Journey Back to Kona Day 15: The Art and Science of the Taper

Unloading fatigue. At the end of the day, that's what the taper is all about.  It's become a fascinating journey as I try to listen to my body and respond accordingly on a near daily basis.  Last week was an opportunity to unload fatigue by literally taking 5 of 7 days completely off.  Of course, one of my workouts, at the end of the week, was a 6 hour and 10 minute solid bike ride.  Between technology, primarily my new Garmin watch, and how I feel, I try to measure my fatigue and adjust based on it.  The goal is that I will have let go of most, if not all, of that fatigue 25 days from now on race day at Ironman California.  

Over the past two days I worked out for over six hours, obviously increasing my fatigue level, and today is a "rest" day.  The quotations are there because I'm working and driving in traffic.  That's the problem with exercise based fatigue measurements.  They ignore the other stresses in our lives that increase fatigue.  For instance, four days of babysitting last week is not accounted for, except somehow, by my new "body battery" calculator on my garmin!  I'm definitely feeling the fatigue this morning.  My resting heart rate is up (~44-45), and my HRV (heart rate variability) is down (80).  Neither are particularly bad numbers, especially for the average person!  Still, I know that I'm at my "best" when my resting heart rate is below 40 and my HRV is in the low 90's.  

So I truly begin my focus on tapering and unloading fatigue in earnest.  I've made workout plans for the rest of the week, but I am not married to them.  I'll adjust on the fly with the knowledge that I've been training for seven months and the "hay is in the barn," so to speak.  Recovery and rest, and the unloading of fatigue, is paramount at this point in time.  I continue to learn about the body and how it responds.  Let's see what tomorrow looks like!

Journey Back to Kona Day 12: The Art of the Taper

Today is officially four weeks before Ironman California.  Yesterday's bike ride couldn't have gone better. I did everything I'd planned.  Time on the bike: 6 hours and 11 minutes. Volume of riding: 111 miles. Time in Aero position: Well over five hours. Normalized Power: 138 watts; Average Power 131 watts: Average Heart Rate: 127 bpm.  How did I feel.  Aside from still being tired going into the ride, the ride itself wasn't really hard.  I was tired after the ride, but was able to run a mile immediately and was beginning to loosen up and feel better, so I stopped.  I ate, rested and recovered the rest of the day, and went to bed early with the intention of running this morning.  I woke up feeling better, though not fully refreshed.  My hips were tight during the night, but felt improved this morning.  Still, the idea of running, whether short or long, doesn't fully make sense today.  Everything this year has been different, so perhaps my taper should be too.

Prior to this past week, my coach an I talked about the idea of a "reverse taper," where I would "unload" this week and then ramp up again for my official taper.  From a workout perspective, I certainly did this.  From a stress perspective, not so much.  Four days of babysitting didn't show up on my Training Stress Score (TSS), but it did show up everywhere else.  The impact of 9 minutes of hard cycling on Thursday. The total fatigue on Friday. To some degree, even how I'm feeling today.  My recovery from yesterday's long bike is actually pretty good, but it could be better.  If I take today as a true rest day, then I actually have unloaded stress this week and the coming week could be a solid week of training leading into my actual taper.

Here's the plan. Rest today.  Then, the coming week will include: 1) 50 miles of running, with a long run, 2) solid bike volume, w/ one more VO2 session, finishing the week with a 5 hour ride, 3) Three one hour swims.  Writing this down feels right. And, that's truly why tapering is an art.  

Journey Back to Kona Day 11: Putting in the Work

One doesn't have their best Ironman performance without putting in the work.   As I look back on all of the Ironman races that I've done, that's been the greatest challenge.  It's not like I've been a slacker, far from it.  However, there are certain things one has to do to truly expect the possibility of a good result.  That's because of what an Ironman consists of. Swimming 2.4 miles. Biking 112 miles. Running 26.2 miles. Alone, each of these tasks requires a certain level and type of training.  Together. Well, that goes without saying.  In the summer and fall of 2009 I was training pretty well and felt like I was going to be fully prepared for my first Ironman in May of 2010.  An unfortunate bike accident during long course world's in October of 2009 had a significant impact on my run preparation going into my first Ironman.  In 2016, I did a 20 mile run every week for 20 weeks.  That summer, at both Ironman Boulder and Chattanooga, that training paid dividends.  Over the years, I've felt like I've put in the necessary run training, but as I prepare for Ironman California, I realize that I've never been prepared for my run like I am now.  I've never come close to regular 40 (and even 50) mile run weeks.  I feel like I've put in the work when it comes to my run.  What about the bike?

The bike is what had me concerned up to a few weeks ago.  While I've done long bike rides over the years in preparation for Ironman, I've  rarely done bike training that had me confident about my ability to get off the bike feeling relatively fresh.  With that said, I've had some solid bike legs during Ironman races.  I've managed, just a couple of times, to not feel the "doldrums" during the bike and to start the run with my legs feeling pretty good.  In some ways I'd been concerned about my bike training, until last weekend, when I rode my bike 6 hours and felt solid the whole way.  Today, I get to back that up.  Another six hour day, after a strange week of "rest" which has left me feeling very out of sorts.  With four weeks to go before race day, I'm getting closer to my taper.  I used to look at four weeks as the time to start tapering, but the taper truly begins two to three weeks from the day of the race, especially if one is really prepared.  That leaves me with today's long bike ride and another one (not quite as long) next weekend.  

I haven't mentioned the swim, and there are a couple of reasons.  The first reason is that the swim is the shortest part of the race.  The second reason is that my form usually assures me a reasonable swim time.  The third, in this particular case, is that the swim is downriver, which plays to all of my strengths.  Also, I've noticed, that because of my good form, I'm able to carry my overall fitness and training into the swim.  Still, over the next few weeks, my swim volume will increase, putting the finishing touches on my race preparation.  

Preparing for an Ironman wouldn't be complete without mental preparation.  Over the years, I've improved my visualization skills and more recently, my meditative abilities. Both are necessary and helpful during an Ironman.  I was surprised last week how quickly the six hours flew by on the bike, and my regular 90 minute, 10 mile runs have made the running time also fly by.  Still, an Ironman is an 11, 12, or even 14 hour (hopefully not this time) day.   The mental preparation is just as important as the physical.

So, here I am. Four weeks out.  A long bike today. We'll see how it goes.

Journey Back to Kona Day 10: Listening to our Body

Wow! That's all that I can say.  I continue to learn about how our body works.  After my Sunday morning run, which couldn't have gone any better, we had four straight days of babysitting.  OK, I wish that there was a TSS (Training Stress Score) for babysitting.  I loved my time with my grandson and granddaughter, but I know that I was totally knackered by the end of each day.  If you ignore the fact that I had a solid workout Sunday morning, this was essentially four straight days with no training (except for walking my grandson to school and chasing after my granddaughter all day around the house...my garmin actually showed 10K steps each day!).  Still, very different from the past seven months.

This is actually quite an informative chart.  I really had a nice training build, almost all of which was at relatively low intensity, from the end of February through the end of June.  I then had two weeks of enforced "rest" battling an infected tooth and extraction.  I say "rest" because the muscles rested but the body was fighting.  Nevertheless, it was essentially two weeks off, which were then followed by ten very solid weeks of training.  The last four weeks prior to this one was probably as solid of a training cycle as I've ever had, with both my bike and run volumes increasing (run from a weekly perspective, bike from a long bike perspective).  This brings me to the past four days.  There's no question that my body was very well rested.  Hormonally, as my coach might point out, I was still more fatigued than I would have liked to admit, due to the four straight days of babysitting.  When I woke up yesterday morning, I felt fine.  In fact, I felt good.  I went out and did a one hour bike ride with three 3 minute very hard uphill efforts, VO2 max, workouts.  After a 2 mile shakeout run I endeavored to rest.  However, I noticed that I really felt "off."  Despite only 9 minutes of high intensity, high heart rate efforts, the effects seemed to be hanging on.  My heart rate stayed high throughout the day.  Despite focusing on eating and drinking, I seemed to be unable to "catch up."  I was literally exhausted.  I even texted my coach in the evening that I might not be up to my planned long run today.  

Two years ago, I arrived in Kona for the Ironman World Championships.  The day before I left and the day I arrived I did no training.  I literally had two straight days without working out.  The day after I arrived I did a 10K, my effort was harder than planned.  I felt completely wiped out afterward.  Despite that feeling, the next day I did a 2.4 mile ocean swim.  Whether I subsequently had a cold and a sinus infection, or just a sinus infection, I'll never know.  What I do know was that I was really messed up physiologically and hormonally all week, and certainly on race day.  How I managed to complete the Ironman was a testament to my preparation, overall fitness and mental fortitude.  Seven years ago, I rested for two to three days prior to Ironman Lake Tahoe.  On race day, I really didn't "feel" like I had "it." Fortunately, the race was cancelled, and one week later I PR'd at Ironman Chattanooga.  Hmm.  There's a pattern forming.  

As I go from a high training stress load to literally nothing for a few days, my body rebels.  That's certainly ok, but it's not ok if I am racing immediately thereafter.  Something tells me that taking this break five weeks out from Ironman California has given my body its opportunity to "rebel."  Doing anything substantial today would probably not be helpful, though I'm considering a short strength workout of core plus jogging.  We'll see if I feel up to it later on today.  No pressure, either way.  

I had planned to do a long run (potentially my longest prior to race day) today.  Not a big deal. I've got tons of time to get that run in over the next week.  Tomorrow was and still is supposed to be a long bike ride.  If I feel good in the morning, it will be.  If not, I can move that ride to Sunday.  The long run will come in the next few days, so long as I don't feel like I'm pushing or forcing it.  The great news is that I have a lot of flexibility over the next week to get these long workouts in.  The true Ironman taper is really over the final three weeks.  

Hopefully, this is just part of my learning experience.  It's particularly unique insofar as my training is far and away more robust and effective than it's ever been.  In some ways, my body's response is testament to the fact that I'm better trained and prepared than I've ever been.  I've written many posts over the years titled "Listening to My Body."  Today is a new addition to that.  It's all part of the journey!

Journey Back to Kona Day 5: Visualizing the Finish

So much of Ironman, and all racing for that matter, is mental.  Visualization is a key tool to use.  Today, I wasn't sure how far I was going to run.  Yesterday's bike (and the previous four days for that matter) had completely fatigued my legs and body.  In fact, my heart rate had trouble going down all day and night, but finally did when I slept (albeit quite fitfully).  With that said, my resting heart rate was at a relative high of 44-45 this morning, I was definitely fatigued, but I was still motivated.  Today was supposed to be a relatively long run.  I chose my flat back and forth route that allows me to stop every 1 1/2 miles to get a drink from my car.  I started out, focused on breathing every 6th step (my MAF effort), and my heart rate ultimately came up to ~130 after 3 miles.  For the first mile or so, I kept thinking that maybe I should cut today's run short, I was really tired, and my pace was right around 9:30/mile.

I had started today's run visualizing the start of the Ironman run.  That was my mistake.  I'll always remember how I felt at the beginning of the run at Chattanooga, where I had my PR.  I felt great!  If I felt like this at the beginning of the run at Ironman California, it would be a sign to slow down, eat and drink and try to feel better before pushing it (as I actually did in Chattanooga in 2016).  No, how I was feeling today was how I expected to feel at Mile 16 of Ironman California, and that's when my new visualization began.

From the second mile of today's run, I was at Mile 18 of Ironman, breathing every 6th step and the third mile went by in 9:17.  Since Mile 4-6 now represented Miles 19-22, I increased my breathing to every 5th step (and my heart rate gradually came up to ~135), and my pace held, completing those miles in 9:21, 9:22 and 8:50 (when my heart rate actually went up to 135).  Now I just had four miles to go to finish the Ironman!  With that visualization, I let my breathing increase to every fourth step for the next two miles, the first mile what I call comfortable Zone 2, which I did in 8:43, and the next mile done breathing harder, but still every 4th step, which I call "purposeful" Zone 2.  That mile clicked away in 8:40.  

Two miles to the finish. What do I do?  I naturally increased my breathing to every 3rd step, which would be Tempo effort, although my heart rate didn't want to move much higher than 145.  Still, I pushed, not sure as to what would happen during or after this mile.  This was mile 9 of today's run, and theoretically Mile 25 of the Ironman marathon.  When I hit the end of the mile, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was now running at 8:08 pace.

That left me with 1.2 miles to go.  What do I do? Keep up the Tempo pace? Slow down? Go harder?  I chose to start breathing every 2nd step, which is essentially Lactic Threshold effort.  I stopped looking at heart rate, but did look at my pace, it was holding at 8:10.  I focused solely on keeping it at that pace.  Nothing else mattered.  Push, push, push.  I completed the 10th mile (Mile 26 for my visualization) and had 0.2 miles left.  My heart rate had come up to 152 at the end of the last mile, though I wasn't looking at it, all I could do was suffer, just like I had at the end of the Santa Barbara Triathlon a few weeks ago.  

The last 0.2 miles were completed at 7:46 pace and my heart rate was 154.  I was done.  But, more importantly, this was just the beginning.  Five weeks to Ironman California.  Another important and useful workout in the bank.  If I start the run feeling good, I should be feeling quite fatigued by Mile 16.  At that point I'll draw on today's workout to bring me to the finish.

Journey Back to Kona Day 4: It's All About the Bike, Kind of

What a day.  After four days of primarily running (~33 miles) and a solid bike effort yesterday, today was a long bike day.  In the past this is probably where I've struggled the most.  First of all, getting these long rides in. Second, making them count!  I had put a 6 hour ride in my calendar and my coach said that 5 to 6 was fine.  Well, I got in the full six hours, and I could have kept riding (though probably wouldn't have enjoyed it too much).  My power didn't make sense today, and since I hadn't calibrated my power meter, I'll just have to leave it at that.  However, I know how I felt and I know how fast I went.  Last weekend, I went into a similar ride with about the same level of fatigue and noticed that my back was a little sore and tight pretty early on.  Still, I rode over five hours and my back held up.  Today, I never really felt any back discomfort (ok, maybe a little during the last hour or so).  And, I kept in my aero position diligently for 90% of this ride, especially the 83 miles riding the Westlake "Lake Loop."  Sixteen loops might seem excessive to some, and mind numbing to others, but it's great practice for a flat Ironman California course, and it's a great way to measure my progress.

The first thing I noticed was that my first loop was about a minute or so faster than my fastest loops last week.  And, my heart rate was low, actually mostly under 120 for the first few loops.  Fifteen loops later I was finishing that portion of my ride and my HR was now ~130 and my speed had only slowed slightly.  The effort was fine (again, can't trust the power meter readings).  The speed, however, spoke for itself today.  I was rock solid consistent riding 19mph for 83 miles (4 1/2 hours), and feeling fine doing so.  This bodes very well for my Ironman, especially considering the fact that I'll be rested, which I wasn't today.

6 hours and 5 minutes on the bike; 108 miles in the books.  I got home and quickly changed into my running shorts and shoes and (after a very short bathroom break) ran 2.1 miles at a comfortable breathing effort (breathing every 6 steps).  It was a bit of a "slog" I have to admit, and my low back was tightening up on me during the second mile.  Nevertheless, my running pace was 9:38.  And, it didn't budge for the two miles.  Again, on race day, I'll be rested.  I won't have run 33 miles in the four days leading up to the race.  I won't be carrying six months of fatigue.  But, I'd be thrilled to get off the bike and run 9:38 pace!  I'll always remember Ironman Chattanooga, perhaps the only time I got off the bike in an Ironman and my legs actually felt great.  Also my second fastest Ironman run ever.  Considering how my legs felt at the Santa Barbara Triathlon just three weeks ago, I'm encouraged to see where I'll be five weeks from now.

Five weeks from now.  That's remarkable.  I'm literally a week (or two) from my official "taper."  Fortunately, I get a "break" over the next four or five days.  After a long run tomorrow, we babysit for four days (I imagine that carries its own stress, not easily documented in my training logs).  However, physically that will give me four days to "unload" the fatigue that I've built up recently.  Next weekend will be similar to this one, and then it's time to begin my taper.  At the end of the day, Ironman racing is really about the run, but you can't run if your legs are beat up by the bike.  Today's bike suggests that won't be the case.

Journey Back to Kona Day 3: Absorbing Training

Several weeks before the pandemic began I had decided to train for Ironman St. George.  It was supposed to be held in May of 2020, so I had little time to train.  Nevertheless, I'd begun my training and felt confident that I'd be able to race.  Obviously, a lot changed in March of 2020 and not only did the race get postponed, but I stopped training.  It wasn't until the summer that I started exercising regularly again, and my focus was purely on running.  A possible stress reaction in November caused me to back off again, and it wasn't until February 22nd of this year that I began fully engaged in Ironman training.  That was nearly 7 months ago, and my training efforts during that time have taken on new meaning.  First, I focused primarily on lower heart rate (Maffetone) training.  Second, I prioritized running, to the extent that I invariably have been running before I bike.  Third, swimming took a back seat until a few months ago, but that's always been ok because swimming, while not necessarily being a "strong suit" is something that I can quickly get "up to speed" on due to my good form.  

This has all taken on a new light as I've been training for Ironman California, which is now just a little over 5 weeks away.  Most importantly, it's working.  I've not only had my best race performances in my life over the past few months, but I can tell that I continue to absorb the training.  That's the word I've always loved when my training is working. "Absorb."  This week is a great example.  After an incredibly solid three day weekend of training (Hour bike w/ VO2 max efforts, 9.3 mile run on Friday; 5:07 bike followed by a 3.2 mile run on Saturday; 13 mile progression run on Sunday), I took the day off on Monday and felt fine enough over the past three days to run 9.5 miles each day, and got in a one hour nonstop swim.  I didn't bike, but that was a combination of too much work and balance (knowing what is coming up this weekend).  Today, I'll start to repeat last weekend's efforts.  

The fact that I've run 28.5 miles in three days and I feel fine is cause to recognize how much I'm absorbing my training these days, and how the run has become not only "second-nature," but my "go-to" workout.  I haven't decided how much I'll run today, or even if I'll run.  That decision will be based on a combination of factors, including how I feel, but also, how much time I have (due to a couple of meetings this morning).  I've really worked hard to find a balance in the past several months between work and training, while maintaining my life and commitment to my wife and family.  So far, so good, but it can be a bit of a slippery slope when the training is going so well.

I fasted yesterday and still ran 9.5 miles (albeit at a pretty low heart rate). Nevertheless, the day probably added a little extra stress, leaving me with a little higher heart rate and a little lower HRV (Heart Rate Variability) today.  Still, I'm feeling pretty good and will see how my bike goes with some more VO2 efforts.  My coach is having me do this workout once a week in the weeks leading up to Ironman California in order to improve my bike power a bit.  Last week went great, we'll see how I absorb this weeks workout!

Journey Back to Kona Day 2: Finding Peace

Today is Yom Kippur.  I remember 43 years ago walking the streets of Petah Tikva, outside of Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur.  I was nineteen years old, and had moved to Israel with the intention of becoming an Israeli citizen.  I was staying with my older cousins and it so happened that my visit coincided with Yom Kippur. My cousins spoke little to no English.  I remember going for a walk.  There were no cars on the streets and there was a peacefulness in the air.  That's how I felt today as I went for a run.  I took in my last calories a about an hour before sundown last night and somehow slept over 10 hours.  I felt like running this morning and didn't want to add stress to my body.  So, I put on my heart rate monitor and went out to run my 9 1/2 mile (15K) route that has about 700 feet of climbing.  For some reason it seemed pretty quiet out today.  

My plan was to keep my heart rate low, definitely under 130, but really trying to average 120bpm.  My normal easy run usually has my average heart rate right around 130.  The idea was that the lower my heart rate, the more I would burn fat, and not stimulate my metabolism to burn sugar.  If I was going to fast for 25 hours, burning through my carbohydrate stores would only put added stress on my body.  

Today was the third day in a row running the 9.5 mile hilly route.  The previous two days my run took an hour and 32 minutes.  Today, it took an hour and 37 minutes.  However, my heart rate stayed right around 120 for the entire run.  I only go up to 127-129 on the steepest climbs.  As usual, I brought no water with me, and still sweated a fair amount due to the humidity.  When I got home I drank a bottle of water with electrolytes and meditated for 10 minutes.  Peace.

Running takes on its own meditative bent for me.  Today, that's what it was all about.  I think back to that day in 1978 when I'd moved to the other side of the world, trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.  It's funny how things change, but stay the same.  I'm still trying to figure out what to do with my life, and my journey back to Kona is now firmly embedded in my plan.  Finding peace is also important.  There will always be bumps on the road, but equanimity and peace are high up on my list.  It's not lost on me how peaceful I've felt the two times I've been in Kona.  It's a good thing to focus on.

Journey Back To Kona Day 1: Believing That I Can Qualify

And so it begins.  I've thought about writing this blog many times over the past few months. This past weekend's workouts have given me the courage to put it out there.  For many years I thought about trying to qualify for the Ironman World Championship.  I actually thought that I might have the capability of doing so.  Even two years ago, when I made it to Kona through the Legacy program, I gave it one last attempt at Ironman Boulder to try to qualify.  While I go my second best age group result ever (7th place), I was still far away from a Kona slot.  The biggest single reason for the fact that I've never come closer than 45 minutes from qualifying lies with the run.  I won't know for another 6 weeks whether that has truly changed, but it sure feels like it right now.  I also harbor no illusions as to how challenging getting a Kona slot will be, even in the 60-64 year old age group, where the competition is still fierce.

In a lot of ways, Day 1 of my "Journey Back to Kona" could very well be the first day of a three year endeavor.  It is quite plausible that my ability to be competitive enough to qualify for a Kona slot won't come until I join the ranks of the 65-69 year old age group.  On the other hand, my recent race performances and training experiences have opened the door ever so slightly for the next two years.  My first chance to see how I stack up comes in less than six weeks at Ironman California.  While one never knows how they will perform on race day, especially when it comes to Ironman racing, I'm as ready as I've ever been.

Finding myself running under 8 minute pace during the final five miles of a 10 mile run and 4 hour triathlon completely changed the way I view myself.  In my age group, as in many of the age groups, ones Ironman finishing place is "all about the run."  In all of my years of doing triathlons, I've never run like this.  Today was my second day in a row of running 9.5 miles comfortably on a hilly course close to 9:30 pace.  I expect to put in another 50 mile run week this week, and for the past six months I've averaged close to 40 miles of running a week.  My body has absorbed the training and is not breaking down.  In fact, I look forward to going out and running 10 miles!

This brings me to my goals for IM California.  I have three.  First, and foremost, to have a run PR.  This means pretty much running the marathon the marathon in under 4 hours and 30 minutes, although, I'd like to set a reasonable goal of running a 4:20 marathon.  Ideally, if I'm having a great day, getting under 4 hours is the holy grail for >60 athletes.  If I can run the marathon in under 4 hours I will undoubtedly achieve my other two goals.  The first is to PR for the race, which would be anything under 11:30, though again, my "stretch" goal is doing the Ironman under 11 hours.  Any or all of these results will get me to my final goal of being on the Age Group podium (top five).  Depending on who else is racing, and how they do, getting on the podium gives me a fair, albeit outside, chance of getting a Kona slot.  The 60-64 age group generally has one slot, hence the winner of the age group.  There are 60 year olds capable of doing this race in close to 10 hours.  At the end of the day, luck will play a part for me!