Tel Aviv 10 km
Last Thursday I had to undergo a dental operation that involved cutting open my gum cutting out two root canals that had somehow managed to impact into a sinus cavity and as a result I get getting infection and an abcess was growing , one and three quarters hours later I was out of the dentist with six stitches in my gum. So for the last week I have been unable to train and perhaps this was one of the hardest things was the fact that I could not train in any way for seven days, and I was planning to run the Tel Aviv Half Marathon this morning.
I decided that the best thing was to run the 10 km instead of the Half Marathon and that I would run with the 60 minute pacer so that I would not tax my body and treat today as a ease back into training rather than risk my recovery.
It is a interesting and different to run at a defined pace that is slower than you are capable of, I really started to enjoy the discipline of keeping myself in check and running at pace and the mental battle not to go faster, rather than race.
It has been a very frustrating week and I was feeling bad, when I left my friends who were all running the half I trudged to the start of the 10k, but learning to deal with these feelings is helping me change into what I hope is a better runner and athlete.
My time for the 10k 59:06 , a good well planned and paced race, so I took some comfort from the fact that i stuck to my plan and have not had in face or teeth pain post race
Friday, November 23, 2007
Thursday, November 08, 2007
The Non Competitor
Have enjoyed training this week , racked up some good miles and yesterday was a fast solid track session , luckily for anyone who for some reason reads my inane ramblings, the blogger system for some sane reason refused to allow my Heart rate graph to be uploaded, so there you have been spared. The funny thing was running the track yesterday I reflected with another runner between gasps that when you run 800 splits they seem a long hard distance, yet when you run 3000 , 2000 then start 1000m repeats the distance beckons easy ... go figure but managed to keep pace at sub 4:40 for all km splits and last split was 4:30 , Couple of weeks to the Tel Aviv Half marathon, should be fun
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Friday, November 02, 2007
Focusing on Changes
Running is an individual sport, you can run with friends or a group but they cannot be your arms legs or lungs. But they can and always be part of me.
I have struggled with many aspects of running and perhaps finally I have found that being competitive had made me the wrong runner. Time happens once and you cannot not turn it back but only look forward to the clock going forward.
Dwelling on times and competition does not make me a better runner/triathlete.
It is time know to start enjoying again each footstep, enjoy training and from time to time join friends for a race, run how I feel and at the end reflect on the day with a smile and knowing that I tried my best and nothing is more rewarding than sharing that with friends
I have struggled with many aspects of running and perhaps finally I have found that being competitive had made me the wrong runner. Time happens once and you cannot not turn it back but only look forward to the clock going forward.
Dwelling on times and competition does not make me a better runner/triathlete.
It is time know to start enjoying again each footstep, enjoy training and from time to time join friends for a race, run how I feel and at the end reflect on the day with a smile and knowing that I tried my best and nothing is more rewarding than sharing that with friends
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Corniche Abu Dhabi
One great thing about travlling for work is the places you do get to train in. Currently in Abu Dhabi in the UAE [United Arab Emirates]. a city like so many here in the Gulf that is growing beyond anyones wildest imagination. Where hotels try to figure out whether they a seven or six stars, and this is no joke. The Emirates Palace here in Abu Dhabi, is in fact a palace used by the Royal family, it is so large that it takes twenty minutes by golf buggy from one side to the other side, and it is so vast that taking your breath away is almost an oxymoron.
Anyway i am not staying there a more modest four star in town just near the corniche or espalnde, where I ran this morning in the heat, full credit to the woman I saw running this morning fully covered up with head scarf and only here trainers showing as i ran past sweating wearing only a pair if running shorts, luckily the modesty police missed me, must be my speed LOL
Mal
Abu Dhabi
Anyway i am not staying there a more modest four star in town just near the corniche or espalnde, where I ran this morning in the heat, full credit to the woman I saw running this morning fully covered up with head scarf and only here trainers showing as i ran past sweating wearing only a pair if running shorts, luckily the modesty police missed me, must be my speed LOL
Mal
Abu Dhabi
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Munich Marathon 2007
There is one feeling every athlete should experience in his or her lifetime. Finishing a marathon by running into an Olympic Stadium. The sensation of entering the tunnel of the Munich Olympic stadium where the darkness opens up with each step to revel where legends have run.
The lap around the track to finish line should be longer just so that you can enjoy the moment, for just a few minutes more.
The morning of the marathon was cold with the temperature in the single digits and the Olympic Village clouded with mist. Instead of one plastic bag to keep warm I opted for two as Chaim and I walked down to the start.
I always laugh when I think that I spend more time wondering and procrastinating about what to wear on marathon compared to how much time I spend getting ready to go out. What to wear shorts or running tights, singlet or long sleeve shirt? I opted for tights and singlet, wanting to keep my legs warm in the cool seemed the best option. Chaim decided on shorts and forgot the golden rule of “shorts and marathoning”. If you have never chafed once in training then the Chafing God will rear its ugly head, which it did.
One good thing I did find at the expo during number pick up was band aids specifically designed for the male nipple. There is nothing worse than finishing a race thinking you are looking trim taunt and athletic, to only look down and see two blood trails down the front of your singlet, as if a wide mouthed vampire has bitten your chest.
We decided to opt for the Galloway walk run method for the race. As I had not gone further than 28km’s in training and wanted to make sure that I did not injure myself in preparation for Ironman Austria next year.
Much has been written and discussed as to the walk run method; we opted for 9 minutes running followed by 1-minute walk. I ha done this in Tiberius earlier in the year and was amazed at my recovery post that race. It does work provided you do it from the start the theory being that you change the muscle groups and this allows you to run faster longer and avoid the wall.
The course of the Marathon is one of the most scenic and flat I have run to date, the English Garden is more renowned for where the locals like to go and walk around in their birthday suites whenever the weather is pleasant, luckily the cold morning meant that we did not have to avert our focus. Thru leafy suburbs and in to the city center where architecture is measured in multiple centuries, from there you enter the University and theatre area, magnificent buildings that you pass in a slow blur, focusing more on the feet ahead of you. Finally it was onto the loop back to the stadium.
Being Munich, home of the Oktoberfest what would a marathon be without a beer station instead of a water station. Somehow they have managed to make a non-alcoholic beer taste very good and at 39 km’s it was time to stop and enjoy the moment.
We have all heard and read about lists of things to do in life, from a hundred places to visit to a hundred books you need to read. If I was to start a list of things that every runner must do. Then add you must run and finish a marathon on an Olympic stadium, and Munich gives you that thrill. A feeling that I will never ever forget crossing the line with my friend Chaim, our arms raised in victory ... in an Olympic stadium.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Swim Drafting & Rocket Science
Walking onto the beach, for the Endure Group Open Water swim, I was first shocked by how the weather has changed and that for the first time this season, the sand was cool under the feet. But more to my dismay I watched Coach Max swim towards Egypt towing the buoys to mark the swim course this morning.
I am the first to admit that my swimming is my weakest leg of training and since I have trouble getting to the pool for training due to the conflict with work hours. My training has been limited to only Open Water Swimming Sessions. So the dread of black lane fever is not a problem I suffer from, more the curse of the managing to maintain a straight course from Buoy A to B, as opposed to my normal course which I describe as pretzel course.
Max assembled us on the beach and once again, like last week we were going to delve into the realm of "Drafting". At this point I would add that Rocket Science is simpler try reading this background paper which I found on Google -
http://www.coachesinfo.com/article/329/
Now that the science has been proven, how would this affect me.
What the science does not explain is how to avoid being hit in the face by another swimmer coming at you from the other direction, how every time I lost the bubbles of the feet in front of me I felt no real difference for the first ten sets of the workout.
But if there is one thing I have learnt is, to have faith in your coach and on the final solo lap I for the first time kept up with the feet in front of me and for one minute I actually felt the effects of drafting. It made me swim a little harder than I was used too but at the same time the water ... well it felt a little easier.
Our last sets saw us swim together as a pack, ala Tri racing and yes again tucking into the washing machine, perhaps this drafting thing is not rocket science. But then again contact swimming is a swim not for the feint hearted.
If you get have given up trying to read the article about drafting here is the conclusion -
The present study indicated that the optimal drafting swimming distance was at 0 or 50 cm behind a leader reducing by 11–38% the metabolic response of the draftee. At the 100- and 150-cm distances, the gain was still important with reductions in the metabolic responses of between 8% and 31%. In lateral drafting at 100 cm beside another swimmer, the optimal distance was at 50 and 100 cm behind, when drafter’s head was approximately at hip level of the leader. The drag benefit was only a third of that when drafting directly behind the lead
swimmer. Drafting was always behind or lateral to a passively towed lead swimmer. Further investigation is required to determine
whether the benefits of drafting behind or beside a streamlined lead swimmer are likely to be a conservative estimate of the benefit from drafting behind an active stroking and kicking lead swimmer.
I am the first to admit that my swimming is my weakest leg of training and since I have trouble getting to the pool for training due to the conflict with work hours. My training has been limited to only Open Water Swimming Sessions. So the dread of black lane fever is not a problem I suffer from, more the curse of the managing to maintain a straight course from Buoy A to B, as opposed to my normal course which I describe as pretzel course.
Max assembled us on the beach and once again, like last week we were going to delve into the realm of "Drafting". At this point I would add that Rocket Science is simpler try reading this background paper which I found on Google -
http://www.coachesinfo.com/article/329/
Now that the science has been proven, how would this affect me.
What the science does not explain is how to avoid being hit in the face by another swimmer coming at you from the other direction, how every time I lost the bubbles of the feet in front of me I felt no real difference for the first ten sets of the workout.
But if there is one thing I have learnt is, to have faith in your coach and on the final solo lap I for the first time kept up with the feet in front of me and for one minute I actually felt the effects of drafting. It made me swim a little harder than I was used too but at the same time the water ... well it felt a little easier.
Our last sets saw us swim together as a pack, ala Tri racing and yes again tucking into the washing machine, perhaps this drafting thing is not rocket science. But then again contact swimming is a swim not for the feint hearted.
If you get have given up trying to read the article about drafting here is the conclusion -
The present study indicated that the optimal drafting swimming distance was at 0 or 50 cm behind a leader reducing by 11–38% the metabolic response of the draftee. At the 100- and 150-cm distances, the gain was still important with reductions in the metabolic responses of between 8% and 31%. In lateral drafting at 100 cm beside another swimmer, the optimal distance was at 50 and 100 cm behind, when drafter’s head was approximately at hip level of the leader. The drag benefit was only a third of that when drafting directly behind the lead
swimmer. Drafting was always behind or lateral to a passively towed lead swimmer. Further investigation is required to determine
whether the benefits of drafting behind or beside a streamlined lead swimmer are likely to be a conservative estimate of the benefit from drafting behind an active stroking and kicking lead swimmer.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Sdot Yam - Olympic Triathlon Race Report
Saturday 29th Sept 2007
There are many reasons to look back on Saturady and reflect on my performance, but above all it is good to reflect that you gave it all and know deep in your heart and soul. It was the best I have ever performed, well apart from the swim. Which after progressing so well has stalled and it is back to the basics to get it focused agagin and ready for Ironman Austria in 287 days.
Swim Leg
Talk about the famed washing machine, I felt like a sock trying to find its partner in a front loader. From the git go is was chaotic, punched kicked clawed on swam over no matter where I tried to go there was someone else heading there faster and stronger. Try as I might to keep the freestyle going I was in fact going so slowly that I thought for a minute that I was swimming backwards despite my arms going forwards and by the time I was two thirds of the way to the first buoy I realised that unless I went back to breaststroke I was going to lose to much ground [or water as in this case] for me to make up the time and have a competitive time.
Thus it was back to the curse of the breaststroke but also i immediately started catching others and passing the slower freestylers, so I knew that it was a matter of pushing hard. Many people consider breaststroke as a easy out, but when you put the hammer down and do it aggressively it is a powerful stroke.
Exiting the water after the first loop my heart rate was a solid 143, and my focus was to swim the next two buoys breaststroke again before switching back to freestyle for the last leg back to the beach.
Exiting the water in 30:47 (85th out of 129 in my Age Group) I knew that everything was back on track and my worst discipline was over, but at the same time the discipline that I want to improve the most. Up to transition and out as fast as possible. I am even starting to figure out how to cut and shave seconds in transition, often not the big things but small simple things, or as one might put it, "Do not set up a supermarket, when the corner store is all you need".
Bike Leg
The bottom line was that i really felt that for the first time in my short life as a Triathlete I hammered out a discipline to the best of my ability to the point that I moved from 85th to finish in 46th place in my age group. It was an out and back course no loops just the hwy closed in one direction , a fast rolling course with no major climbs , the only problem is that on this type of road you always feel that you are going forever upwards as there is no relief or chance to rest and free wheel down.
Then add the dreaded "No Drafting" rule , as one might say I enjoy the pace and commitments of being surrounded by other triathletes wanting to push a little bit harder in the paceline. But alas this was a heads down you are on your own. Now having spent the last few weeks watching Ironman Videos your mind conjures up images barreling down the Queen K at Kona, when reality was, I was pushing myself harder than I have ever done on the bike, but I was on the Hwy 2 going North on the Southbound lane to Haifa, and not Hawi.
On the out leg as I passed a rider he asked me whch direction I thought the wind was coming from and a thought crossed my mind that someone the other day at the Group Track Session had mentioned the headwinds.
The first half of the Bike I did in 34:17 (20km's) and as I went around the mark and crossed the timing mat, the headwind hit hard , nothing but to push harder and try to maintain my cadeance and speed. I worked with two others keeping draft distance as best as I could and tried to take in food and drink my bottle of Nuun. Battling the headwind I completed the second half in 40:43 and was out again in 2:41 for the run.
Run Leg
10km's around the Kibbutz , two loops thru sand and past cow sheds, the heat was now well up into the 30's and heat coming back off the lone stretch of the course that was sand was tough. As they say at the water stops if they were selling I was buying tring to get as much of the cold water that i could get off each volunteer and tip it over my head in an attempt to keep cool. I drank sports drink and water at each station and kept well hydrated. In fact my nutrition plan for the whole was spot on as at no stage did I feel empty in fact my energy level on the final run back on the second loop was as good as I had felt apart from being exhausted from keeping my heart rates in the 140's plus for the past two and half hours.
First Loop 5km/ 25:34 Second Loop / 25:24.
Finishing in 66th place out of 129 for all triathletes over 40 and in my age group 45-49 20th out of 33 . My best placing ever and a new PB time of 2:40:19 . My last Olympic had been a drafting race 2:41:25, so whilst the time difference may not have been as good as I had felt, the difference of the draft and a paceline cannot be underestimated.
And a final thought for everyone of us, those silly check lists we use in our first tri and then think we do not need too use then again, well guess who turned up and did not have his Association timing chip, well put it this way I am 50 shekels ($12) poorer for having to rent one at the race, guess what I downloaded again this morning a whole new checklist.
Tri'ing Harder
Mal
There are many reasons to look back on Saturady and reflect on my performance, but above all it is good to reflect that you gave it all and know deep in your heart and soul. It was the best I have ever performed, well apart from the swim. Which after progressing so well has stalled and it is back to the basics to get it focused agagin and ready for Ironman Austria in 287 days.
Swim Leg
Talk about the famed washing machine, I felt like a sock trying to find its partner in a front loader. From the git go is was chaotic, punched kicked clawed on swam over no matter where I tried to go there was someone else heading there faster and stronger. Try as I might to keep the freestyle going I was in fact going so slowly that I thought for a minute that I was swimming backwards despite my arms going forwards and by the time I was two thirds of the way to the first buoy I realised that unless I went back to breaststroke I was going to lose to much ground [or water as in this case] for me to make up the time and have a competitive time.
Thus it was back to the curse of the breaststroke but also i immediately started catching others and passing the slower freestylers, so I knew that it was a matter of pushing hard. Many people consider breaststroke as a easy out, but when you put the hammer down and do it aggressively it is a powerful stroke.
Exiting the water after the first loop my heart rate was a solid 143, and my focus was to swim the next two buoys breaststroke again before switching back to freestyle for the last leg back to the beach.
Exiting the water in 30:47 (85th out of 129 in my Age Group) I knew that everything was back on track and my worst discipline was over, but at the same time the discipline that I want to improve the most. Up to transition and out as fast as possible. I am even starting to figure out how to cut and shave seconds in transition, often not the big things but small simple things, or as one might put it, "Do not set up a supermarket, when the corner store is all you need".
Bike Leg
The bottom line was that i really felt that for the first time in my short life as a Triathlete I hammered out a discipline to the best of my ability to the point that I moved from 85th to finish in 46th place in my age group. It was an out and back course no loops just the hwy closed in one direction , a fast rolling course with no major climbs , the only problem is that on this type of road you always feel that you are going forever upwards as there is no relief or chance to rest and free wheel down.
Then add the dreaded "No Drafting" rule , as one might say I enjoy the pace and commitments of being surrounded by other triathletes wanting to push a little bit harder in the paceline. But alas this was a heads down you are on your own. Now having spent the last few weeks watching Ironman Videos your mind conjures up images barreling down the Queen K at Kona, when reality was, I was pushing myself harder than I have ever done on the bike, but I was on the Hwy 2 going North on the Southbound lane to Haifa, and not Hawi.
On the out leg as I passed a rider he asked me whch direction I thought the wind was coming from and a thought crossed my mind that someone the other day at the Group Track Session had mentioned the headwinds.
The first half of the Bike I did in 34:17 (20km's) and as I went around the mark and crossed the timing mat, the headwind hit hard , nothing but to push harder and try to maintain my cadeance and speed. I worked with two others keeping draft distance as best as I could and tried to take in food and drink my bottle of Nuun. Battling the headwind I completed the second half in 40:43 and was out again in 2:41 for the run.
Run Leg
10km's around the Kibbutz , two loops thru sand and past cow sheds, the heat was now well up into the 30's and heat coming back off the lone stretch of the course that was sand was tough. As they say at the water stops if they were selling I was buying tring to get as much of the cold water that i could get off each volunteer and tip it over my head in an attempt to keep cool. I drank sports drink and water at each station and kept well hydrated. In fact my nutrition plan for the whole was spot on as at no stage did I feel empty in fact my energy level on the final run back on the second loop was as good as I had felt apart from being exhausted from keeping my heart rates in the 140's plus for the past two and half hours.
First Loop 5km/ 25:34 Second Loop / 25:24.
Finishing in 66th place out of 129 for all triathletes over 40 and in my age group 45-49 20th out of 33 . My best placing ever and a new PB time of 2:40:19 . My last Olympic had been a drafting race 2:41:25, so whilst the time difference may not have been as good as I had felt, the difference of the draft and a paceline cannot be underestimated.
And a final thought for everyone of us, those silly check lists we use in our first tri and then think we do not need too use then again, well guess who turned up and did not have his Association timing chip, well put it this way I am 50 shekels ($12) poorer for having to rent one at the race, guess what I downloaded again this morning a whole new checklist.
Tri'ing Harder
Mal
Monday, September 24, 2007
A Perfect Day for Training
I have written many things about life racing and training in the Unholyland, much postive and with my tongue in cheek some not so positive about Israeli Drivers and life as an athlete.
Then comes the one day a year when a day of atonement becomes a day for celebrating as an athlete. For on Yon Kippur (last Fri night/Saturday till sunset) there are NO cars on the road. Imagine a country where there are NO cars, buses, trucks and motorbikes. The roads are completely empty of traffic for twenty four hours. It is without date one of the most incredible experiences to walk out and have silence, in a country where the car horn is used as a turning indicator on many occasions.
Thus Yon Kippur has also become National Bike Day and for a glorious day a year, you can ride on three lane highways without fear.
Highways and roads become the domain of children on their first bikes wobbling across all three lanes, if you have a bike you simply enjoy what is without doubt the best place in the world to train.
Whilst I was on standby for work in the office in Jerusalem, I did get up at dawn and did the ride I have always wanted to do. Ride the main hwy in Israel from Jerusalem down the mountain and back up, approx 600m vertical over twenty km's, the down was easy and hell I even enjoyed the climb back up, my biggest day of climbing on my bike ever, not to mention I also managed a new top speed on my bike of 75kmh.
And who says that religion is the root of all evil.
Then comes the one day a year when a day of atonement becomes a day for celebrating as an athlete. For on Yon Kippur (last Fri night/Saturday till sunset) there are NO cars on the road. Imagine a country where there are NO cars, buses, trucks and motorbikes. The roads are completely empty of traffic for twenty four hours. It is without date one of the most incredible experiences to walk out and have silence, in a country where the car horn is used as a turning indicator on many occasions.
Thus Yon Kippur has also become National Bike Day and for a glorious day a year, you can ride on three lane highways without fear.
Highways and roads become the domain of children on their first bikes wobbling across all three lanes, if you have a bike you simply enjoy what is without doubt the best place in the world to train.
Whilst I was on standby for work in the office in Jerusalem, I did get up at dawn and did the ride I have always wanted to do. Ride the main hwy in Israel from Jerusalem down the mountain and back up, approx 600m vertical over twenty km's, the down was easy and hell I even enjoyed the climb back up, my biggest day of climbing on my bike ever, not to mention I also managed a new top speed on my bike of 75kmh.
And who says that religion is the root of all evil.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Still Training
Have no fear , still training , but dealing with winter issues in Australia and the horror of the fact that a 50m pool is twice as long as 25m pool, you would not think that this would be an issue for concern but holy hell it has been kicking the preverbial wind out of my sails
Lots of trail running with Molly
Mal
Sydney
Australia
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Reading a Dogs Breakfast
I thought I would share my Heart rate readout from last Saturdays Long Group Ride, the trouble with information is that sometimes the graphs often look like a "Dog's Breakfast" with so many lines it can look like spaghetti thrown against a wall and it is only after you start to itemize each line can you start to find the information you need, now whether it makes any sense or aids my training will come with time when I look back at my cycling workouts.
The kicker for this workout is that we are in the strength building phase of the triathlon season, well actually we are in the summer break of the season which kicks back in early Sept with around 4 Olympic distance races of which I will probably do 3. The last race of the season is down in Eilat about a five hour drive and will involve a couple of nights in hotel and I am not sure whether the finances warrant going down for an olympic when I am focused now for the Ironman in less than a year.
Perhaps the hard thing is that when you jump in a pool and swim a lap , it hits me as to the magnitude that lays ahead. I have no doubt as to my belief in myself that I will and I am capable of achieving a goal that defines me as a person of commitment.
This week has seen me do the following
Monday
Group Open Water Swim - 1500 m [5 sets of 10 minute repeats] immediately follwed by 40 minute tempo run [7.5km] temp above 30 C , Core Super Set & Stretch 30 minuts
Tuesday
AM Group Track 1 Hour with Coach Ron , heavy Pliometrics strength training
PM Core Super Set & Stretch 30 minutes
Wednesday
6 am - 1 hour bike drills [25 km's] 4 repeats one leg drills on hill and cadence work
7.30 am - Core Super Set & Stretch 30 minutes
9 am - One Hour Spin Class with sprints
10.30am - One Hour swim drills
Thursday
AM - Group Track 1 Hour - Strength and Cadence Running 400's
Phew and the weekend is still to come
Train Strong
Mal
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Heart Rate Feedback this week
A few HRM charts from workouts earlier this week will also add later a few swim photos when I get the chance, training has obviously started to focus more on running with Munchen now under a hundred day, the track session this morning was probably one of my best running sessions in a long time, legs felt strong and good, pace is certainly picking up just now need to translate that to longer distances.
My arms felt good enough to hit the pool after track this morning and had a solid 1500m yes 1500m drills session. I was so pleased when I calculated my distance today as in my training log. I still keep a handwritten log and each week I have to list three objectives and swimming 1500 freestyle was one of the objectives, given how far I have come swimming feeling so good about the pool and I am really starting to enjoy the water.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
The Training Grounds
So I had my first ever private swim lesson today and I need this question answered?
Is it normal to feel like your upper arms and shoulders want fall off?
Now the picture is the view from my apartment of my training grounds, this is not Wisconsin in winter , the Med Sea is fifty meters away , then there is the salt water 25m pool out the back and the road to the left is the start of many of my runs with the wind off the sea. Just thought I would share this view from my balcony.
The whole weekend has been a great training block from the bike ride Saturday morning when I realised that I have to mive up to the top group of riders, it got to the stage when I felt it was like the Tour de France when I broke away from the peloton when I realised that my heart rate had dropped to below 90 and we were meant to be doing cadence work. So in my mind I took off and did a hard 12 km on a solo breakaway.
Running was good but the heat is sucking me dry, and I am having trouble keeping up my fluids or more importantly being able to carry enough fluid for my longer runs. Saturday afternoon is an exception when I run with the local Hash group and we rehydrate with beer. Sunday was long and it was great to have a new running friend, Riich who I met thru the Phedippidations Pod Cast has moved to Israel and what is even funnier is that we have run many of the same Marathons and I am trying to talk him into doing Munich in October. Monday was a brutal tempo run for 40 minutes with my heart rate in zone 3 to the end of the Marina which you can just see in the picture. And this morning was my first track session of the week and I can feel my running improve with every session.
Swimming, Monday was the Group Open Water in the sea, water was so warm that it is almost uncomfortable even in the dreaded Speedo's well I actually wear TYR to avoid the speedo smears. Not only having to deal with warm water the visibility was dreadful and it was like swimming in watered gravy.
Then today my first swim lesson, ok here are the nuts and bolts. Firstly I don't suck as much as I thought I did, need to widen my arms and not cross my hands/arms, need to drop my chest and get more streamlined and start to spot my elbows. For an hour I was worked solidly by Gavin my coach and yes i was videotaped. If you would like to see my attempts post a comment and I will upload via you tube if any thing good for a laugh.
One funny thing though was that my best lap for form and speed was done with closed fist drill, go figure LOL
Friday, July 13, 2007
Three symbols, a world of possibilities. Let the games begin.
Define Sport , here I could insert a quotation from dictionarycom , but in a quiet moment of channel surfing in the office I came across a new sport.
It has coverage on ESPN … following are the quotes from the telecast commentators.
“Thousands of pumps down “
“He has been unflinching all night”
“Oh no he has stumbled getting into the ring”
“Fatigue could be an issue”
“Slices paper for the point”
“Must throw flawlessly”
“Players must stay in sync”
“He is exhausted”
“These players are tired”
“On the verge of making sports history”
“He has done the unthinkable”
“One day we will see that fist in the Hall of Fame”
“This is the greatest moment in RPS history”
“He is my champion today”
Ok what is this sport?. Which somehow managed to elicit every sporting cliché from the commentators, there are some clues and even the acronym that it goes by.
I like watching sport and have even been known to comment on sports from curling to my personal favorite “solo synchronized swimming”. Yes they have solo synchronized swimming what the sync against is still a mystery perhaps they put a nose plug on the side of the pool and use that .
Anyway today I have to say that the second annual championship held in Las Vegas complete with $50,000 prize money was won by the “The Brain” in a tight match that included the referee having to stop the match for being out of sync.
Yes folks “ROCK PAPER SCISSORS” is now a serious sport
Check out the web site and if you are truly patriotic American please admit to cringing.
www.usarps.com
This article was on the site to promote the telecast that was my inspiration today …
After logrolling, spelling bees and hot-dog eating, you might think ESPN has run out of sports.
That would not be the case. Tonight, ESPN2 presents its first rock paper scissors competition.
The 2007 Bud Light USA Rock Paper Scissors League National Championship doesn't have the cachet quite yet of the Super Bowl, but it's growing, according to Matti Leshem, co-commissioner of the USA Rock Paper Scissors League.
Although the competition, held in Las Vegas, has been televised before - last year on the A&E Network - this is the first time it will be covered by ESPN, which still likes to call itself "the worldwide leader in sports."
"It's a real validation for the sport," Leshem says by phone from Los Angeles.
The competition was held in May at the Mandalay Bay Resort Casino, with enough underwriting from Bud Light that 300 finalists from nationwide barroom competitions were flown in with a guest for the finals, which carries a top prize of $50,000.
The league has only been around since 2005, Leshem says, "but this is a game played since the beginning of recorded history."
Really? Before the invention of scissors? Or paper?
"Back to the caveman days," Leshem says, though he adds, "it was known as rock rock rock in those days."
The discovery of new materials led to a change in the approach. "For a time, it was known as rock papyrus spear, which you may have heard of before," he says.
Clearly, the development of paper in China, along with the invention of scissors, made great strides in the hand game where, of course, rock smashes scissors, scissors cut paper and paper covers rock.
There is a historic angle to the other name by which the game is known, Rochambeau, after the French general who aided George Washington in the Revolutionary War, and whose march through Connecticut (through Farmington, not too far from eventual ESPN headquarters in Bristol) marked its 225th anniversary last year.
The French general, according to Leshem, "adjudicated several disputes with rock paper scissors."
That may be just as much a myth as Rochambeau supposedly plotting the Yorktown battle with Washington in Wethersfield. But it explains why school children pumping their fists three times in anticipating shooting their desired signal will often shout "Reaux! Sham! Beau!" instead of "One! Two! Three!"
Clearly, there are different styles of the game, which is obviously not treated in complete seriousness by the league. But what exactly makes a great rock paper scissors champion?
"Skill, athleticism, the ability to read an opponent - to know what your opponent is going to throw before they throw it," Leshem says.
Statistics play a role - women often open with scissors, while men often choose rock first; paper is the least often used first signal, studies have shown.
But athleticism?
"There are different styles of play," Leshem says. "It gets quite energetic. A lot of power goes into it. The mental drain of it has a toll on the body."
Besides that, he adds, "there are injuries, people dislocate shoulders or sprain wrists."
Because reading the opponent's intent is so important, a poker champion, Phil Gordon, has agreed to officiate.
Also, like poker, "it takes a moment to learn, but a lifetime to master," Leshem says. "It's like chess, right? You have to practice, and you really start to feel the Zen of throwing."
Eventually, a world view develops, he says. "You look at life as a tripartite thing, that life is not black and white, it's not a binary on-off switch - there's the possibility of third choice."
As for those who don't think it's a sport, Leshem says, well, it takes all kinds. "There are people who think golf is a sport."
Ilan Ben-Hanan, the network's director of programming and acquisitions, says, "For us, I think ESPN is all about competition - traditional stick and ball sports, for the most part. But there's room for something a little bit different."
And the childhood game of rock paper scissors is nothing if not that.
"Everyone knows how to play the game, so that helps," Ben-Hanan says.
Whether it returns next year depends, in part, how it does tonight.
"We'll wait to see what the response is," he says.
Leshem says the initial ESPN telecast coming on 7-7-07 isn't completely lucky for them.
"It's kind of a hard night, there's also that Live Earth thing on," he says. "But we're honored to be on the ESPN networks."
The 2007 Bud Light USA Rock Paper Scissors League National Championship runs tonight at 9 on ESPN2.
Now to add a bit more cringe factor I add one last paragraph from the official site …
“American players embody the ideals of the sport - aggression, cunning and intensity. Finally, they have the stage to showcase their mad skills. Annual nationwide tournaments will honorably determine the best RPS player in the USA, and bring on a new breed of elite athletes to make all Americans proud and unify our polarized nation. The red, white and blue will be properly represented in international competition and inspire a new form of patriotism. The USARPS League is destined to bring on new strategies, training techniques and of course, great American heroes.”
It has coverage on ESPN … following are the quotes from the telecast commentators.
“Thousands of pumps down “
“He has been unflinching all night”
“Oh no he has stumbled getting into the ring”
“Fatigue could be an issue”
“Slices paper for the point”
“Must throw flawlessly”
“Players must stay in sync”
“He is exhausted”
“These players are tired”
“On the verge of making sports history”
“He has done the unthinkable”
“One day we will see that fist in the Hall of Fame”
“This is the greatest moment in RPS history”
“He is my champion today”
Ok what is this sport?. Which somehow managed to elicit every sporting cliché from the commentators, there are some clues and even the acronym that it goes by.
I like watching sport and have even been known to comment on sports from curling to my personal favorite “solo synchronized swimming”. Yes they have solo synchronized swimming what the sync against is still a mystery perhaps they put a nose plug on the side of the pool and use that .
Anyway today I have to say that the second annual championship held in Las Vegas complete with $50,000 prize money was won by the “The Brain” in a tight match that included the referee having to stop the match for being out of sync.
Yes folks “ROCK PAPER SCISSORS” is now a serious sport
Check out the web site and if you are truly patriotic American please admit to cringing.
www.usarps.com
This article was on the site to promote the telecast that was my inspiration today …
After logrolling, spelling bees and hot-dog eating, you might think ESPN has run out of sports.
That would not be the case. Tonight, ESPN2 presents its first rock paper scissors competition.
The 2007 Bud Light USA Rock Paper Scissors League National Championship doesn't have the cachet quite yet of the Super Bowl, but it's growing, according to Matti Leshem, co-commissioner of the USA Rock Paper Scissors League.
Although the competition, held in Las Vegas, has been televised before - last year on the A&E Network - this is the first time it will be covered by ESPN, which still likes to call itself "the worldwide leader in sports."
"It's a real validation for the sport," Leshem says by phone from Los Angeles.
The competition was held in May at the Mandalay Bay Resort Casino, with enough underwriting from Bud Light that 300 finalists from nationwide barroom competitions were flown in with a guest for the finals, which carries a top prize of $50,000.
The league has only been around since 2005, Leshem says, "but this is a game played since the beginning of recorded history."
Really? Before the invention of scissors? Or paper?
"Back to the caveman days," Leshem says, though he adds, "it was known as rock rock rock in those days."
The discovery of new materials led to a change in the approach. "For a time, it was known as rock papyrus spear, which you may have heard of before," he says.
Clearly, the development of paper in China, along with the invention of scissors, made great strides in the hand game where, of course, rock smashes scissors, scissors cut paper and paper covers rock.
There is a historic angle to the other name by which the game is known, Rochambeau, after the French general who aided George Washington in the Revolutionary War, and whose march through Connecticut (through Farmington, not too far from eventual ESPN headquarters in Bristol) marked its 225th anniversary last year.
The French general, according to Leshem, "adjudicated several disputes with rock paper scissors."
That may be just as much a myth as Rochambeau supposedly plotting the Yorktown battle with Washington in Wethersfield. But it explains why school children pumping their fists three times in anticipating shooting their desired signal will often shout "Reaux! Sham! Beau!" instead of "One! Two! Three!"
Clearly, there are different styles of the game, which is obviously not treated in complete seriousness by the league. But what exactly makes a great rock paper scissors champion?
"Skill, athleticism, the ability to read an opponent - to know what your opponent is going to throw before they throw it," Leshem says.
Statistics play a role - women often open with scissors, while men often choose rock first; paper is the least often used first signal, studies have shown.
But athleticism?
"There are different styles of play," Leshem says. "It gets quite energetic. A lot of power goes into it. The mental drain of it has a toll on the body."
Besides that, he adds, "there are injuries, people dislocate shoulders or sprain wrists."
Because reading the opponent's intent is so important, a poker champion, Phil Gordon, has agreed to officiate.
Also, like poker, "it takes a moment to learn, but a lifetime to master," Leshem says. "It's like chess, right? You have to practice, and you really start to feel the Zen of throwing."
Eventually, a world view develops, he says. "You look at life as a tripartite thing, that life is not black and white, it's not a binary on-off switch - there's the possibility of third choice."
As for those who don't think it's a sport, Leshem says, well, it takes all kinds. "There are people who think golf is a sport."
Ilan Ben-Hanan, the network's director of programming and acquisitions, says, "For us, I think ESPN is all about competition - traditional stick and ball sports, for the most part. But there's room for something a little bit different."
And the childhood game of rock paper scissors is nothing if not that.
"Everyone knows how to play the game, so that helps," Ben-Hanan says.
Whether it returns next year depends, in part, how it does tonight.
"We'll wait to see what the response is," he says.
Leshem says the initial ESPN telecast coming on 7-7-07 isn't completely lucky for them.
"It's kind of a hard night, there's also that Live Earth thing on," he says. "But we're honored to be on the ESPN networks."
The 2007 Bud Light USA Rock Paper Scissors League National Championship runs tonight at 9 on ESPN2.
Now to add a bit more cringe factor I add one last paragraph from the official site …
“American players embody the ideals of the sport - aggression, cunning and intensity. Finally, they have the stage to showcase their mad skills. Annual nationwide tournaments will honorably determine the best RPS player in the USA, and bring on a new breed of elite athletes to make all Americans proud and unify our polarized nation. The red, white and blue will be properly represented in international competition and inspire a new form of patriotism. The USARPS League is destined to bring on new strategies, training techniques and of course, great American heroes.”
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Like a Hollywood Movie
Remember those scenes from movies about sport whereby the hero always seems in trouble and is told by the coach to run the stadium stairs and our lone forlorn hero is seen in wide shots of the stadium easily climbing up as he has a point to prove against his coach. Well let me tell you stadium stairs hurt big time.
Again at the track workout with the group we were shepherded to the stadium and given the task of two ups and downs followed by 400 around the track repeat till i say stop. It sounds dramatic but in fact a great workout your quads are screaming by the end and I doubt that anyone could honestly run a complete stadium without collapsing.
So another hollywood myth is debunked , but then again it could be just me.
Lots of congrats from the team about signing up for my Ironman and looks like I will have some training partners from the group which will be good on those long runs, no I wait for the horror stories from those returning LOL
Long in the morning
Train hard
Mal
Again at the track workout with the group we were shepherded to the stadium and given the task of two ups and downs followed by 400 around the track repeat till i say stop. It sounds dramatic but in fact a great workout your quads are screaming by the end and I doubt that anyone could honestly run a complete stadium without collapsing.
So another hollywood myth is debunked , but then again it could be just me.
Lots of congrats from the team about signing up for my Ironman and looks like I will have some training partners from the group which will be good on those long runs, no I wait for the horror stories from those returning LOL
Long in the morning
Train hard
Mal
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Sold Out in 19 hours
Well today is either Day 1 or Day 374 depending on whether I wanted to count up or down, I prefer the notion of counting down it somehow adds to the excitement. But then again it seems silly to worry about something that is that far away. Munich is closer so in the spirit of being rational it is only 102 days to Munich so come Friday the clock will read 100 days and my coach Gavin has me focusing on this race as I want to set a PB which means going under 3:58. I have been under 4 hours twice and feel that my running is getting better so I am confident of setting a PB. But one thing I have learnt is that you must respect the distance.
So I woke this morning and looked out the window at the pool down below, my training program had me down for a criterium bike workout on the spinner and a swim workout. The sun was still not on the pool so I opted for a later swim or perhaps I could just skip the swim and do the bike. Hang on whats with skipping workouts on Day 1.
So popped the dvd, put on "What it Takes" the insirational Tri film that follows four elite triathletes training for Kona in 2005. I probably watch this two to three times a week it does give you an incredible lift as you watch them train and compete.
The bike workout was as follows
10 min warm up ,
6 x 30" > 100 rpm+ , 30 " easy - 39 ring
4 x 2:00 90 rpm (53/21) - 1:00 easy
4 x 2:00 90 rpm (53/17) - 1:00 easy
4 x 1:00 90 RPM (53/17) - 1:00 easy
45 minute easy include cooldown
All up 1 hour 30 minutes which is a good way to get time on the saddle , and the roads here are just to dangerous to consider riding on unless you are with a group or have a death wish.
Followed by my core super set of 14 exercises - 30 minutes with stretching
So before 9:00am I had already done two hours training and the pool still sparkled down below. But I had some errands to run and get my bike looked at for new brakes, last group ride everytime I braked it sounded like a screaming banshee car alarm surrounded me and made me about as popular as a pork chop at a bar mitzpah. Naturally the shop sold me more than a brake pad set as preventive chain maintenance is critical and I have now two cans of ozone layer destroying degreaser and lube ready to be used , assuring me according to the shop a smooth silent chain, the jury is out lets wait and see.
Back home the pool still sparkled was reletively empty of holidaymakers, so it was time to put on the much maligned Speedos and head down for my set . Regular readers know that my swimming to date has been not my strongest point but slowly drill by drill I am actually getting the freestyle bug and the thought of breaststroking is a thing of the past. I am not doing any great distance and my whole workout was 750m 3 different drills of 250 m followed by practicing Total Immersion basic drills . The sun beat down and the water was warm , hey i might even start really enjoying this swim part.
Tomorrow morning , my second track workout with the group at 6:30 , up at 5.00 am.
Oh and the title , Ironman Austria sold out in 19 hours online, amazes me that an event can sell out that far in advance that fast , well I guess I am not the only one commited now.
So I woke this morning and looked out the window at the pool down below, my training program had me down for a criterium bike workout on the spinner and a swim workout. The sun was still not on the pool so I opted for a later swim or perhaps I could just skip the swim and do the bike. Hang on whats with skipping workouts on Day 1.
So popped the dvd, put on "What it Takes" the insirational Tri film that follows four elite triathletes training for Kona in 2005. I probably watch this two to three times a week it does give you an incredible lift as you watch them train and compete.
The bike workout was as follows
10 min warm up ,
6 x 30" > 100 rpm+ , 30 " easy - 39 ring
4 x 2:00 90 rpm (53/21) - 1:00 easy
4 x 2:00 90 rpm (53/17) - 1:00 easy
4 x 1:00 90 RPM (53/17) - 1:00 easy
45 minute easy include cooldown
All up 1 hour 30 minutes which is a good way to get time on the saddle , and the roads here are just to dangerous to consider riding on unless you are with a group or have a death wish.
Followed by my core super set of 14 exercises - 30 minutes with stretching
So before 9:00am I had already done two hours training and the pool still sparkled down below. But I had some errands to run and get my bike looked at for new brakes, last group ride everytime I braked it sounded like a screaming banshee car alarm surrounded me and made me about as popular as a pork chop at a bar mitzpah. Naturally the shop sold me more than a brake pad set as preventive chain maintenance is critical and I have now two cans of ozone layer destroying degreaser and lube ready to be used , assuring me according to the shop a smooth silent chain, the jury is out lets wait and see.
Back home the pool still sparkled was reletively empty of holidaymakers, so it was time to put on the much maligned Speedos and head down for my set . Regular readers know that my swimming to date has been not my strongest point but slowly drill by drill I am actually getting the freestyle bug and the thought of breaststroking is a thing of the past. I am not doing any great distance and my whole workout was 750m 3 different drills of 250 m followed by practicing Total Immersion basic drills . The sun beat down and the water was warm , hey i might even start really enjoying this swim part.
Tomorrow morning , my second track workout with the group at 6:30 , up at 5.00 am.
Oh and the title , Ironman Austria sold out in 19 hours online, amazes me that an event can sell out that far in advance that fast , well I guess I am not the only one commited now.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Commitment
com·mit·ment (kə-mĭt'mənt) Pronunciation Key
n.
The act or an instance of committing, especially:
The act of referring a legislative bill to committee.
Official consignment, as to a prison or mental health facility.
A court order authorizing consignment to a prison.
A pledge to do.
Something pledged, especially an engagement by contract involving financial obligation.
A pledge to do.
Something pledged, especially an engagement by contract involving financial obligation.
The state of being bound emotionally or intellectually to a course of action or to another person or persons: a deep commitment to liberal policies; a profound commitment to the family.
Now all of the above do not specifically relate to what I have commited to. Espicially any reference to prison or a mental health facility, but then again I may have reason to question my state of mental health given to what I have commited to on 13th July 2008
The time has come that I feel that I am ready to complete an Ironman next year "Ironman Austria" Entries opened this morning and the 2,000 spots have almost been filled in less than 15 hours. Hitting the send button and receiving the email back means that purpose has a new meaning.
No longer can I look down at the pool from window and give myself a reason not to go down and do laps, the cycleop's spinner is going to have to hum for hours and more than one pair of trainers will be worn out.
My main focus for the next couple of months is to nail down my training for the Munich Marathon with Chaim in October and finish the tri season here after the summer break which resumes in September.
Then there will be the cold mornings of winter and no doubt work trips which will totally screw up my training plans from time to time, but having commited to what will be the longest day in my life I have only one desire and that is to enjoy the experience from my first workout tonight when I get home to crossing the line in the twilight on July 13 2008.
It is going to be a long journey but every step of the way will be recorded.
Hey I am going to be an Ironman, I hope you will enjoy the journey with me.
Mal
n.
The act or an instance of committing, especially:
The act of referring a legislative bill to committee.
Official consignment, as to a prison or mental health facility.
A court order authorizing consignment to a prison.
A pledge to do.
Something pledged, especially an engagement by contract involving financial obligation.
A pledge to do.
Something pledged, especially an engagement by contract involving financial obligation.
The state of being bound emotionally or intellectually to a course of action or to another person or persons: a deep commitment to liberal policies; a profound commitment to the family.
Now all of the above do not specifically relate to what I have commited to. Espicially any reference to prison or a mental health facility, but then again I may have reason to question my state of mental health given to what I have commited to on 13th July 2008
The time has come that I feel that I am ready to complete an Ironman next year "Ironman Austria" Entries opened this morning and the 2,000 spots have almost been filled in less than 15 hours. Hitting the send button and receiving the email back means that purpose has a new meaning.
No longer can I look down at the pool from window and give myself a reason not to go down and do laps, the cycleop's spinner is going to have to hum for hours and more than one pair of trainers will be worn out.
My main focus for the next couple of months is to nail down my training for the Munich Marathon with Chaim in October and finish the tri season here after the summer break which resumes in September.
Then there will be the cold mornings of winter and no doubt work trips which will totally screw up my training plans from time to time, but having commited to what will be the longest day in my life I have only one desire and that is to enjoy the experience from my first workout tonight when I get home to crossing the line in the twilight on July 13 2008.
It is going to be a long journey but every step of the way will be recorded.
Hey I am going to be an Ironman, I hope you will enjoy the journey with me.
Mal
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
A Hard Post to Write
Sometimes truth can hurt in ways that really hurt you when you realise that. That you did'nt realise.
A friend today told me that I had made them turn against running and that I was no longer fun to run with. The reasons were stupid callous words that I had forgotten or chosen to put in the just words spoken but with no respect to my friends. people who i have run have every right to run with someone who wants to run just like them for the fun of it and not turn it into a competitive sport.
I will never win anything and perhaps now I should just step back and reflect.
Why? Because I enjoy running with friends above everything else, just for the fun of it. And maybe I have lost that focus and need to take drastic steps to repair this aspect of my life.
I am competitive that is my own curse that needs to be cured, and perhaps today was the biggest wake up I have ever had as to how I need to change my training and become once again the person people enjoy training with.
I no longer want to train alone and stare at my reflection on a computer screen of my heart rates and pace, there is no substitute for laughing and realising that running is fun.
We take each step as a solo runner, but the best sound is hearing a friends footsteps next to you not behind you.
Mal
A friend today told me that I had made them turn against running and that I was no longer fun to run with. The reasons were stupid callous words that I had forgotten or chosen to put in the just words spoken but with no respect to my friends. people who i have run have every right to run with someone who wants to run just like them for the fun of it and not turn it into a competitive sport.
I will never win anything and perhaps now I should just step back and reflect.
Why? Because I enjoy running with friends above everything else, just for the fun of it. And maybe I have lost that focus and need to take drastic steps to repair this aspect of my life.
I am competitive that is my own curse that needs to be cured, and perhaps today was the biggest wake up I have ever had as to how I need to change my training and become once again the person people enjoy training with.
I no longer want to train alone and stare at my reflection on a computer screen of my heart rates and pace, there is no substitute for laughing and realising that running is fun.
We take each step as a solo runner, but the best sound is hearing a friends footsteps next to you not behind you.
Mal
Monday, June 25, 2007
Attack of the Medusa's
It has become official, the curse of the open water swimmer has arrived for there summer sojourn on the beaches. The Medusa Jellyfish is back for the holiday season, as I found out this morning when a tentacle managed to drape itself across my mouth during the group swim session. It stung like hell and like everyone else I spent the next thirty minutes wishing with deep reflections not to be stung again, and luckily I managed to avoid the tentacles.
My swim is gradually getting better and I am happy to see progress. Followed the swim with a 40 minute run at a good pace.
The weekend was again a good solid training block, with cycling 65 km on Sat Morining and a run in the afternoon with the hash group. Sunday was swim drills and a late afternoon run in the heat. We have been having a heat wave here with temperatures in the high 30's C or close to 100 F. I have been sweating buckets as they say and it is hard to keep up the fluids on the run.
I have signed up to run the Munich Marathon on October 14th with Chaim, my aim is to run a good sub 4 marathon so the emphasis over the next few months will be running as the tri season is in hiatus till September.
Train Strong
Mal
My swim is gradually getting better and I am happy to see progress. Followed the swim with a 40 minute run at a good pace.
The weekend was again a good solid training block, with cycling 65 km on Sat Morining and a run in the afternoon with the hash group. Sunday was swim drills and a late afternoon run in the heat. We have been having a heat wave here with temperatures in the high 30's C or close to 100 F. I have been sweating buckets as they say and it is hard to keep up the fluids on the run.
I have signed up to run the Munich Marathon on October 14th with Chaim, my aim is to run a good sub 4 marathon so the emphasis over the next few months will be running as the tri season is in hiatus till September.
Train Strong
Mal
Friday, June 22, 2007
Long by Tempo Zones
The good old days of going out for a long run at an easy pace have been changed by my coach Gavin. Long runs are now days dictated by running in certain heart rate zones for periods. What ever happened to those long easy days of comfortable running at a conversational pace.
Todays long run was 18 km in 1:43:00 and it brutally hot and amongst it all I lost a bottle from my fuel belt so when I came to the end gasping with thirst all I felt in my belt was an empty loop.
This weekend looks like it is going to be even hotter with a heat wave coming accross the country, luckily the bulk of my running is over and I have a group bike ride at 6:30 in the morning.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
