"Communication"

I have always said that when the intent of  any message is lost in its delivery, the poor communication is invariably the fault of the person delivering the message.  That is why I take complete responsibility for the fact that yesterdays post went whizzing over the heads of some very intelligent people, including some of my children and siblings alike. Thank god my wife got it, which I suppose proves that she does indeed know me better than anyone.  I set out to create a convincing set of lies about my intentions, and apparently did such a good job of it, that when I delivered the punch line that was supposed to get the laughs, it was for naught.

So let me give you the Coles Notes version, in a much clearer fashion.

The first part of the post described in some detail my new, leisurely, relaxed, approach to my Ironman....life is short and all that.

The punch line was supposed to say, "not a freakin chance in hell" that I'm gonna coast along and have fun.....the fun only comes with challenging ones self. 

So sorry for my poor attempt.  I promise to do better next time.  Mean while.

GAME ON!!!

Todays workout....45 min swim...more on swimming tomorrow.

"Communication is depositing a part of yourself in another person."---anon

....and this one is brilliant I think....

"The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place."---George Bernard Shaw

Love
peter

"Second Guessing"

The last few days I have found a little stressful.  I know I just got started and yet already I have this sense of anxiety associated with the need to work out every day.  I had a tough bike ride yesterday, and a horrible run just last friday.  I know I am older than I was last time around and yet I  put myself under prsssure with every workout by comparing myself to 2 years ago, or even 10 years ago.  It just has me wondering whether my attitude is wrong.  What's wrong with just focusing on completeing the race in some kind of control regardless of how long it takes?  I know a guy who does Ironman Canada each and every year, and some times he barely even cycles through the winter.  He is a natural swimmer and so he doesn't do anything there either, and he has a total run/walk mentality when it comes to the marathon. And he does it every year!

So I'm gonna take a little different approach.  My goal next year will be to finish in a reasonbable time....maybe 14 hours or something like that, and to focus completely on enjoying the vacation, and the day itself.  After all life is short, and I don't want to waste it by busting my butt reaching for the proverbial stars.

With that it mind I am also changing my entire training strategy  as of today.  I feel less stressed just thinking about it.  First off I'm gonna scrap the whole weight training idea.  I have been putting off getting started as is, and I know it's simply because I hate the weight room.  That in itself seems to lift a weight off my shoulders  :)

Instead of wasting energy trying to fix a hopeless swim stroke I will accept it as it is.  I think swimming once a week for the duration will be all I need, and I will swim only in my wetsuit....much easier.

I will keep riding as long as the weather permits but I no longer plan on riding on the trainer all winter, staring at the little electronic cyclist on my computrainer screen.  That will play a significant role in maintaining my sanity.

I will of course maintain my regular running as that is the staple part of my health maintenance, but I will forego my spring marathon plans.  I have committed to running the 30k Around the Bay with Roo in March, so I will still do that, but that is the longest run I will do in preperation for Ironman.

I think this approach will just make for a happier life over the next year, and I think I can live with it.

What do you think?

For myself, I think that if you believe any of the above crap, then you don't know me very well!

GAME ON!

Workout today....10.3 km run...51' 50"

"Maturity is achieved when a person accepts life as full of tension."---Joshua L. Liebman

"Stress is not what happens to us.  It is our response to what happens, and response is something we can choose"---Maureen Killoran

Love
Peter

"Feelin Sluggish"

I looked the word up in the dictionary and it says something about indisposed to action or exertion. I thought yup! That's it. But I'm not gonna feel bad about it since it also lists 36 synonyms for the word, and only 6 antonyms. With those kind of odds a fellow's bound to drag his ass now and again.

As the day wore on the feeling didn't pass either, so this will be short. Of course it also happens to be Labour day here in Canada so that's another good reason to do "fuck all". I don't belong to a union but just for today I think I'm gonna adopt their attitude.

To top off all those good reasons, what the hell happened to summer? I was just getting rolling and suddenly the day time high is 16 degrees?(just ever 60 for my american friends! What's up with that? I wore long sleeves and gloves on my bike ride, in a nasty wind.

Even finding quotes for sluggish was a sorry undertaking. Almost exclusively they were related to team sports or the economy. So I just used an old stand by.

Todays workout...75 km bike...2'35"

"Obstacles are those things you see when you take your eyes off the goal"---anon

Love
Peter

"Eight Days a Week"

Every training schdeule I have ever seen, whether it be for triathlon, marathon etc. is based on the seven day week.  I got to wondering why?  Not wondering why that is done, but rather wondering where did the idea of a seven day week come from.  Maybe its something obvious that any idiot should know but I admit I have no idea.  Is it something to do with the  rotation, or the orbit of the the sun or the moon?

Regardless of this mystery I do understand why training programs are created around seven days.  For at least as long as I have been around, the traditional work week has been 5 days with a weekend of 2.  The weekend always allowed for the personal time necressary to fit in longer training sessions, and so it made sense to do them once a week.  It never seemed to work right however for triathlon training as normally you would altenate running and cycling days (the more demanding sports). and then fit in your other stuff (swimming, weights, X-training etc) as appropriate.  The seven day week simply can't be split equally into 2 and as such it is hard to build a nice symmetrical training plan around it. I have always adhered though, since it seems too natural and easy to commit your long rides to saturday and your long runs to wednesday etc.

The thing is, that it just doesn't make sense for many people any more.  The stores are open every day of the week, the churches are never open, many people work a continental rotation, or other types of shift work and the Internet is 24/7. I am personally blessed with a job that has me constantly checking to see what day it is since I do my work whenever it fits.

So...Im gonna try to build my entire plan around an even number.  I am still undecided whether it will be 8 days or 10 but either way it should be interesting.  The one other thing that seems to be common to most training plans in the idea of taking every 3rd or 4th week as a recovery week.  The experts claim that you need  that to "absorb" the training, and so that you don't break down from overtraining. I'm thinking that a slow steady progression geared specifically to your level and skill, might not be better that cramming for 2 weeks and then slowing down for the next week.  It makes me wonder whether the need for recovery weeks is perhaps driven exclusively by the concept of a seven day rotation.

So thats gonna be my approach.  Over the next few weeks I intend to lay out the entire years schedule including a few races I want to do, and then perhaps I will even post it for you.  Having  more experience now I feel so much more qualified to lay it out in advance.  I will however not be afraid to adjust as needed.  Above all else I have learned to listen to my body when it speaks to me.  I can generally tell the difference between it telling me to "slow down before you hurt yourself you idiot", and "slow down, don't worry, be happy".  Always, always listen to the first guy, and never, ever listen to the second guy.

Speaking of races I am very delighted to tell you that Roo and I are going to be racing together again for the first time in a long time.  She is targeting the Around the Bay Road Race in Hamilton next spring (30kms), and I'm gonna try to keep up with her.  Whatever we do that day we are committed to doing it together.  She has set a stretch target for herself but I believe she can do it....and as I said...I will try not to slow her down.

Old John has suggested that as I move forward with my training that I note my daily workouts here, as he would be interested in seeing just how much time and effort it takes to prepare for Ironman.  Im gonna give it a try since I need to record my efforts somewhere anyway.  My only fear is that people will see how little I really do and the whole superman illusion will disappear.  I also wonder why Old John wants to understand what it takes??.....hmmmm....

I will try to create some kind of a seperate template or link on the blog so as not to clutter this thing up, and such that I can reference it easily without having to scroll through all the posts.  Until then I will make note at the end of each days post.

Workout today----11 km run 59' 33".

"Man was made at the end of the weeks work when god was tired"---Mark twain

Some people ask the secret of our long marriage.  We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week.  A little candlelight, dinner, soft music, and dancing.  She goes tuesdays, I go fridays'---Henny Youngman

"Aint got nuthin but love babe, eight days a week"---Lennon/Mcartney

Love
Peter

"My Life is Charmed"

Or at least that's the way it feels today.  I am thoroughly enjoying the feeling.  The plan is quickly coming together and I can already feel a growing sense of anticipation.

One of the big challenges the last time around was trying to travel for work, and trying to train at the same time.  It added a lot of stress and quite frankly I wanted to do it a little differently this time.  So towards that end, today I shared my Ironman plans with my boss and got a complete, immediate and unmitigated commitment  to support my ambitions.  She is prepared to help me work all travel requirements around my training needs.  You don't know how good this feels!  I love my job, and I was afraid that I may have to give it up for a while.  I would have made the trade-off if I had to, but again, it feels so good to be able to do both.  I am reminded once again, that although the company I work for may not perfect, it is damn ,damn good!  I'm closing in on 27 years with Magna, and I don't think I will ever work for another employer in this particular life.


The other thing that just came together was Roo's part in our adventrure.  While I finally conceded that she was not going to do the race herself (this time around) she has come up with an alternate amazing plan.  If you recall when she did a guest blog for me on TRY NOT she mentioned that when she turned 50 she wanted to do some kind of wilderness retreat.  Today we signed her up for an 8 day Outward Bound session called "Mindfulness in the Mountains"  Very, very exciting.  But what's really special is the location (Mt Assiniboine) which is located on the Alberta/BC border just 600 kms from Penticton.  But if that doesn't prove that the gods are watching over us how about this?  Her session runs from Aug 12-18....and Ironman is on Aug 26th!  It simply could not work our more perfectly.  I will drop her off at her thing while I hang around in some RV park somewhere nearby, and then immediately after she is done we have an easy one day drive to Penticton. A week ahead of the race. Just when we would have planned on arriving anyway!  Unfreakingbelievable!!

To celebrate all  these good things I stopped in to visit my sister Mary and her husband Mike.  It was for me a very rewarding couple of hours and reflecting back I think I know why.  Of course visiting with Mary is always so rewarding cause she truly cares to hear what you have to say, but I must say that I think todays time together was most satisfying for me because of Mike.  Spending time with him reminded me of the blessings I have had in my life long before today. Mike was one of those blessings.  The expression "he would give you the shirt off his back" was written with this man in mind.  When I was still young and aimless Mike loaned me his vehicles when I needed one, bought me beer at the steelworkers hall when I had no money, or better yet poured it for me at the Gronk Hotel, gave me work when I had none, and just generally was kind of a big brother to me.  He doesn't really know I think how I looked up to him.  I still feel the same way.

To top off a wonderful day I was also the recipient of a brand new (new to me) hardwood work bench compliments of brother Terry.  Woohoo!  It is already sitting in its new location in the shop.  Life is good.

"The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings"---Eric Hoffer

"Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting."---Elizabeth Bibesco

Love
peter

"Saddle Saga"

or "The battle of the Balls"

 I don't know if you will find this amusing or pathetic or maybe a little of both.  But here is a pictoral description of 18 years of searching for the solution to numb free nuts!

First this.  It came with my first ever real road bike, a Steve Bauer.  The bike cost me $200!  Overall the seat was ok but in hindsight it was only cause at the time I thought a long ride was to Port Stanley and back....about 25K total

But I needed something a little slimmer when I started putting on more miles and so I got this.  Co-incidentally thats when the ball busting, mind numbing, pecker pinching agonies of the perenium began.  Thats the "taint" or the "gooch" for you more sophiscated types.  Also known as the "vanilla stripe" in the ladies....I'll let you figure that one out :)

Then came my Softride bike with this seat.  A very comfortable ride because of the suspension beam but still the hurtin down below did not go away.  As a matter of fact it continued to get worse with more time in the saddle.  For me, and I gather for many triathlon cyclists the problem is two fold.  One is just plain pain.  It freakin hurts enough that you can never really relax and focus on riding.  And then there is the numbness.  That may seem like a good thing in some ways, but believe me ladies, for us testosterone types there is no more disconcerting feeling than being able to reach down there and give the old boy a pinch and not be able to feel it!  Scary like Ozzy Osborne...or Sharon for that matter!

But....then I found the solution on the Internet.  What you see here is what is called a split rail saddle.  You can actually adjust the 2 sides in or out to make it fit your butt better.  Didn't work!  Just cost me 250 bucks!!

I would have gone back to one of my former more conventiaonal saddles after this, and just continued to live with the problem as best I could.  Of course through all these trials and tests, I was making endless adjustments to my overall position to try to find the sweet spot, but it never happened.

Then I got my beautiful Q-ROO bike and it came with my first ever triathlon specific saddle.  They had made quite a lot of progress in developing seats specifically for riders in the "aero" or "time trial" position, and indeed it was an improvement.  I don't know if you can see it in the picture but the nose of the saddle is longer, wider and more padded than a conventional road bike saddle

But as I started to crank up the miles in my Ironman journey the same old problems persisted.  After 2 or 3 hours I would be wiggling and squirming and shifting and standing....as opposed to relaxing and cycling.  So off to the store again for the next promise of a better life.  You can't really see it here but the middle of the saddle has a bit of a depression intended to alleviate the pressure off of the nerves and blood vessels in your crotch.  It kinda helped....a wee bit (or is that a wee-wee bit?)....such that this is the saddle that got me through 180 kms in the Okanagan and which I have been using ever since.

But....as I started to crank it back up again this summer the same old frustrations kept haunting me. So.... back to the Internet for solutions.  This time I came up with this.  The entire centre area of the saddel is cut away, so presumably it can't possibly put any pressure where you don't want it.  On top of that it is very nice and squishy and it has these vents in the hole which are supposed to improve air circulation in and around your secret parts.  Wrong!  The sides of the saddle simply caved in under your ass and effectively filled the hole, and despite an intiital feeling of comfort, Dick and the Boys were soon complaining profusely again

But!  One last try maybe eh?  This strange  looking thing was highly touted by the guy who designed it as being the solution for the gentleman who had tried everything without success.  The name of the company is ISM (Ideal Seat Modification) and I thought what the hell!  Roo still has some money in the bank and if I didn't tell her maybe she wouldn't miss another 245 bucks!!!

But guess what?  I think it's working.  The rationale is the same as some of the previous examples in that it is an attempt to eliminate the pressure down the middle of the saddle.  What they have also done here though is to make it wider and cut the front of the seat totally off.  The seat has to be wider to be able to creat a wide enough pressure free zone, and it has to be very ridgid so that it doesn't collapse inwards under your weight

The result is that you kinda feel like you are sitting on the wide side of a 2 X 4. and at first it is feels very uncomfortable.  But guess what?  I never, ever go numb!  Yes I mean never!  Never!  A few weeks ago I did a  167 km community ride in windy conditions and despite hardly ever standing I did not get the horrible sensation even once.  My butt is still adjusting to the extra width but I am very happy to be patient.  I believe my sit bones will adjust over time and I think that after 18 years I finally have a reasonable solution.

I put my previous saddle beside it so that you can see the significant difference in both width and length.  It is so short that the boys are actually riding out front, side by side like twins should be, and in the breeze where they are most content.

So that's it.  Believe it or not that was not a complete chronology.  There were others along the way that I gave away or put on other bikes.  But you get the message.
If this continues to feel good I'm gonna order another one and hide it away for the day they stop making them....don't tell Roo!

"Progress should have stopped when man invented the bicycle".---Elizabeth West

"Four wheels moves the body.  Two wheels moves the soul"---Anon

Love
peter

"The Big Picture"

When they opened registration on monday at 3 pm I was sitting at my computer and ready to go.  I actually had 2 computers in front of me as I heard that it was an effective way to up your odds of getting through.  I did expect to have to make several tries but to my surprise I got in right away, and 5 minutes and $700 later I was committed....or should have been.  The race was full by the end of the day.

I battled for a long time with the decision to commit, primarily because I have been almost completely unable to run for the last 4 months because of a chronic achilles problem.  Just within the last month I finally got into the sports clinic in London and I think I'm on the mend. I'm still very shy, but I am now back to running 10k every second day without too much discomfort.  I just have to be very, very careful.

My swimming has been non existent as its been a busy summer and going to the pool is such a chore when it's beautiful outside.  I have started back there as well but very slowly.  I am trying a self coaching swim program callled Total Immersion, which takes you right back to the basics.  I desperately want to become a better swimmer and I know its all about technique, not fitness.

I have had a fairly active bike summer with several rides over 100k and one longer one of 167.  I just love riding, as all my problems seem to soften up after a couple of hours of the wind in my hair.  I always come back from a ride feeling motivated and kinder than when I left.  I will actually have some "saddle wisdom" to share with you in the next day or so.

I am also determined to add weight training right from the get go this time, and I pretty well have my program planned based on my research. Once I nail it down I will get my resident pro (Roo) to help me do the routine correctly.

Along with the weight training I am also determined to improve my eating habits, and thereby my overall bidy composition.  I need to lose this spare tire once and for all.  Last time around I was still carrying an extra 10-12 pounds which seems to get  heavier with every passing year

Overall I feel very optimistic and can't wait to start hammering.  I must be patient however as this needs to be a long, slow gradual process with the first 6 months being focused on building a strong base. If I try to do too much, too fast I will either get burned out, or injured.

Of course I must also be careful not to deny mother time.  I will be another 3 years older again, and as much as the mind wants to deny it, the sad fact is that the muscles are not as elastic as they used to be, nor do they all twitch when they're supposed to any more. 

I have to end my post by telling you that it was a day of mixed emotions for me.  Roo and I are officially "empty nesters" as of about 6 pm today.  I helped Adrian move his stuff to his new place in London and as much as I'm so very proud of him for heading out on his own, I am gonna miss him very very much.  He was a part of our home for longer than any other of our children and it's gonna take some time to get used to.  Any of you who know Adrian, also know what a cool guy he is, so please wish him luck in his new digs.  Be safe my child!

"We've had bad luck with our kids - they've all grown up."---Christopher Morley

Love

Peter