Background
In 2007 for my first ironman, I had no idea what I was doing. I swam biked and ran as much as I could, slowly adapting my definition of what it meant to Go Long. I made a lot of the 1st time Ironman mistakes on race day and was lucky to sneak in just under 10:45 at IMLP.
In 2009 I was still racing without a power meter and had very few commitments. I racked up big volume and knowing what I know now about bike effort and discomfort, I was likely racking up hour after hour at sub75%FTP. Big volume and a little more race experience was enough to get me by. I went 9:46 at IMLOU and snagged my first ticket to Kona. Racing 6 weeks post IMLOU was brutal but as a 1st timer to Kona it was everything I expected it to be. INCREDIBLE!....
In 2011, with 2 young boys the juggling act had begun. I trained and raced with a PM for the first time and I knowingly exchanged a huge amount of volume for intensity. I was strong but on race day I lacked the endurance to put together a solid race from start to finish. 10th place in the AG (9:53) was a real eye opener for me. I was convinced that I had gotten lucky with my KQ spot in IMLOU and now needed redemption.
In 2012 with a quickly expanding family (3 sons) I made a lot of sacrifices and pushed for a big increase in volume relative to IMLP while mixing in some intensity. I also swam a lot more to ensure any future IM swim embarrassments would be avoided. I put together a solid race (9:43) against a good field and claimed the 5th and last KQ spot in the AG.
So here we are. A whole year after IMWIS. My previous post has indicated that my career, injury, burnout and family commitments (3 sons under 6) have played a huge role in my season and final lead up to Kona. After putting together a beautiful 18 wk plan months ago, that plan went to shit shortly after it started. I've made adjustments and compromises all season in order to get it all (work, family, hobbies) to play nice together.
Training Summary
I just tallied my training hours and focus(%) and am surprised at a couple of things. 1st, my SBR percentages, by accident, were exactly where I normally would allocate my focus. With my background of strengths and weaknesses, I've had success with a 10/60/25/5 percent split. I guess having raced 5 full distance races gives me some experience on where I need to appropriately spend time.
I'm also surprised and mildly terrified that my average weekly training hours is the lowest it's ever been. 12hrs/wk is just a tad over the infamous "Sub10 on 10hrs/wk" slowtwitch post. I could go on and with excuses but I won't. It's been a very busy year and have gotten in as much training as possible.
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| 18 week lead up to Kona (total hrs) |
So any good coach or experienced IM racer will tell you all of these hours metrics are garbage. Volume is very important but even more so is how you spend that time. Were all of these hours spent on a casual, social group ride or were they spent busting my ass with the few precious training hours that I've had? The volume pic above is only a snapshot of the story. I will tell you, I've been feeling good, swimming, riding and running strong. My pace and speed training benchmarks are right up or higher than they've ever been. I also have to keep reminding myself that I have about 10 years base fitness hiding within.
Race Goals for Ironman Hawaii
1. Sub 1hr swim with a smart/controlled effort
2. <200W bike, nail nutrition plan, finish strong
3. 3:20 marathon, ease in to goal pace
4. Sub 10 final
5. Sub 9:43 (IM PR)
I've thought long and hard about goals. Early this summer I thought a 9:30 was possible with a perfectly executed training season. Thing have gone awry in the past several weeks so I've had to tailor what I think is possible. So many of these time goals are dependent on conditions. I know it's going to be sunny and hot and humid and windy. Exactly how much is anyone's guess but I'll need a Madame Pele to play nice out on the Queen K for a Ironman PR.
Stay Tuned for More
It definitely is going to be one hell of week!
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