spend a lot of time with the kids. I don't know how Alaina does it. At any point throughout the day, someone is either crying, throwing a temper tantrum, or just needing attention. You would never imagine just how important a toothbrush, teddy bear, or slippers could be unless one of our kids mistakingly—or sometimes on purpose—will take, or use their siblings. The girls have the potential to cry in such a way as to threaten every single glass object in our house. I am convinced that dogs in the neighborhood are wallowing in excruciating pain waiting for the high frequency shrills to stop. Alaina and I love the girls, really. I would like to say that that after a while you become immune to the constant loudness and the craziness of five children who are so close together in age. I would like to say that, but I can't.

Whenever I fly solo, I like to do activities with the kids. We will go to the museum (we have a world-class children's museum in town.) People literally come from all over the world to visit. You need days to see all the exhibits, and much of the stuff is hands-on. We will go to the local Y, or sometimes stay home and play outside. During the winter months, it is hard though. Often, the kids get a little cabin fever. We play outside, but we can not be out there for long. It was nine degrees the other day. Nine. When the weather man does the weather, he just ought to give a "low," and the "really low." Nine is not a "high."

Alaina took the kids sledding yesterday. As she was walking back up the hill with Stella, she saw Amalia sliding down the hill on her butt. One of her boots and gloves were missing. Awesome!

A Decent Recovery and Lego Star Wars

Okay, waking up early this morning to meet Adam (my training parter) at the gym did not happen. Every once in a while—for some suspicious reason unbeknownst to my wife and I—our five alarm clocks, er... children do not wake up before Foghorn Leghorn at the crack of dawn. For those of you who did not grow up in the mid-70's, Foghorn was a cartoon that ran during the Bugs Bunny Road Runner Hour. We do not know why this happens, but we are usually filled with joy with every minute of sleep past 7:00 a.m. We've found that each minute translates into approximately one minute more of "parental patience" at bedtime. Adam and I finally got to the gym at 8:15 did some quick weight training and then I did a quick speed workout on the treadmill. I wanted to get outside, but it was 9 degrees this morning and too much ice on the ground. I can handle the cold. Ice is treacherous, and I am clumsy enough as it is. Anyway, I did a nice 5K at a 7:40 pace on a 1 degree incline. I could have run faster. I felt pretty food this morning even though I thought I was going to feel tired and have a mediocre run. Must have been the banana the night before! It felt good to have a decent run after that miserable swim workout because of the cramp in my right thigh. I have to admit, it bothered me most of the day thinking about how I had to bag the workout. The silver lining is that I learned something. I really need to remember that I sweat A LOT and that I need to replace those fluids during and immediately after a long hard ride, or I am going to risk cramping again. I have a 8 mile run scheduled on Thursday with Vanessa. Again, Adam and I convinced her to swim a 1000 yards before going out to run (that is the only chance we have of keeping up with her.)

I have some interesting new developments happening this spring. It looks like I might be "training" a group of young, aspiring first time triathletes. They are mostly students of mine at the college who have expressed an interest. I don't know how they would have gotten the idea. I very rarely talk triathlon with anyone. We'll see how long they last when the pressure of exams, papers, social life, and the rest of the banal indulgences of la vie quotidienne come calling them away from training minutes.

Other News: Christmas was great. The boys got a Lego Star Wars game for the wii and a Lego Star Wars model. Alaina asked me why they would put Legos and Star Wars together. Puzzled, I looked at her and asked her if she were serious. "Alaina," I responded, "they are only the two coolest things ever!" Unconvinced, she said, "It must be a boy thing." This may be true. My girls have been dressed up in the princess outfits they received for Christmas almost every hour. Must be a girl thing.

Cavatelli Salad for lunch today: Cavatelli, olive oil, garlic, basil, tomato's, part-skim  mozzarella, balsamic vinegar. Heaven.

A Banana A Day Keeps the Swim Cramps Away

I had a fifty minute spin workout today followed immediately by a swim workout in the pool that was suppose to be 2900 yards. I do this every Sunday. The yardage varies between 2500-3500 yards. I went hard on the bike and felt great, but when I got to the swim, I started noticing a little bit of fatigue pushing off of the wall. That fatigue  turned into a severe muscle cramp in the middle of my right hamstring that left it frozen stiff and unable to bend. The warning signs were there each time I pushed off the wall. It is amazing how much I learn every workout I have. What I learned this time around was to make sure I get some calories and fluids in my body before starting my workouts. For breakfast—the most important meal of the day—I had a small bowl of Grape Nuts and a cup of coffee. Yikes!  I should really know better, but for some reason I think that I should be able to skimp on my nutrition and get out there and perform well. A friend of mine, a super-duper athlete who wins a lot of regional sprint and olympic distance triathlons asked me if I had a banana this morning. I said no. She said, "You see, just have your banana next time and you'll be fine." Sure, I get it, potassium. I've done an exhausted amount of reading on the relationship between potassium and muscle endurance. There is some evidence to suggest that the relationship is beneficial. However, the amount of potassium you get from one banana does not come close to one serving of orange juice, or a potassium supplement. Then of course, there is GU, Hammer Gels, etc. that have some potassium in them. My only guess is that I did not have enough fuel in the engine again and was not properly hydrated. It is always embarrassing to have to bag a workout midway through, but I do it sometimes because it is just not there. Look, I know what I said last post about finishing. If it were Kona, I would swim with one leg, but it wasn't. So, I will start eating bananas before my workouts again. There was a time when I was eating quite a bit of them. I never had cramps. Coincidence? Perhaps, or is yet another Time Life Mystery of the Unknown? In any event, I did a good amount of swimming (6000 yards) and running (30 miles) this week. Starting to ramp up and the knees feel good. I am looking to prevent any cramping due to dehydration this week.


Oh, and I am looking at purchasing a bike trainer, new or used. Any suggestions? 

Thought and Updates: Kona and Holidaze

I think part of what "veteran" triathletes—and perhaps I am just projecting here—find so attractive about racing is how our minds adapt to overcome what our bodies tell us should not be possible. I am a much stronger, faster, SMARTER athlete now, than I was a decade ago (not a smarter human being, mind you. I am still incredibly dumb when it comes to human interaction on almost every level and I do not think it would be an understatement to call myself incredibly socially awkward.) I think the most attractive part of racing triathlon is actually the mental toughness and endurance that are needed to train, compete, and somehow find the fortitude to trudge on. There are times for all of us when we could just as easily try to justify one of a hundred reasons to wave the white flag out there on a course, but we keep moving. I believe—and I may be in the minority here—that the most disgraceful act a professional triathletes does is not finishing a race because they do not think they are going to have a top ten finish that day. I am glad Normann Stadler realized what an incredibly disrespectful act that would have been when he did not have it dialed in on the run this year at the Ford Ironman World Championships. He basically acknowledged the fact that it would have been incredibly disrespectful to undermine the history of the sport, the sacrifice and dedication of all the age group athletes that worked tirelessly to even give themselves a chance to race on the Big Island, and the their fellow professional athletes who out there finishing despite of what type of race they are having that day. His attitude was really quite refreshing. Now I know I will have some people say, 'Look, they are professional athletes, if they don't have it dialed in that day, they risk an injury that might keep them out for the rest of the season, a substantial payday, etc.' Fine, point taken. I am pretty sure that Normann Stadler on his worst day could walk the marathon, slowly, and be done hours before me. I would venture to guess that Stadler might even be able to ride a unicycle and still beat me on the bike. I am not sure how comfortable he would be after that, but you get my point here.

Okay, the holidaze are past me now. I consumed enough lamb on Christmas to raise the GNP of New Zealand to unprecedented new heights. I even feel sluggish from just getting together with our families. I love getting together with family, but I get really antsy sitting and eating and drinking for hours straight. It might as well be the gluttony triathlon. Sitting, eating, drinking. Nice! Perhaps you could do it by percentage of weight gained over the course of three hours.

Okay, back in the pool for a nice 3500 yard refresher in the morning, followed by a run.

T- a few days 'till 3 January and the official start of Ironman training. I'm scared. Real scared. WHen I look for comfort from veteran IM'ers, they all say, "Welcome to your new part-time job." Wonderful! I don't have nearly enough to do!

I went out for a 10K with Vanessa after a 1000 yard swim this week. I think she has found new respect for triathletes. She told me it was a lot more difficult running after that swim. No kidding? She qualified for Boston. She is still my hero.

Between the months of May and September I hardly wear shirts when I am not at work. Friends who see race pictures of me often ask me if I own shirts. It's the bloody narcissism.

Confessions of a Complex Carboholic

I love pasta. I am Italian, so I guess I am suppose to love it. I own it. Alaina thinks I the amount of pasta I consume on a weekly basis is crazy. I mean, honestly, I could eat pasta for lunch and dinner nearly every day. Do I get tired of it? Nope. Growing up in an Italian family with two brothers who had the appetites of large barnyard animals and could consume as much food as an emerging third-world nation, my mother made sure to provide us with as many low cost, high volume food choices as possible. Pasta was the inheritance of a bloodline that assuredly, went back countless generations. I never complained. I loved it then, and probably love it more now. If I could eat one thing for the rest of my life, this high complex carbohydrate masterpiece would be just the thing. Alaina said she could eat salad forever. Not sure I could do that, but I digress.


I learned recently that I must look very Italian as well. When I walked into Luca's lunchroom to meet him one day a couple of weeks ago, a kid in another second grade class came up to me and said, "You look Italian." I felt like Arnold Schwarzeneger in Kindergarten Cop when a child out of the blue says "boys have a penis... girls have a vagina." I just kind of looked at him with a gaping mouth and nodded stupidly. Finally, I said, "yes, I am Italian." Good thing too, I am sure he would have not been able to sleep that night. Back to my  love of pasta. I could not have chosen a better combination of fuel and tastiness. Pasta is a complex carbohydrate: chains of three or more single sugar molecules linked together. Long chains of sugar molecules are called starches and they serve as the storage form of energy in plants. Branched complex carbohydrates called cellulose form the structural components that give plants their shape. Nutritionists say that at least have of our daily caloric intake should come from complex carbohydrates found in  plant foods--which include fruits, vegetables, bread, pasta, and legumes. Lately, we have been eating more whole wheat pasta. I like it. It is a little nuttier than it's bleached counterpart, but much better for you in terms of nutritional value and carbohydrate efficiency. 


Endurance athletes in particular benefit from fuel-efficient complex carbohydrates because of the extra calories burned each day. You need to aim for even more total carbohydrates than the suggested 50 percent. You can eat (in fact, may need to eat) more total calories without worrying about weight gain. The average runner training for a half marathon and running 20 to 25 miles a week probably needs a daily caloric intake near 2,500 to maintain muscle glycogen stores. As your mileage climbs beyond that, you need to eat more and more food, not less. In all honesty, this is why a lot of runners run, and why they train for marathons. Their common motto is, "I love to eat."

 Below, I've listed ----- of my favorite ways to enjoy this culinary gem in no particular order:

1) Pesto: Made from fresh basil, olive oil, and the undisputed king of all cheeses, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and sometimes (although my wife does not use it in hers, pinenuts.)  Penne with homemade pesto (pronounced 'pay-sto')—do not even approach me with that weak Americanized pronunciation of one of my favorite pasta sauces. Even the Merriam-Webster online dictionary hacks the pronunciation if this wonderfully fresh sauce. pes-(ˌ)tō. How dare they refer to it as 'pest-o!'  I am not sure if it annoys me nearly as much as the "shh" sound everyone makes when referring to bruschetta. \brü-ˈshe-tə, -ˈske-\. Ugh, it's the latter,m 'ske! Moving on, but more about bruschetta later. 

2) Cavatelli with Brocolli: What I am currently eating for lunch as I write this post. People who say they do not have enough time to make meals for lunch or dinner need to get their heads examined. Start to finish: 20 minutes. Boil water. Prepare broccoli in pan with olive oil, garlic, and crushed red pepper. Cook the cavatelli for 4-6 minutes (it's fresh pasta, so it does not need as long to cook. You'll know it's done when the pasta starts to float to the top.) Drain, and put it in the pan with the broccoli and turn up the heat to medium high. I like getting the pasta a bit crispy on the outside. Salt and pepper to taste. Violà! A finished meal in under 20 minutes.

3) Penne Vodka: Excuse my crassness. This might as well just called 'crack.' If you are looking for a great pre-race, high carb, low-fat meal, then look somewhere else. This uses pork fat in the form of proscuitto, a type of cured ham that is both high in salt and fat. The sauce uses a combination of tomato sauce and cream, giving it a rosy or pink color. Finish it off with some fresh parsly right out of the garden. This is a great post-race "job well-done!" kind of meal. It should be treated like Superman's treatment of the crystals on Krypton: there if you need it, but use sparingly. 


4) Cavatelli Salad: Ah, cavatelli again! This is one of my favorite summer dishes. I love this meal because I can prepare it quickly after a workout. Start to finish: 20 minutes. Bring water to boil. Dice tomato's, mince garlic, cut part skim mozzarella up into little squares, and chop some fresh basil—I like a lot of basil and garlic—I'm Italian, remember. Pour olive oil and minced garlic into the bottom of a large pasta bowl (the amount of both will vary according to the amount of pasta you are cooking.) When the pasta is done, drain it and set it aside. I like to let the pasta cool down a little, but I like to put it in the bowl with the garlic while it is still warm to bring out more of the flavor in the garlic. If you are not worried about keeping vampires away, or would like to get close to your significant other at the end of the night, you may want to use some discretion here. I put in the basil and cheese in at the end so that it does not melt. I do not like it all melty. I am not making Rueben's here. When you are done, sprinkle a little balsamic vinegar over the top of it and share with someone you love. I love the freshness of this dish, especially outside during the summer. I will often refrigerate this right after making it and eat it for lunch the following day. 

Back to bruschetta \brü-ˈske-tə, -ˈske-\. I have such fond memories of this food. When I was a child, my father use to make this for me almost every weekend. He would cut pieces of bread up, cook them in the fireplace on a small grill rack. When both sides got toasty, he would rub garlic on the bread, then finish it off with some virgin olive oil and salt. I loved it. I didn't know why exactly. It seems pretty simple. But it is so delicious. Real, simple food. None of the '"frills:" tomato's, basil, sardines, etc.— albeit yummy—that I witness when I go out to a restaurant. Perhaps that is what I love so much about it. Now, I make it for my kids every so often, and it has become this exotic culinary staple that daddy only makes on special nights. Hysterical! 


One of my all-time favorite meals is pairing bruschetta with a nice glass of chianti accompanied by some olives, and pieces of parmigiano. It should be illegal in several states.

Strength to Weight Ratio: Does Weight Training Make Me Slower? Pt. Deux

In her article for Ironman.com, Jennifer Hutchison—who has a dossier a mile long that includes being a 9-time Ironman finisher, Board Certified Dietetics, and a USA Triathlon Certified Level 3 Elite Coach—defines strength to weight ratio this way:


"Simply defined, strength to weight ratio is the measure of a person’s strength divided by their body weight. When comparing two individuals who can generate similar amounts of strength, like reaching the top of a bike climb together, the person who has a lower body weight will have a higher strength to weight ratio. If the heavier rider, carrying more body weight (body fat) up the hill, exerts 100per cent effort in the climb, then his leaner counterpart should complete the climb with less effort. The leaner athlete, with the higher strength to weight ratio, will be over the hill and gone in no time when he or she increases their effort to 100 per cent."


I am not quite sure that I understand Ms. Hutchison's relationship of body weight to more fat, and I am not suggesting that she is incorrect, I just need some clarification. Body weight does not necessarily translate to more fat. It could mean that one athlete has more muscle density than the other. Muscle density is 1.06 g/ml and fat density is (about) 0.9 g/ml. Thus, one liter of muscle would weight 1.06 kg and one liter of fat would weight 0.9 kg. In other 
words, muscle is about 18% more dense than fat. Currently, I am 6'2, 180 pounds (81.8 kg.) My training partner Adam is ten to twelve pounds lighter than I am (and about an inch and a half shorter,) but my body fat percentage is still lower than his. What about sport specific training and an athletes cardiovascular fitness/VO2 levels as well? If both athletes have identical body types, one might still have a genetic predisposition to perform better. 


All I know, is that we are ultimately our own best coach. Don't get me wrong, I believe in coaching, for sure! But, I recommend that the individual athlete make an inventory of their performance based on the physiological differences that they encounter as a result of their strength training, and/or sport specific training. This is information that should be vital to your coach in helping them to determine your dietary needs, and strength training routine. 

 

Here are wifey and me this summer in Maine. This picture was taken about two weeks following the Musselman Half Ironman. I weighed in at 177 pounds race morning—the thinnest I've been since my freshmen year of college. The weeks immediately following the half, I was running the fastest I ever have, setting new PR's consistently. The only downside—if you can call it one—is that I had to eat constantly in order to maintain my weight, or I would have shriveled down. There were times on my rides when I felt that I did not have enough solid food in me to fuel the long rides. Ah, it is great fun learning how to balance it all. I am hoping for a more successful race season in 2010 based on the knowledge of strength and condition I gained this past season.