140.6 deep breaths...

tunney

mloc123 wrote: »

Picked up a Powertap Comp back in September, bought from the US so it worked out quite cheap in the end (by PM standards anyway) at about €500 I think. If I was buying again I would look at a power2max.

Target time, I will keep it vague... I would now be happy with anything under 5.30 now, HIM in Austrian heat may have been tougher than I had expected 7/8 months ago

Sorry mcos, more OT.

Suck it up buttercup mloc. Worried about heat then run in full winter gear tomorrow. Ride in full winter gear. Turbo in your bathroom with the hot tap on. HT fvcking U.

mloc123

tunney wrote: »

Turbo in your bathroom with the hot tap on

I'm not made of moeny :eek:

pgibbo

LMAO....cutting but always makes me smile!

shotgunmcos

pgibbo wrote: »

Forgot to ask the last day - did you do the long ride last weekend on the TT or road bike?

Also, you going with tri shoes or road shoes for the IM and which model of shoe?

I see you are awaiting the new wetsuit. What did you decide on in the end? Be nice if it arrives to follow up on interested's good suggestion. :cool:

Long bike was on the PX and spent 3 of the 5+ hours on the bars. Tri shoes Shimano TR51, I've never even worn a pair of cycling shoes. Opted for the Sailfish 'One'. It arrived today and I can't wait to test it out. Probably next week or on Monday if I can get to a beach.

tunney wrote: »

A 3:14 marathon and all he got was a 10:30??????? That is not something I would be proud of. A 3:14 marathon should really have you looking at a sub 9:30

Ah now, I agree that the bike was probably undercooked or a weak link needing development but we must not make assumptions like that. Maybe it was a very cautious apporach to a first IM bike and then let loose on the run. Lots of other variables that could have eroded time before the run. Also it could be a 2:45 Marathoner giving IM a go... lots of possibilities but 10:30 aint too shabby even if you do sit on a 9:30 or loftier pedestal. If all I get from my efforts is a 10:30 I won't cry about it. I'll acknowledge what went wrong and set a new mission. 3:14 is a very nice IM Marathon time in any context if you ask me

tunney wrote: »

Supressed heart rates are a classical sign of overtraining. If you can't get it up you have a problem. Actually the other major sign of overtraining also relates to getting it up.

overtraining or over reaching?

shotgunmcos

Thursday morning short swim
(500m easy, 500m OLY pace)*2
The pool was closing for Waterpolo so I had to cut the session short. The 500s at 1:36 pace were ok but not as comfortable as I'd like them to be.

Thursday afternoon easy cycle in the sun
Left the Garmin at home and just wondered around the ouskirts of Limerick at my leisure. 2 hrs of nice handy spinning taking hills really easy. 5 mins from home I stopp at lights but didn't unclip in time and fell off. Thankfully just a few scratches and a red face in from of the rush hour traffic! About 56k.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

Best of luck on Sunday. I am looking forward to my first pacing gig...just like an easy training run for me.

shotgunmcos

Here is a link to The IM we are debating about, just to give it some context. I hope the author won't mind m posting his report, I just found it quite inspiring and very well written.

Anyway, today is a Rest Day and for topping up the gycogen stores. My calves were cramping in my sleep last night so I'm in compression socks this morning. My 3rd session of the day was a couple of hours with heavy gloves and a crowbar. I feel that the house renovation over the next couple of months is going to add another significant factor to the IM journey and sleep will be crucial.

As for the Marathon on Sunday well, I feel as though I'm at sub3 fitness shape but the last Marathon was less than 3 weeks ago and I've logged 40 hours of training since. As such I just don't know how the legs will hold up. If I feel the slightest niggle I'll back off. I'm thinking I'll head off with Mick Rice and his pace group if its comfortable and suss it out from there. In one way I wish I was fresh for it but I'm happy just to be running a Marathon on my doorstep

Macanri

Enjoy the day MCOS.

ronanmac

Hope the day goes well for you, MCOS. Enjoy...

mloc123

good luck today

shotgunmcos

The Great Limerick Run: My first ever DNF!
The train wreck unfolding: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/83070463

I'll keep it short as it doesn't warrant a report. I was in good spirits at the start. Met up with my boardsie mate --amadeus-- locking up his motorbike and we strolled up to the start chatting. Lots of familiar faces about and it was looking like a warm, windy race ahead. I was in dilemma to say the least about how to approach it
2:58 pace band on
2:56 pace band underneath it
Mates going for definite 2:55 ish
Run with the lad I had organised a possible 3hr with a few weeks ago
Hook up with Mick's 3hr pace band

In the end the lad I had organised to run with went out with my 2 mates Liz (the female winner) and Niall. We ran as a group for 4 miles then a few dropped off. Liz and Niall were about 30m ahead running smoothly and strong. I decided to hell with it, give it a go! So I bridged the gap and ran with them up to 7 miles. They seemed to push on a bit and I thought they were looking for 2:50 or better so I hung back. At this stage the sub 4 minute kms were far too regular and my heart rate was in the 165-170 range rather than the 160-165 range and it was a diffeernt place to be in terms of RPE. Still though I felt good and plugged away. I ripped off the 2:58 band and tried to guage where I was at mile 11. 2 mins up on 2:56 pace! Oops! I was about to drop back some more but noticed Niall dropping back from Liz. I kept going until I caught him at mile 12 and ran with him for a mile. He was feeling rough so he urged me on despite my protests and I left him. I passed the half way mark in 1:25:40 ish which was faster than my HM PB! Yikes! A couple of IM lads on bikes were circling around checking on us every so often offering water etc and encouraging us to keep steady. I ran alone from here on in. Liz was blazing up the road ahead but I was only losing ground gradually. She had company from mile 14-16 then dropped him too. I passed him at 17 still feeling strong. We were heading back to town from Limerick Golf Club at this stage and I was still 2 mins up on the 2:56 band. Just as I approached mile 18 a stitch came on hard and my pace dropped by 30-40 secs per km. It lasted 2 miles of jogging and stopping to take deep breaths and stretch before it disappeared. However at 20 another issue surfaced. My right hip flexor. No matter how hard I pushed to get back to my pace it ached. I remember not being able to lift my knee after Connemara it was so stiff and the deep tissue rub on it had brought tears to my eyes. It was cramping up the more i tried so I was reduced to walking. I strolled from 20-21 thinking as critically as I could. Ok, I had obviously gone out too hard and blown a gasket but even a modest jog for the last 5 miles would still have brought me home around 3 hours. I weighted up the recovery cost and injury potential and made my decision. It was hard to do with the support over sarsfield bridge urging me on. Niall passed me looking for food at this stage too. He was jogging too but looked good to finish his first Marathon in 3 attempts. I was delighted for him and also for Liz but didn't give my own fate a second thought. 2 hours later I was in Doonbeg running around with 2 6 year olds as promised. I talked it through with some Tri Mates and all agreed it was the right call. On one hand I was a little ashamed to bow out but those last 5 miles may as well have been on sheer ice and I'm content with my decision to avoid that risk. The IM is my priority and I promised myself that if I had to I'd back off. The hip is sore today but it could have been much worse. I'll be back next year to settle the score with the GLR but Berlin now remains the one for sub3 as intended. All eyes on the IM now.

It was not all woe. Lots of those familiar faces made good of the warm and muggy conditions and Caz outshone her demon again with a 1:57 PB over the half marathon distance, Go her!

metamorphosis

Sorry to hear, but you made a tough call that you believed was the right one. The IM is A goal. God knows what could have happened if you had continued on for the last 5 miles, could have made that hip flexor worse.

Congrats to Caz on her half PB.

kingQuez

shotgunmcos wrote: »

All eyes on the IM now.

Sorry to hear of the dnf. Pretty epic year so far; you've bigger fish to fry so the right call to make :cool:

brownian

Sh1te thing to happen, but I'd agree that it'd be daft to jeopardise a big goal. It's not like this was your A race.

Pity though, you were going like a train...:(

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

Unlucky man but a 100% the right call, no point risking all the good work put down for a non target race. Hopefully the hip flexor sorts itself out quickly.

ronanmac

Definitely the right call. Tough one, though, I can imagine me ignoring the good advice my body was giving me for the sake of another marathon finish statistic:o

Izoard

Great report... reading through it, I was wondering how you were going to end up DNF'ing with only 5 to go, given what you had laid down already.

Good call though....you know sub 3 in Berlin is well within range, so the IM is the main event.

shotgunmcos

ronanmac wrote: »

Definitely the right call. Tough one, though, I can imagine me ignoring the good advice my body was giving me for the sake of another marathon finish statistic:o

Yes it was a very tough call but again today the pain in my right hip tells me I did the right thing. Its noting the sme rest and TLC won't resolve, although I'll hold off on the deep tissue rub for a while yet.

It was very tough as it was in my home town. I knew every inch of the last 5 miles too so could visualise it easily. Being in my home town also made it easier to bow out too as I could just head home. If it were abroad or out in the back of beyond I may have had no choice but to finish it. I ended up walking about 4 miles home anyway as no cabbie would stop for me :mad:

I reckon 12 months ago I would not have accepted a DNF under any circumstances. I'd have crawled if necessary. I'd have ignored my body's warning signals and destroyed myself for as you put it, another Marathon finish stat. We all have our little demon, the shadow of ourselves that gets in our way. My fella tells me I'm nothing if I don't achieve X or Y. I'm nothing if I have no story to tell. I fought with him during the walk from 20-21 and for once I got the better of him and the story was not of failure but a real learning. I'd have forgotten the pain and the finish time soon enough but crossing the line in Roth will be defined in part by that decision to listen to my instinct rather than my head. I'm fully prepared to hurt as much as is required to get me over the only line that matters...

RedB

You might be aware of this already but the Boru Tri Club are doing informal OW sessions at Killaloe. They were packing them in over the good weather during the last 2 weeks. A buddy told me to watch their facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/borutriclub) where they post up whenever someone is heading out.

TFBubendorfer

Tough luck on the DNF. To be perfectly honest, I thought you should not run at all, never mind at sub-3 pace, because of the impact it might have on your IM plans.

While I would never advice anyone to DNF and usually roll my eyes at the pathetic excuses people come up with, in your case with the IM coming up it was definitely the right call.

interested

DNF - Did Nothing Fatal

A shame, but after some rest, bit of physio your objectives at Roth are still firmly in play.

dermCu

Bad luck but it looks like the decision was a no-brainer to be honest. No debate there.
What do you think the root cause was? If I trained as hard and as much as you do I'd want to know why that happened.
Was it your knee or hip that hurt in Connemara? Either way if it was on the same side I think you should be asking questions. Maybe you already have a pretty good idea yourself?

shotgunmcos

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

Tough luck on the DNF. To be perfectly honest, I thought you should not run at all, never mind at sub-3 pace, because of the impact it might have on your IM plans.

While I would never advice anyone to DNF and usually roll my eyes at the pathetic excuses people come up with, in your case with the IM coming up it was definitely the right call.

Its fair point TFB and thanks. You live with your decisions and I won't look back on this one until I complete Roth and consider Berlin.

interested wrote: »

DNF - Did Nothing Fatal

A shame, but after some rest, bit of physio your objectives at Roth are still firmly in play.

They sure are!

dermCu wrote: »

Bad luck but it looks like the decision was a no-brainer to be honest. No debate there.
What do you think the root cause was? If I trained as hard and as much as you do I'd want to know why that happened.
Was it your knee or hip that hurt in Connemara? Either way if it was on the same side I think you should be asking questions. Maybe you already have a pretty good idea yourself?

It was my hip in Conn and I only noticed after the race. Basically in Conn I worked hard up the HOTW and when i realised a possible sub3 was on I pushed hard. Afterward I couldn't lifet my kneee up to my chest. It eased after a few hours and I got a rub that week which teased it out. Just basic inflammation. In Limerick I was pushing on bit to 18 when the stitch hit me. I was stopping and starting for 2 miles to shake that off and when I finally got rid of it I tried to push back to the pace I was running at for the first 18. My hips seized up and that was that. I walked for about half a mile and when my mate jogged past I thought he was going slow enough to keep him company. I tried but no chance. I've run through cramps often enough to know I can finish but at a cost.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

MCOS - Have you suffered with muscle imbalance in the past? Sounds like this could be the issue bringing on the hip pain. It might be worth getting it checked out just to be on the safe side especially if it has played up on you in Conn and Limerick.

Gringo78

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

Tough luck on the DNF. To be perfectly honest, I thought you should not run at all, never mind at sub-3 pace, because of the impact it might have on your IM plans.

While I would never advice anyone to DNF and usually roll my eyes at the pathetic excuses people come up with, in your case with the IM coming up it was definitely the right call.

I have to say I was surprised at the sub 3 attempt. I obviously wasn't paying attention but I always thought Connemara was the race and you were pacing 3:45 or 4hrs in Limerick??? At least it's identified a weakness that a Physio can now work on.

pgibbo

Sorry to hear about the injury MCOS. How is it today?

Do you not think it might be wise to get a physio to check it out given that there was an issue during Limerick and after Connemara? It would be a shame to risk aggrevating it even more in the lead up to Roth.

shotgunmcos

Branson Limited Greengrocer wrote: »

MCOS - Have you suffered with muscle imbalance in the past? Sounds like this could be the issue bringing on the hip pain. It might be worth getting it checked out just to be on the safe side especially if it has played up on you in Conn and Limerick.

Gringo78 wrote: »

I have to say I was surprised at the sub 3 attempt. I obviously wasn't paying attention but I always thought Connemara was the race and you were pacing 3:45 or 4hrs in Limerick??? At least it's identified a weakness that a Physio can now work on.

pgibbo wrote: »

Sorry to hear about the injury MCOS. How is it today?

Do you not think it might be wise to get a physio to check it out given that there was an issue during Limerick and after Connemara? It would be a shame to risk aggrevating it even more in the lead up to Roth.

I'll respond to all as they are all related (to giving me a gentle boot in the arse ). JB, no muscle inbalance. On the contrary I was told while wincing on the table that I engage my gluts more that most runners do. Yeah the hip thing is somthing new and identifiable for me to work with but its not a full blown injury thankfully. Just something to keep an eye on.

Its no surprise looking back on it. 2 Marathons 3 weeks apart with a dozen runs, 9 bike sessions and 5 swims in between. Hitting an unexpected 3hrs on the frist one then going at 2:54 pace for 18 miles of the second one (I'd originally pencilled 3:18 and 3:09 reepectively into the sweaty notebook version of this log) Ok the madness has stopped, it needed the DNS or DNF for the self awareness to sink in. I'll wrap it up and treat it carefully to be unleashed as 9:5x in 9.5 weeks time

@pgibbo, its much better today, full range of motion.

shotgunmcos

Just a couple of swims and a gentle run so far this week. On the positive the hip flexor is just a little stiff so I'll give running a couple of more days and focus on cycling for the weekend. On the negative my swimming feels like it has gone backwards. I'm currently sketching up a draft of my last 9 weeks training and its a non negotiable 3 swims a week including a weekly OW dip and 2 pool swims that can be replced only by an OW version. I just have to get the consistency back and I'm sure my winter mojo will return in the water. The Joey Hannon is on Sunday and my lane company is way over my head. Still, if I decide to do it, it will be for fun and to kick start the run in to the last phase of training before taper. If I don't get out for a long bike on Saturday then Joey will be dropped for one on Sunday. Looking forward most to testing out the new wetsuit next week

Weight check this morning was 168lbs/76.4kg. This has to come down.

pgibbo

I tried the Sailfish One in B2R during the week. Nice suit. Have you tried it yet? Where did you get your one?

shotgunmcos

Thursday evening easy bike with 15km TT thrown in
Summary
I said to myself the only way I will get back into the rhythm of training that I had a while back is to get out the door straight away after work for an evening session, ideally before Caz gets home and get my lazy ass out of bed for the swims. Opportunity for both in the last 24hours. Yesterday I got straight into training mode once I got home. Tyres checked, change and quick snack and I was out the door. I was 2km from home though before I realised I had forgotton my helmet. I was glad I had left early so I could still double back at get it without having to rush out to the Club TT. I met one of the lads on the way out and we just rolled along chatting. We injected 2 sprints into a warm up and the legs felt fine. The TT went well although 23:11 is a good bit off my best due to a cruel headwind. I was flying out at 40-50kmh with the wind behind me but the return was tough especially the last 2km which drags its way to a final steep hill for a finish. A half hour into the windon the way home wasn't ideal either but I worked with another lad to take the edge off.

Friday morning group swim
I very nearly hit the snooze button one too many times and missed it. However despite missing some of the warm up I dragged myself to the pool and had a decent swim for a change. The main set was 4*250s and 10*100s and I hung onto the lead pair with a consistent effort at about 1:35 pace. 3K put down for the session for the first time in weeks. I will not miss another planned swim between now and Roth! 9 weeks with 3 swims a week so just 27 swims to go

@pgibbo, nope haven't tried it out the SF ONE yet. I plan to next week so I'll report back then.