It's Getting Closer...

With just over 3 weeks until Ironman Branson 70.3, my workouts have gotten more intense. I have been hitting it harder trying to get in more miles before I start my two week taper. (I hate tapers btw). Next week will be equally as tough on me, but I know it is all for the best. Here is what last week looked like for me:

Saturday: 6 mile run
Monday: 2300 yd swim followed by a 22 mile trainer ride.
Tuesday: 13 mile ride followed by a 4 mile run
Wednesday: 7 mile run followed by a 22 mile trainer ride
Thursday: 2150 yd swim –Master’s class (4 x 100 @ 1:45, 3 x 100 @ 1:40 , 2 x 100 @ 1:30, 100 all out, 3 x 100 kick, 400 pull w/paddles, 3 x 150 (mid 50 backstroke)
Friday: Rest
Saturday: planned 50 mile 3 hour ride

I feel like I am close to being ready for this race, but the only unknown part is the bike. The “rolling hills of Branson” will be a huge factor, and I am ready to take them on. A lot of my bikes have been trainer rides at football practice, so in my opinion, 22 miles on a trainer is good for at least 27 on the open road right? If the trainer is good enough for Andy Potts, then it should be plenty good for me.

So, a lot of people have asked if I have my nutrition worked out for the HIM. Since I have never done this distance before, I can only say “I think I have”. I am using E-Gels, Gatorade Endurance and Shot Blocks, which have worked for me so far. Greg H turned me on to the E-Gels and I really like them. They aren’t as thick as other gels, have bigger sizes and more calories! Electrolyte Energy Gel has 4 to 5 times the electrolyte levels of traditional energy gels. When taken with adequate amounts of water you can now get balanced hydration, energy and electrolyte replacement in one product. And, with 150 carbohydrate calories, e-Gel packs 50% more energy than most competing energy gels. Here is a breakdown on how E-Gels compare to other gels.

Also I am using Gatorade Endurance in the bottles. Also the course is going to have Gatorade Endurance on it also, so that’s a good thing for me! I am sure you are all more familiar with Gatorade than E-Gels, so I won’t go into it that much.

The Shot Blocks are just easy for me to eat. They come in chewable, 33 calorie cubes, making it easy to customize and track caloric intake. They taste decent and I like the gummies.

So 2-3 gels, 2 bottles of Gatorade, 1 water to start with (I hope to refill on the course as needed) and 6-8 shot blocks, and that has worked well for me on the bike. That’s my plan as on now. I may get out there and find that I am totally off base, but that’s one of the risks I am taking I guess. They all say the first HIM is a learning experience.