On the Road Again...

This weekend was my last long workout before the Memphis in May Olympic triathlon  and if I am being honest, I was a little worried about my bike speeds. As you know, I have been doing a lot of work on the trainer this year for various reasons, so I was concerned about getting on the open road. I had reached out to several of my friends to ask their opinions on bike speed on the trainer vs. on the road, and most thought that if the trainer was used correctly, with the right amount of tension, then I could really see some gains on the bike. However, if I was simply using the trainer to spin my wheels and watch TV, then I might not make the gains I wanted. So yeah, I was curious and nervous.

So Sunday my workout called for a ride. I decided to break it up and get a brick session done. So my plan was to ride 10 miles on the trainer hard, then hop off, complete a transition and run a mile. then I would come back and ride another 5 miles hard, hop off and run a 1/2 mile, then I would take my bike off the trainer and hit the road.

And it was awesome!  A definite do again workout!

My run off the bike was great, I kept a 9:05 pace really easy, and I was faster on the second run ( I know it was shorter, but I felt great)

Once I got my bike on the road, I felt like I was flying. I was in the low 20's pretty fast and didn't seem to take a lot of effort to maintain it. This was a huge confidence boost for me. The trainer rides have average out to be around 16 mph. My ride (although only 20 minutes) average 18.9 according to my Timex, and that is with fairly busy streets. Thankfully MIM is a really flat course. We normally have a headwind going and a tailwind coming back, so I feel pretty good about where I am at today!

Things I Have A Love/Hate Relationship With...

I noticed that when I post a comment on another blog, it seems like a lot of the times it starts off with "I also have a love/hate relationship with..." So I figured I would just do a post about all the things I have a love/hate relationship with. This post has been in the making for a few days to make sure I didn't miss any.


Admit it, you either done or thought about it!



1. Foam Rollers- I love the way my leg muscles feel after using the foam roller, but I know it is ALWAYS going to hurt.
2. Waking up early- My morning workouts would be so much better if they were at a different time of day. Once I am up, I am good and I love the peaceful, quiet mornings, I just hate that they start so early.
3. Dogs- In the yard playing fetch=love, being chased and barked at while running=hate em
4. Ice Baths- Another aspect I know will make my leggs feel better, but man do I dread sitting in that cold water
5. Reality TV-Survivor, Amazing Race and Celebrity Apprentice= love Jersey Shore, Springer, Dance Moms and the Kardashians=hate
6. Soreness- I really do like waking up and feeling the soreness which means I had a good workout, but I hate the way it makes me walk like an old man until I get loosened up.
7. Stretching- Hate to stretch before a run, love to stretch afterwards ( I know I should do both)
8. Chiropractors- Love getting cracked, adjusted and stretched, hate having my neck adjusted, think I have seen to many Steven Segall movies to relax enough
9. Treadmills- Love treadmills for interval workouts, hate them because its a treadmill!
10. Trainer rides-I love the trainer, it gives me extra time in the day to allow me to ride, but again, its the trainer. I do not go anywhere.
11. Race photos- I love having photographic images of my races, I hate that the race photographers all suck and can never get a decent shot of me
12. Resolutionists-Love that hey help keep my gym dues down, but hate that they get in the way!  Yeah I said it, so what??
13. The Stick- See Foam Roller
14. Brick workouts- If you are reading this, you know why I love/hate them.
15. Discussions on the best way to counts laps at the pool- I love that this is a forum favorite topic, I hate that people can;t figure out how to count 1, 2, 3, 6, 4, 8, 9, 7...
16. SWAG bags- I love packet pickup and getting the swag bags and going through them and I hate how I am always disappointed, just a bag full of other races to do.
17. Shaving- I love the way it makes my leggs look muscular and chiseled, hate that I shave my leg to begin with.
18. Race Fees- I love hitting that submit button, know I am officially paid and registered, hate how expensive races are getting.
19. Taco Bell- Yo quiero Taco Bell on non run days. Yo no quiero Taco Bell on afternoon run days.
20. Toe nails- I love the "Badge of Honor" of losing a nail and then being classified as a runner, hate the way they turn purple and hang on forever!

So tell me, what have I missed?  What are some things you have a love hate relationship with? I could probably go on and on if I gave it enough thought, but I am sure I missed something!

That's What She Said!

Why aren;t you faster? That was the question posed to me by my bride on Friday night. That was the question that punched me in the gut and got me all kinds of defensive!

Here is how it came about. My wife was reading the RoadRunner magazine. It is the monthly newsletter/magazine that come out from the Memphis Runner's Track Club that I am a member of. In the magazine was an article about a woman that ran her first marathon in 4 hours and something. My first marathon was 6 hours and something. SO that led to an awkward conversation, that started out with this conversation:

Wife: I don't understand this..
Me: huh?
Wife: This woman did her very first marathon in 4 hours something...
Me: OK?
Wife: Well, I mean, it was her first race and you have been running for a long time..
Me: What are you saying?
Wife: Well..
Me: What?
Wife: It's just...
Me: Say it...  What aren't I faster?
Wife: Well, yeah?

At least that is the way I remember the conversation. My thought reaction was to get defensive. 'Did she do a half Ironman 45 days before the marathon? Does she have a job? Does she have a husband and kids? Is she 40 years old??? All valid questions in my mind. And the answers didn't matter to me really, because no answer was going to unhurt my feelings.

Now, I know my wife did not mean to upset me or make me feel bad about my times or in any way be anything but supportive of me, but it is how I took it. I know she had some of the same frustrations with my marathon time as I did. My wife is my biggest supporter and this is not a talk bad about my wife type of post, but it still bugged me. All I could think about was, "Why am I not faster?" Further reading the article talked about how this lady had run over 900 miles that year in preparation for the marathon. Running has always been my biggest obstacle in triathlons, and I have been working on it, and seeing some of that hard work pay off already.

So the rest of the night, I walked around reminding her of the headway I have made this year. I gently reminded her of how I have 4 PR's alone this year. I gently reminded her that I was 5th on a 5K and that I am a Master's Champion at that race!  Master's Champion!!!

So Saturday morning, my plan called for a 16.9 Mile ride and a 2.86 mile run. Let me say I had plenty of fuel for this ride/run. I got up Saturday morning and jumped on my bike and rode on the trainer hard. My legs were burning, but it didn't matter. After 17 miles, I jumped off my bike, grabbed my shoes and hit the road. I ran 3 miles at an 8:11 pace. It hurt, my legs were heavy, but it was very satisfying to hold a decent pace. My PR 5k pace was 7:50, so I was thrilled.

So I took an honest question and used it as fuel for my next workout. So I need to thank my wife for giving me something to think on and ask myself.

Let's Talk about Bricks Man!

Brick workouts suck. Plain and simple. I hate them. I also love them. They are a very important part of training that I often neglect to do until the week before a race. Alot of people argue if brick workouts actually do any good, I think they do, I just hate to do them. Let me explain.

A "brick workout simply refers to training in two or more disciplines during the same workout, one right after the other with minimal or no rest in between, so basically it is race condition training. Most people, when they speak of brick workouts, usually refer to a bike/run brick, although it could also be a swim/bike workout.

I practice the bike/run brick the most because that is the toughest transition for me. Biking and running are totally different. Basically after coming off the bike and transitioning to running, your legs feel really heavy (which is why they call them bricks). The reasoning is that the heart rate goes up during the run and the heart is working to pump blood to muscles used for running instead of biking. It usually takes me almost a mile to get into my running legs and if I really push it on the bike, I always seem to deal with calf cramps coming off the bike. So brick workouts are designed to shorten the time for you to get your running legs.

Typical brick workout for a Sprint Tri:
Bike 5-6 mile, then run 1 mile, repeat 3 or 4 times! See now why they suck??? Starting out you should probably tone it down some and work your way up. If I would do more of these workouts, I think I would have so much better times.

So do they work?? Guess it depends on the person. For me it is more of a mental workout than anything. It is about busting through that wall of first wanting to quit and walk. Once you walk the first time, it is that much easier to walk the second time and third time, etc... So I think they are a valid workout, just wish I did more of them throughout the year!