Like every athlete, I do have strengths and weaknesses. Not everything about strengths and weaknesses about the swim, bike and the run. Different from the last 2 years of training, I won't be doing a full Ironman within the next season. I will be doing a few 1.9/90/21.1km races with a few shorter distances thrown in for fun.
Here are a few things I would like to work on over the winter months to get me ready for the events ahead.
Cycling
I am going to do the a Gran Fondo ride in Canada in September. As much as I won't be racing this event, I would still want to get through the route well. There are hills (it is a Gran Fondo after all) and so it would be a matter of working on the strength on the bike and be more confident in descents.
What does this mean in Evalin's land, more hilly rides over winter. If the weather is shocking and my anxiety is too much to handle, assess early and rearrange training times and stick to it. I may need to get out later in the day or swap training days around.
Remain consistent with the windtrainer sessions on Tuesday evenings and when the Thursday morning rides happen again, be more vigilant and attend these sessions, even when I can't stick to the pack.
On the non-tri-related side of cycling...do at least one mountain bike ride a fortnight. This will help me with my bike skills as well as keeping my training fun. If I can, commute to work at least once a fortnight - this is something which I have enjoyed immensely over the last month.
My goal is to be able to ride < 3hrs during a half distance triathlon. This requires that my average speed needs to be > 31km/hr over the full 90km.
Swimming
I will start official swim training on 3rd May 2014. I have used the program from the previous years (been with the squad since 2010) on my own. I wasn't sure if the Mentone squad would be swimming with the Tri Alliance program and wasn't in the motivation/mood to do a proper swim session just yet.
I am pretty comfortable with swimming and where it has advanced over the years. I do however want to work on my speed (strength and endurance).
My goal is to be able to swim < 35min for a 1.9km as part of a half distance triathlon.
Running
Over the last 12 months, my enthusiasm for Tuesday morning runs at MSAC were non-existent to the point where I only attended 2 sessions before the Bayside ones started (also only attended 3 of those). With the sessions being more available around Mentone, this will make it more convenient for me to attend as well as decreasing travel time in between work, home and training.
I may need to work on the basics again with some Run Technique work as well as turning up to Tuesday morning and Thursday afternoon sessions more consistently. With regards to running events, I haven't committed myself to Run Melbourne or Melbourne Marathon events yet. I might look at the smaller running events to save money as well as gauging how I will be travelling towards my goal.
Remember throughout the year that my main goal for 2014/15 is to run under 2 hours for 21.1km (after swimming 1.9km and riding 90km). One thing I need to monitor will be monitoring and management of my injuries. Achieving this goal is not easy for me. It took me 3 years of running half marathons to get a sub 2 hour (1:58) a few years ago. I have not been able to achieve it since.
Apart from having Challenge Shepparton and Challenge Melbourne as my main races of 2014/15, I am looking forward to doing the corporate triathlon in March (400m/10km/4km). There will most likely be an Olympic distance tri in Dec/Jan, looking forward to cracking the 3 hour mark again.
For a half ironman-distance race, a goal of under 6 hours is on the cards. Close to 5:45 would be a goal to aim for with cycling and running as my main areas of improvement.
For a half ironman-distance race, a goal of under 6 hours is on the cards. Close to 5:45 would be a goal to aim for with cycling and running as my main areas of improvement.
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