SOCIALLY PROFILED
IRONMAN TRAINING 2021
Week beginning Sunday, March 28, 2021
26 weeks until IRONMAN Canada.
WEEKLY GOAL
Last week showed that I am on the right trajectory, let's keep that momentum going!
SUMMARY
I feel I like was REBUILDING, IMPROVING
Activity time as measured on my Garmin account shows that this week, I completed 44 more seconds compared to last week for a total of 10:40:44. Even so, this week had a bit more intensity added including 2 really fun road rides and 2 pre-dawn rides to/from the pool that featured spectacular sunrises.
I have been able to maintain focus at work but on the flip side, this week has been emotionally harder with another holiday without my dad.
We started remodelling our main bathroom this week too.
SUNDAY MAR 28 🌦
Sleep 4 | Fatigue 2 | Stress 2 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
Wind Warning for Greater Victoria
West winds of 70 km/h gusting to 90 will continue near Juan De Fuca Strait this evening.
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 2 TAC Routine.
Travel to/From Duncan. Moving furniture.
50 minutes: 15 minutes of walking to warmup. Give yourself the time to loosen up and get into a walking rhythm. Run 30 minutes, Flat route, EASY effort. Walk 5 minutes to cool down/relax
NOTES
Run Time: 33 minutes Average Pace: 5:41/km
I started the day helping family with an early morning trip to Duncan. I thought about doing the run up there (for nostalgia I guess) but decided that after moving boxes and furniture, I'd rather just make my way south. I needed food and thought it best to do my TAC Routine before the activity and after sitting in the driver's seat.
I had a nap once I got home and when I woke, the wind was still blowing but the rain had stopped. Perfect.
While out on walk, the sun was shining and I made my way upwind. Once it was time to press go on the jog, a huge squall appeared on the horizon; I was in a race to get the 30 minutes in. By luck, that squall missed me on my route and when I reached the 30 minute mark, I was feeling good to run another hill (Lurline) and go a bit longer.
Before I got too far past that hill, a biblical hail fell; message to not go beyond Elliot's 30 minutes received.
SHORT BUT PRODUCTIVE SUNDAY RUN
MONDAY MAR 29 ☀️
Sleep 4 | Fatigue 2 | Stress 2 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 1 routine.
Bike commute: 10 minutes easy to the pool. 30 minutes, long way home. Also easy.
5:30am: Swim 2100: 4 rounds (50 Easy swim, 50 swim w/ tight kick and a strong finish to your stroke, 50 steady kick w/ board. r :20 after each) Rounds 4 rounds (50 as 25 fist drill/25 smooth, 50 as 25 strong finish to stroke/25 Strong. r :20) 5x 200 steady w/ strong finish to stroke. Odds: Swim, Evens: w/ buoy r :40. 2x 50 EASY to cool down
NOTES
Total Time: 104 minutes Swim Total: 2100m
Maybe it was the nap yesterday afternoon but I was up and restless from about midnight until about 2am.
After a very crisp ride to the pool; there was a heavy frost last night but the roads dry and safe.
At the pool, I was able to put together, what I felt was a solid workout (for me). The second to last 200m (with the pull buoy) was starting to drag but the last 200m effort felt on point. The final 100m "cool down" was clocked with a smooth 1:46.7
I did notice that my left (non-dominant) arm splashes on entry the more tired I get. If I focus, I can correct it with better hand placement and better timing of the start of the pull.
SWIM PACES
Shout out to Skylar @Crystal Pool. Thank you!
There was an absolutely beautiful sunrise on the extended ride home from the pool.
TUESDAY MAR 30 ☀️
Sleep 3 | Fatigue 3 | Stress 4 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 2 TAC Routine.
Ride 60 minutes. Any bike you like. Flat to rolling terrain (or inside) EASY effort.
Run/Walk 35 minutes: 5 minutes walking to get loose, 30 minutes flat and easy running. Optional walk to cool down.
NOTES
Total Time: 90 minutes
A bit of a headache this morning; might have needed a bit more dinner last night.
Sunshine and a 60 minute ride, it was the road bike this afternoon. I rode an out and back route, The Goose to Highland Road, then up to its end at Herbate Road. My legs felt strong this afternoon; according to Strava, I PR'd a bunch of segments too. It wasn't all roses; the extra kick up and over some of the punchy parts had my lumbar a bit "cramped".
Once home, and before I put my shoes on, I took the time to do the TAC routine with some extra focus on the hip flexors.
On the run, I picked a my simple, down to the Selkirk Trestle and back route. I focused on breath-work for the majority of the run. I would not say the breath-work is completely "natural" yet, but I am starting to get a feel things. For example, holding the bit of tension in the pelvis and letting the thoracic relax is becoming familiar. Getting lost in the activity may have meant that I wasn't running as easy as I should. My average pace for this short run was 5:37/km and I was slow up and over the Switch Bridge on the way home. — Overall, solid day.
WEDNESDAY MAR 31 ☀️
Sleep 2 | Fatigue 3 | Stress 4 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 1 TAC Routine.
Bike commute: 10 minutes easy to the pool. 30 minutes, long way home. Easy back as well.
5:30am: Swim 2100: 3 rounds (50 easy free, 50 w/ strong finish to stroke, 50 w/ buoy-Strong rotation from hips, 50 w/ buoy-Strong finish to stroke r :20) 4 rounds (50 steady kick w/ board r :15, 100 steady swim w/ steady kick r :30) 8x 100 steady w/ one form cue of your choice (whatever is working that day) Stronger effort on #4/8. R :25 after each. 2x 50 super easy to cool down
NOTES
Swim & Bike Time: 90 minutes Swim: 2000m
Another clear and frosty morning for the ride to the pool. Once there, I think I found the culprit(s) that bought out all of the 5:30am swim slots for April and I wasn't impressed. This was about 6 adults doing a group workout in the fast lane.
In between their sets, they would congregate on the wall and enjoy small talk, leaving zero space for anyone else. Then when that group eventually decided what their next set will be, they'd all send off with next to little spacing between. At one point, I saw them coming back, kicking 3 abreast; how would someone not in that group get by?
I should only focus on what I can control but that selfishness on display bothered me today.
With that group monopolizing the fast lane, everyone else was squeezed into other 2 lanes. I counted 9 swimmers in the continuous lane and 5 in the slow lane; I did my workout in the slow lane and did my best with spacing.
I did not get into a flow like the swim on Monday. I ran short on time and skipped the last 2x50m; I was definitely getting tired. My last 100m was clocked at 1:55.1. For contrast, my best 100m (mid-workout, after a 50m kick) was 1:45.7.
Some of the slower times posted earlier in the workout were because of lane congestion.
LAST SWIM BEFORE EASTER
For the ride home, I pedalled up Doncaster Drive; cresting the eastern aspect of that hill meant an opportunity to soak in another breathtaking sunrise. Whatever frustration I felt in the pool was erased with that moment of sunshine. 
THURSDAY APR 01 ☁️
Sleep 2 | Fatigue 3 | Stress 3 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Run/Walk 75 minutes: 10 minutes walk to loosen up. Run 60 minutes. EASY effort. Flat route. Walk 5 minutes to cool down.
NOTES
Total Time: 60 minutes Distance: 10.6 km
Refreshed is the word to describe how I felt to start the day.
This afternoon's run was a bit of a mixed bag. After a 15 minute walk, I eased into the activity that took me to E&N Bike Path, along the Songhess Waterfront and then the Goose home. Once on the bike path, I found a rhythm with breathing and pace and simply went with it. For the first 7 kms, running was effortless and my focus on posture was on point, so much so that I realized that I'd be home sooner than the scheduled 60 minutes. Around 8 km, I took a detour through a nearby industrial park.
It was there that I started to fade a bit. Around 9 km, I noticed that I was starting to chafe. At 10 km, I was in the home stretch and finished feeling strong. My old running shorts are definitely being retired.
KILOMETRE SPLITS
I wore my Nike Zoomfly 3 trainers for the first time since the 5K block of training last winter. They are noticeably louder than the Altra Escalente 2.
The effort and distance (load) was right tonight.
FRIDAY APR 02 ☁️
Sleep 3 | Fatigue 3 | Stress 5 | Soreness 3
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 1 TAC Routine.
Ride 1:15-1:25 on the road bike. Getting outside for a nice spin. Easy effort. If the weather acts up, then we can have you ride inside, as long as you feel confident in your back.
NOTES
Total Time: 82 minutes Distance: 37.25 km
Went to bed early and slept well until I woke from a terrible nightmare; another holiday, another stressful time.
A counterclockwise spin around the waterfront seemed like a great route for some saddle time on the road bike. I must have read the weather forecast wrong because I was peddling into the wind for a good part of the route. Regardless, I felt really good on the road bike again. After the run yesterday, I was expecting the opposite.
There was a group of 3 cyclists that I spent most of the ride leapfrogging with. At Cadboro Bay, they continued on to Ash Road and I decided to blow myself up with a hard effort up Sinclair Road (the hill leading up to the UVic campus). I had my breathing under control by the varsity fields. At Blenkinsop Road, I turned right because I still had time left on the ride and felt really strong again heading toward Royal Oak.
— PR'd a total of 13 Strava Segments; really not expected.
On the ride, I had one 750ml bottle of plain water and 48g of Maynards Watermelon Sours.
A couple klicks before home, I saw an elderly man using a walker. It reminded me of my father and I was overcome with a flood of sadness. The tears didn't stop until after I had been home for some time.
SATURDAY APR 03 ⛅️
Sleep 2 | Fatigue 5 | Stress 3 | Soreness 4
Rate on an scale 1-7 1=best 7=worst +5 is a warning
PLANNED WORKOUT
Day 2 TAC Routine.
Ride 2:00 on MTB ~ Easy to steady riding. Flat to rolling terrain. Stay well fueled. Minimum of 500 calories on this ride. Off the bike: Run 30 minutes. Flat route. EASY effort.
NOTES
Total Time: 130 minutes
Wish I would have saved a couple of matches from the ride yesterday; I could have used one or two today. Getting off the asphalt, it was nice to see that the trails were in nice shape; a sign that spring is here.
Once in the north end of Thetis Park, I added some single-track to this ride with a go at "Comfy Wooden Chair". Some features I previously missed, I rode today but it wasn't a totally clean ride. Getting back on to Bellamy Trail I had a rock garden of a hill to navigate. Here it starts...
I have been making to the top of that rock garden on previous rides; today I needed to push the bike the last 50m. Regardless I kept riding uphill from there. I stopped for some sugar and a breather half way up Scafe Hill Trail an had another push-bike session before the cresting the Mount Stewart Trail.
What goes up... was a blast down the hill.
I doubled back down Highland Road and spent some time exploring the area near Panhandle Trail. There was another trail nearby called the Hector Connector that I noticed friends on Strava ride. I went in search for that. I should be careful what I wish for as that trail is a goat path rated as black diamond on TrailPeaks. Needless to say I walked more than I rode the tricky parts.
I was passed by a grandma on an e-bike on the Goose; legs were feeling cooked at the end.
Moving time for the ride was 2 hours, I had a 84g of lemonade, sugar (pinch of salt) in a 1.25 litre bladder (315 cals) and 65g of Maynards Watermelon Sours (220 cals).
A RIDE (AND WALK) IN THE PARK
I procrastinated getting my shoes on once I got home. I did start the run and it was about 3 and a half minutes before my legs started to feel like running legs. A few minutes later, I felt an unfamiliar twinge in my left ankle. Instead of tempting fate, I walked for the next bit. Thinking back, I did come off the mountain bike a bit awkwardly earlier this afternoon.
The voice in my head says, "Enough for today. Get ready for the run tomorrow."