Well its been a busy month!

To get you caught up, I passed on the London Marathon.  I managed a 37k run just before the taper weeks were to start and it went according to plan - I think the first long run in a long time that I kept it at a nice slow pace.  Just over 4 hours of running.   The recovery time was quite long.  It took about 2 weeks to feel fresh again on the run.  It was that that clinched it for me.  I know I can do the distance, but adding on more mileage and obviously running it faster would hurt and would likely still not be recovered from it.  So I took the benefits of marathon training without the long recovery (everyone says the first is the toughest) required after it.  I think I will ramp up the run training after the muskoka 70.3 and see if I can run the Ottawa Fall Colours Marathon in mid October.

Might as well continue with the running events.  I started the track workouts on tuesdays and I can tell the difference the extra miles have made.  Yesterday we did a 5k track run and I got a personal best of 23:03 which is 42 seconds faster than my lakefield run last year.  It bodes really well as I could have maintained that pace for 8 or perhaps 10k when you factor in race adrenaline and a taper before the race.  The next race is the beat beethoven 8k race in 2 weeks which should see me getting in a 4:30 per km pace.  Dave thinks I should go for a 4:10 if I can.  I guess we will see how much the race adrenaline gives me over my track pace (4:38ish).

I am still trying to keep my long runs around 22-23k so that when the half ironman comes around that the distance will not be a problem at all.  I think the first half ironman this year is in just over a month - wow its coming up fast.

Cycling is also quite a bit stronger than it has ever been.  All the time on the trainer this winter has paid off.  We went for a 140ish km ride a few weeks ago.  With the people that went on the ride, I would normally be just going all out to stay with the group.  However there were quite a few times where I was far from the struggling guy at the end of the line.  I finished the ride with zip left in the legs and a ton of personal satisfaction.  Perhaps the bike had a bit to do with it, but the 45-60 mins per day 4 or so days a week made a big difference over the winter.  I am still getting in the same miles even now.  Just last week I went on a group ride and for the first time ever it truly felt like a relaxed pace (which is what it was intended to be).

I havent tried any time trials on the bike yet this year and I am anxious to do so.   There is a little 20k return route here that is 10k downhill and then 10k back uphill.  A tempo pace ride is taking me just under 40 minutes which bodes well that my time trial pace is well above the 32k an hour that has been the best I have mustered since I started.

Finally swimming.  Once again I am well beyond any fitness level I have had before.  I have been watching a ton of instructional videos and really looking for what sets the great swimmers apart and where I differ from them in the biggest respects.  Seeing Jeremy in the pool reinforced it about a month ago when I saw him swim a length in 14 strokes where I was doing it in 21-23.  I have been really working on getting my efficiency up and more distance per stroke.  I think I was 'windmilling' it before and now make a concious effort to get in a glide portion.  

About 2 weeks ago we started in the open water (yes it has been chilly) and am quite ready for the open water swim race this weekend.  I am tempted to see what I can do for 4kms, but 2k is my longest race distance this year, so I am going to see what I can do it in.  I hope to get in under 36 minutes which could put me in the top 10 percent in most of the races.    

The extra weight I have put on over the past year and a half is coming off nicely, which only means my times will keep coming down as I will have less weight to lug around!

Now that we are getting close to race season, here are my goals in each discipline:

This year I plan to see a 4:30 per km run pace off the bike. 

This year I plan to see a 34km/hr split time on a 40k bike leg.

This year I plan to see a 1:40 per 100m swim split.

Seeing 155 on the scale as I step to the line in the Muskoka 70.3

If I put all those together in one race, I would be more than happy with my progress. Plus getting revenge on the half ironman course and post a sub 5:45 hour race and follow up with a better time in Muskoka.

Till next time...

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