Another Training Update

I was planning on doing these updates monthly as we progressed towards race day, but I think that might be a bit too long between updates if anyone is actually following my progress via this method.

Training is progressing very well.  I'm at the point that I'm beginning to see real improvements in all three disciplines.  The improvements in the pool aren't so much in my time, but in my stroke.  My training plan incorporates a lot of drill work (sets where you work on your form), and I can tell doing those sets has really helped my form.  I'm a particular fan of the Zipper drill.  In that drill, as you bring your arm back towards your head to make a stroke, you trail your thumb along the side of your body, as if you were unzipping something.  I've noticed that when my form starts to get sloppy, I can do this drill for just a few strokes and it helps calm me down and get my form back to where it needs to be.  If I get in the lake at the race and feel my form is not where I want it, you can bet I'll be using this drill during the race to help me out.

Beyond my form coming along, I've been working on figuring out what kind of pace to take in the swim.  I'm convinced that in every single other triathlon I've done, I've started out too fast in the swim.  In the few races I've worn a wetsuit, the wetsuit has only made this worse, as the compression on my chest makes me gasp for breath even more than normal.  I think I've settled on trying to hold a 2:00 per 100 yard pace at the race. That would put me finishing the swim in roughly 45 minutes.  I know from the pool it's a pace I can hold, and I've been doing a lot of work in the pool during my cool down sets to make sure I know what that pace feels like so I can hold it on race day without having to stop and look at my watch.

My biking is coming along nicely as well.  Due to some uncharacteristically warm weather this weekend, we were able to get the bikes off the trainer and outdoors yesterday.  We did laps at Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport.  The scenery down there gets boring real quick, but it's safer than normal public roads and the 3.7 mile loop makes it impossible to get lost, and if something happens to either my wife or myself, we're guaranteed to come upon each other within fifteen minutes or so.  My cadence was down from the trainer rides (73 RPM yesterday, 88 RPM on my last trainer ride), but that's expected when you transition from the trainer to the road, so I wasn't worried.  I average a speed of 17.7 mph and got in 22.13 miles in 1 hour and fifteen minutes.  Overall it was a very good ride on a flat course.  Soon, I'm going to have to get out on the actual roads and start tackling some hills to prepare for Wisconsin.

Today's run was stellar.  I did this run by myself because my wife had to go into work.  It was warm enough outside that I could finally run in just shorts and a tee-shirt.  I managed 5 miles in 57:40, with an overall pace of 11:32 minutes/mile.  This is by far the fastest I have ever gone for this long of a run, and I'm very proud of it considering the course I picked.  I left my house and went to 108th street, and then just went straight down 108th.  There are some pretty massive hills on 108th (not necessarily steep, buy very long hills), and I managed to run all of them.  I didn't stop to walk once today, and I can't tell you how big of a boost that gave me when I was done.  It's been a very long time since I've gone that far without stopping to walk, and I've never done it on a course that is as hilly as the one I ran today.

This weekend was the first time that I really began to see true gains from my training.  I could have gone harder on the bike yesterday, but that wasn't the point; it was my first outdoor ride and I was just trying to shake off the rust and see what I could do with a normal effort.  Today's run was a bit more than a normal effort, but I was happy I put in the work I did and managed the pace I did.

The runs I've been doing on Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings with the Endurance House people are obviously helping.  (This week was a bit of an anomaly as I had plans with family on Saturday morning and couldn't make it to the EH run; hence why I flipped the bike and run workouts this weekend).  Scott has been giving me tips and has been pushing me while I run, and all of that helped out today.  If you're in the KC area and are looking for a run group, check them out on Tuesday nights.  It's a good group.

Despite the gains I've made so far, I don't think I'm ready for the half-Ironman yet.  I think I could get through the swim and the first half of the bike just fine, but the last 25-30 miles on the bike and the entire run would be very rough right now.  Thankfully, I've got plenty of time to continue preparing.  Despite the fact that I know I'm not ready yet, the gains I'm seeing have got me more excited than nervous about the race.  I think when race day comes I'll be ready.

Half Ironman Training Update

Now that I've finished a full four weeks of training for the Wisconsin 70.3, I figured I'd give a quick update on how things are going.

I've really enjoyed the training plan, but recently I can tell it has been taking a toll on me.  Today was a rest day, and I needed it; this weekends workouts left me exhausted.  The training has progressively gotten more intense the further into the plan I get (Captain Obvious statement, I know), and while I can tell my body is adapting to it, I can also tell that it's not something I'm entirely used to yet.

I'm pretty proud of what I've done so far.  In the first four weeks of training, I've only missed/skipped a total of three workouts, all swims.  I had to skip the first two swims during the first week because I was unable to swim - I started the training plan knowing I would not be able to do these workouts.  Since swimming is my strength, I figured starting my swimming training one week behind my bike and run training was no big deal.  The third skipped workout was this past Friday - the pool was closed due to a high school swim meet, and I wasn't aware they'd be closed until I arrived at the pool and found out.  I wasn't happy about it, but there was nothing to be done, so I just took it as another rest day and moved on.

The group runs with Endurance House have been a big boon, and I'm very much looking forward to group rides once the weather improves and we can get the bikes outside.  The owners of the store have really helped me out in multiple ways.  If you're in the Greater K.C. area, check them out.  It's worth your time and the drive to the Northland if you live down south.

Overall, training is going well.  I'm keeping up with the volume, and I can tell I'm getting better.  I've lost a few pounds since I started, and the weight sets are helping me to gain muscle, so I think I've lost more than two pounds of fat, it just doesn't show on the scale.  As mentioned, I'm enjoying the process so far, even when I have days like today when I'm sore and exhausted.

I'm beginning to look forward to race day with excitement instead of panic.  I think the panic/apprehension will still be there until I actually complete a race of this distance, but it's slowly starting to fade to the back, which is a good thing.

Kuota K-Factor Triathlon Bike

In January of 2016, I ended up upgrading my bike from a Nishiki Maricopa road bike to a used 2008 Kuota K-Factor triathlon bike.  I spent all last year getting accustomed to the different geometry of a tri bike and absolutely fell in love with it.

Tri bikes vary greatly from road bikes.  The overall geometry is different - you are more aggressively positioned on a tri bike than a road bike.  The intent of a tri bike is to make the aero position more aero and, hopefully, more comfortable than on a road bike.  The more aggressive geometry leads to faster times on the bike.

The bike took a bit of getting used to.  It stands higher than my road bike, and the different geometry threw me for a loop at first.  I was very wobbly getting into and out of the aero position for the first few rides, something that wasn't the case on the road bike.  Since the frame is made of carbon fiber, it was also much lighter than my road bike, which also took some getting used to as the bike felt more responsive than my road bike.  That's not a bad thing, but it did take me a few rides to get used to it.

I credit a couple of friends - Scott and Anne - with really helping get me used to the bike.  They contacted me one day and wanted to go for an eighteen mile ride.  I'd never been anywhere near that distance on the tri bike to this point, but I also didn't want to turn down the opportunity for a group ride.  

I met up with them and we road on public roads, which was also fairly new to me.  I'm used to riding at the downtown airport, which is technically still on public roads, but the vehicular traffic is minimal and is typically comprised of either airport security staff or other cyclists, both of which have a good respect for cyclists and give you plenty of room.  There are also no real intersections there to deal with as the road is one 3.7 mile loop - all you have to do is turn in our out of the parking lot, and that's really the only intersection you have to deal with.

The ride with Scott and Anne was on regular roads that had stop-lighted and stop-signed intersections and normal traffic.  This is not something I would have tried to ride by myself, but since I was with them I had to swallow my nervousness and just get it done.  While riding, they offered me many pointers and tips, and by the time we were done I felt 100% more comfortable on the bike.  The wobbliness with the aero position was gone, and I felt like I could handle regular public roads in the future. 

I've fallen in love with the Kuota K-Factor.  I've added my aero bottle to the aero bars, and have upgraded my pedals to the Speedplay Zero pedals.  I have new tires on the bike (the new tires aren't in the pictures), but that's the only upgrade I've done so far.  The different geometry - which was alien at first - is now second nature.

If you're a triathlete that is on the fence about upgrading to a tri bike, I can't recommend it highly enough if it's something you can afford to do.  This bike is much easier and much more enjoyable to ride than my road bike is.

Half-Ironman Training

Last week, training for Ironman Wisconsin 70.3 officially kicked off.  With this race, I'm trying something new and have gone with a training plan from Training Peaks.  A week in, I've been very pleased with the plan and with the Training Peaks platform in general.  It imports all my workout data from Garmin Connect, and the premium edition shows me more graphs than Garmin does, which I like.

I've also started group training with Endurance House Kansas City, a multi-sport store that is set to open in the Northland at the end of January.  I'm friends with the two owners, and did group open water swims with them last summer.  Right now we've been running on Tuesdays, but once the store opens the plan is to incorporate track workouts and spin nights at the store as well.

Another cool option from Endurance House is the fact that they have official teams.  Joining with them (for a cost) gets you some pretty sweet bonuses, including a tri kit, store discount and priority scheduling for bike services.  It is something I'll be taking advantage of to get in shape for this race.

Overall I'm really looking forward to the race.  This is a first-year race; WTC bought out the old Wisconsin Milkman Triathlon.  From what I understand, it will be the same, or a very similar, course.  WTC is known to put on well supported events, so there's that to look forward to.

The swim is the only portion that I'm worried about, and solely because it is projected to be wet-suit legal.  I need to get some practice swimming in a wet-suit, because if not experience has taught me the swim will not go well, regardless of my level of fitness.  Hopefully I'll be able to get a few open water wet-suit swims in before the race.

It feels good to have something big to train for again.  My level of fitness is such that I can out and do a sprint triathlon on any given weekend.  I'm not saying I would do particularly well in that event, or that it wouldn't end up as a sufferfest once I got to the run, but I could finish it.  That is not the case with the half-ironman, so having this race on my calendar really crystallizes my training for me, and that has made all the difference in the world.

Garmin Half Marathon

On Saturday, we ran our second half marathon in one week: the Garmin half marathon. This one took place near the Garmin headquarters in Olathe, Kansas.

This race started at 6:45, forty-five minutes earlier than Rock the Parkway, meaning we were up at 4:00 to get out there on time. The weather, however, was much better as it was considerably warmer pre-race. Not uncomfortably warm - around 55 degrees instead of 30 degrees. I've heard from a friend that she preferred the temperatures at Rock the Parkway, but I much preferred the warmer temps at this race.

This race was much rougher than Rock the Parkway. I don't think I was 100 percent recovered from Rock the Parkway, which lead to me getting sore earlier. I know some people have no issue doing these kinds of races back-to-back, but my training hasn't been what it should be and I'm not in as good of shape as I should be to be doing this series.

I finished in 3:16:30, eight minutes slower than Rock the Parkway. As stated, I wasn't quite ready for this race, and the course was very hilly, much more so than Rock the Parkway. 

I did well the first nine miles or so. Somewhere in the middle of the ninth mile, my right foot really began aching again, just like last week. This week the pain was far worse. I struggled through eleven and a half miles, but then had to throw in the towel and walk the last mile and a half. By the time we reached the finish, I was very glad to be done.

Overall, though, I actually enjoyed this race more than Rock the Parkway. It was much more scenic and there seemed to be more spectators than at Rock the Parkway. I simply found it to be a more enjoyable race. This race I would do again, whereas I could take or leave Rock the Parkway.

With this race down, we've got one more left to complete the Heartland 39.3 Challenge. The last race is on May 14th, so I've got time to rest up and get a little more training under my belt before then.

Garmin 920XT Review

For our Christmas gifts last year, my wife and I got each other a Garmin 920XT GPS watch, and after a few months with it I feel I've got a good enough feel for it to review it. Before buying this watch, I used the previous generation, the 910XT, so I'll compare the two watches here.

The 920XT comes in two color combinations - black and blue and white and red. Garmin also offers a tri bundle, which has a black and silver watch and some extra heart rate bands. My wife got the blue and black version, and I got the tri bundle.

The watch itself is a good triathlon watch. It lets you select from six different workout types: Indoor Run, Run, Indoor bike, Bike, Pool Swim and Open Water Swim. It also has a Triathlon mode.

Each mode is fully customizable in terms of which statistics are shown on which screen. Each screen can show up to four different data fields. If you want to show only your overall distance on your run, so be it. If you want to see the distance for your current lap, your current pace, your current heart rate and your time in each heart rate zone, that's doable as well.

Running
The running modes are pretty straightforward. Select the mode, wait for GPS to connect (if you're doing an outdoor run), then go. As stated, you can customize the screens to show whatever stats float your boat. I tend to go with overall distance, current pace and overall time.

The main difference between the Run and Indoor Run modes is the GPS connectivity. The Indoor Run mode does not connect to GPS and uses wrist based detection (abbreviated WDR; don't ask me why) to determine your pace and distance. WDR is, obviously, less accurate than GPS. How much less accurate I can't say, but I've used it on the treadmill and did notice it was quite a bit off from the treadmill mileage estimate - about a tenth of a mile over one mile.

Biking
The biking mode allows you to track bike-specific metrics. You'll see speed instead of pace, and it'll be displayed in either MPH or KPH (MPH is the default here in the States, but is easily changed via the settings menu; while I have no proof of this, I'd imagine KPH is the default everywhere else in the world). You can also connect to and get statistics from ANT+ power meters and speed/cadence and other ANT+ sensors.

I do not own a power meter and thus cannot comment on how the watch works with these types of meters. I do have the speed and cadence sensor, and I can say it works well. The speed sensor mainly comes into play during the Indoor Bike mode, while you are not moving (GPS is used to determine your speed when you are biking outdoors). It estimates your speed and does a decent job of it. The cadence portion of the sensor tells you how many times you pedal per minute, and is equally useful both indoors and out.

Swimming
I have not yet had a chance to use the Open Water Swim mode as it's been far too cold here for any kind of open water swimming. The Pool Swim mode, however, I have quite a bit of experience with, and I like it very much.

The Indoor Swimming mode is, in my opinion, a huge improvement over the same mode on the 910XT. The mode on the 920XT seems to just be more intuitive than in the previous generation, and a new rest screen helps you to better time intervals. Overall, this mode is a huge improvement from the 910XT.

For the first time, Garmin has included heart rate monitor support in the swim mode. See the Triathlon Bundle section for more info on this.

Triathlon
As mentioned, this mode is designed to be used during races. It allows you to switch between modes with one press of the Lap button. You have the option of including transitions or not. Since this mode is to be used during triathlons, you cannot change the order of activities in this mode. It goes Swim/Bike/Run, with transitions between the Swim and Bike and Bike and Run if you choose to include them.

I haven't had the chance to use this mode on the 920XT yet as my first triathlon this year isn't scheduled until August, but if it's anything like the Triathlon mode on the 910XT, it will be good to use during races.

Triathlon Bundle
The triathlon bundle offered by Garmin is actually a pretty good deal. It nets you a quick release kit (see the Quick Release Kit section) and two different heart rate straps - the HRM Swim and HRM Tri. The two straps are designed for two different things. The HRM Swim is designed to mainly be used in the pool, whereas the HRM Tri is designed to be used during open water swims, cycling and running.

Don't expect any real-time heart rate statistics, however. All of Garmin's heart rate straps are ANT+, and ANT+ sensors cannot transmit through water. These heart rate straps save your heart rate data, then transmit that data to your watch when you exit the water and save your workout.

The HRM Swim is much wider than the HRM Tri, and will not capture running dynamics, whereas the HRM Tri will capture that data. The HRM Swim also has a sticky-like material on the band that helps it hold to your body when you push off the wall.

The HRM Swim works very well in the pool. It stays in place on my chest well when I push off from the wall, both during open and flip turns. The HRM Tri doesn't work as well. Lacking the sticky stuff on the band the HRM Swim has, it has a tendency to slip off the chest when you push off the wall.

Overall, I'd advise you to use the HRM Swim only in the pool and only during open water swims when you're not planning on running or biking afterwards. You certainly can wear it when you bike or run, but, as previously stated, the HRM Swim will not capture running dynamics, and, out of the water, it's not nearly as comfortable as the HRM Tri or the regular HRM Run.

I'd use the HRM Tri when I'm doing open water swims. I also use it when I'm biking and running. I do have the typical HRM Run strap, but I tend to prefer the HRM Tri for most things.

Quick Release Kit

The quick release kit is something I quickly fell absolutely in love with once I got it installed. To use it, you have to remove the bands from your watch, then attach a small plate to the back of the watch (the second piece from the left in the picture). You attach the watch bands to a different plate (the left most piece in the picture), and that piece will then attach to the plate you placed on the back of your watch. It is a simple connection - rotate the watch ninety degrees to the left or right, place it on the plate with the watch bands, then rotate it ninety degrees back and it is locked in place.

There is also another connection you can place on your bike (the upper right piece in the picture) using the provided elastic bands. You simply disconnect the watch face from the bands by rotating it as described above, then simply connect it to the connection that is mounted on your bike. I have mind connected to my aero bottle, which places it directly in front of my face.

                                    

I love the ability to be able to do this during bike rides. I did not have anything like this with the 910XT, and when I got aero bars, I found I had to position my watch with the face of the watch about ninety degrees from normal just to see the face. This placed it right on my wrist bone, which was a bit uncomfortable, but I couldn't do much about it. Now, I have it right in front of my face, which is very nice. I doubt I'll use this feature during sprint distance races, as I don't really need to see my stats on that short of a ride, but during a half ironman, when I'm going to want to control my heart rate, I will almost certainly take the time in T1 to place my watch up here.

Parting Thoughts

Overall, I've been really impressed with the 920XT. My wife also really likes it. She has the Forerunner 620, a running-specific watch, and she prefers the 920XT to the Forerunner 620 for every activity, even running. She's not a triathlete, but she does run and bike.

The GPS connects very quickly with the 920XT, much faster than on the 910XT. With the 910XT, I typically had to wait anywhere from two to five minutes to get connected to GPS, but am typically connected within thirty seconds with the 920XT. 

If you're looking for a new triathlon watch, give the 920XT a look. It's well worth the money they're asking.

Rock the Parkway Half Marathon

Yesterday, my wife and I did the Rock the Parkway half marathon here in Kansas City. The day started off very cold, about 35 degrees. We showed up early to meet up with some friends before the race, and the wait for race start made me wish I'd brought gloves. After we started running I was glad I hadn't bothered with them.

We were in wave F, near the back, which meant we started about fifteen minutes after the first runners. Once we finally got to the start line and began the race, I warmed up considerably and really enjoyed the race.

I decided I was going to stay with my wife this race, as opposed to taking off without her like I did last year at the Nashville half marathon. I really had a good time running with her. We matched paces pretty well, and while I sometimes got ahead of her while I was running, I always slowed my walk down and she caught up to me on our walk breaks. 

I was doing very well until around mile 8.5, when my energy levels started flagging. I wasn't in any pain at this point, but could tell I was gettinb very tired. I pushed it aside and kept going, but around mile 11 the pain started to set in. My right knee was aching a bit, and my right foot was sore, which is still the case today.

The knee was no big deal to me. I've dealt with knee pain my whole life, and this was nothing new. I could tell it was nothing to worry about, and sure enough, after I had a chance to sit down for a little while, the knee felt fine.

I think my foot was due to my new running shoes. I never had this problem with my old shoes, and I had the same issue in the exact same area of my foot on my first run in these shoes, which was only 3 miles. The more I've run in my new shoes, the less foot issues I've had, but this was my longest run in them to date, so I'm hoping the pain will fade and , as I get more used to the shoes, the pain will eventually never come back.

We walked alot the last two miles, as we were both sore and out of energy, but still managed some short runs. We ran across the finish line together and got out medals. Our overall finish time was 3:08:20.

This is the first time I've done this race, although I've spectated it a few times, and it's a very well-managed race. If you're looking for a good first half, this is one you should consider. It's not exactly flat, but nothing is in Kansas City, and this is one of the flatter courses in the area. The course is picturesque and I was happy it wasn't located in the downtown area, simply because Ward Parkway is easier to get to than downtown. 

My wife and I are doing the Heartland 39.3 series this year, which is a series of three half marathons over the course of six weeks. Rock the Parkway this weekend was the first, and the Garmin half next Saturday is the second, followed by Running With the Cows on May 14th. We'll see how the Garmin goes next week. Neither my wife nor I have ever done two half marathons on back-to-back weekends before.

I know this site's been dead for a long time. I got really busy with overtime at work last year and typically had to make a choice between training, spending time with my wife or updating here. It wasn't even a choice as to which got cut. After the overtime finally cooled down, I didn't want to start updates again with simple trainer workouts, so decided to wait until I could the race reflection on Rock the Parkway. I don't know if I'm going to do posts for every workout, especially since it's early in the year and my biking posts would read "I did half an hour on the trainer and it felt good," but I'm going to try to update at least weekly with how my workouts that week went. I've also got a two or three equipment reviews in the hopper that I'll write up and post over the next week or two.

                                  

                                                   The medal from Rock the Parkway