Proper alignment...

Well after not having Mary around for the better half of 5 days while she was in KC,
It was so comforting to have her body next to mine last night! Now I will just leave that stone unturned so as not to embarrass her, which I have been known to do!
This past weekend was a very out of alignment type of weekend of workouts. With Mary gone things where just a little off. I have been running for years, and have come up with all sorts of injuries, sprains, tears, etc... but on my saturday long run last weekend I actually injured my elbow while running! Yes, my elbow, and no, it wasn't from falling on it during my run (Mary)! LOL. No, what I did was come around a tight corner flying at the end of my run, and bamm, my elbow was kinda sticking out and I ran into a parked truck. It made a horrible sound and took my breath away with the instant pain. It had to ice it for two days to get it to stop hurting!!
Then on sunday, my long bike/run brick I made my 5hr ride turn into 7+ hours because of flat tires. I ran all out of tubes and co2, and still was farrrr from being home, actually anyones home. I was out in the desert all by my self. This is where the crazyness started. I bike about 10miles with a total flat on my front until I reached civilization again, racking my brain for ideas, I remember that a couple from our Triclub lived only about three miles out of my way, so i would head there get a tube and be on my way. Not so easy!!! First they live in a gated community so I had my bike, and my bike shoes on me and am trying to climb the fence so I can get to their house. finally I get in and nobody is en casa!! So know I am 3 more miles farther from home and still no tube, so i start down the road flat and all 13 miles an hour, first I try Walgreens, no tubes, did I mention the are ZERO bike shops open on sundays??? I was only a couple of miles from three differnt shops!!! Next I try Walmart, in I go with my bike, find what I think should work, and head out front to fix the tire. Stip the tire off tear out the old stupid tube and damn it, the valve is too thick, so it won't work, I put my bike back together and head back into Walmart. Did I mention that it is also 110 degrees outside and I still have a 40minute run ahead of me if and when I get home. So I go into Walmart the 2nd time, and they tell me I must go wait in that line of 10 people over there in the corner to exchange my fucking tube! Well I figure out they don't have my size tube and the last ditch effort is to try the instant flat sealer with air can thingy. Back out I good tear down my bike tire again, and this thing is shit, it just blew crap all over the place and doesn't fix it either. Damn!! Next I flag down a truck that has a lady driving that has a bike in the back, so i figure she might have a tube. Well she is on a freakin recumbent bike with 20in tires, but assures me her husband must have the correct size at home and he is only a mile or so away, so I throw my bike in thetruck and off we go to their place, after another half hour out in the hot as hell garage we come to the conclusion, no tube that will fit. So now I have no more choices, just suck it up and bike the rest of the way home on the flat, at this point it is 12:30 and I have been out for 6.5 hours, so I realize I am going close to another friends house Jason, and I know he has tubes, so I call on my cell going 13 miles an hour, he is actually about 3 miles away and coming my way, he picks me up and takes me to his house where I finally fix the tube!!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, So I know only have about 6 miles to home and am just thinking to myself, that if ever I had an excuse not to run this was it, but then I said to myslef, there are no excuses, and that I can't do what most people would do, and pussy out and just call it a day. So I get home at 1:34 pm, the middle of the afternoon, at the hottest point of the day (112 degress), I throw on my running shoes and head out, within less then a mile I realized that I made the correct decision, as I am flying down the trail, but still to pissed off to even look at my pace, some where around the half way mark I finally check my garmin and I am flying along effortlessly at a 6:30 pace, I end up my last mile at 6:08. Of course Mary's not in town, so off to the grocery I go without any lunch, I am now on a mission and am going to do everything, after the store I head home and spend an hour Ironing all of Marys work pants. Finally I must eat and sleep, to bed i go at 6:30.
What a crazy weekend, I am so glad my balance is home THANK YOU MARY!!!!!

No!! I didn't fall off the face of the earth.

I guess I have just been so busy training, I haven't had time to blog. Actually the truth of it is I have been crazy busy at work. So no time for the blog.
I have really been seeing continued success in my swim/bike/run thing!!
Mostly a little concerned that I may be hitting my stride a little soon. IMWI is in like two weeks, and it just so happens that the time between IMCDA and IMWI is exactly the same amount of time I had between IMAZ and IMCDA, so my body is saying come on dude, its time for another Ironman. It is going to be tough being at IMWI and not be racing. I am trying to bide my time until I can do an OLY distance in a few weeks to get my race fix on. Then I will have several more BIG BOY training weeks to put in before I get to throw it down at the Soma half IM.
Just all small stepping stones toward my BIG day at IMAZ part 2 at the end of NOV.
I WILL put up a qualifying time and a new PR!!! It is just a question of whether or not I will also win my age group!!! How is that for positive thoughts???
Any way, gotta figure a way to make it through the weekend without my Mary who is in KC for work!!! LOVE U BABE!!!

My newest Photo press release?!

So I am not sure exactly why, but all of a sudden (the last 2 weeks) I have gotten much faster in the pool!?
Yesterday I swam the 2nd day in a row, monday i did a nice aerobic workout of 3600meters, and then yesterday Mary swam with me for my 3600meter Anaerobic swim. She always pushes me when we swim together, and makes it hurt so good. Well for the first time in a long time, and actually maybe ever, I swam all of the long sets below 1:30 per 100 pace! Now of course I wake up this morning, kinda excited because I get to swim my third workout in a row this week, and then I have my favorite cycle class at the gym. So happens that both the swim and bike class today are sprint workouts. Meaning, anaerobic, I love that word! With Ironman training you get kinda tired of aerobic long this and aerobic long that! So anyway, I was very suprised to find myself doing my swim workout at 1:21-1:24 per 100meters. That is all out for me, but I haven't hit those numbers in a super long time, and that was probably with totally rested arms. Whatever I am doing in the water I just want to get doing it. LOOK OUT IRONMAN AZ!!!
As for the cycle class, well it was my favorite class with my NEW favorite instructor (Julie Ann)
she really is great a motivating, she gets in my head and challenges me to push myself. Today she basically challenged the entire class to try to keep up with me, and do what I did, when I did it! Needless to say, that was a green light to hammer the piss out of the rest of the class! Sorry cycle class, it is not my fault!!! Blame Julie Ann!!! I basically came out of the saddle and made everyone push the pace, at the same time adding load every 20 seconds until their heads popped off. Man it was fun! Did I mention it was also my 4th day in a row of biking? My bike legs are getting stronger everyday. Damn! I can't wait until November!!!

"Moderation is the key to mediocrity."

So if you talk to anyone that doesn't do what I do, Ironman , Marathons, and anything that seems extreme. You will get the old standard , moderation is the key speech.


Do you think that Michael Phelps and the rest of the mens 4 x100 relay team practiced moderation the last 4 years?! HELL NO!!! As stated above "moderation is the key to mediocrity"
If you are going to put in the time, money, and effort why not put in that extra 10% or so.
This blog isn't directed to anyone in particular, but all of us in general!!! When you are out there training, don't make excuses or find ways to be mediocre, find a way to be your own gold metal winner.
GO USA!!!

Getting my shit back to normal!?

Well I am 3 days into my 1st recovery week in my training cycle for Ironman Arizona Part Duex.
After a couple of months of not be quite right, I have really started to feel more like my self the last 2 weeks or so. Little things that mean big things are starting to show themselves. Knock on wood I have learned how to manage my achilles issue. It is not great, but it is use able. I just have to do the smart things. My bike legs are feeling extremely strong, I had been thinking this for about a month or so, but because I haven't raced or rode with anyone since IMCDA it is hard to really compare myself to others, but last weekend I did my 1st group ride in around a year with the Triclub guys, and I pulled for the entire day, never once having any of the guys that I used to have to struggle to just stay up with come to the front. That was fine with me, one of my issues with group rides is "I DO NOT " want to sit on someone else's wheel, you can't do it in Ironman so why get lazy and into bad habits in training?
In addition my running legs have FINALLY came around in the last 14 days or so. Funny, it seems like once I made myself get out of my comfort zone and push my pace to where it wasn't so much fun, I finally started seeing improvements in my pace at all distances short and long.
About Damn time!!!
So now what about the swim thing? Well, it kinda comes and goes, I have been tinkering with my stroke (as usual) trying to become more efficient. Mary continues to kick my ass, but I realized she is actually getting MUCH faster, so if I just stay where I am than that means I also have improved. RIGHT? Well I will keep working on it and just try to not cost myself my race in Nov because of a horrible 1st leg!
I will continue to enjoy my recovery week, and I look forward to giving it to myself again next week. The fact that I am looking forward to the next training phase in a good mental sign!!!
XO BEAV