Hot Box

Well, we're in that precarious stage before Hawaii when you come from a colder climate and fall has arrived but you are getting ready for a race that promises to be well into the mid 30's. So what do you do when you need to sweat.....you make workouts take place in a great deal of discomfort. Today I ran and rode in pretty much all the gear I had.

Run was in thick fleece tights, toque, long sleeve shirt, two running jackets and gloves. Ride was in winter tights, long sleeve fleece riding jersey, winter riding coat and non breathing rain coat.....with 30mins at the end on the trainer with the block heater exactly 20cm from my face. I had to take the rain coat off because it was starting to melt. As Jude would say "good times". But the heat acclimation still seems to be in tact from the happy fun camp in Hawaii and the heat feels good, my legs seem to work better with some heat.

I can't wait to get back there, less than two weeks before travel and less than three before racing. Until then I will continue to hot box it here in Victoria.

PS. As you can see from the picture, it's cold way up here in Canada

Frosty

What a difference a week can make! This time last week, i'm in Hawaii, 36 degrees, humid like mad dogs and getting a tan. Saturday's ride here.....8 degrees with patches of rain. But, i'm in that good space right now where the work just gets done and it doesn't seem to matter the conditions. I went up to Whistler to spend a weekend with my brother and we did a great ride out to Pemberton. The riding would actually be quite good there in the warmer months....it's a total mixed bag.....lots of hills if you want them and good flat sections over in Pemberton. To get to Pemberton requires a significant decent so every ride finishes with about 40mins of climbing but it's pretty steady.

On Sunday I had a great run. Finally I am starting to feel somewhat "normal" running. I think a combo of the Osteopath work and exercises I've been doing and some work in the heat which tends to lean things out a bit. I ran around the cross country trails in Whistler which roll pretty good but are smooth. We had a great weekend, good training and great relaxing.

We have a new kitten, hilarious.......she loves the shower, if you are having a shower she spends the entire time in there splashing around and drinking. After you turn it off she stays in there and rolls around in the left over water. She's awesome and she enjoys to still pee on everything but the litter pan.

Two more weeks and off to Hawaii. Probably one of the last open water swims I will brave this morning. I'm in with the top half only of my Desoto wetsuit which is a huge bonus for Hawaii....can still get in open water and stay warm in the upper without messing up the lower half of your body. My legs needed an icing after yesterday so it was good for two things.

Hawii Camp Day 12- Last Day- Some Fun Numbers

Last day of camp was good, just a good swim and a longish run at some pace work. My legs are pooched but that is the point in general to smash yourself, get leaner and get out on the course. Mission accomplished, I will live to sit on my bike seat another day and i didn't get eaten. Crazy trip home but that is for another blog and so now I present to you Hawaii by the numbers:



13 days
63 hours of training
11 hours of swimming
34 hours of biking
8 hours of running
Aproximately 70 liters of water
2 bags of Gleukos sports drink
40 salt stick salt capsules
13 packages of 7systems
8 iron pills
4 energy bars
3 powergels
2 loaves of bread
1 jar of almond butter
2 small containers of jam
1 small container of honey
3 big bags of organic salad
2 bottles of Annies organic dressing
1 small horseradish mustard
3 packages of turkey breast
3 smoked salmon pieces
2 Ahi Tuna steaks
5 boxes of Kashi cereal
5 cartons of Almond milk
6 Apples
2 bags of sprouts
15 papayas
3 oranges
6 bananas
5 Potatoes
5 Sweet Potatoes
1 bag of pasta
1 container of Organic pasta sauce
1 Bag of honey wheat pretzels
3 cookies (yes only 3)
1 brownie
1 bag of Sunchips
1 bag of Organic salt and vinegar chips
2 small pieces of dark chocolate
2 Lava Java Muffins
2 cups of coffee
3 cups of Quinoa
1 dinner out at O's restaurant- I ate Mongolian Stir Fry and some bread
1 Killer taco chicken burrito
2 Killer taco fish tacos
1 Pesto Chicken Burrito en route in Seattle airport
1.5 rolls of toilet paper
1 tube of chamois cream
1 load of laundry
1/2 tube of sunscreen
1 small bar of soap
1 small thing of shampoo
3/4 tube of Berts toothpaste
1/4 roll of dental floss
2 garbage bags
2 flat tires
1 CO2 cartridges
24 chapters read in my book
12 watched sunsets
13 days up before the sun
1 tank of gas
3 hours talked on my cell phone on roaming charges
2 hysterical calls from my lovely wife
8 normal calls from my lovely wife
39 bowel movements (although i would hazard a guess that some of these were the same ones in two different waves)
6 different riding sores
1 tube of ginger macadamia skin cream for my crotch
1 sore crotch
26 ice bottles for my crotch
3 urinations that stung so bad your mom goes to college
1 $30 cab fee to the airport
20 hours of travel
8 US Open matches
1/2 football game
9 episodes of Burn Notice
3 movies
1 episode of house
3 episodes of friday night lights
8 episodes of Law and Order
Too many hours of TV
Too much time on my hands

Hawaii Camp- Day 11- Taco, Taco, Burrito, Burrito

I have an ice bottle between my legs, my mid section is killing.....the skin and the bones. It wasn't too bad on the ride but now the thought of a bike seat makes me want to not sit on it.

Today was the second of two big rides. 6.5hrs with basically a TT of the course. I started early, 6am basically in the dark. It was a different day today, a bit overcast and not too much wind but really really really humid. The air was so thick that your mom goes to college. I rode well today, fast out to Kawahae which is the turn off to Hawi...bit of rain up to Hawi, refilled the bottles and off again. The section from Kawahae to Kona was fairly windy but not too bad today so i was rolling well. A run off the bike with a recovery swim and Bob's your uncle- 14hrs of training in two days with 12.5hrs of riding and at the moment i can't imagine the thought of sitting on a bike ever again.

My legs are now officially smashed....one semi-long run tomorrow and a couple more open water swims and whammy, camp done and home sweet home. It's been a very good, very productive block here. I think I've figured out the hydration thing, I'm basically drinking twice as much as i used to and the beauty is that i don't really need food anymore.

The best part of today was eating two fish tacos and a burrito from Killer Taco. I had to ride my bike there, it really hurt but it was worth it.

Props to Lauren Grov-ez for making her Olympic criteria....at least that's the news I got down the pipeline today....man that is just sweet sweet action....way to go Grov-ez.



I will leave you with this note:
One who understands others has knowledge
One who understands himself has wisdom
Mastering others requires force;
mastering the self requires strength.

If you realize that you have enough
you are truly rich

Hawaii Camp- Day 10- 8 Bottles

Big ride today- 6hrs out onto the course again but this time around it was way better. I started at 6am so I could get it done and it was either more favorable with the wind or it just wasn't a very windy day. Whatever the reason it was just a more pleasant day. My mid section has had a nice break and the saddle felt more comfortable (although I'm not sure how tomorrow will feel). The set was basically mid range aerobic work for 6 hours, in the aerobars pushing steady. I got to Hawi just before 9, refilled the bottles and headed back.

I think the big difference today was the amount of fluid I consumed.... my hydration was managed much better and my core temperature stayed in check....this despite the fact that my computer showed the highest temperature so far on camp at 38 degrees in one section.

Today everything flowed....a good day! One more big ride tomorrow and camp is almost over. I'm going to get a cookie at Lava Java.

Hawaii Camp- Day 9- Coconut Husks

I've learned over the past couple of years that when i am getting ready for an ironman i have to do a bunch of open water swimming. In fact, I go through blocks where I am rarely getting in the pool. How often in swimming do we actually swim straight for 30-75mins.....it's rare and it's the only sport of the three that we don't seem to do this. I find after a good block of this kind of swimming my aerobic strength in the water gets way better. And so another 60 minute straight swim this morning in the beautiful blue ocean. I only had one scare when my foot kicked a coconut husk. I spun around so fast and threw up in my mouth but after that it was all good. I was embarrassed even though i was on my own. I've got to get over this thing so i am going to keep swimming in there until i do. I am good when there is company but man my brain plays with me out there.

A steady run with some kms at pace and that was a day. What a huge difference time in the heat makes. Everything was normal today, normal pace, normal heart rate and the heat felt good. I ran out Alii Drive, the road you run on for the first 10-15km in the race. It follows the shoreline and is spectacular.

I've spent most of the rest of it on my back with feet up. I'm into this show called "Burn Notice". American TV is crazy man....they are showing 9 straight hours of it today. I don't plan on watching it all, I take breaks but it's a good one to chill out. The next two days are going to be tough so rest is pretty important.

Mike Neill left this morning so it is a few more days flying solo. I can't believe I've almost been here for 2 weeks.

Hawaii Camp- Day 8- A chillaxin day

Check out this picture.....this is Adam Campbell whose blog you can check at http://cdamaampbell.blogspot.com He just did this wicked cool running race in Europe that involved some crazy efforts. I loved this picture, very cool, running in Europe might be one of the greatest thrills and this picture sums it up well. Breathtaking man, just beautiful!

Today a chance to chillax a bit and rest. After yesterdays run which concluded several rather significant days I was buzzing a bit and felt pretty wired. This morning a bit groggy but it wasn't until we started swimming that i realized how tired my body was. It took about 10 minutes to feel normal out there this morning. Swimming in the ocean is very cool most mornings, large schools of fish, the odd turtle and if you're really lucky, a manta ray. It's a heck of a way to start the day...very cool.

We rode this morning as well. Two hours pretty relaxed with some high rpm stuff....got it done early which freed up the rest of the day to put the feet up. My pedal stroke feels great as it usually does when you start getting a good focused block of riding in. Efficiency is the word, you start finding power that wasn't there before and the pedal stroke just feels smooth and liquid. One minor problem however is the state of my crotch....not to get too graphic but man, i am sore. I could hardly sit on my saddle today. Not really sure it is so sore this time around but I think probably due to the humidity, sweating, salt etc. Hopefully it clears up before the Friday, Saturday line up which i am sure will prove to be quite challenging. I can't remember a time when icing that area felt good. I have two water bottles i keep in the freezer for just such an occasion. It feels good to sit on the bottles and cool things down.

Mike Brewer is off today on a plane bound for Columbus. Farewell good man......farewell.

Hawaii Camp- Day 7- September 11th

September 11th, 2007- A moment of reflection- 6 years already since September 11th, 2001 and how time can pass by so quickly. For me and I'm sure everyone else it will be one of those days that you will remember exactly where you were and what you were doing. I was living in Guelph getting ready for Hawaii 2001. We used to listen to CBC every morning and I remember my brother turning it on and mentioning that something weird was going on in New York. We didn't have a TV so we kept listening to the radio. It was so surreal I don't think any of us really were able to clue into the magnitude of the thing. It only really hit me when we headed up to U of Guelph and every TV that existed on campus was crammed with students, mouths open wide in complete shock. It was a strange day. Mostly strange because we continued on as you do when something is not directly impacting you at that moment but I remember thinking even then how it felt kind of strange to be getting in the pool and continuing on. I can't imagine living in New York at the time, I just can't imagine it. I'm not sure what to say beyond that.....the world can be a crazy place.

And so on that sobering note:


Another good day here in Kona with our usual trip to Lava Java at 6am followed by a casual stroll to the pier and a dip in the ocean. This morning was just a short swim, 30mins to shake it out and warm the body up before the long run. The water was strange this morning, moving weird and I was letting my brain get away on me which happens sometimes when i am in the ocean. It's a stupid phobia but I just don't want to swim into a sharks mouth, that would really be annoying. But as Mister Brewer once said, for every shark you see, there are probably a dozen that have seen you.....I'm not sure that really made me feel any better. The crazy thing is I have never and probably will never see one and even if I do it will likely just ignore me but we all have our little mental battles. I take some comfort in the fact that Mister Neill is swimming beside me, actually, that's not really comforting at all except that the shark might eat him instead. Aside from that, my stroke felt really good this morning, very smooth, good balance and good rhythm as is usually the case when you consistently feel the water.

We ran today from 11am-1pm, in the heat of the day out to the Natural energy lab. This section of the course happens from about mile 10 through 26. It takes you out the Queen K highway out into the lava fields....hot air, hot pavement, black tarmac, black lava. You run about 6 miles out to the turn off then run 2 miles out and 2 miles back into the energy lab, the heat here can be suffocating. Today wasn't too bad however, a slight breeze and a bit of cloud cover made a big difference but it is still a challenge to stay hydrated. Kona might be the only place I have trained where you have to stop at stores to re-fuel during a run. The legs and body were a bit shaky from yesterday but 18 odd miles and 2 hours later we were back and still sweating...success!



The time between workouts involves alot of lying on my back with ice bottles on my legs and marathon sessions of Law and Order. I don't really watch this show at home but they keep showing it here and I just can't get enough of the suspense....who did it man, who did it...? I also spend a fair amount of time eating papaya's. Today I did laundry it was really exciting. Last night I was introduced to Erin whose picture is on the fridge of Mike Brewers apartment, all I have to say is "if you play your cards right.......that's right, if you play your cards right".

On that note, good night and I bid you adieu

Hawaii Camp- Day 6- Humble Pie

Today was one of the longest, toughest days i have spent on a bike. The goal was to do a steady effort on the course within a 6.5 hour ride. It was a mixed bag on all levels. Some good sections, some that made me want to curl up in a fetal position and cry. But, I am a big boy now and must take the good with the hard.

Now we can sugar coat things and spin it and all that but today I faced some definite demons. The wind was strong and it was straight in the face for almost all of it. I went through moments feeling completely dehydrated, moments in my small ring on really flat sections and moments where I felt like I had zero, nada, zilch momentum. Add to that a flat 40km from home and it was a very mentally tough day. I am in awe of the men and women who have won this thing. Imagine, Paula Newby, Mark Allen, Dave Scott.....all people who have won this thing on numerous occasions. I am in awe of what it must take to win even once but to do it over and over again takes a very special individual and some crazy focus.

But as with everything, there must be acceptance of current events. Stress comes as a result of projecting ourselves beyond where we are at in an anxious moment of wanting something different. Anxiety is a result of not accepting our current place. The world unfolds as it should and so after a cold shower and about an hour on my back on the living room floor and a quick reminder from my good friend Wayne Dyer and the wisdom of the Tao I got to a place of peace about today. If you believe that things unfold in their natural course then I was supposed to get my ass kicked today, it's all part of the plan. The work got done and I can pull from it when this workload absorbs.

I realized today the importance of fluid. I went through 8.5 bottles in 6 hours, a great deal more than i normally would over that time frame and I could have used more. There were times when I knew my hydration was not quite there, it's a debilitating feeling when your water levels get low......a good lesson to learn today and not 4.5 weeks from now. I also learned the importance of getting out quickly to the turn around in Hawi. If you get there in time the wind can really play in your favor but it will take an effort from me that will involve tip toeing the line of stupidity......a risk I think I will be necessary to be successful here.

My hats off to Mister Brewer for his diligent efforts out on the course with the bottle exchanges. I would have been a dead man without that last bottle of ice water. You're a good man Brewer despite all those rotten things people say about you. And my hats off to Mike Neill for a supreme-o effort. If you hadn't been a small dot on the horizon half an hour ahead of me I likely would have hitched a ride home.

I wonder if Federer has days like this.

Hawaii Camp Day 5- A one cloud day

The clouds sit on top of the volcano almost daily in Kona. You can see by the immediate and abrupt change in vegetation that rain is a daily event just up the hill. Down on the lava fields it's a different story. We had a bit of rain here yesterday afternoon but aside from that it has been hot and dry. This doesn't take away from the fact that it is incredibly humid.

We started the day riding- 4 hours out on the course with the majority of it as pace work. The mornings are more tolerable but it quickly builds into an inferno.....granted a much more manageable inferno with every day. I started out with Mike Brewer but he was moving this morning and after about 20 minutes he disapeared into the distance never to be seen again. I made it out just past the turn to Hawi and rode a few miles up the climb. Body was steady, brain was good and as with every course, it's getting smaller in my head every time. Three hours into the ride.... a lone dark cloud covered up the sun and the temperature on my computer dropped from 37 degrees to 33 degrees and a most welcome drizzle fell, 33 degrees has never felt so cool.

There comes a point of acceptance before an Ironman. It's the cross over between wondering what the heck you do this for and accepting that it doesn't matter the reason you're going to do it anyway. I find this the most productive mind set to be in for training. Workouts roll on without much stress but with an obsessive attention to the details. Everything starts to flow
and the numbers start to look better and better. Take out all the usual background noise by being at a camp and bingo the intention becomes clear and it's supported by a direct sense of focus. It's a good place to be.

Today I got a note from Adam Campbell who is over in Europe and just finished a strong 15th in the World Mountain running championships. It sounded like one of the toughest runs and the guy has way skinny legs but he kicked some butt so check it out when you get a chance: http://cdamaampbell.blogspot.com/

Another beauty sunset greets me this evening, Mike Neil bought me a container of SPAM (low sodium) so life is good.

Hawaii Camp Day 4- Another squelcher

I would like to pose the question:
Are Mike Neil and Nikolay Davydenko the same person? I've never seen them in the same place at the same time so it is highly probable.


And so we tick on in the heat but each day gets better and better. We followed the usual routine this morning, a quick walk to Lava Java with Mike and Mike before heading to the pier for a dip in the Ocean. This morning was a good swim, nothing crazy, just a solid push out on the course, no sharks which in my mind means a good swim.

My legs were a bit tired from the past three days....not the volume of riding but the heat, i think the heat just taps things a bit more than it normally would and then of course there is the ongoing challenge of keeping up with your hydration. Every workout ends with an hour on the floor sucking back a couple bottles of water and eating at least one papaya, which by the way are just awesome over here and not in short supply....today i bought 7 for a dollar at the local fruit market, i'm going to start bathing in papayas just because i can.

Second session today was a 90min run which in honesty i was dreading a bit but without the pressure of expectation i headed out at the peak of the day to get in the real heat. Finally a sure sign that the body is coming around. I won't pretend that i was running fast but it was smooth, steady and i had control over the heart rate. I ran out towards the energy lab and man are there ever some hot sections, it saturates every part of the body coming from above and the pavement. I made it through a large bottle of water in record time and could easily have done another.....lessons learned and a mental note, i think with more fluid the heart rate will stay in control and i will be able to move well........I love this place!

And now on to tennis.....Hennin and Federer....awesome! There is nothing better than watching genius at work. Hennin didn't lose a set all tournament and Federer just dances around like he's read the script and is performing a ballet. I feel lucky to be around during his time, lucky indeed, grace personified!

Hawaii Camp Day 3- "can't get there by trying, gotta get there by letting go"

Sometimes you have to just let things unravel as they are going to. It's a hard lesson to learn and one I think we keep learning. Today was another hot day in the saddle but much better in terms of how it felt. For the past 2 months my heart rate has just been high....high in the morning, high during workouts....high high high......usually a sign of being a bit overdone but I still felt good in general. Things like this can play on your mind but sometimes you have to just let it go and realize that it is simply the way it is. Things like this you can't force, they are the way they are and you have to just let go and ride the wave.

Sure enough, today after weeks of being out of whack, things fell back into place. Despite the heat I was finally in the right place. There are sections of this course that are like a furnace....it's madness, the heat swells up from the pavement and it feels like you just put a hand dryer in your face. And so 4 hours of that up to Hawi today followed by a swim in the ocean at Waikaloa village. A great day all around and at the end I was still sweating which is a good thing.

Tomorrow it's all about US open tennis.

If you squeeze water it will elude you- Hawaii Camp Day 2

A ninja would know not to squeeze water.

I will tell you that today was very hot. The fact that I am not exactly acclimated doesn't help matters but man, it's like a furnace here sometimes. I will admit that i struggle in the heat but after some time i acclimate and respond well to it. Today was a bit of everything and it sure didn't take much to get the HR up. The heat is suffocating at times but I think with a week or two it will feel better.

Mike Brewer is here training with us and I would like to dedicate this section of the blog to Mike. It was only two days ago that i met this man and I can tell you that he is straight out of men's health magazine.....legs of steel, ripped abs and biceps that have done a few too many preacher curls. Today he showed up wearing a tutu and a pink frilly doily thing on his head, it was just weird. But I will also tell you that he was out on the bike ride today with extra water and drinks and what a life saver, it was so hot and I don't think i would have made it back into town without the support car. Often he will tell jokes and i will laugh just to make him feel better. Sometimes he tells a funny one for real and I find that I am really laughing this time. So my hats off to you Mike, I look forward to many more funny times in your presence and thanks again for the cold water.

Tomorrow I would like to tell you some more about the training here but I would also like to tell you about Roger Federer and how good he is at playing tennis. He is good, maybe one of the best in Canada if he lived there.

Check out this photo, you can see that it is hot, i not lie to you.

Hawaii Camp- Day 1

When you travel to the US on a plane they make you take off your shoes when you go through security. You also have to go through security what seems like a dozen times. They also don't allow you to bring any food in...it's quite bizarre. We cleared customs in Seattle and the man asked me if I had any food. I said I had a sandwich and he asked what kind.....I said it was Turkey and lettuce and also had some pickles.......so he said, well they are going to need to check that out downstairs. We collected our bags and they sent me into the area where you get searched. The man down there asked what food I had and I said I had a sandwich and he said what kind so I repeated that it was turkey, lettuce and some pickles.......he said that he was going to need to see it so I gave it to him. He looked at it carefully and turned it over and over in his hands and then said that I could keep the sandwich and I could go. Needless to say, I felt safer entering the US after that......much safer for sure. Can you imagine if they let just any sandwich into the country, imagine what the state of their food would be if we could all just bring in sandwiches without inspection.

And so on to day one of super camp. It's hot and it feels good. Ten years ago I hated the heat, it sapped me whenever i was in it and it took me ages to adapt. Today, it just felt good. We swam the swim course today, pretty cruisy effort after a good day of travel yesterday. The time change here is very favorable for sleep- 3 hours back of Victoria.....sleepy at night, easy to get up in the morning and warm. Lava Java first thing followed by a good session. This afternoon we hit out a 2 hr ride on the course. The riding is pretty limited here, mostly out on number 19 but that is the point....get on it and it gets shorter in the head. I feel good, Mike Neil is here with Mike Brewer from the US, a good little group.

And now, the US Open Tennis and my usual pangs to be a tennis player at this time of year. Night matches under the lights, stadium sports.....awesome. Some great matches, love it love it.

So I bid you good night.