Accepting the call

A good friend died after recommitting herself and her family to live a healthy life. This is my effort to keep her message to be #HealthyEverAfter alive.

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Final results posted

The final triathlon results from Lake Logan were posted a few days ago.

My goal:

Place: just finish

Time: 2 hours (2:15 cut-off)

My result:

Place: #56 of 65 participants -- not last!

Time: ~1 hr 47 mins

Swim: 00:16:03 (#59/65) Transition #1: 00:04:51 Bike: 00:51:45 (#53/65) Transition #2: 00:01:43 Run: 00:32:35 (#53/65)

For my first triathlon, I think I did pretty damn good, especially considering that I literally went from couch-to-triathlon with only eight weeks.

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And it's done. =)

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An hour or so to go before the race starts.

Perfect weather.

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What a beautiful venue for a triathlon. Mountain lake water was clear. Winding rural roads on bike; wooded flat roads for run.

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Transition area, everyone setting up in the early morning before the race. Sun starting to rise above the mountain ridge.

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Just picked up my running shirt for the triathlon this weekend. An amazing job on the custom print by Raleigh Screen Print.

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Eight weeks of training and 20lbs down. Five days to go, and I feel great. Can't wait to line up Sunday morning with Lance Phillips and do this thing.

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Swim notes

I printed out my notes from Marty and slipped them into a plastic sleeve so that I can set them up at the end of the swim lane.

Workout structure

A few lengths easy with breaks as needed

Run through several drills as 25s/50s with breaks

Short rest then do repeats of 50s/100s to begin thinking good form and minimizing rest

Drills

1 arm drill*

catchup drill*

fist (Superman) drill*

fingertip drag

hip float

Powerstroke

doggy paddle*

* high-elbow-catch technique drills

Tips:

head down to keep hips up/body position level

extend hand in front of shoulder rather than head

pull more under the shoulder or slightly outside the line of body rather than under

Allow some knee bend when kicking

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Trained 1.25 hrs in the pool today.

2x 50m warmup

6x 50m hip float drills

5x 50m one-arm drills

5x 50m catchup drills

4x 50m fist drills

2x 50m fingertip drag drills

1x 50m kick drill

8x 100m focused on good form

I could have gone longer -- I was feeling great -- but I decided to call it a day rather than risk over-fatigue or injury.

Once again, so glad I had the lessons with Marty this week. I feel pretty confident that I'll finish the swim phase of the triathlon in good time and without tiring myself too much before the bike and run.

[tobehealthyeverafter]

Finished an early morning, one-hour coaching session with Marty Gaal at the Triangle Aquatic Center.

After a few weeks in the pool, I'm still not able to finish more than one or two laps without a rest. I was growing concerned that the swimming phase might technically kill the race, either through exhaust or pushing me past the 2.5 hr limit. Taking advice from a co-worker, I reached out to Marty for a 1-on-1 coaching session. So glad I did.

One thing was immediately clear: techniques have *dramatically* changed in the last twenty years. Basically, I need to "unlearn" most of what I was taught (and taught others). However, after only 20 mins of correction from Marty, I was swimming further, with relatively little effort. The difference was night and day.

I feel so much more confident now. If I practice what I've learned today, swimming might even turn into my strongest event.

If you're interested in learning more about Marty and his services, check out his web site, One Step Beyond.

[tobehealthyeverafter]

C25K Week 4 Day 2 #fail

The second run of the week wasn't as bad as the first, but I wasn't able to finish the 6-min continuous run cycle. I must admit, I'm getting a little concerned. All I can do is press forward.

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C25K Week 4 #fail

Today was the first day of week 4 in the couch-to-5k program. Half-way through my run, I got a side stitch. I tried to press through, but eventually had to walk the last cycle. Very disappointing. The first C25k workout which I wasn't able to complete as designed. Hoping the next one goes well.

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Just ordered a Road ID. Comes with a free 1yr emergency response profile for emergency contacts and medical information. I'm running and biking a lot solo, and it seems like a good idea *just in case*.

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I've read several posts from other triathletes that total immersion completely changed their capacity for endurance. Purchased this DVD, which seems to be *the* source, over the weekend. Interesting technique. We'll see how it goes.

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Tips from a triathlete

Had an amazing lunch w/ Dan, a coworker who's run several triathlons. Talked through transition strategy, hydration strategy (don't drink too much or you'll have to pee during the race), what to expect (you're going to freak out at some point in the water), what to eat the night before (carbs, nothing heavy), what the eat the morning of (banana, first thing), how early to arrive (2 hrs), and more. Feeling even more convinced that this thing is going to kick my ass -AND- I think I'm really going to enjoy it.

I was thinking that I would change my pedals and do both the ride and the run in my running shoes with my basket pedals; but after talking with Dan, I think I will ride with my bike shoes. Doesn't sound like the transition will be that much harder, and clipping in will definitely help the ride.

Dan confirmed a lot of the information I'd read on TriathlonNewbie.com, so kudos to that site and all its resources.

Additional items I need to pick up:

trisuit top & bottom

race belt to hold my number

elastic laces so I don't have to fumble tying my shoes

[mikeamburn]

You should make preparations so that, even if you did die tonight, you would have no regrets.

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama (via mikeamburn)

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This is now my Facebook timeline cover.