Back 2 Skool and Getting Ready for Triple T

Last night I went back to school. Massage school. Not to learn, but to be a volunteer body. It was heaven! The class is all women, so you guys go ahead and fantasize. The woman who worked on me is just learning, and I was telling her which muscles she was on and she was impressed by my knowledge. When she was working on my upper back, I requested work on my subscapularis, and the instructor showed everyone in the class how flexible I am and she dug right underneath my scapula, and it felt oh so good! I get to go to school for many weeks now. I ended up getting basically an hour of good massage. Of course, as is typical, I always asked for more pressure, since I am used to people going quite deep on me. So here's me laying on a table, and every few minutes it was, "Harder." Or, "Deeper." And Helen was nice enough to keep asking me, "How's the pressure?" I've learned it's good to always reinforce the person working on you with encouragement, like, "That feels really good," "Keep doing it that way," and "Right there. You are right on it."

I am also, little by little, getting my shit together for Triple T. The amount of crap I need to bring is incredible. And then there are all the little odds and ends that need to get done before I go away. I started on my race toes Sunday night and finished them up yesterday:









Race Toes

I also defizzed these happy fluids yesterday in some pitchers and put them back in the bottle where they will await their call to duty this weekend:











Defizzed Coke and Ultra Violence

Lastly, I don't know how they got there, but I spotted a bunch o' whores on LGL:









Whores on LGL

Today my objective is to make my "food bag" and make piles of crap all over the house that I'll be taking with me. Oh and there's that pesky brick workout and my job to do also. It will all get done, though.

Here's the theme song for the Tiki Hut at Triple T:

Weekly Workout Totals 05/12/2008-05/18/2008

If you've been keeping up with me, you know I've been puttin' the hurt to training all over the Chicagoland area lately. And now I am able to absorb all that lovely pain. The every-3-weeks racing was a big challenge to recover from and then keep going, and then I backed that up with a big week of biking followed by a big week of running. So this week was a relatively "normal" Ironman build week, which gave my body the chance to see what it could do in a relatively rested state.

And the swimming, biking and running gods said it was good! My legs were iffy through Wednesday, but then they came roaring back for Thursday's long run and then Friday through Sunday were Cracktacular. I feel like I'm hitting a peak just in time for Triple T.

Waking up this morning, I feel awesome! I'm not even tired or fatigued or sore. I'm sure that after I swim my body will begin to remember what happened last week, but that's OK...between now and Friday it's all shorter, easier, taper-y workouts--well, except for that hard brick workout tomorrow and that 5K running stuff on Wednesday :) I mean, other than those workouts.

So here's how last week went down. Look for the subliminal messages!

Weekly Workout Totals	05/12/2008-05/18/2008 This week's totals are sponsored by animals whose name ends in the letter 'X': fox, lynx, oryx, ox, addax, hyrax, ibex, volvox, esox, lummox, minx, sphinx, phone sex
Swim:	11000 yards (6.24 miles) in 3.85 hours; 20% of weekly workout time; approx. 1347 calories burned Canadian: 10058.4 meters
Bike:	Approx. 160.42 miles in 9.17 hours; 49% of weekly workout time; approx. 4582 calories burned; Total TSS=569 Canadian: 258.17 kilometers
Run:	Approx. 32.11 miles in 4.84 hours; 26% of weekly workout time; approx. 2185 calories burned Canadian: 51.68 kilometers
Strength:	1.02 hours; 5% of weekly workout time; approx. 255 calories burned Canadian: some amount of metric tonnes or is that British?
All Sports:	Approx. 198.77 miles in 18.88 hours; approx. 8369 calories burned Canadian: 319.89 kilometers
Sleep:	7.36 hours avg./night Canadian: I have no recollection of having slept with a Canadian.
Stretching:	2.22 hours. Massage: 0 hours

Another Great Ride and Brick Run Today

I drove to Matt's to ride with him today. Originally, I had thought I'd be there by 8AM, but it was pretty chilly this morning, so I called him and said we'd be riding by 9. No worries there!

I had not seen Matt's new Bianchi, and he hadn't seen LGL live, so there was a meeting and greeting of the two Italian bikes!

I made up a new rule--when I'm riding LGL, I will only ride with someone else who has an Italian bike :) Just kidding. I will ride with anyone who is not a loser.

I just did not want to wear tights today, which meant that I was chilly on my legs much of the day.

Today, we set a new world record in the time it took before we were talking about food: 22 seconds! As we headed out, the winds were a blowing, just as badly as yesterday, but neither of us cared much about the wind--the point was just to ride and not slack too much into the wind.

I have ridden in that area before, but I told Matt that I did not want to be on any roads with dogs. We have been chased by some mean ass dogs in the past.

After about 1 hour, I really needed to piss. So did Matt. But we had to find something other than wide open side of the road to do it, even though neither of us is shy. So we turned onto a side road, and I took a picture of Matt finishing up:












and then he took one of me WHILE I WAS PEEING:









aerodynamic peeing

Nice, huh? Then I figured I should take an actual picture of the spot we had chosen:









Next, I spotted an out building the color of Matt's bike, and suggested we should take a pic of his bike in front of it:









Somewhere before this we encountered Son of Cujo the dog, who took chase, and I screamed at Matt to get him under control. Obviously, no time for pics, and I was scared shitless, but was surprised at the amount of power I could put out in trying to outrun the dog. I was breathing pretty heavily long after that.

And then we both needed water, and headed to a Walgreen's, and we got water and Cherry Coke:









While Matt was inside, I fondled his bike :) LGL would definitely have sex with it!

Then we headed down Scary Road, so named because there were all these houses set way far from the road with lots of trees near the road, and we both knew that dogs could come running out from anywhere. And one did--a Newfoundland. He actually didn't seem that scary, and I didn't expect him to bite, but still, you never know. That dog sprint really hurt. And then we both cranked away just to get the hell off Scary Road before any more dogs could come at us!

We came upon a nice horse farm, and we both observed some rather pendulous schlongs:









Finally, as we closed in on Matt's house, I had to pee one more time, and this time I noticed some heavy duty construction machinery just off to the side and thought that would be a good place to take a whizz. Well, thanks, Matt--he had to take a shot of me about to drop trou and then several (I've included only 1 here) of me pissing. Nice!















not so aerodynamic peeing

Getting closer to Matt's house, we saw a peloton of geese and goslings crossing the road we were on, and we both thought they were so cute, and so waited until they all got into the pond:









There are about 40 goslings in that photo! Obviously, it was many families combined.

Finally, we got back, and I needed to run, and I did. I actually felt pretty good running, since it was completely flat. I ended up using my butt crack bottle holder method, so I made Matt take a pic of me with it, and also just to prove that I did, indeed, run:














After I showered, Matt made an awesome salad and homemade pizza and we chowed down, and then we sat around drinking and talking.

In case you are wondering, we rode for 3:28, and my IF was .789, so close to tempo pace again! I was pretty pleased with how well I was able to ride today considering what I did yesterday, and running wasn't so bad either! One thing I know for sure is all that food last night was key.

Perfect end to a perfect day! I hope to ride with Matt in 2 weeks, once Triple T is out of the way.

Oh yeah--I'm ready for that bad boy now. Later or early tomorrow I'll post up my training totals. Another great week, and I feel strong and ready to race!

Great Day Saturday

My friend, Pattie, had to pull out of going to Wisconsin yesterday because she was terribly sick. In hearing her voice message, I could tell just how sick she was, and I called her, and she felt so bad that she couldn't go! I told her it was no big deal, and that I was actually somewhat relieved, because, well, I've really been pushing it, and that big of a ride this week might just push me over the edge. She's not the type to bag anything--I know that if she had an Ironman scheduled on Friday she would tough it out, just like I did at Ironman Brazil 2 years ago when I had a raging sinus infection.

Not spending time driving to Wisconsin would give me some extra time in the day. The weather forecast called for a beautiful day, maybe even hitting 70, and I decided to wait to start riding until the temperature rose a bit. I took off from home at 8:00AM, and I was wearing shorts! And a tank top! And my Primal Wear samurai arm warmers!

No beanie! No booties! No toe warmers! It was glorious! I wasn't even chilled.

The winds were WNW and NNW, so I had to mostly push into the wind on my way to Fermilab. Which is fine--since I knew I'd get the nice tailwind on the ride home. But OMG, the wind was crazy! There would be these cross wind gusts, and I've learned how to handle LGL in them, that would just make me laugh! I was all smiles, all the time, because this was the first time since NuclearMan that it was such good riding weather on a weekend.

About 10 miles in, I was in this industrial area and I heard a kildeer making its usual call, and luckily I spotted a tiny baby in the road trying to get back off the road to mom.

It looked like a puff ball on sticks! Well, the curb was too tall for it to jump, so I stopped my bike and sort of shuffled back to get the baby to a cross road where the sidewalk sloped towards the road. I was so worried a car would run over it! I'm sure it looked funny, me walking on my cleats going backwards--you wouldn't be able to tell what I was doing! But baby got back up, and thing is, those adult birds are known for dive bombing, but Mom didn't do it, and I slowly backed away from baby, and Mom flew right over, and all was good.

A few miles later, coming the opposite direction was Hottie Kit Guy on a red bike. We were at a major stoplight, and we are eyeballing one another and waving, because, well, it's such a glorious day. He was wearing some mostly white with red and black kit, and I was all black except for my arm warmers. As the light changed to green, we, of course, both stood up on our pedals and took some time to check one another out. HKG had his tongue hanging out in seeing LGL from the side, which is a typical reaction (P.S. I think I look pretty good, too). He yelled, "How's it going?" and I gave a huge smile, wave, and "AWESOME!"

Onward, I've got work to do. Upon arriving at Fermilab, I stopped to pee, dropping trou right next to the big stop sign.

I also took a big swig of Infinit, since between battling the wind and traffic on the way there I hadn't really drunk enough.

Now it was time to begin my main set:
3 x (20' @ 85%, 10' @ FT, 3' @ 105-110%, 7' Easy)

When I had woken up yesterday, I didn't feel too good. Like I was on the verge of getting sick. But my warmup blew that away, and I was ready to work hard.

It was easy for me to hit the wattage targets (my FTP on LGL is 205 these days, giving me a power to weight ratio in kg of 4.1, not bad, eh?) on the first repeat, and during this one, I saw a guy on a Pinarello. Not a Dogma, like mine, but still... My first thought was I should have sex with him! Isn't that crazy? Pinarellos just aren't very common around here...anyway when we passed one another (going opposite directions again), I yelled, "NICE BIKE!" And his tongue about fell out of his mouth when he saw LGL.

Onward. The winds were so crazy, I made up a new term: SFW. Stands for Super Fucking Windy. I'm not exactly sure just how strong the winds were, but the gusts had to be in the 30's easily.

I about finished repeat #1 when I got to Wilson Hall for the first time, and I stopped in to pee and had 2 cheese crackers and got some more water. My face looked really windblown, but I was still all smiles. I decided I could remove the arm warmers.

At this point, I'm heading east, so I get the tailwind, and it was hard to generate the watts, but I still gave it a good go, knowing I would turn into the wind soon. I rode by the horse farm, and observed several of the male horses hanging ten (probably way more than that!). They were just eating grass all relaxed with their humongous schlongs dangling like, "La de da. Look at me. I'm hung like a horse!"

Finishing the second and third repeats were no big deal--it continued being SFW, I kept laughing at the wind, I was hitting my wattage targets, and life was good. Only thing was that because of the wind, I didn't think I'd need to do 3 full loops since it would take too long and I wanted to have energy for today's riding. So on loop 3, I took a different road, which I'd never been on, and I went by all these really strange buildings and devices and such. I wish I'd had my camera with me--I mean I expected to be hauled out of there by the Security guys. And for some odd reason, I felt like I wanted to pee in there. But I got out and decided I could make it back to the stop sign to pee before I left Fermilab.

As I exit, I am heading south, so I'm getting some of the north tailwind, but I turn east in about .5 mile. FUCKIN' A! Tailwind, baby! I go right up this overpass, and I just left it in the big chainring and pedaled my ass off, smiling, not caring about the watts, and then it just got better, because I get a nice downhill and I'm going like 35MPH doing almost nothing. Every cyclist I see going the opposite direction has the same stupid grin on their face as I do.

And it was pretty much like that all the way home until I get to this one area where there's another sweet downhill (about 6 miles from home) that goes under an overpass. It always scares me a bit because it's dark in there and I don't want to be in there with cars. So I always sprint it as hard as possible so I can get through. This time, I cranked my ass off, and when I got out, I could feel my heart beating wildly, but I was happy.

When I got home, I quickly changed into running shorts and a fresh top, as I was fairly pigged out, and headed out to run for :40. OMG, my legs were toasty! Which meant that I rode hard (as it turns out, I rode at 80% of FTP for 4:25. That is tempo riding, kids. That's like 1/2 Ironman watts, only instead of just for 56 miles, 75!). My legs felt like they do at the start of an Ironman marathon, although not really that bad. I was smiling because it hurt so much! My stomach felt like shit, also same as Ironman, and I wish that I had brought Coke with me instead of Gatorade, which can make me want to puke at that point. But I had chugged a full bottle of water before I left, so I was hydrated and barely had to touch the Gatorade.

When I finished running, I was laughing because I smelled so bad! That was the first time this year that I have smelled so bad! Yeah, baby! It was one of those things where I was really hungry, but I would need to shower first.

After I showered and ate, I decided to call my friend, Matt, who I haven't seen in over a year because he had been in Afghanistan, and he has had parental issues like me, and we just haven't been able to connect. I left him a wild message basically demanding that I needed to have sushi for dinner and would he go out with me? He called back and initially couldn't make it, but after we yammered for a long time he said he'd check and see if he could back out of his prior obligation, and he did.

I picked the sushi restaurant, and I ordered for both of us, and let's just say it was PILES of sushi, and Matt even got full before me! After I polished off the sushi, I asked Matt about dessert. He said, sure why not. The waiter comes over and tells us what they have, and I ask Matt if he's had mochi before--he had not. I asked what kind they have, and I told the waiter to bring one of each--red bean, green tea, coconut, mango and chocolate. They arrived cut up in 3 bowls, and of course, I ate more than Matt. We both talk non-stop when we are together, and the topic of Sunday came up. I was either going to ride to Fermilab again or do this organized ride, and I asked Matt if he would ride, so, yeah, we are riding together today from his house in Plainfield.














Matt and I after our huge dinner

I used to ride with Matt all the time, and he was a big factor in me getting stronger. When we first met, Matt wasn't riding in the winter, and I blew his doors off for awhile, but then, he being 13 years younger than me and a guy, and getting his training together (I even coached him for a year), Matt turned into a monster cyclist. He's a little out of form probably, but I know we will have an awesome ride today and some good eats when we finish. The joke is that whenever he and I ride together, how long will it take before we start talking about food? Matt and I are both good cooks, we both like great food and wine (he's the guy who sent me the wine direct from Italy), and we like to talk about cooking and eating and drinking. I remember one ride where we just left his house, and we are maybe 30 seconds into the ride, and Matt starts talking about food. I about fell off my bike laughing, because I looked down at the power meter and said, "Matt--that's a new world record. 30 seconds and we are talking about food."

When I got home last night, I thought I still needed some more calories, so I poured a pile of Cheetos onto a plate and tucked into them before going to sleep. I know, I know, I am eating like it's going out of style!

So even though I didn't go to Wisconsin, I had an awesome day yesterday, and today will be more of the same!

Happy training!

A Day in the Life, Part II

Continuation of yesterday:

5:40AM Drive to the Y to run. Towel Nazi is not at the front desk, so I'm able to score 2 towels so I can actually dry off after I shower.
5:50AM I'm on the treadmill. I brought a can of Coke with me and a bottle of Gatorade. My stomach isn't right from the coffee, and I'm thinking it's going to be mostly Coke. Suprisingly, my legs do not feel too bad, although the Zone 1 shit feels waaaaay too slow. There are an awful lot of smiley, morning workout people at the Y. 25% of them recognize me.
6:20AM Time to start Zone 2. It still feels slow, but not that bad. I'm able to take sips of Gatorade now, although periodically I want to gag and puke anyway.
6:50AM 1 hour down, I get to--you guessed it--take yet another shit. Ah, the pleasures of running, training hard, and a high metabolism. I use the opportunity to change the CD in my CD player (still no iPod, don't start on me) while I am in the can.
6:55AM Back on the treadmill, and a friend, Jamie, comes in. One of the first entrants into the Hottie Brigade. I love talking to him, it's like we both get motor mouth when we see one another. One of these days I hope I get to ride with him again.
7:55AM I'm done! It was a good idea to run on the treadmill today. My legs had been pretty beat up from last week, and they finally feel "normal" again. Well, as normal as you feel after running 2 hours.
8:15AM I'm back home, ass in chair, working, sucking down Endurox R4. Ready to face the leftover crises from yesterday, but I am easing into things, and after prioritizing, think it won't be such a hectic day after all.
10:15 One long call, and now I'm getting hungry. Colleague wants to chat post-team call, which is good, but I am fucking starving, so I'm on the speaker phone making myself breakfast or whatever it is. 4 eggs, 3 pieces of Canadian bacon chopped, scrambled and cooked in butter, English muffin also buttered. Man, I love eggs. I wolf this down and start to feel better.
12:00PM I'm fucking tired. I want a nap, but there's no time for that. Must keep working.
12:30PM Guy arrives to go over with me what yard work I'd like him to do. First time I'm paying someone to do some of it for me--I have just run out of time for some reason this year, and I want it finished before June rolls around! Stuff like trim all the shrubs, weeding, etc.
1:00PM Back into work crisis mode, but I seem to have a handle on things. Start wondering how I am going to make it through the day without a nap. Eat some bananas, which helps temporarily.
4:00PM Work is under control; maybe I can finish up my lifting from yesterday, so I do (16 minutes is all), but my muscles are screaming at me while I do it (bis, tris, chest), and yet I do a little posing in a mirror and am happy about how I look.
5:15PM I call it a day, workwise, and get ready to go to The Bike Shop. Load Bitch into car first, blanket on top, and LGL on top of her. My bikes are having sex back there. I'm concerned that the metals (magnesium and boron carbide) will commingle and birth some mutant bike back there.
5:40PM I'm at The Bike Shop. So what am I having done? Well...Bitch is getting BLUE (or as they call it, blau) Nokon cables! Also, I'm ditching the X-LAB and getting a carbon behind-the-seat-bottle holder. I needed to observe LGL being lubricated one more time so I know how to do it--she has special lubrication needs due to the way her Nokon's had to be installed. I also had them switch the cassette on the back (I can do it myself, but what the hell) since I'm riding in Wisconsin on Saturday. I also picked up my new Louis Garneau Rocket Helmet (I got the blue and white one, of course):


It's fucking gorgeous, and looks good with Bitchie. I also had shims put into the left shoe of both LGL's and Bitch's shoes, since my left foot is different than my right and my left leg has a functional shortness compared to my right. I also picked out new carbon cages (curiously enough, Profile Karbon Kages) for Bitchie once she has carbon on her butt and on the seat tube. She is going to look awesome once they are done with her! I also looked at (first time you are hearing about it) fixies online, and have decided on this one:


I'm going to put cowhorn bars on it with sweet bar tape, Cane Creek brake levers,

and no, I don't have a name for it (I think it's a HIM) yet.
8:30PM I get home (yes, my bike shop trips are legendary lately), throw pasta into the microwave, load the coffee pot, crack a beer, start making a list of crap I need to do on Friday, wolf down the food, decide I better eat more, think about TV, scrap that idea, grab a package of crackers and read yesterday's newspaper in bed for about 15 minutes, decide I better pass out since I have to be done swimming by 7:45AM (and I'm doing the 4,000 yard workout again).

Phew. Now it's Friday...
2:45AM I wake up. At first I'm not sure whether it's stress, I'm hungry, or I have to pee. Lay there for awhile, and guess what? I have to take a shit AND I'M HUNGRY. Take care of the first item, then make a sandwich, eat it while reading a little bit more of the newspaper, and then try and go back to sleep. No such luck, really, but laying down is still a good thing.
3:55AM I look at the clock and decide, close enough. I'm awake. Turn on the coffee pot, put on a record (I'm loving the new turntable, and I still LOVE Ska--like I need to listen to really fast, crazy music, you know). Grab a Power Bar and get rolling. Think about what I have to do today--swim 4,000 yards, work on major crisis at work, maybe run a little bit, go grocery shopping later (and booze sampling), stretch, fix bottles for Saturday's festival (Patti and I are riding the ENTIRE IMWI course and then running--I wonder if I can pull it off), begin packing for Saturday, set the coffee pot, OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG.

And yet, despite all this craziness, I am loving life!

A Day in the Life

Lest you think I have way too much time on my hands to be playing with streamers, here's how yesterday went down:

4:30AM Wake the fuck up. Take a shit (this is what wakes me up lately), get some coffee and a Power Bar. Visit the Internets.
5:30AM Take out the garbage, recycleables and some yard waste. Try and straighten up the mess of bottles and dishes
6:00AM Make Voodoo Mix, put defogger into goggles while taking yet another shit, put on swimsuit, put in contact lenses, look in mirror and shout, "IT'S SHOWTIME!"
6:15AM Drive to Y.
6:30AM Have some laughs with guys in the pool. Start 3,800 yard workout, and after finishing warmup, realize it's actually going to be 4,000 yards.
7:45AM Finish swim workout, get yelled at by Rasta Guard, head to shower, shave, change, drive home.
8:15AM Start working. First, assess crises by checking email and then start addressing them.
9:00AM First conference call of the day
9:45AM While on one phone line, another line rings, ask them if I can call back later, finish the conference call and doorbell rings. People are here to seal my driveway, so I move my car to my neighbor's driveway.
12:15PM Literally run out the door and go run about 7 miles, again, using Voodoo Mix, because, well, I need it now.
1:30PM Slam down Endurox R4 and heat something in the microwave for lunch and take a quick shower. Work, work, work
4:00PM All hell has broken loose at work, but I'm under control. Make a bunch of phone calls in order to triage the various situations. Doorbell rings around 4:15--it's my neighbor who needs to get into her driveway, so I move my car onto the street in front of my house.
5:30PM Done with work, lift weights for :45, since I've been putting it off since Monday. Think about whether I want to go run some errands. Decide not, I'm too fucking tired.
6:20PM Mow the lawn because we've been getting a lot of rain lately and figure I'll be too tired tomorrow to do it and besides I need to go to the bike shop right after work.
6:50PM Grab a beer and stretch for :25--this is a priority. Realize I should probably eat dinner. Put pot of water on stove to boil for some pasta. Check email.
7:45PM I am finally eating dinner. Think about watching some TV and maybe reading a little bit of the newspaper, decide I don't have time for it and try and relax while eating dinner ACTUALLY SITTING DOWN AT THE TABLE. Think that I should eat more because I have to run 2 hours in the morning, but my stomach can't handle it. Have some wine.
8:30PM Decide to enjoy spinning some records on my new turntable. The fidelity is unbelievable, and I'm very happy I didn't give away all my vinyl. Decide to assemble the streamers onto my race belt for Triple T, and in a flash, figure, OK take some pics, what the hell, upload them, do a quick blog post, go back downstairs and listen to a few more tunes.
9:15PM Decide I better get to sleep because I need to be up before 5AM to be running by 6AM.

Today...
4:30AM Wake the fuck up. I didn't need the alarm, which I had actually set, because, well, I needed to take a giant shit (AGAIN). Turn the coffee pot on. Don't bother putting actual clothes on, but apply Body Glide and suit up to run.
4:45AM Have some coffee and a Power Bar. Look at today's run workout. Fuck. 2 hours, but no worries I feel pretty good.
5:10AM Take another shit. My body is like a furnace lately.
5:15AM Put in contact lenses and get run bag ready to go, write this post (I type REALLY FAST).
5:30AM Go outside and look around the yard. It's only 41 degrees, so I'm running on the treadmill today.

Later!

Trying on my Race Outfit for Triple T

Click on post title to see all the pics...

Which one do you think is the best?

Preview:

Cross Dressing...er...Cross Posting

Click on the post title to read about today's swimming experience! It was awesome.

This is What Ironman Training Looks Like

And this is how it FEELS:




Check back in a few weeks to see what improvements have been made. More of a tan. More biking. More running. More swimming. All performed on at least 3,000 calories a day.

More is More!

Weekly Workout Totals 05/05/2008-05/11/2008

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!

THIS was a week. Last year, I did a similar week, only all my running was trail running. Running on asphalt most of the time was really tough. But now I remember what Ironman training is all about, and I feel almost totally prepared for Triple T--just one 112-mile hilly fucking ride to do on Saturday and that will be that.

But once again, this week I learned some things:

• I have some really amazing friends. They are amazing athletes and simply amazing people.
• Every week you should do something you've never done before. I can't imagine living life any other way.
• I really, really love riding bikes.
• I am pretty tired of the cold weather. Bring on the heat!
• May is still one of my favorite months, even when it's rainy and cold.

And now, here are my weekly totals. Read between the numbers!

Weekly Workout Totals	05/05/2008-05/11/2008 This week's totals are sponsored by the Republic of Vanuatu. Yumi, Yumi, Yumi!
Swim:	14100 yards (8 miles) in 5.07 hours; 27% of weekly workout time; approx. 1773 calories burned Canadian: 12893.04 meters
Bike:	Approx. 111.42 miles in 6.37 hours; 33% of weekly workout time; approx. 3346 calories burned; Total TSS=392 Canadian: 179.31 kilometers
Run:	Approx. 43.87 miles in 6.66 hours; 35% of weekly workout time; approx. 3027 calories burned Canadian: 70.6 kilometers
Strength:	1.02 hours; 5% of weekly workout time; approx. 255 calories burned Canadian: same thing unless time is different?
All Sports:	Approx. 163.29 miles in 19.12 hours; approx. 8401 calories burned Canadian: 262.79 kilometers
Sleep:	7.5 hours avg./night Canadian: I dunno--slept with some bears?
Stretching:	1.53 hours. Massage: 1.5 hours

Today's Ride in Pictures

Click on the title to get to the pics.

Cool day, my first time on the Wisconsin hills, and I sucked terribly because my legs were cashed from running like 50 miles in the past week, YA FUCKING THINK??? But it was still good riding, and Patti and I may go up and ride 112 on Saturday (shhhh...don't tell her husband...he doesn't know yet) what the hell. Since I won't be doing my long run the day before (and also not running--WOO HOO!), I should be good to go and able to ride LGL like the little whore she is. Patti asked me if I needed to ride that much 1 week before Triple T, and I should have answered, "Look who the hell you're talking to." I'll still have a good week to taper down, even though I really don't plan on much of a taper, so no worries there.

Like I Need More of This...

Runnin' with the Devil

Listen to this while you read the rest of the post...


I made it. I ran 7 days' straight, starting last Saturday. Kicked it off with 2 brick runs; capped it off with a 14-miler today. 49 miles total. Last night I thought I was going to die, I was so fucking tired. But I stretched and worked on my legs for :35, ate a good dinner, and went to sleep early. Got up at 4AM (still 8 hours of sleep), and felt like total crap. Like I've got a cold coming on or something.

Cleaned the garage for the most part, monkeyed with my training schedule, did some weeding, gassed up my car, picked up the check for the proceeds from the sale of my Dad's house (FUCKING YEAH!!), went to the bank to deposit said check, went to the post office to get some $.01 stamps (first class postage goes up on Monday--this public service announcement brought to you by Beck's beer, which I am drinking right now), came home, railed on the lawyer I started with for the estate process but fired (asshole), spent some time online chatting with a new friend, and had to decide if I was going to give running a go.

I figured I could probably do it, I mean, what's so hard about running for 2 hours? NOTHING. Not compared to what I've been doing the last 9 weeks, not compared to what I saw my Dad go through last fall, not compared to a woman I saw at the Y yesterday who could barely walk. So I proceeded to take in a 12-oz. can of Ultra Violence, and my body told me it needed to do something with it. So I suited up and the brain went into "we are going to work out mode."

I drove to Waterfall Glen on a very pretty day. Cloudy and cool. Perfect for a long run. As I began running, I really didn't feel too bad at all, considering. I even wanted to run up the hills! I was shocked. I guess I am getting stronger. My quads didn't hurt, so I must have worked on them really well last night. I planned on doing 2 out-and-back loops, only I didn't know how long each loop would be. That's always an "in progress" decision. I figured I could do 8 miles with the small bottle of Gatorade that I had, as I had chugged the Ultra Violence not long ago, so I certainly had the calories in me already. But when I got to 4 miles out, then I looked at my watch and had to decide whether to run an even 2 hours or to go for a mileage target. I settled on 14 miles, what the hell. I only slowed down for the last 4 miles, but that was also because the section of the trail I took is hillier than the section I did for the first 9!

I just got a massage, so all is well with the world. I think I can fight off whatever seems to be afflicting me, because I'm going up to Madison tomorrow to ride 80 miles (2 loops of the Ironman course) that are nice and hilly. No running tomorrow, but Sunday I ride again and do a brick run, so this is, indeed, a very good week. I may be fucking tired, but I'm happy! Next week's training will be a piece of cake compared to this week and last week, and oh what the hell, the last 9 weeks altogether! I'm feeling pretty ready for Triple T, and really looking forward to letting loose there. The whole idea is to make the race seem easy, right?

Snippet of lyrics--sound like anybody you know???

I live my life like there's no tomorrow
and all I've got, I had to steal
Least I don't need to beg or borrow
Yes I'm livin' at a pace that kills

Oooh, yeah
(Ahh!) Runnin' with the devil (Ahh-hah! Yeah!)
(Woo-hoo-oo!) Runnin' with the devil
I'm gonna tell ya all about it

I found the simple life ain't so simple
When I jumped out, on that road
I got no love, no love you'd call real
Ain't got nobody, waitin' at home

Guns 'n Booty

Was messin' around after lifting this morning (only 20' no big deal) and before swimming. I don't have much biceps, but man my triceps are comin' up.

I guess all those pushups I've been doing and all that swimming are working.

Oh, and I swam 4,000 yards this morning, and I swam pretty well! Big Mike noticed I've been working on my rotation and gave me some stroke tips. Coke in the swim bottle also helped :)

I'm pretty much running on fumes, but gotta run today, and then tomorrow is a 2-hour run and NO SWIMMING!!! I'm taking the day off from work and after I run I'm getting a 1.5 hour massage, which I really, really need. My arms and upper back were sore this morning (before lifting), but after some lifting and swimming they feel fine.

Another Blog

Started a new blog, Pool Stories, that is intended to be a community blog. I'd love to have lots of contributors (we can have up to 100) to submit posts about interesting or unusual happenings at your local pool. Why? Because as you know, from this post, if you swim, you spend a lot of time NOT SWIMMING. And face it, the time spent not swimming is WAY more interesting than the time spent actually swimming. In fact, for some triathletes, not swimming occupies the largest percentage of their training load!

So jump on over when you get a chance, and contact me if you want to join in on the fun!

Tiki Hut Upgrades

Told ya, peeps!

Try This At Home!

At 5:05AM, I lifted weights for 45 minutes--some abs/core work and upper body stuff. Then I did this swim workout beginning at 6:30:

WU: 200 swim, 200 kick, 200 pull, 200 drill
MS: 2 x [4 x 100 (10"), 1 x 400 (30") at same pace as 100's]
100 easy swim.
15 x 75 (15") as 50 Hard, 25 Easy
25 easy (just to get back to where I started)
CD: 100 easy swim

In case you can't add (I couldn't while swimming which was a good thing), it's 3,750 yards.

I was laughing so hard while swimming because, well, my muscles weren't really able to perform well, but I wasn't sore. Mostly I was just hungry! I swam in the lane with Little Mike, who is the son of Big Mike, his Dad, who coaches him. Little Mike is maybe 14? I chat with them both regularly, since both Mikes (or as I call them, Mike & Ike) are there every day, and they are very nice people. Little Mike swam 7,000 yards today, and he also wrestles, so the three of us engage in many discussions about how much we are training and eating! I could have swam in a lane all by myself, but Little Mike asked why nobody swims with him and I told him it's because he's so stinking fast!

So I finish my 3,750 yards, and Little Mike asks me if I want to kick 400 with him. Yesterday, I finished 3,100 yards, and he wanted me to kick with him so I did 100. Today I said no. Even a Crackhead needs to stop sometimes. But maybe tomorrow when I repeat the same workout without having lifted beforehand, I might just stay for a few hundred yards of kicking..

On Being Executor, or I AM

I know this is a deviation from my normal triathlon content, but I knew at some point I would need to say it here. Some of this might not make sense to you depending on what spiritual texts you have read, but I think you will still see a point to it.

Throughout the past 6 months, I have come to discover many people who have been in this position, and we have shared tips and stories and emotions, you name it. In fact, I just got off the phone with a nice gentleman who works at an insurance company, and he had been Executor for a relative as well. He used to be a boxer.

There is a reason we are chosen to fulfill this role. We are strong, determined and steadfast. We are able to compartmentalize the crap that is thrown in our faces by so many people who have their own issues but no good tools to resolve them other than to become agitated and highly emotional, taking out their ill will on whoever happens to be in their paths--much like a tornado.

I have had the pleasure to speak with and work with so many people who are, I think, angels walking about waiting to be called into service by someone like me who needs the help. Some of them read this blog and some of them don't. Those who do know that who I am on this blog is I AM. It is just my personal expression of I AM that is put on display here, colored with that sometimes troublesome but usually fun and creative ego that I have.

If there is one thing that will show you I AM it is being an Executor, as it requires you to process your own grief as well as the evil spirits that are emanating from those around you who do not yet know that THEY ARE TOO but would rather persist in creating separation instead of oneness and wholeness. And you discover all the angels who know I AM and it's in the finding of these people that you not only know you are doing the right earthly things that are required in the processing of someone's death, but that you have been given the opportunity to perhaps be one small step closer to enlightenment.

Now I know this is going to sound ultra-corny, but the other day I was thinking about the I AM and then the M-dot which is I superimposed on M, and it all made sense to me. I'm not saying that Ironman is the I AM, but for me the IM has helped me to know the I AM. Ironman has simply been my vehicle for developing and nurturing my inner strength, peacefulness, and I hope, the ability to be someone else's angel. And that's why I was put into this role, and that's why I'm extremely proud to say that I AM and I am an Ironman. All this training and racing I do, well, it's easy. Ironman is easy. I AM not so much, but it's getting easier.

As difficult as the past 6 months have been for me, I am grateful for the experience, knowing that it was given to me to move deeper into the I AM. Thank you, universe!

The Hardcore Training Continues

Last night's dinner: Porterhouse steak and pasta (orrechiette) with salmon sauce















3 days' worth of coffee cups and bottles. I'm drowning in them!



Today's hangover...er...workouts were sponsored by this bottle of wine last night.

After last week's festivities, let's just say I was pretty wiped out yesterday afternoon. But I managed to mow my lawn, sweep the driveway afterwards, organize some boxes and water some plants that I will need to plant any day now.

You'd think I'd be really fucked up this morning, right? Sort of...thing is, I slept like a baby, and even missed the coffee pot going off! I was shocked at waking up and it was LIGHT OUTSIDE. So I knew I needed to hustle, as I'm doing some long swim workouts this week.

I woke up at 6AM and was in the water swimming at 6:52AM. Not bad. While swimming, I was very conscious of how fatigued I was, not that I was sort of hungover. Thing is, I can perform whenever whatever. Maybe not fast, but that was OK today. I did my entire swim workout, all 3,150 yards. Tomorrow is only 2,800 yards, but Wednesday and Thursday are each 3,600 yards, so being used to being up early will pay off.

When I got home, I drank my glass of egg protein and finished off the bottle of Gatorade that I had taken to the pool. About 11:15, I chugged about 1/2 can of Coke and then set off to run. I ran for a little over an hour, and didn't set any intensity goals, but damn, I wasn't running too poorly at all. And it was warm and sunny, and my legs ached while I ran. Too bad!

I really should be lifting right now, but I'm going to put it off until tomorrow once that wine has run its course :) My turntable died, and I must go and purchase a new one!