Board of Inspiration 1.31.12

Board of Inspiration 1.30.12

Triathlon Training: Week 10 - Back to the pool after first Triathlon

Man, am I sore after my first triathlon yesterday. I am sore from the run as I have not ran that fast in a very long time. It was hard getting out of bed this morning.

I was sore. I was tired. My motivation was a little low after going hard yesterday. I managed to find my way to the Y ready to improve my swim.

I had a planned workout today of 2600 yards. I was not sure if I was going to be able to complete it or not, but I had the mindset to knock it out.

Here is the workout that I was planning on doing:



The warm up felt good to get loose again. It was weird being back in the pool again after less than 24 hours. I swam my usual free, kicks with board, and pull as warm up.

For my drill set I did one arm swim, kicks with arms at sides to work on keeping legs up and not dragging, and 6 kick swim, and one set of counting strokes(15 strokes).

I then moved right into the 8 x 100's at a moderate pace. I felt pretty good here. I swam the first four under 1:45 giving me a 15 second rest as I started at the top of the clock. I then picked up the pace a little bit without feeling tired knocking out the next three in 1:30 - 1:35. After 7 I stopped as Stacey and Lisa asked me to join them for a swim set. How could I say no to swim with two great swimmers and one being my coach? You don't, so I headed over to their lane for a circle swim and workout. Wowsers!

I am so glad they arrived when they did because I was in the process of talking myself out of the rest or my workout as I was not in the mood at all to do 8 x 100 sprints. With them I had no choice but to stay the course and push myself.

We did 2 x 200's. I don't remember what the time was, but I know I was gassed at the end of each of these. They had it all dialed in on time so I lost track, but I know I had to really push myself to stay strong. As I tired my kicks became bigger and Stacey reminded me to keep my kicks short and swift.

After the 200's we did 3 x 150's. I liked this distance as I find it much easier to push harder on this compared to the 200's. 200 is my enemy and I have not quite conquered this foe yet. I felt much better on the 150's, but I had to really dig to keep up.

Last we did 4 x 75's. I had two sets where I had to keep up with Stacey. This was no small feat. I held my own. The other two sets were more recovery sets which I needed as they were swimming IM's.

This was a perfect way to end my workout. I pushed much harder than I would have done on my own if I had even stayed. I am glad I was able to join them and finish with a great workout.

I ended up with 2350 yards in this workout and they were some quality laps. I am off to another great start this week.

The swim helped knock out some of the soreness and fatigue in my legs. Happy Monday to all!

My First Triathlon Ever....Try Melon Indoor Tri

Today brings a close to one crazy week. Talk about ups and downs. I went from feeling like things were over Tuesday with my knee locking up, to taking a few days rest to get my mind and body right to making a big U-Turn by running almost 16 miles Saturday to running my first official triathlon Sunday.

On Saturday I had a big day. After running the almost 16 miles early Saturday morning I took Addy to gymnastics to watch her continue to make huge strides in her skills and development. Watching her in her class reminds me that practice and not giving up when things are tough are keys to continuing to improve ourselves as individuals. She has certain things that she struggles with, but she just keeps on trying with a smile on her face. As we get older this is hard to go as begin to pile up expectations for ourselves. Watching all these kids each Saturday reminds me to always enjoy the journey. If you are not enjoying the journey, then why do it?

As soon as her class was over we headed to Clinton, Iowa. We dropped off the kids at their grandparents to play while Amanda and I headed back to our old stomping grounds of Ashford Universtiy. My basketball team from the 2001-2002 season was inducted into the Hall of Fame as the only team to make it to the National Tournament. It was awesome seeing everyone as I had not seen many of them since the good old college days. Crazy how we are able to just take off like we were just in college. Funny how many stories pop up that we all have forgotten about. It was a great honor. We stayed and watch the college game and I forgot how much I love college basketball. The aggressiveness and the intensity is something that I love. I feel so fortunate to have found my way to Clinton, IA for college to be able to experience college basketball because once it is over it is something that can never be captured again. Weird to think I guarded a few guys who play in the NBA.

After the college game headed out for pizza, cheese curls, and other various greasy foods. What a perfect meal the day before a race! It was delicious. We then headed to Fulton, IL to watch my Father In Law coach his high school team. It was an ugly game, but it felt good to finally be able to make it to a game this season.

Finally, around 10:30 we found our way home. I have not stayed up that late in months. I was off to bed feeling sore from the run and bloated from the grease.

Sunday I headed to Muscatine for my first triathlon ever. I was not nervous at all until I finally registered and looked out to see people swimming. Then my nerves hit me like a ton of bricks and I was thinking what in the world am I doing? Am I ready for this?

I went through all my pre race rituals that I do. I took in water, but not much else as I was not sure how my stomach would react. I never eat before my swim workouts due to being so early in the morning. With my start time of 1:30 this was different. I did not eat anything after 11:30.

I made my way to the small pool for instructions, found my timer for the day and chatted with some of the people in my wave. What a great group of people. They really helped put my mind at ease. We then headed to the pool. The water was cold! I loved it once I got going because I never felt hot like I do at the Bettendorf pool. Swimming is my big fear. It is the element that I am newest at and have really struggled with. I have put in some serious training time to improve my fitness and my technique. Stacey Zapolski and Tara Christensen have done wonders to help me with their monthly swim club. Stacey has kept me dialed in with things to work on. Thank goodness for them because I have no idea what I am doing and they keep me in check with their suggestions. I have a long way to go, but I feel I have made some huge strides.

On December 26th I tested out the 900 yard swim for the application that needed a swim time. I swam the distance in 19:15 and marked 19 minutes on the form. My goal was to beat 19 minutes. I ended up crushing this time and really surprised myself by my time. I finished the swim in 15:06 cutting off four minutes from a month prior. I was very happy with the results. Jeff Paul who is such a great friend, mentor, and person overall was there and he captured all my splits for me. How many people do this? I did not even ask him to do this, but he knows I love crunching numbers so he captured my 50 splits. I started off too fast doing the first 50 in about 40 seconds. Once my heart started beating like crazy and I wore off the adrenaline I was able to establish a nice pace to swim a rhythm that was comfortable for me. The orange sheet has all my splits courtesy of Jeff.

I jumped out of the pool and quickly dried off. Jeff told me that morning to just run and bike in my jammers as I don't have any tri gear. I was not that comfortable with my body to be out and about in my jammers so after I dried off I tried to put on a shirt with no success. After about 20 seconds of struggling with the shirt I decided I go shirtless. Then I struggled with the shorts and finally just told myself to not worry about the people and go. I overcame my body image and took off in shoes and a jammer to the bike.

The bike went very well. I messed up the resistance at first. I was pedaling like crazy but not going anywhere. After about a minute I realized I hit the wrong lever when adjusting the handlebars and moved the resistance to 1. I finally moved the resistance to level 8 where it was supposed to go and started cranking. I pushed hard for me, but felt pretty good. My legs started burning around the 8 mile mark and I started to think maybe I was pushing too much, but I figured to keep going. I was off the bike in a little over 16 minutes and took off to the track.

I felt great on the track. I found a great pace and was all alone for a few laps as I was the first off the bike in my heat. I felt strong and just wanted to hold on to my pace. To be honest I have not ran at this pace in over a year with the exception of one sprint workout I did a few months back. I was pleased with how effortless it felt at first. I started to tire at lap 20, but decided to just pick up the pace to eliminate the negative talk. With about 10 laps left I had to dig deep. I knew mentally I had to get to 8 laps as I knew that would only be .5 mile. I got to 8, then 6 laps and I felt in control. Thank goodness for Jeff shouting at me to keep going. Around lap 6 he let me know I could break 50 if I picked up the pace. I picked up the pace and with two laps left I had 48 seconds to beat 50 minutes. I was right on par with one lap left and 24 seconds. I felt queasy, but kicked it in gear to finish strong with a good time of 16:02 on the 2.5 mile run. My splits were negative splits which makes me even happier. My half mile splits were

3:17
3:19
-- a 6:36 mile

3:20
3:15
-- a 6:35 mile

2:51
 -- a few laps from dying!!!!

This was a great race for me. I was more than pleased with my time and how things went. This race was a confidence booster for me in many ways. I really shocked myself with my results. I was not expecting to do anywhere near this good and to do so proves that my training is paying off. This was the perfect checkpoint in my training to see where I am, how  I am doing and where to go from here.

None of this would be possible if it was not for my wife and her support and allowing me to train like I do. She is very understanding and sometimes my training is not always easy for her when we have 3 kids and she has a life of her own. I cannot thank all the people who train with me. The Crazies for the running help, the Leadville crew for the long run help, Chad for the swims, and Stacey and Tara for the swim guidance. Jeff Paul for always being a phone call away for a question and for sticking around to cheer me on. It was wonderful to have someone there for my first tri pushing me along the way. I would not have broken 50 minutes without him being there letting me know what I had to do. Basically, the results come from a team effort each week.

Once I find some pictures I will load them up. I know there are some good Live Uncommon photos out there somewhere and I saw plenty of cameras snapping pictures. I only hope I did not look too gross in just my jammers.

GETTING IT DONE! got it done Sunday and it back to training again Monday. Thanks for reading this very long post.

Final time was 49:57 placing me 3rd in my age division of 31-39 behind Jeff Paul and another guy.

Triathlon Training: Week 9 - Saturday Long Run and Knee Feels Good

I made it to Kaminski yesterday to have my knee checked out after having some major issues with it on Tuesday night during a bike ride. I swam Wednesday and had some pain so I took the rest of Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday off to let the knee rest until I was able to go to the doctor.

Dr. Walden worked his magic as usual. He put  me through some Active Release Therapy things that hurt and burned, but I walked out feeling like a million bucks. He said my IT band looked good, no swelling anywhere, and basically said I was free to get back to what I was doing. I had to have some work done on my hip, lower back, knee, and foot and he was able to make things feel back to normal. It was sweet relief to hear those words. I cannot Dr. Walden enough for the work he has done with me the last few weeks as well as my friends and wife for talking sense into me to rest.

Today I got up at 4:30, ate my waffle and coffee and headed over to meet the group for the Saturday long run. Today was an easy day for the Leadville guys. Last weekend they ran two marathons on back to back days so today was just an easy 2.5 hour run. It is weird to type that because anything that lasts 2.5 hours is never easy. I had to laugh when we finished because Byrne discussed how he could easily go do that run again with no problem. Talk about motivation right there. I don't think all of us felt that way and I know I was not capable of going much further, but to just be in the presence of so many great people this morning really makes me feel lucky to have chance to be part of the group.

At 5:30 am Byrne, Fountain, Johnson, Uhde, Gaffney, and Driscoll set out for our run. It was great to have Driscoll join us. He has been battling some injuries of his own, but he gave the run a try and that alone takes courage to take the step out the door. He had a great strategy to hold himself accountable. I hope to see him continue to make strides to getting better and joining us on these runs because he will be a great addition to group.


We had a great run this morning. I was a little worried how my knee would hold up despite my doctor telling me I was good to go. There is always that little fear in the back of your mind when you have a setback like this. This run was good for me to eliminate that little voice. We ran two 75 minute loops. It is always amazing to watch the world come to life. When I opened my garage door this morning this is how it looked




It was nice and dark, snow, windy, and slightly cold.
























Here is the view when I finished

The sun was shining, the weather was warmer and people were out and about. The footsteps are my own that they contain the story of a guy who just ran almost 16 miles with a group of amazing athletes sharing stories, insights, and thoughts to make us all better people while improving our health and achieving our goals.

Loading this picture reminds of a situation last night when I was waiting for my players to have a ride pick them up from school. I was becoming frustrated because I was ready to just get home. These poor kids were embarrassed waiting for their rides because they knew I had to wait. I was down to one player and about 35 minutes later his mother arrived. He opened the door and I waved. The mother did not apologize or anything and I started to think how rude until I heard her say, "What do you expect me to when I just was involved in a car accident?" It was a great reminder that we don't always know the story or the journeys of other people so we must be careful about being quick to judge. Looking at these footprints of my own reminded that we carve our own paths in life and while we work hard to make our own lasting impressions we cannot forget that others are doing the same. In some cases we don't know the how some come to be where they are and before we judge we should take time to find out. I felt bad for being frustrated with staying late at school when this mother was just trying to do what she was supposed to do and in the process had a freak accident.

Above is the results from our run. We really picked up the pace at the end. It felt good to get out and push a little bit. My legs were tired at the end. My quads were shot, but my knee held strong. I had some minor pain about 3/4 of the way through the run, but it quickly went away.

I will be doing some major stretching today to keep my legs loose. It felt good to be back training after a few days off. I sure missed the training. I hope to have a great race tomorrow in my first triathlon. I am headed to Muscatine for the Try Melon Indoor Tri. My heat is at 1:30. I am in the slow heat due to my slow swim time, but I have plans to test myself and see how I do. I look forward to doing all three disciplines as I have never done all three in one day before. I look forward to a good day and getting back on track with my training.

Have a great weekend. I hope everyone has a fun filled weekend planned. I am off to be inducted to the Hall of Fame at my college for basketball and then off to watch some more basketball as my Father-in-Law has a game(he is head coach). A day full of basketball is a perfect day for me.

Coffee For The Brain Makes Into Top 125 Triathlon Blogs!!

Friday I was checking my email and I came across an email from a name I did not recognize. I decided to check it out thinking it was going to be spam, but to my surprise it was something much greater.

I made the top 125 list of triathlon blogs according to http://www.triathlontrainingschedule.org/top-125-triathlon-blogs

The link above contains the list of the other amazing sites and blogs. I know there are many more great ones out there, but I feel very honored to be recognized. It really makes my day to know that there are people out there who read and perhaps enjoy my rants and raves.

Good start to the weekend.

Coffee For The Brain: 365 Photo Challenge

http://www.flickr.com/groups/coffeechug365/

This is an online blog challenge where I am asking people, blog followers, students, teachers, classrooms, Twitter peeps, Flickr fans, etc. to submit an image to the collection each day. I have attempted the 365 Photo Challenge numerous times, but I need help. 

Join, submit a photo with proper title and description explaining photo, location, etc. Together we will construct an amazing collection of photos.

Spread the word and start snapping pictures.

Join the group by clicking the link above.

Board of Inspiration 1.27.12

Triathlon Training: Week 9 - Knee Issues Leads to Rest and Supportive Friends

I did not make a blog post yesterday about my training. It felt odd. I have felt odd to be honest. Last Tuesday I had the worse pain I have ever felt hit my knee while doing a training ride(read the story here).

I swam on Wednesday and was able to complete the workout, but decided to rest the rest of Wednesday as my knee hurt throughout the day. I took all of Thursday off despite waking up at 4 am ready to run(my knee felt much better). I knew deep down that running would not be wise after 24 hours of being in immense pain and not being able to move my knee. If you train then  you know how gross you feel when you don't get a workout in. I felt blah all day wishing I was out running with the CRAZIES Thursday morning. I kept myself from doing anything that night also even though the bike was calling my name.

This morning I had a wonderful opportunity to swim with my swim coach, but I did not do it. I listened to my body. I listened to my mind. More importantly, I listened to my FRIENDS! We use the word friends all the time, but I think when you get down to the core of what a true friend is they are in limited supply. Having a few days of rest and finally getting over my little pity party for myself I started to realize how lucky I really am:

- I have a body that is able to withstand large training loads. This injury is just a minor setback and nothing major(at least that is the plan with resting and taking the smart road)
-I have a group of friends who I train with in all the disciplines whether it is a running group, swimming group, biking group, or just excellent people who are either a professional triathlete or experienced athlete.
-I have true friends

What do I mean by true friends? Being injured and stubborn I am one who jumps back in the saddle too early and just pushes to soon too fast. I don't always learn from my mistakes as two years ago I pushed too much and ended up with a stress fracture that just plagued me forever when I first started running for the first time.

I shared my story of my injury on my blog and also to some of my friends. We all have those "friends" who just tell you this or that and provide the general jargon of friendly exchanges. What I have is something greater. I have friends who are not afraid to tell it to me straight. That is sometimes the hardest thing to do - to tell a friend straight up - and also - to listen the advice of someone who tells you the honest truth.

My good friend Chad told me what I needed to hear.....rest. He gave it to me straight and it was what I needed. My wife Amanda told it me straight(she is also my best friend obviously). Another great friend Jane told me the same. How lucky am I to have people tell me what I needed to hear even if I did not want to hear it? I can only hope that I can be the same great friend in return.

I have listened. I have rested. My knee feels much better. No pain at all on this Friday morning. I finally get to go to the doctor today and double check things and hopefully do some Active Release Therapy to make things even better. I hope to jump on the bike tonight if things go according to plan. I want to ride nice and easy and get back in the swing of things.

I hope to maybe get an easy run in tomorrow morning and see where I am. Then Sunday it is off to Muscatine for the Try Melon Indoor Tri. It should prove interesting to see how I do considering the week I have had and how many workouts I have missed.

During my rest I have revamped my training. I will take the next 3 weeks to build up a base and just enjoy the training. Come 4 weeks I will start my 20 week Half Ironman training plan. I will start at a very moderate level of training(much lower than what I am doing now) and slowly build my way back up and do things right and not force the body to do more than what it is not ready to handle. Come July I will be ready to tear up my first Half Ironman.

Sometimes these setbacks can be just what the mind and body needs. The injury is the body communicating that something I am doing is not working and it is time to adjust. I will do just that.

In the end I thank my great friends for keeping me on the straight and narrow path of rest to do what is right. GETTING IT DONE! sometimes means not doing much but listening to the body and many times that is the hardest part of training.

Board of Inspiration 1.26.12

A new little photo effect on my iPhone for this shot. I think it looks cool!

If you are up for it, draw a picture representing this quote.

Photo Challenge On My Tumblr Page

http://coffeechug.tumblr.com/

Board of Inspiration 1.25.12

Triathlon Training: Week 9 - Tuesday Bike Ride Nightmare and So So Swim Wednesday

It is really amazing how quickly the body can change from being on top of the world feeling fantastic to completely crumbling at the joints(literally) and falling apart. I just went through the biggest up and down swing in the history of my body.

Last night I jumped on the bike to complete the following workout after completing a great run in the morning before school.



I started off feeling great. I was riding the bike, Amanda was next to me on the treadmill and we had a great game of basketball to watch. I wanted to push my cadence again to continue to work on pedaling at a higher cadence as that is my weakness. I was on the second gear up front and about 3/4 of the way to the small gear on the back. As you can see from the data below I was cruising at my highest cadence yet in a workout in terms of a consistent high rate.

After 20 minutes of warming up and holding this rate of cadence I started the 9 x 1 minute speed interval by cranking to the high gear up front and the second smallest gear on the back. I was feeling fantastic. I kept thinking that this was going to be my best ride yet. I continued to get more and more excited. I was pushing and just felt like I could not push hard enough. This was a wonderful feeling since I felt the same during the run. Look at the data and check out my speeds and cadence. This is a great pace for me. The best I have had to date.

And then BOOM

My knee completely went out. I mean it locked up. I could not move it. I was literally stuck on my bike. I could not extend my knee. Right in the middle of pedaling. I was done. I tried to get off the bike and could not. Eventually I made it off the bike and laid on the bed with my knee in a locked position with a throbbing/cramped feeling on the outside of my knee. It darn near brought me to tears. It honestly was the worse pain I have ever felt in my life through all my years of training. I could not walk or move. After about 8 minutes I tried to walk and could  if I kept my knee locked and did not bend it. I had to stop the workout. I had to get up the stairs from my basement and that was interesting. The knee just throbbed like nothing I have felt before. I went straight to bed because standing just made it worse. All night I kept my leg locked straight. I was not very happy. I went from being on cloud 9 with a fantastic start to a workout and instantly being done, perhaps for a while.

I woke up this morning at 4:30 to swim. I could barely manage to get down the stairs, but I did manage to get to the Y. I decided to give the swim a try. I had a tough workout planned and I was mentally drained and frustrated.

Here is my swim workout for today



I started off with the warm up. I made the mistake of pushing off the wall and I about jumped right out of the water. I knew right away that this would make for an interesting workout without pushing off the wall. I took the warm up nice and easy. I found my knee slowly loosening up as I swam as long as I did not completely bend or push off the walls.

I have been reading Zendurance during the workout I really tried to be at peace with the water and use it as an aid and not so much fighting against the water. This worked well until about midway through the 200's when I was tired.

This workout has my arch nemesis - the terrible 200's. I will tell you that I had to muster some serious mental toughness because I just wanted to quit. I was not in the mood for this type of workout and my knee was a perfect excuse to not do them. However, I kept thinking about being tough, being a role model for toughness. Swimming was not going to hurt my knee. There was no pressure on the joint. Really, I had no excuse but my weak mind.

I was able to fight through my mental fog of doubt and complete all 7 under 3:10 for each one. I think one of them was 3:15, but I know the other six were for sure under 3:10. It was great to be done with that set and know I fought through it. These were tough because I was not able to push off the wall. I had to turn and just start swimming with zero momentum.

I moved on to the 8 x 25 sprints. I hit another body hurdle as during the first sprint my right calf cramped(same leg as the knee). It dropped me like a bad habit. I could not touch the bottom of the pool with that leg because it hurt my knee to do so. I finished the swim and just worked out the calf with my fingers. I only had 20 seconds rests so I kept going. Each rest period I just worked out the muscle because it cramped something fierce on each sprint. This was a good test as this is something that could happen in Wisconsin. On the 4th sprint my other calf caught a cramp and I was thinking, "Really? Is this happening right now?"(I will be honest and tell you I had a few more words added in there as I was not real happy at this point)

I was able to finish and move on to complete the kick set and cool down. My knee was throbbing at this point and it was time to call it a day.

I need to get into Kaminski for some treatment, but as my luck would have it they are closed today. I am able to walk, but it does not feel the greatest. I hope it slowly goes away during the day so I can jump back on the bike tonight(I know....stupidity) as I am behind on my training and need to get another bike ride in to stay on pace. I just hope I can get this to go away by Sunday for my triathlon.

GETTING IT DONE! has some highs and lows. It is all about the journey and this is just one more hurdle to overcome.

Board of Inspiration 1.24.12

Triathlon Training: Week 9 - Tuesday Run

The usual group of Crazies met up at the Y this morning for our Tuesday run. We tried to mix up the course running a different path to cut out some of the wind. It was nice to try a different route. We started off nice and easy as you can see from the data above to warm up our bodies. The wind made it a little colder than I expected. We found our rhythm and gradually picked up the pace today. This was not the intended plan, but there are those days that you just feel good and want to push it a little. It felt good to rev the pace a little running the last two miles under 8 minutes. We were pushing, but it did not feel difficult at all. I take this as sign that I am making some strides in my endurance. I would like to get a run in the next few weeks where I do pick up the pace and see what I can do just to test things out. I don't know how to incorporate this type of run without overdoing things for my training. I will figure it out.

I was surprised with how well I felt this morning. As the day went on yesterday I just started to feel worse and worse. By the end of my basketball game last night I felt terrible. I came home and just had nothing left. My stomach, throat, and body was a mess. I was in bed a little after 8 pm. I woke up with a slight sore throat and cough. Once I got moving I felt better. I skipped my bike workout last night as there was no way I was going to be able to ride. I hope I feel better tonight to get the ride in after my basketball game.

Overall, another nice run and it sure is great to have a group of wonderful people to run with. I say it all the time, but I feel so fortunate to have a group of people to surround myself with to help with the training. It helps me stay on track and hold myself accountable.

Keeping things in balance I made sure to take time to play Legos with Aiden while entertaining Ava last night. There were things I wanted to do and actually felt so bad that I just wanted to lay down, but my goal is balance and I think it has helped by making sure I keep that balance. We have had two smooth mornings with no attitude so hopefully continuing with these efforts keeps things moving in the positive direction.

Thanks to everyone who read my post about balance. It seemed to resonate with many of you. In case you missed it here is a link.

Board of Inspiration 1.23.12

This really throws a spin on the classic four leaf clover idea

Finding Balance in Life and Triathlon Training, Week 8 Totals, Week 9 Plan

I was able to get back on track after losing some momentum during week 7. I had a great week of workouts and the key this week was finding time during a busy schedule. My family makes some sacrifices for me to train. I do my best to train while they are sleeping, but at the end of the week there is still overlap of things that need to get done. The key is balance.  I started reading Zendurance again from the beginning after taking a break from it due to distractions with some other reading materials. One passage that I had marked the first time that stood out to me was


"With both our hears and our minds, we must remember that we have to be healthy, whole, and balanced human beings before we can be athletes."

This is a powerful statement. Really, it states the obvious that we cannot neglect our duties as human, father, husband, teacher, coach, etc. Without taking care of the other important elements in life we cannot lead a life that creates and promotes a healthy athlete. My wife does so much that we all would be lost in our family without her. I think she gets tired of talking about training and basketball, but she is always there to listen even on the days when she could care less.

This statement also reminds of a scenario this weekend. I took Addy to her gymnastics and while sitting there I pulled out my phone like every other adult. After about 5 minutes I stopped and asked, "Is what is going on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest really more important than my daughter?" I stopped, put my phone away, stood up and just watched her the rest of the time. Let me tell you I had a blast watching her bounce around trying to learn all the new techniques and doing her best to catch up with the other girls(she just started and is behind compared to the girls who have done this for a while). There is nothing more special and powerful than watching her do a move and then checking to see if I was watching and then just smiling ear to ear to know I was focused on her.

I always blog about my training, but I think it is just as important for me to show the balances in my life as well. I should be able to explain the balance in my life in the same great detail as my training. This week I plan on thinking about my life balance with each post and if I feel like I cannot discuss the other aspects of my life in the same clarity, then I know I need to realign my priorities. This is my week 9 challenge - Align my life balance and make sure the scales do not get too far out of being in sync.


Looking back at last week here is my breakdown stats

Week 8 Totals: 9 Workouts

Bike Total: 81.12 miles
Run Total: 29.06 miles
Swim Total: 3.58 miles
Total Miles: 113.76

Training Totals Weeks 1-8

Bike Total: 477.53 miles
Run Total: 163.87 miles
Swim Total: 23.73 miles
Total Miles: 665.13 miles

Here is my training plan for Week 9

Triathlon Training: Week 9 - Monday Swim 2600 yard workout

I woke up at 4:30 feeling pretty good while laying in bed. I was quite comfortable and it took some willpower to get going this morning. I was working out until a little after 10 pm last night and Ava was awake at 11 so I only captured about 4.5 hours of sleep last night.

I knew going into the Y this morning that Chad was not going to swim. He is taking a short break from swimming and going after the weights and some workouts on the bike. He also added some sweet art to his body over the weekend so the pool is out while his new tattoo soaks in or whatever it does.

Here is the workout for today



For the warm up I did the standard - 100 yd free, 100 kick with fins and board, 100 pull

I moved right into the Swim Base Intervals. I swam the first 100 at 1:40 and took off with the 5 sec rest. I realized while swimming that a 5 sec rest does not really do much so I decided to just go out and swim the next 700 yards all at once and when I caught my breath on the wall here and there my rest would be counted. I was able to knock out the 700 yard swim 13 minutes. I hope I did not miscount my laps, but I felt really good swimming this little base workout.

I gathered my breath and moved on to the Swim Lactic Intervals which I knew were going to be tough. I had a hard time finding a pace that I could maintain for 8 sets, but still push myself. I dialed it in at 1:20 on the first set and that seemed like a good time for me. I was tired, but able to recover in the minute rest. I was able to hold this time for the first five sets. Midway through the 5th set I hit a wall both physically and mentally. I pushed through, but had to dig deep to swim three more sets. When you are alone it is crazy how powerful the mind can be(either good or bad). My brain kept telling me to quit. I overcame those thoughts and swam. The last two sets my legs were burning, I was breathing very hard and just had to really push through to get them done. I was able to complete all 8 sets in the 1:20 time frame and this was a big breakthrough for me. I was glad I did not quit. I kept thinking about the "small talk" I do every practice with my basketball team about toughness and made sure I was living by the words that I preach to them. I will be sure to share this story with them tonight before our game. I always start each day and game with "small talk" where I focus on one theme or idea for the day.

The kick set I switched between 50's with fins and the board and 50's on my back with fins.

For cool down I swam 150 yards with the pull buoy, 100 free with fins, and 50 with the board.

This was a great workout. It was tough, but I walked out feeling good about myself. I am interested to see how I do Sunday at my first triathlon when I compete at the Try Melon Indoor Triathlon in Muscatine. I feel like I am ready to push myself and see what I can do.

2600 yards in 53 minutes.

Body is tired and a little sore from the workouts, but that is a sign that my body is adapting to the workload. Hopefully, I can get back on the bike tonight. We will see how the day goes.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Late Sunday Night Brick Workout

This post is going to be short and to the point as it is past 10 pm and past my bedtime.

I had one last workout to get in to complete all my training for Week 8. I had a brick workout. I had planned to get up early and do this training before the family woke up. However, I developed a major headache/sinus infection last night and just killed. I slept in until 8 am and scrambled all day getting things ready for the week.

Around 7:45 I was able to find time to jump on the bike. Amanda and I picked up a treadmill tonight from a coworker of hers so I was able to run on the treadmill. It was nice to have Amanda running along my side tonight during my bike ride.

Here was the workout on hand.





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I took things easy on the bike. My lower back has been killing me lately. I rode on the big gear up front and middle on the back(my preferred setting).

In 90 minutes I knocked out 31.09 miles for an avg speed of 20.7 and avg. HR of 94 which was perfect for my training tonight.

I finished the bike at 9:26 transitioned to the treadmill and started running at 9:31. In 30 minutes I was able to run 3.41 miles for a 8:48 pace and avg. HR of 134. I ran nice and easy being my first time doing a brick workout. I felt really good.

This was a perfect end to a great week of workouts. I feel good and am off to bed as I am up early for a serious swim workout.

GETTING IT DONE! no matter what time of time.

Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars

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Alright, first let me just get the basic book review info out in the open

Book Description

Publication Date: January 10, 2012

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.




My Thoughts

Last weekend I started my adventure of another John Green novel. I was so excited and made a post about my reading style for this novel(nice and slow).

Friday night I finished this book. I had to finish. I was sitting at a crucial part of the story and just had to know how it ended. There are tons of reviews out there about this book. I have yet to see any who have not enjoyed this book. My goal is try offer something that does not sound like the rest.

I have given pause to think about why I like his novels so much. What is it that keeps me coming back to his material? I think it comes down to a few things that are essential.

1. His online presence - I look so forward to his videos with his brother. The videos have nothing to do with this books, but you are able to gain a glimpse into the mind of John Green. His rants about Catcher in the Rye or Great Gatsby show how intelligent he is. The videos also provide me a sense of his witty humor which help to bring his words to life when I read them.

2. His writing style - is loaded with witty dialogue. He can capture a communication scene between two characters about the most simplest of things and make your head spin. I don't know if everyone enjoys this type of thing, but I live for it. For example(not a spoiler), the discussion in TFIOS about eggs for breakfast is such a clever dialogue scene and one in which I had to stop and think about. Why are eggs considered "breakfast"? Mindblowing!

3. Authentic - is the only word I could think of to describe this final part of his writing, but I feel like there might be a better word out there. John Green does not try too hard to catch his reader off guard or go for the shock factor. He writes real life. This characters come to life on the pages and you cannot help but connect emotions with the characters. It is just a skill he possesses where you feel like his characters are real. He is not writing with a system that so many authors use anymore just to sell books. This book took him a long time to write. Did he rush? No, he took the time to write the story he wanted and it worked.

This book was awesome! I did not see a few things coming and when they happened it was only the obvious choice to go, but with my attachment to certain characters I wanted something else. When I finished I realized that my wishes would not have worked.


I have about 15 passages marked in my signed copy of the book. I really want to share them, but don't want to risk any spoilers to the reader who has not read or finished the book. However, this book will make it to my bookshelf of keepers along with his others. I have no choice but to go back and read his novels all over again to see what other parts of the stories I have missed.

I give this book 5/5. It was the perfect read for me. It brought me back to reading YA and fiction. However, it is hard to find another book to read following this one.

If you have not read this book, please do because it is so worth your time. If you have not read John Green, then you are missing out on some amazing characters.

Perhaps a book club on this novel is in order? I might have to work on organizing this for an online group.

Thank you John Green for making another lasting impression in my life with your stories. I look forward to discussing this book with others in Nerdfighteria.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Saturday Long Run

Going into this weekend I had two workouts remaining. One was a sprint workout and the other is a brick workout. I had already planned to do the brick workout Sunday so that left me with today to get in my sprint workout. I don't think I could properly get my sprint workout in the way I wanted outdoors due to ice and snow and cold, but I also knew I would not get myself to the Y for the treadmill as we have an entire house to clean before having the birthday parties for the kids today.

So what did I do? I made the obvious choice to run with an amazing group of runners early this morning. I woke up at 4 am, had a cup of coffee, one pancake(we were out of waffles), dressed for the negative temperatures and met up with Uhde, Gaffney, Byrne, and Fountain at 4:30. I was tired this morning. Ava woke up a few times last night and I was quite comfortable in bed. However, staying in your comfort zones does not help you achieve your goals.

It was cold out this morning. I put on two pair of gloves and had a hand warmer. I also put on a face mask along with another running hat and few layers on my body. Once we started and my body warmed up it was not bad at all. We started off with a 90 minute loop. This was a good easy paced run. We walk anywhere from 10-20 steps on the larger hills to help John and Rick train for Leadville. We have also found(or I should say they have found) that these little breaks actually allow us to run faster. We made back to the meeting point at 6:00 to see if others were joining. As we refueled by body started to lock up. My lower back became super tight and my quads and hips were tight.

Uhde and I went out for a little while longer running until 6:45 as we both had to get back to things done. Also, I did not want to push too much this weekend with another workout tomorrow and this week being a recovery week.

In the end I completed 13 miles in 2 hours 5 minutes for 9:37 pace. I am interested to see how my body responds when it actually becomes warm outside because I sure do find the frigid temps, snow, wind, and ice to be so much harder to run in.

Major props to John and Rick who continued on running to get in a marathon this morning. They are two of the most strong willed people I know. They are trying to get in two marathons this weekend and due to conflicts of schedule they might run their second marathon tonight. Talk about dedication.

My quads and hip joints were wiped out after this run. This was a good run for me. I am glad I did this run because I don't think I would have completed a workout without this awesome support group of runners.

Here is a breakdown of the run for me. It sure is nice to be done with this workout before 7 am.

It is time for some coffee and stretching and then off to prepare for the party. Have a great weekend everyone!

Board of Inspiration 1.20.12

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Friday Swim Workout

This was our workout today. It was the perfect workout to end the work week. I have been living in a world of frustration lately which is all my fault to allow myself to be frustrated. Today I was tired. I could not sleep at all after losing our basketball game last night. I am a competitor and to lose drives me nuts! I kept replaying the game trying to find out what I can do to make the team better. As soon as I fell asleep Ava was awake and then she woke up again later in the night. By the time I settled in for a good sleep it was time to get up and swim. My head hurt and I was tired.

Today it felt good just to jump in and go. No drills or any speed work. After our 250 yd warm-up we headed right into our 60 lengths of the pool for the 1500 yard swim. I took it nice and easy and found some peace and calm within the laps. I was able to swim this in 27 minutes which is not too bad considering I felt fine when I finished. The swimming is coming together. I don't always want to swim and don't always enjoy, but I am seeing improvements which is nice. My form and technique might still be bad, but my endurance is increasing.

We finished up with a cool down of kicks with fins and the board. I have two workouts left for the week. I hope to get them both in. If not both, then at least the one which is a brick workout.

Last night I realized that next weekend I will be doing my first triathlon. It is an indoor tri so it won't be like the real thing, but will still give me some practice with transition and doing all three sports in one day. I look forward to seeing how I do.

Have a good Friday. I am working on changing this string of bad luck. I hope to start a trend in the positive direction by the end of the work day.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Thursday Night Bike Ride

This was a frustrating bike ride. I jumped on the bike to get my 60 minute workout in for the week that was to be

I started off with the mindset of pedaling a high cadence as this is my weakness. I moved my front gears to the middle and my back to the middle/largest gears to help me push my turnover rate.

As you can see my sensor on my bike was not working properly if you look at the data table. I sure wish I could pedal 180 mph. The speed sensor kept going off on me. I would be pedaling at 24 mph and then it would drop down to 2 mph and then go back up. I was getting quite angry to be honest. I was hoping to ride my bike to release some frustrations after getting beat in basketball in our first game of the season. All this ride did was add more fuel to my fire. I stuck with it until the watch read 20 miles, but I know I rode further than that. My cadence reading is accurate so I kept my cadence above 90 and during the minute intervals I was pushing 100 plus which is good for me. Towards the end I moved to the bigger gears to move to the power pedaling to get my miles in.

I finished up with a good workout and probably pushing more than the 7 x 1 minute intervals that I was supposed to do. However, I live and die by my data and to have this sensor not work just put me over the edge. This type of luck has just been my scenario this week.

Sometime GETTING IT DONE! is not fun, but you must fight your way through to battle your own demons.

Board of Inspiration 1.19.12

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Thursday Run In Cold, Ice, Snow

Boy it was pretty slick out today. We had FOUR CRAZIES out and about this morning ready to brave the wind and cold. Uhde, Gaffney, Wheeler, and myself headed outdoors to run while the people at the Y looked at us like we were.....well, CRAZY!!

It was chilly in the wind. We had to be careful of where we stepped due to some slick spots on the sidewalks and the road.

I know I have said it before, but running out in the cold and snow proves to be more challenging than I give it credit for. I know that this type of running and training will pay off when it becomes warm out. My planned run was to include some fartleks, but it is just not possible/safe in the conditions. Instead I just ran a little farther and pushed my aerobic capacity.

You can tell the runs are more difficult compared to my fall runs as my HR is higher than normal. Running up hills really places a great workout on the leg muscles.

My face was frozen when we finished and my face mask was crystallized over. However, it was awesome to be outside and running with others. I don't want to be trapped indoors and having others around who are willing to brave the weather really helps.

You can see the split times below. As always if you live around and want to run feel free to join us. We did see one other runner today back in the neighborhoods so we are not alone in our crazy endeavors.

A great start to hopefully a great day.

By the way, Uhde takes the cake this morning with his beautifully hand stitched scarf that had this nice little flower with a button middle. Too funny considering he is built like the Hulk and here he is sporting a hand stitched flower scarf. Next time I am capturing a picture. The things we do to stay warm.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Wednesday Swim

Alright, happy Wednesday. We were back in the wonderful pool of the YMCA today ready to tackled the following workout:



You know how you have a certain moment or distance or some part of your training that becomes your mental hurdle? For example, in running mile 11 in a half marathon is always the hardest mile for me. For some reason my brain turns to mush at the mile marker. When running shorter distances mile 3 is the one I must fight through every single time.

We all have these little mind games. There are certain courses I run where I mentally weaken on certain roads or hills. Other place I become stronger. I don't know why it just is what it is.

I realized today in the pool my swimming mental monster. It is the 200 yard swim. I don't know why, but swimming 200's is so hard. These about destroy me. Today I knocked out all 6 sets of 200 in 3:15 with the last set being 3:05 and the first 3:10. I am happy with my times. I am right on track with where I want to be(at least where I think I want to be). But talk about fighting through the mental wall after finishing the first 100 yards each time. I tried several techniques all of which did not help.

This was another good workout. The 4 x 25 sprints I was dialed in to about 16 -17 seconds. I wish I could be on top of water during my long duration swims like I am during the sprints. When I swim fast my whole body feels like it is cruising right on top of the water. When I slow down for moderate pace swims I turn into a barge with max cargo.

It helps to have Chad swim. He is always ahead of me, but he helps me to continue to push myself to getting better in the pool. I have made some huge strides considering it was not that long ago that I could barely swim 25 yards.

Have a great day.

As an update on my eating healthy I have done quite well. I had a small breakdown last night with the making of a granola bar recipe that is supposed to be perfect before a long endurance training. I did smuggle some chocolate chips while creating this massive pan of homemade granola bars. Other than that I have been good. The cravings are slowly starting to go away. If I can hold out a little longer I think I will be in great shape in terms of not wanting to eat the junk all the time. I will admit that have been destroying dinner. I eat enough for 3 people but Amanda has been trying out some new recipes and they have been AWESOMESAUCE!

Keep GETTING IT DONE!

Board of Inspiration 1.18.12

Goals, Focus, Life, and Echoes

I read.

I read quite a bit.

I have not been reading novels or YA lately(this is about to change with the new book by John Green), but more non fiction reading about mental aspects of training, life, and simplicity. I am working hard at staying patient, peaceful, and goal oriented.

I am off to a good start this year(17 days down). Through my reading of the 8+ books I keep bouncing back and forth through I cannot but take time to reflect on some key ideas that resonate with me.

"Individual does not exist for society. Society exists for individual."

This quote seems odd at first. I have been asked a few times why I take the time to train, why would I run in the snow and wind, how do I find time to ride a bike, etc. I look at my training as personal fulfillment. I have a goal that I would like to attain. I want to challenge my body and more importantly my mind. I have to be careful to keep my family first and foremost, but this is something that helps keep me centered and healthy.

This quote reminds me that we don't always have to follow "society". We can be our own individual. If society was insane would you still follow society if it was considered normal? How often do we follow along simply because we think it is "normal"? I am to a point that I don't want to be "normal". I want to be above that. I want to carve my own path.

I saw this quote on Pinterest that reminded me that I don't want to be "normal". I want to leave a message. A legacy. Something that my kids and wife will be proud of if one day I no longer exist(I do hope to live forever or at least to 100).

As I work on being something beyond "normal" and work on peace and patience I often remember one of the phrases from one of the books that discusses how the world is an echoing place. If you throw anger, then you get anger. I want to throw out positive vibes, and receive them in return.

This all sounds pretty general and not very specific. My focus has a goal. A goal that I can control. The main goal is to complete 70.3 Ironman in Racine, WI. Lately I have been getting wrapped up in some very small details that just don't really matter. What matters is getting back to the basics where I push myself to the limits and just enjoy the process. There is a lot of time committed for one 5-6 hour race. I need to remind myself that the journey to Racine is more important than the actual event.

As I continue my training, decluttering my life, and finding time to be with my kids I need to continue to work on not getting angry and frustrated.

Muddy water will turn clear if if left alone. Mind will also clear if allowed to be still. Running and biking allow me to help clear my mind. I look forward to seeing and feeling where this journey takes me along with the other many adventures life throws my way.

Source: bayparkdream.blogspot.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Board of Inspiration 1.17.12

This one is deep. Feel free to share your insights on this one if you have any.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Monday Night Bike Ride

Monday night I jumped on the bike after the kids went to bed to complete the following workout





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This was a tough workout for me. My legs were tired from swimming in the morning. I had a weird feeling all day. I came home from swimming to have my vision blurry and while watching TV with the kids my head started to really hurt and my vision continue to become blurry to the point that I could no longer make out the TV. I then fell super tired. I slept maybe three times off and on during the day while home with the kids. I felt better that evening and felt good enough to jump on the bike.

I popped in Bad Teacher and took off on the trainer. I started pretty easy and slowly picked up the pace during the warm up portion of the ride. These 5 minute power sessions were tough. I had a hard time maintaining a high power pace for three minutes. This was a good workout. I did not go 100% all out, but came close probably around 90-93%.

I was able to knock out 30 miles in 82 minutes. I had to complete that final mile before stopping. This put me at a 2:44 pace on the bike with an AVG speed of 21.9, avg. HR of 114 and avg. cadence of 80. I grinded out on the big gear up front and switching from middle to the small gear on the back during the workout.

I have about 10 minutes of the movie left. Not a bad movie, but nothing outstanding. Any other good movie suggestions? I am slowly catching up with my movie watching from the past 5 years. I never have time for movies, but all this bike riding is a great way to pass the time.

Triathlon Training: Week 8 - Tuesday Run With Crazies

Woke up this morning tired. Laid in bed for two minutes after my alarm went off and the next thing you know it was 4:56. I jumped out of bed, quickly dressed for the cold and headed to the Y. Arrived at the Y at 5:04 just in the nick of time to catch Uhde and Gaffney on their way for the run. I quickly put on my hat and gloves and took off. Needless to say I forgot to switch my Garmin over to running, but not a big deal as it still worked to clock miles, split times, and distance.

It was great to run with these two this morning. Uhde is making some huge strides with his running coming off his big 19 mile run this weekend and turning around to run again today. His progress has been remarkable. He has that tough wrestler mentality that allows to push himself. He has provided some great motivation to stay devoted to my own path of training by watching him improve his run.

The run today allowed me to knock out this training run of



We ran outside which I was a little unsure of at first as the snow was coming down pretty good on the drive. However, it turned out to be perfect running. It was not cold at all and the wind was not strong either.

It felt like we were running at a very fast pace so I surprised to see our mile splits. The two times I have ran in the snow it felt like I was flying, but actually was much slower. I don't know if this is just a snow thing or what.

It was nice to get out and run after missing two workouts last week. I have hopes of getting back on track and getting the miles in this week.

We ended up with 6 miles in 51:56 for a 8:39 mile pace. We started mile 1 at 9:12 and finished up mile 6 with 7:57. It sure felt faster.

Thank You John Green - My Nerdy Superhero and Mentor

How I love John Green!

My favorite author. Period. Of all genres.

This weekend I received my signed copy of his latest novel, The Fault In Our Stars.

And yes I have started reading it. Reading it slowly. Digesting all the witty dialogue and writing elements that John incorporates into his writing.

I have many places bookmarked as favorite passages, quotes, one liners, etc.

The best part of this book?

His autograph

Thank you John Green for your autograph, your splendid YouTube videos, and your books. After a long hiatus from YA novels you have brought me back in the genre. A book review will be later this week. So far I am loving this novel.

Maybe one day I can convince him to offer up a dialogue via YouTube between him and me. That would be the ultimate of all ultimates. This has me thinking that it is about time to bring back the Coffeechug videos. Let the gears start to turn......

Triathlon Training: Week 7 - Not Sure About This Week? Ups, Downs, Spirals, And Back On My Two Feet

Not quite sure what to make of this week of training.

It has been a weird week.

I completed all workouts except two - both running(sprint and long run)

I may still have time to get in a medium distance run.

Life got in the way this week with training. I have to learn to be ready and cope with the curve balls that life throws at me.

This week I did not handle things as well as I could have. It is a learning process.

Training wise I feel good. I had some great workouts and found time when things broke down to get them in. I missed out on some runs, but I don't feel that will hurt me as that is my strongest element in training right now.

I did fall apart in the eating. When I get tired I eat junk food. Life was busy so I scrambled to eat properly running from practice to practice, dealing with sick kids, trying to find family time, and just have a moment for myself. This weekend was even worse being at Iowa State for Lego Robotics. Pizza, chips, snacks, cookies, pop, fast food, candy, etc. You name it I ate it and I don't think any of it was healthy. You have to have these days, but when I have worked hard to get back on the right path of eating well it is amazing how quickly it is to jump off and have the body crave the junk. I could tell I was eating more healthy because my body did not like all the junk at first, but it quickly got over it and began to crave it. Driving three hours I ate even more junk to stay awake.

I fell off the path, but I correctly myself, found the path, and am back on track.

I did not train Saturday after having four big workouts the two days prior. My legs were sore and my knees were tender. I came home late Saturday night(11 pm) and slept in and did not get up for the long run with the Leadville guys. I really look forward to these runs, but my body just needed some sleep and a morning to get back on track.

Not every week can go perfect. It it did then more people would be in great shape. The key is how we adapt and learn. This week will prove to be another challenging week as my basketball games start for 8th grade. Finding time, getting good sleep, staying up to date with schoolwork and family is all about balance. Sometimes with balance you have to make sacrifices here and there. I think this week will allow me to get right back on track and get dialed in again.

It will be nice to move away from this last week. It was a long week and I don't want to have another week like it.

Week 7 puts me at around 97 miles
86.67 miles on the bike
6.86 miles on the road (missed two run workouts)
3.81 miles in the pool

My totals after 7 weeks put me at 564.64 miles
396.41 miles on the bike
134.81 miles on the road
20.15 miles in the pool

181 days until Racine


Here is the plan for this week(Week 8). This is a recovery week, but will still be a tough one.

Triathlon Training: Week 8(Recovery Week) - Monday Morning Swim

This week is a recovery week. However, I don't think it is going to feel like a recovery week after the bad week of training last week where I missed out on two workouts and ate terrible, and just had a weird and long week mentally.

This morning I jumped into the pool bright and early. Amanda has in service so I had to get this workout done at 5 am and not sleep in on my day off(not sure I would have slept in anyways).

I am focused this week. I am dialed in with my eating and my approach to training. I need a great week to get things back on track.

My first swim workout of week consisted of 2200 yards. I had the following workout to knock out:

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I forgot to write in the 8x25 Drill Set after the warm-up.

I started out with the warm-up obviously. My shoulders were tight and my body felt like a big block on stone. I knew that my weekend of eating like poop was here to show me how it affects me.

I moved into a 8 x 25 drill set working on the 6 count, shark fin, kicks on my back, and counting my strokes.

Then I moved to the 8 x 100's at a moderate pace. I started off my first leg at 1:35 and felt pretty good with that time so I tried to keep that as my gauge. My rest was longer than 5 seconds. To help me stay on track I just started at the top of the clock each time so I had about 20-25 second rest which I don't think is a big deal. I was able to maintain the 1:35 time for all eight sets. I will admit I was tired towards the end. My body felt heavy, but I attribute that to my terrible schedule and eating this weekend. It was a great reminder about eating healthy.

While I was swimming I was trying to remember what my swim coach Tara had emailed me. I gave her my T-30 swim time and she broke down what my 100's and 200's time splits should be. I could not remember, but when I came home I read her email and she recommended a 1:40 time so I was right on track and just a shade under that time.

Next I had the 8 x 75 max speed. I started tired, but pushed through. I was able to hit all 8 splits between 58-60 seconds each time. I had to fight hard to maintain this pace the last three sets. My problem was more in my breathing more than anything else. My legs were tired, but I found the energy to plunge through. I don't know what my time splits should have been, but I was happy with this time.

For my cool down I did some kicks with fins and the board, 100 free with fins, and another 100 on my back and also mixing in kicks with the board.

This was a good workout. It worked me out good.

Happy Monday!

P.S. As you know I am working on eating healthy. It is only 9:52 and it was so hard to not indulge in a handful of potato chips as I watched my kids eat some. So difficult.

GETTING IT DONE! Holding Myself Accountable This Week

This blog has been a great source of accountability over the last year or so.

I need to hold myself more accountable.

So here it is my accountability challenge for the week (Monday - Friday)

I am going to go five days with no junk food. Junk food includes candy, chips, pop(diet included), chocolate, and anything that would be deemed unhealthy.

I am not cutting back on food because that would be stupid with my training loads that I have been putting my body through. Rather, instead of having those 2-3 times during the day where I just unleash and wreak havoc on any food item in my kitchen I will eliminate this by choosing healthier options. Perhaps eating even more frequently might help these cravings. These food binges always occur around 2:30 - 3:00, 5:00 - 5:30, and 8:30 - 9:00.

I ate so terrible this weekend and a couple times during the past week. Yesterday I went all in just eating like complete crap one more day to remind myself how terrible you really feel when you inject your body with garbage. Trust me I felt horrible and I paid for it this morning in the pool when it felt like I was swimming with a cinder block in my gut.

I weighed in this morning just to see how my eating habits affected me and how eating healthy will affect my body after five days. I have to admit that I weigh the most I have weighed since July 2011. Not a good sign. I know most of this weight is probably water weight due to sodium and other junk.

There it is! Right here on this blog. I will update my progress in my training logs to keep me focused. It will be a tough challenge because I love food. I can do it! If I can push my body in training, then I can push my mind to not indulge. I am more interested in seeing how it affects my body during my training. Surely I will feel even better and recover better.

The challenge has started. GETTING IT DONE! just proved interesting.

Feel free to join in if you wish. Just a final reminder. This is not a diet. I am not eating less. I am just eating clean.

Bettendorf Robo-Dogs Win Champion's Award at First Lego League State Competition in Iowa

I am in shock.

I don't think it has quite sunk in yet.

This Saturday our Lego Robotics team was at Iowa State competiting in the Iowa First Lego League Championship - http://www.isek.iastate.edu/

Teams compete in four competitions
- Robot Presentation - teams have to explain their robot, attachments, programs, and process to solving the mission board
-Robot Competition - teams have three chances to score the highest score of the day
-Core Values - teams are place in a room with judges and have to perform a task and are graded on problem solving, teamwork, working together, and articulating their actions
-Research/Innovation Project - students have to research an assigned topic and then come up with a new and innovative solution that does not already exist

Back in December we competed at the Putnam Musuem in Davenport, Iowa. There were 9 Regionals across the state. A total of 295 teams competed in Iowa alone. Teams can have no more than 10 members and must be ages 9-14.

At Regionals we took first place in the Robot Competition and also in Core Values. We have never won two awards before. We were off to a good start.

We then had about a month to improve all elements of our team. We worked like mad on our product idea and really turned it around into a well done presentation and product(more details coming later).

We added about 25 points to our robot run.

We talked about what it takes to become better to be competitive at state. We have been to state before, but never really felt like we had a chance to win anything.

We talked about working together as a team. How to handle adversity. How to adapt to the personalities and strengths/weaknesses that each person brings to a team. We worked very hard on the real world skills of coping with the ups and downs of a project of this size.

72 teams arrived at Iowa State this weekend. We did a great job! We talked about our robot in a very professional manner. We had some solid robot runs although we were hoping to do much better(I think this is the case for every team), we delivered a smashing presentation our product, the team felt good about the Core Values(coaches and parents are not allowed to watch).

It was time for the awards. Our team felt a little defeated after our last robot run did not go well. We felt we needed a great run. The awards came out and our name was not called. And not called. And not called. Finally, it was time for the Champion's Award where this is top honors. This goes to the team that did well in everything scoring at the top or very close in all four areas. They mentioned honorable mention, then second place. Finally, the last award of the day and teams sat in anticipation...............


to hear team #10263 Robo Dogs

We won! We won the whole thing. The best team in Iowa out of 295 teams.

I am still in shock. I froze when our name was called. What an honor.

It has not quite sunk in yet what we just accomplished. I know that our hard work over the last five months, the hundreds of hours, the practice, the frustrations, the celebrations, the problem solving, etc. paid off. It is not all about winning as the journey to this point equipped these kids with skills and real world applications that they don't even realize yet, but it sure feels awesome to know we were top dogs.

I will post more pics and information about our team, our research, our robot, etc. as I start to collect my thoughts, collect some images and video from parents, and have time to sort through it all.

I am lacking sleep and have a family that needs attention and a house that needs cleaning. Great job Robo Dogs. This is something I will never forget.

GETTING IT DONE! is not all about fitness training. It is about programs and journeys like this also. Our team GOT IT DONE!

Triathlon Training: Week 7 - Catching Up on Some Workouts

Life has been busy the last few days and I was not able to get in some workouts that I completed earlier in the week.

Thursday I ran out in the snow and wind before school. It felt good to get in a run as it was my first of the week after being sick and dealing with sick kids on Tuesday. Thursday night I was able to get myself on my bike after missing my bike workout Wednesday. Things just did not go to plan on Wednesday, but I was able to get back on track Thursday night.

I was to complete the following workout

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During this ride I made it a goal of mine to keep my cadence above 90. Even during the recovery parts I kept my cadence above 90. One of the things I need to improve is my cadence. I am comfortable pedaling with power and lower cadence, but not comfortable going at a higher cadence.

This proved to be a tough workout. I needed a tough workout as I felt sloppy from the way the week had progressed.

I knocked out 25 miles in 70 minutes with an average cadence of 91 and average HR of 124. My average speed was 21.5, but I know during the minute intervals I was pushing 30 mph+

I woke up Friday morning and completed the t-30 swim workout which I felt really good about and put me back on track mentally.

I had to stay home again on Friday for Ava who still was sick with a virus. She went down for a nap in the mid morning so I quickly jumped on my bike to get in my long ride that I needed to get in for the week. My long workout consisted of




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I started off nice and easy as my legs were tight from the hard workout the night before and the swim a few hours prior. I was riding at over 4 minute mile pace to start and slowly picked up the pace as I warmed up. I got about 26 minutes into my ride when Ava woke up from her nap. So much for that. I was not able to get back on the bike as I cannot leave her wandering while I ride.

During the break I did my stretches as advised my doctors at Kaminski and knocked out several sets of push ups. Finally,  after lunch Ava went back down for a nap and I jumped back on the bike. Addy came down and played house/restaurant/ and made some artwork while I rode. I knew that with the time I would not be able to get in this long workout so I pushed the pace and settled for a 90 minute ride instead. Sometimes you have to make do with what you have. I really cranked the pace for me and was able to get in 31.26 miles in 90 minutes. My legs were fried.

I quickly jumped in the shower and got ready for basketball practice at 3 and then left for Iowa State at 5:30 for Lego Robotics State Competition.

It was a crazy day. I found a way to get in my rides. I did not get in my long ride the way I wanted, but I think that the push for 90 minutes was just as effective.

These are the two workouts I knocked out Thursday and Friday that I did not have time to get recorded.

Triathlon Training: Week 7 - Friday Swim T-30 Test

This whole week has been weird. I have just felt off a step all week and I really look forward to getting back on the old Coffeechug path. A variety of factors have just made me feel out of sync mentally.

This morning I woke up and sat on the couch debating what workout I should do. Part of me wanted to get in on the treadmill and get that sprint workout done that I missed earlier in the week and skip swimming. Another part of me just wanted to sip coffee and clear my mind(but I knew that would haunt my thoughts all day if I did not work out), and a small part of me wanted to lift weights.

I looked at my swim workout for today


 

This workout looked somewhat close to a test that our swim coaches mentioned at the Tri Swim Practice last Sunday where they mentioned swimming nonstop for 30 minutes to see how far you could swim.

They did say that not all of us were ready for this test yet and I would assume that maybe I was one of the ones they were discussing. However, I am stubborn and love a challenge and decided to go ahead and do this T30 test and see how things would go.

I am happy to report that doing this was probably the best decision I have made all week(I have made some bad ones this week).

I took it very nice and easy and just tried to mentally tune out the world and just swim. I did not think about form and technique. I did not think about breathing. I did not think about how many minutes I had left.

I simply swam. It was awesome. It was just what I needed. I am sure my form was terrible. I am sure I looked like a drowning dog. But it felt great.

I actually found this to be easy. I found this test to be great for my swim and my mental awareness.

In the 30 minutes I swam 32 laps or 64 lengths which comes out to 1600 yards. I am very happy with this. Actually this is just 4 laps shy of the workout above.

I finished the 30 minutes and did not feel tired or worn out so part of me wishes I would have pushed more. However, it is tough for me to gauge how fast to swim as I don't have much experience swimming for extended periods of time. I know I could have completed 36 laps had I picked up the pace earlier.

I left the pool feel great. I walked out with a sense of calm. I am recalibrated and ready to push through on this training journey along with balancing life, work, and coaching. It is hard, but it is possible.

Happy Friday to everyone. I leave tonight after basketball for Iowa State for Lego Robotics State Competition so this affects training times, but I will make do.

Life is all about balance. I think I have the scales of life centered again.