Thursday 25 June 2015

Training Update


This entry is to keep you all up to date with my training as I am not doing regular reflection pieces as much as before especially having done Ironman. 
I will go through the swim, bike, run, strength and miscellaneous attributes regarding triathlon.  
I have a confession; I am yet to join the squad for the Tuesday and Friday morning sessions. I am still freaking out about doing these sessions with them as I have no concept on how these sessions are being conducted. I have been told that they are different from the Monday and Wednesday session but as Bayside don’t really have progression plan like Tri Alliance (in order to accommodate everyone and their respective races throughout the year), I am scared of stepping into swim session where we are to swim more than 3km. The longest session I have done (on my own) is a quality 2.7km following Swim Smooth programs which I purchased a few weeks ago. I purchased the Level 2 Olympic/Half Ironman program which comes with 35 lessons. I am enjoying them so far as it is structured differently to the swim sessions I have been doing for the last 5 years. I haven’t returned to CF Racing swim sessions as it is slightly out of the way for me and if I sleep in on a Monday morning and I complete my strength session on Monday night. I am not too worried about the swim sessions this time around other than completing at least 2 sessions a week with > 2.5km per session.

Cycling has been coming along slowly but surely. The spin classes at GESAC are really good and the work I get to do on strength have been much better than the windtrainer sessions I used to do. Although these sessions are short, the intensity is much more than a bike will ever on a windtrainer, unless you would don’t mind breaking your bike in half or shredding your tyres. I am also able to do some training on spin bikes at my gym if miss a session or if the weather ever turns stupid ugly. I might have to download a few spinerval programs so I can watch the iPad on the spin bikes rather than staring into space or the people running on treadmills in front of me. 

So far, I have done two Dandenong rides and planning on a 3rd this weekend since the start of June. I really do enjoy these hilly rides where I can tune out and just pedal along. It has been a while since I have placed myself in the strength work “hurt box”, but I am actually happy. In the month of July, I will venture out to Kinglake to mix things up a bit although I find that there are more hilly variations around The Dandenongs. I might have to look into hill repeats of Kinglake to make up for the distance and time. I do need to work on my cadence as well as my strength. Staying in the large chain ring works on strength where as being in the small chain ring will reduce fatigue in the legs and enable hill climbs to be more efficient. 

With running, I have had ups and downs. I have been trying to be consistent with the events I am entering on the weekends to keep my long runs accountable, however I don’t know if I am mentally or physically exhausted (or both) from some of the events that my attendance on the Tuesday nights have not been too consistent. I think I have 1 more sessions with Tim and I really don’t want to miss out on anymore as I think his lessons are valuable. In July, I have to decide if I am going to run Sri Chimnoy (flat) 10km and see if I can beat my previous time of 59min or do Salomon Trail Run in Plenty Gorge where I will be running 17km and it will be hilly. I will decide closer to the weekend.   


My strength work has been great. I know that I am getting stronger in the legs and core. Currently on Week 8 of my 12 week program. I am getting more toned but my clothes however have not been fitting as well as before. My shoulders, arms and thighs have increased in measurement so I have resorted to buying new clothes and wishing that I had kept some of my pre-triathlon clothes. My weight (on the scales) have been increasing and sometimes I weigh enough to compete in the Athenas category (70kg+) and I am only 156cm tall. Part of me is slightly sad that the reason why I kicked myself out of the “out of shape/unift” rut was so that I can lose weight and aim towards <60kg but I seem to be creeping up the other way. The other (more logistic and scientific) side of me knows that in order to have strength for the bike and run, you need muscle mass and muscle weights more than fat etc etc....I also know that I do carry excess fat around my stomach area and this will be something which I am looking forward to getting rid off in the next 4-5 months. The only time I ever see the fat around my stomach practically gone is around the month before every Ironman race and this is not a very realistic and sustainable means of being toned. Currently, I have 2 sessions of strength programmed into my schedule and this may increase to 3 sessions after Shepparton to work towards 3 Peaks. The 3rd session may not necessarily be working with weights but could be Pilates Reformer. 

In order to get down to my race weight of <60kg, I need to be more conscious of my food intake and aim for a 2kg weight loss/month. I have been making a conscious effort in drinking up to 2 litres of hydration a day – from electrolytes, coconut water, green tea through to just plain water. I snack of dried apricots and almonds if I feel peckish. I don’t restrict myself to fruits – there is so much noise out there on how fructose (sugars in fruits) makes you fat but seriously, have you ever come across an obese person who consumed too much fruit? I have cut down my coffees to 2 a day and quite often than not, 1 or none over the weekend. With the advice from Chris, I am consuming complex carbohydrates (as much as I can control) within 2 hours of a training session, this includes rice, pasta, pizza, potatoes and sweet potatoes. I tend to head home for lunch so I can have a high protein meal with eggs, tofu or chicken with vegetables and that satisfies me. My partner loves his carbs and luckily for him, they are introduced after training sessions for dinner as I am doing more training sessions after work. 

It has been a while that I have been able to do some form of training everyday of the week. I may have only one day per week off during recovery weeks wherever a massage is booked in place of a session. I am guessing that as strength work is programmed into my schedule and they take 30-45min to complete (and being indoors), I am less likely to “skip” a training session. If I ever have a sleep in due to exhaustion or need to head into work early and miss out on a session, I will make up for it (on the same day) with a gym session on the treadmill or the spin bikes.


Post Shepparton, I will step up the frequency of cycling whilst decreasing the training sessions for swimming and running down to 1 each per week (no long sessions). I will talk about this more closer to November and manage after Shepparton towards 3 Peaks. 

Working towards 3 Peaks (entries open in July), I have already signed up for the following:

Amy's Gran Fondo - 120km (110km + 10km Benwerrin descent) on 13th September. 

Around the Bay – 210km anti clockwise on 11th October. 
I may sign up to the Audax Alpine Classic in January as part of the training preparation as well. 
Hope this entry is keeping you guys up to date on my training and journey towards a meaningful season of events.

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