Ok...So training has been going actually quite well since the Leadman in AZ.  That race was a bit of a beat down...but great early season training.

And that's all I have to Say!!

The music city marathon was an epic race.  The skies shit all over the runners for 4.5 hours of the race. It was surreal that as I was .5 miles out from the finish line that the rain stopped.  All of the animals backed up and stood on the arc, waiting to exit.

I left the house at 4:30AM on race day.   I ran to the start line from Brentwood and did about 14 miles in about 2 hours.  Lightning caused me to hole up at a local church in Brentwood.  Total time for 40+ miles was 6 hours and about 35 minutes.  All in, it was a pretty sporty time.  I had a couple of great pacers.  GG had me running an 8:30/mile through mile 5 when I had to give him the nod to go on without me.  On an ultra run its a big no no to run the hills, which i did through mile 20, knowing that I had another 20 miles to go...at that point I realized that I had my hand on the stove and the only remedy was to back off and slow the pace down.  Unfortunately, the temps were in the 50's with 10MPH winds...not too cool..actually too cool.

I struggled from mile 30 to 35 until I met this nice lady from NC..she and I had a nice chat, exchanges jokes and scripture...a rather odd combination..but it worked...I was obviously telling the jokes.

Since the race I've been running trails and doing some serious strength training getting prepared for the summer DR...gotta say..I'm a pretty motivated cat.

Game on....PT

The Training is Coming Along Slowly

Well, another week and not enough training.......It was Spring Break this past week and the family came out to LA for 5 days.  Needless to say it was a little challenging getting in work outs were a challenge.  I did manage to get in about 25 miles of running...1/2 on trails and 1/2 on roads.  I'm not breaking any land speed records but making progress on my road to recovery.  The hamstring is coming along, but still tight.

On the Thursday trail run out in Monrovia a colleague of mine and I hit the trails at around 6AM.  At the turnaround on the canyon trails we ran across a mountain lion about 25-30 yards from us on a ridge above us.  It was a full moon and needless to say I will not be doing that run EVER by myself and most likely NEVER again at dawn or dusk.  Of the more than 100 runs in Denver I had never seen a mountain lion on the trails, although there were many sightings.  Seeing a big cat's huge yellow eyes in your headlamp is actually pretty scary shit.  We backed out of sight slowly then booked it out of there.

Friday night I managed to get in a 3 mile fast pace run on the treadmill followed by core and light weight training.  I'm trying to build a solid base going into the Leadman and then for the Summer DR.  The Leadman is going to be a serious beat down session for me.  I've only actually been on the bike 4 times since IM AZ....not good.

Today I hit Percy Warner Park with Michael Moore, a Summer Death Racer.  The trails were sloppy after an all night rain, so we got in 3 miles on the trails and 5 miles on the road.  Prior to the Syracuse game I got in a nice 20 mile ride on the bike.  I'm averaging 19-20 mph on my last two trips out, which is kind of my average for this track that I ride, but it is taking a lot of effort and certainly not sustainable for 70 miles.

Tired tonight and getting up early tomorrow morning to make a pot roast and going to get in 500 burpees before going to East Sunday church with the family.

Signing off....Cheers!

PT

Training Week #1

Last week began my official training for 2013.  I was able to get in 5 meaningful runs all at 5-6 miles in length.  Did a combination of lower paced runs along with some tempo and speed work outs.  The hamstring is still pretty tight.  I also made it back into the pool.  Core and strength workouts were included in all but one session.  It feels good to get back into a routine, but the going is rather slow.

With only about 4 weeks till the Leadman in AZ, it's going to be an interesting day.  The swim won't be an issue, but the bike is going to be a grind.  I haven't been on the bike since IM AZ in November.  I hope to get back on it this up coming weekend.  In the interim I hope to get in a few spin classes.  I'm thinking that the Leadman has a 70M bike which should usually take about 3.5 hours, but in my shitty condition it'll probably take me 4 hours of grinding.

I'm anxious to get back into race shape....just gotta stick to the plans.

Back out to LA this week.  I'm going to try and get in a couple of trail runs up near Big Bear.  Some altitude and hill training will certain get me up the learning curve quickly.  Both work and home have been moving at a crazy crazy pace as of late...and trying to just keep the balance.

Signing off from 30,000 feet...Cheers!

Back at it.....

It's official.  IM training has officially begun.  Three miles on the treadmill, core work out, strength training with calfs and triceps, finishing with a 2,200 meter swim.  Getting up early tomorrow to hit the gym and start to log the miles in.  My hamstring injury has really hamstrung me for the last 5 weeks.  There is still a knot in my right hamstring that needs to get worked regularly.

My weight is about 184lbs or 4-5lbs over my average, primarily due to my work out routine and office demands that have been pretty intense as of late.  The next race on the docket is the Leadman in Tempe, AZ.  It's a 1.5M swim, 70 mile bike and a 7 mile run.  It's a distance that you can actually race pretty hard for the entire time.  The format of the course benefits a strong swimmer as much time can be gained in the water.  I'm going to take this race easy and use it as a base training building day.  The first real hard race of the season will be the Summer Death Race that I'm still contemplating.  It's a real "beat down" of a race so still on the fence.

I didn't appreciate the conditioning that I had till I've had to take it easy for the last 5 weeks.  Gotta build it back....one early morning and long weekend at a time.  There is no substitute for training....Cheers...PT

Everyday I'm Shufflin.....

I managed to get in a few runs this past week, but nothing of any significance.  My right hamstring is really giving me issues.  It's a tear on the bottom outer right side of the hamstring.  It's "balls" up sometimes when I'm working out, like a cramp.  Gotta take it slow still, although I'm not wired that way.  TheYukon Arctic Ultra finished up yesterday.  Quite a few competitors finished the 430 mike trek, but just 2 finished the 300 mile race.

4 miles in 39 minutes....a slow pace but got in more miles
today than 99.9% of the obese people in America today...
and that's with a bad hamstring.........felt good!   

With about 60 days to go till the Leadman in Tempe I've definitely got my work cut out for me.  I'm thinking that I'll make that a recovery, training triathlon.  Need to take it slow and easy as I have a several large races this year.  I'm trying to fit in a 100 mile trail run in the UK in May but not sure at this juncture.  I'm working out in LA for the foreseeable future and close to the San Bernadino mt range so the plan is to begin hitting those trails.

It's going to be a tough time getting back into race shape with this injury.  Everyday I'm looking for baby steps and baby gains.  I'll get there, just need to simply persevere.

Thinking about the Summer Death Race.....hmmm...funny how time erases the pain.

Cheers..PT

One mile at a time....

It's been almost 4 weeks since I injured my left hamstring. Other than a few swims and some rehab exercises I've been pretty limited in my work out routine. To add, I've been working consistent 15 hour days for the past 3 weeks on a new gig in LA.

This morning I got in my first run, a whopping 2 miles on the treadmill. Stretching and getting more flexible is at the top of my agenda in addition to slowly building back my miles at slow speeds over the next 4 weeks. With a little over 2 months till the first race of the year I'm going to have my work cut out for me. Focus and a disciplined plan will carry the day.

It's good to be back running.....

Cheers!

YAU Good Luck 2013 Racers

At 10:30AM PST the Yukon Arctic Ultra race begins from Whitehorse, Yukon Canada.  There are about 75 competitors that will be racing across various distances, 26.2, 100, 320 and 430 miles.  While I trained very hard for this race, invested about $3,500 in new gear, bought plane tickets, etc. I will be on the sidelines with a bum hamstring.  Three weeks ago yesterday I tore my lower right outside hamstring playing in a game of basketball after a long run at the gym.  A very stupid move.  As a result I've been slowly rehabbing the hamstring, making it only occasionally to the gym for strength training, core, swimming and stretching.

The Winter Death Race in Pittsfield, VT is also going on this weekend.  About 60 racers, or so, all started on Friday and as of 5AM CST today there are still 7 competitors left in the race. That race is a total "beat down" session.  I've been getting updates via Facebook and watching them suffer in the cold water, doing those damn burpees, puzzles, hauling shit, chopping wood and running the mountain over and over and over again.   Before the start of the race, time had washed away the post race sentiments that I had after completing the race last year.  Needless to say, they weren't good, however time has a funny way of replacing those memories with nostalgic feelings of accomplishment and satisfaction.  It's the latter feelings that are a emotional trojan horse that lures you back into wanting to do the race again.  As I sit here in the early morning hours, drinking my coffee, in front of a nice fire I can honestly say...I am so happy that I didn't do that race.  It has tired me out just watching the updates over the last 2 days.  The competitors that attempt that race and actually finish are tough tough tough cats.  They were just told that they had to complete a "final" 3 laps up and around the mountain in under a certain amount of time.  What the athletes have going in their favor right now is the clock.  The sun has just risen and the energy that it provides is hard to explain.  For the remaining competitors this is a plus.  There is something about light that provides hope....and the opposite for darkness.  With any luck Andy Weinberg will tire as well and end the race.  These 7 people are tough and deserve the elusive skull.   My WDR skull sits in my office as a reminder that perseverance is the so simple difference between success and failure.

For the next 12 days I'll be watching the YAU competitors slowly make their way across the icy cold tundra of the Yukon territory.  Each one has a "SPOT" device that tracks them and their progress.  I am supremely bummed out that I am not up there competing in the race.  I've got some work to do with my hamstring and sciatic nerve on my right leg/hip.  The Preamble to the YAU is the 1,000 mile Yukon Ultra Sled Dog Race that started yesterday from Whitehorse.  Now I must say that I really have no desire to race with sled dogs across the Arctic.   I'm wishing all of the competitors the very best!!

In 65 days I am racing against Timmy at the Leadman in Phoenix, AZ on April 14,15 2013.  It will be hard to get my hamstring totally rehabbed by then, but I need to push to get back to racing condition.   It is going to require a lot of work and I'm thinking that I take it slow and use my first couple of races to build a solid base as I approach IM Lake Placid and maybe the Summer Death Race...maybe.

Lot's of training ahead.....Cheers!