Cache Valley Sprint Tri: NEW PR!!!

First of all, sorry it's been so long since I posted. Hopefully the length of this one will make up for it, if it doesn't just make it unbearable to read.

Last winter, my brother, my sister-in-law and me had this great idea that we would all do Spudman up in Burley, ID in July. And, even though they were online ready to sign up when it opened, Active.com screwed them over (as they have a tendency to do) and they weren't able to get in as the ~1600 slots filled up in about 10 minutes and they kept getting kicked out of the system. I, on the other hand, was able to get in. So, I'll be racing Spudman alone. The reason this applies here is that my sister-in-law now didn't really have any race to do. She decided to do the Olympic distance at Cache Valley, and I figured the Sprint distance would be a great way to prepare for Spudman (Olympic).

So, this was a B race for me, and I didn't really taper at all before the race. I didn't really have any time goals going into the race, but my PR last year was 2:05 at sprint distance, so I figured I'd be happy if I came in under 2 hours.

So we showed up super early, as I like to do, and the weather looked perfect. Here's a pic of my sister in law, myself, and a friend of mine who raced too (it was his first tri ever and he finished in 1:31).



Here's a pic of us basically intimidating the rest of the field. Some people find it intimidating to see everyone else's gear and stuff, but I choose to intimidate my competitors with my physique. As a side note, I swore to myself that I wasn't going to forget anything for this race, and in the rush to get everything packed I forgot to shave my stomach/chest, and you can't see it in the picture, but I also missed my back. I'm sorry if this offends any of you hardcore shavers. I'll try to remember that for my next race.



The horn blew, and off I went. I am sad to say that I didn't train much for the swim. I was concentrating so much on the bike and run, and figured I'd probably barely make it through the swim anyways. But, I was very surprised to find that I loved the swim. I was able to freestyle almost the whole length, and it wasn't too crowded. The only bad part was right at the end. I was right in front of a guy who apparently blacked out. I couldn't hear much as I had a neoprene cap on underneath my swim cap, but as I was coming up the stairs leading out of the water, I could hear people yelling "MEDIC!!". You can see that I look kind of confused in the pic coming out of the water, and you can also see the EMT jumping over the railing to go help the guy.



I think I swam right by the guy (which I feel terrible about), but I honestly had no idea. I didn't really know what was going on, but my transition spot happened to be right at the top of the stairs, so as I was getting changed, I kind of freaked myself out as I was watching them do CPR on him. Luckily my brother was there to tell me that I was still in the race (honestly, thanks so much), and that I needed to get on my bike. So off I went. Here are my times so far.

Swim: 19:12 (which is amazing for me)
T1: 3:49 (also a new PR for me)



So, I got out on the bike. I had heard it was a fast bike course, but there was a pretty steep uphill at the beginning. I kind of felt lied to, until I got to the top, and it was pretty much flat or downhill for the rest of the course. It was a great course, and I felt so good. As some of you know, I just got my bike back from getting a frame replacement about a week and a half ago, so I was a little worried that something might not be tight, or that something might not fit quite right. I actually felt better than I've ever felt on the bike. I found a good rhythm for me, and just started spinning my legs. I was passing quite a few people, which felt good, but more than anything, my rhythm just felt great. I kept the same cadence for almost the whole course, and I would just shift when I needed to. It was funny because I felt like I finally learned how to ride a bike. Here are some pics of the downhill at the end of the course. You can't tell in the pictures, but I'm pretty much going like 65 mph. Luckily that cop didn't pull me over.





I pulled into the transition, and my wife and my mom were at the transition area waiting for me. The first thing I thought to do was ask one of the helpers if that guy was okay, and sadly they said that they were still doing CPR on him when they put him in the ambulance. I had a quick chat with my ladies while I changed my hat/shoes, and off I went. Here are my times.

Bike: 43:12 (17.2 mph avg)
T2: 2:16

Luckily my brother and dad were right at the beginning of the course to cheer me on. My bro said "Go Cole, keep it up" or something of the sort, and my dad said "Go Cole, you totally don't look gay in that pink shirt". I thought that was a pretty low blow, especially since he gave the shirt to me, but I'm nothing if I'm not totally secure in my manhood.



I felt good heading out on the run, but I could quickly tell that I had underestimated the effect the bike would have on my legs. I didn't do any brick workouts, and I probably should have. But, I kept plugging along, and I actually ended up walking very little (probably less than most of my training runs). About .5 mi. into the run, there was a pretty steep hill we had to climb. I kind of tried to run up the beginning of the hill, but when I looked down at my Garmin and realized that I could walk faster, I pretty much walked the rest of the way up the hill. It was definitely speed walking though. I had my arms swinging and everything. All I needed were some 1.5 lb weights in my hands and I would have been pro. As I came up to the second water table, I was kind of all by myself, so it was pretty funny when the girl asked what I wanted and I said "water". I was still kind of far away, and I think I was walking at this point, so she got it, and waited, and waited, and I finally said "I'll get there eventually". It was pretty funny. Here's a pic that will give you an idea of just how fast I was running (thanks tsilcyc).



The turnaround came, and I still felt pretty good. And I was definitely looking forward to going back down the hill. Right before I reached the downhill came the highlight of the race. I heard someone yell from the other side of the road "Hey, ChunkyB (my nickname on the Trifuel forums)". So I said "Hey, Callco, what's up" or something like that. I'm sure it was pretty hard to understand though, since I was coughing and wheezing by that point, but the thought was there. Honestly, Callco, that totally gave me the kick in the butt that I needed.

So, I came speeding down the hill (gravity + MASS = acceleration) and when I got to the bottom I had to walk for a few steps. I probably would have walked longer, but I heard my mom in the distance cheering (screaming) me on, so I started running again, and ran the half mile right into the finish. I ended up doing the run in 33:11 and I couldn't have been happier. It was honestly the greatest feeling crossing the finish line and knowing I had done so well. Part way through the run, I started thinking how awesome it would be if I could finish in 1:45. Here are my final times, and a few pics.





Run: 33:11 (10:43 min/mi avg.)

Total: 1:41:43

I can't even describe how good it felt to put so much work into something and have it pay off like that. Thanks for everyone's support (especially my beautiful wife). Now wish me luck on training for Spudman.

Wii Fit (and weighing my bike)

So, as some of you may know, I recently got Wii Fit, and it's pretty fun. It weighs you every day, and then it has tons of games and exercises. The moral of the story is that it told me I'm obese, so there's one more reason to lose some weight.

So I had this brilliant idea. Well, it wasn't really my idea because the game tells you that you can weigh things if you weigh yourself and then weigh yourself holding the thing. So, long story short, my new bike weighs 20.3 pounds. I know that sounds pretty heavy, but I was actually pretty surprised that it was that light. I'm perfectly happy with that.

Anyways, that's what I do with my time. Use video games to weigh random objects.

My New Bike

So, I finally got my bike replaced from when it was cracked a month ago. I'm actually really happy with what I got, especially since it was free. Here are some pics. The frame is a Raleigh Prestige EX, and I have not idea what year it is, but it's made of Kinesis Kinesium, which is apparently some alloy that's better than most. The fork looks a little weird, but I think it will grow on me.



The coolest part is the head badge. It's an actual head badge, instead of just a paint decal, so that's pretty awesome.

Race Mode

So, I did my short bike ride for the week tonight, and I was really trying to go as fast as I could. I went up to Nuuns Park and back, and it was a great ride. As usual, it took about 20 minutes before my legs could really get into a rhythm, but after that I felt great. I ended up going 17.6 miles, and my average speed was 15.2 mph. I was really happy with that, even though it seems pretty slow. The elevation profile is below, so there was actually quite a bit of climbing, and I guess that's why it's slower than I was expecting. Either way, I felt like I was doing really well, and my legs felt great. Here's hoping I can be in tip-top shape on June 21 for Cache Valley.

Nice Scenery Here In Provo

Since most of the roads I usually ride are currently torn up, I decided to head up North today and ride up Provo Canyon. I am so glad I did. Over half of my ride was on the multi-use path, which I don't like a lot of the times, but it was great. I was able to find some pretty ridiculous hills on the way to the mouth of the canyon, so I tried my legs at some climbing. It went really well.

Once I hit the path, it was pretty crowded, but it didn't really bother me. It was actually a welcome change from the 55 MPH traffic zooming by me during my whole ride. I had ridden up here before, but I decided to go further than I usually do. Here's a picture I took of what I saw. I didn't realize that Bridal Veil Falls was that close, so I was pretty happy to see it. It was kind of weird because there's about 50 yards of "Pedestrian Only" area, so cyclists have to get off and walk. I ended up going up past Vivian Park. In all, it was 29 miles with 1500 feet of total elevation gain. I felt really good, especially after about the first 45 minutes, which is pretty usual for me.


As a side note, the shop got my new frame from Raleigh on Friday, and apparently there's a pretty big paint flaw. They said it looked like there was a bump in the aluminum that they just sanded down and spraypainted over. I was pretty bummed, because it look like it might be another 3 weeks or so until I get my bike back. The good news is that the frame was an upgrade from my old one. It's still a 2004, but it was a Prestige, which was their top of the line road bike from that year. So, we'll see what happens there. I might go check it out and see how bad it is, because I just want my bike back.

Look, Super Nintendo Chalmers, I'm Learnding!

So, I'm starting to learn more and more about my training and stuff. Here are a few things I've learned lately.

First of all, I like morning workouts better than evening workouts (once they're done, that is). Logistically, they're tons better. I don't have to shower twice a day. I don't get all hyped up right before I got to bed. But, the main reason I've switched is because I found myself kind of dreading my workouts all day. It's not that I don't like the workouts, because I've actually started to like them a lot. But I just know that I had to do it, and I knew I would feel guilty if something came up and I couldn't do my workout.

Second of all, I think I get really hot when I workout, maybe in more ways than one. I was riding today, and I was able to refill my bottles so I had tons of water, so I decided to squirt some on my head, and it made a huge difference. I don't know if everyone is like that, or if I might get hotter than most because I'm so big or something, but it really helped, and I'll have to try that more from now on.

Third of all, stretching and massaging really really really help. I got one of those super dense foam rollers so I could do some self-massage, and I can tell a huge difference after workouts, and especially the morning after, if I use it.

Anyways, those are just some of the things I've learned lately.

Hill Repeats

I just got back from doing some hill repeats, and boy are my arms tired....I mean legs. 

I finally decided that I need to stop making excuses on hills, so today I set out to just climb a bunch of hills. I have my red bike (sans granny gear) so it was pretty low cadence, but I felt really good. I rode for an hour, and basically just rode up and then back down every hill I could find. There was one hill in particular that I have climbed before and it almost killed me, and that was with my granny gear. I felt a lot better today, and that was really exciting. Plus, it was just more fun then I usually have when I ride. There's something about getting to the top of a really hard hill. Anyways, I'd post my elevation profile, but it would just show what a wussy I am because the hills probably aren't that bad to normal mortals.

Oh, and some more good news. Raleigh is going to replace my frame, and the rep seemed to think I would actually get the same frame. He said they usually keep a few around for just such an occasion. Plus, they're going to renew my "free lifetime service" thing, so I can get free tune ups and everything. I'm hoping to have it by the end of next week, but that's probably a bit optimistic. 

What a Weekend

Here are a few things that happened this weekend (and sorry if it sounds like a pity party):

I put my bike on my trunk rack and left my saddle bag on my trunk when I drove off, basically losing all my little bike accessories. 

I did my first official 5k run in a long time and finished in about 38 minutes. I was actually really happy with this. It pushed my weekly run total to 12 miles which is really good for me, and the course was really hilly so I think I might have even gotten closer to 30 minutes on a flat course.

I went out on a bike ride and broke a spoke 3 miles into the ride. I should have seen it coming, but I didn't check my bike carefully enough.

I pulled my bike off the trunk rack when I got home and noticed a crack in the head tube. This is the thing that has me really bummed. There's not warranty since I'm not the original owner, and I know that frame cracks can be really bad. Anyways, here's a pic.

Sorry if this is a totally depressing post. My training is actually going really well, and I'm finally getting more comfortable with running. I'll be sure to do a happier post in the next few days.

My New Favorite (And Longest) Ride

I set out today not knowing how long I wanted to ride, but I had a new route I wanted to try out. I headed down south, and basically took this road south of Utah Lake. It was really nice. The roads were pretty new, so they were smooth, but there were hardly any cars. I passed probably 30 other riders, some in groups and some alone, so I guess I'm the only one who didn't know about this road. On my way back, this guy pulled up next to me, and we ended up riding together for about 10 miles. It was really cool, and one thing I noticed is how easy it was to carry on a conversation with him. I felt like kind of a dork when he introduced himself and held out his hand to shake, and I was basically like "umm....I'll pass. I don't want to wreck". 

So, I ended up riding for 44 miles. It took me about 3 hours (2:58), so I wasn't going super fast, but I felt really good throughout most of the ride, and I was really happy with how it turned out. See below for the route.

I have been sick for the last few weeks, and so when I ran yesterday, I could really tell that I've lost some of my running fitness. I ran for 28 minutes, and I was dying. So, now I have to work extra hard and try to get back to where I was and keep getting better.

Training Update + My "New" Bike

First of all, I know it's been a while, but here's a little update. My actual tri training schedule started 3 weeks ago, and it's been going really well. I have done at least 4 of my 6 workouts every week. I have a hard time doing every single one, but I've come a long way. Last Thursday I had my long run, and I ran 44 minutes on my new treadmill (thanks Clint) without stopping. It was awesome. I had my heart rate up pretty high for most of the run (155-160), but I was able to sustain my speed and everything, so I was really happy. It was pretty huge for me. I think I'm doing a 5K on May 3, and I feel like I'll actually be ready, so I'm excited.

The other news of late is that I got a "new" bike. My father-in-law gave me an old ('81) Bianchi roadie that he got as payment for some furniture he built. It was basically way too big for me, and I talked to a friend of mine who had an old bike that was too small for him. We ended up trading, and now I'm the proud new owner of a 1996 Specialized M2 Comp, complete with Araya aero wheels and blade spokes. It's a pretty awesome bike, and It'll make a nice commuter. I think it's the first 105 with integrated shifters, and it's an 8-speed. The best part is that he had changed the handlebars, but he gave me the original ones along with some yellow bar tape, so I taped them up myself. I didn't do an amazing job, but it was really fun. Here are some pics of the old and new bikes.


The bummer is that I actually gained a pound at my last weigh in. I'm not too worried because my fitness is improving and everything, but I need to be more serious about eating less and what not. Thanks everyone for all your support.

A Sign From The Heavens

Or, as was said in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, "A blessing from the Lord". 

I was riding my rollers tonight, and the bulge on my front tire was growing. I needed to ride an hour, and I hit about 1:02 total time, so I figured that was about 55 minutes active time. I got a little drink, and looked down at my tire, and the bulge on the side of the tire had grown quite a bit. I honestly thought in my head "I guess this will be my last ride on these tires. And that will make a cool picture for my blog". I started pedaling, and I honestly pedaled about 4 revolutions before I heard a loud pop, followed by a fairly loud hissing noise as all the air rushed out of my tire. At first, I was just kind of scared. I was able to stop and get out of the saddle before I tipped over, so that was good. Here are a few pics. I tried to get some good ones, but it was kind of hard.

Basically, these are the tires that came with the bike when I bought it, and they're the original tires (the bike is a 2004), so they're old. They were pretty shot, but since I've been riding on my rollers so much, they're completely bald now, and there are quite a few holes in the tires. I actually bought some new tires around christmas because they were having some killer deal at Nashbar. I actually used them once on that infamous day when I broke a spoke, but I put my roller tires back on afterwards. I was planning on using these ones all winter until I started riding outside, and then I was going to put the new ones on permanently. So, I take this as a sign from the Heavens that my indoor riding for the year is over (hopefully the Heavens will keep up their end of the deal with some good weather). Anyways, it was a good ride, and I actually got 1:00:07 active time. I don't know how I always get it right on the nose, but it's pretty funny.

Last week was a rough week. I missed my last 2 workouts of the week, and I just wasn't feeling motivated, but I'm feeling really good now. I got the "Triathlete's Guide to Mental Training" book, and it's been really good so far. Anyways, I think I'm back into the swing of things, and I'm actually looking forward to my runs for this week. 

My First Real Training Schedule + Weigh-In for February

First of all, I had my monthly weigh-in last night, and I am down to 265. I was a little disappointed, but that means that I've lost 10 pounds since the beginning of the year. I would like to lose a little bit faster, but I'll honestly be happy if I can maintain this same pace. I'll post some pics in the next day or two.

Anyways, so far this year, I've just been training when I feel like it, and it's worked pretty well. I've been staying aerobic as much as possible, and just training as long as my body would let me. I've noticed lately, though, that it's harder to stick with my training if I don't have a set schedule. My actual Spudman training starts in exactly 3 weeks, so I'm pushing back my 3 mile running goal until then. So, I want to be able to run 3 miles by March 8.

So, I don't really have any experience on what kind of time I should be putting in now, but here's what I came up with for this week.

Mon: Bike 60

Tues: Run 45 

Wed: Bike 90

Thurs: Run 30

Friday: Off (date night)

Saturday: Bike 120

So, the times for the bike are active minutes, so basically how long I'm actually pedaling/moving. The run times are run + walk times, so basically the total time I'm out there suffering. Tonight, I rode 1:01 active time, and it was a great ride. Since I knew that I was riding that amount, it made it a ton easier to actually do it. I listened to a little Fredcast, a little IGN podcast, and a little bit of loud music. 

One thing I've noticed is that my heart rate just drops super fast once I stop pedaling. For example, at the end of a similar workout back on January 8, my heart rate dropped from ~158 to ~114 in about 2.5 minutes. At the end of tonight's workout, my heart rate dropped from ~152 to ~108 in 1 minute. Whatever that means, I feel like I've come a long way. My average cadence has also gone up to about 80 rpm, so that's pretty good. I've heard people say that 90 is kind of the sweet spot, so we'll see if I can get there.

An odd week so far

So, I went running on Monday, and about a mile and a half into my run, without getting too specific, I had some pretty horrendous chafing issues. Basically, I was trying a new underwear regime, and it backfired. Anyways, I was still in pretty bad shape last night, and I also just didn't feel like running or riding in general. 

Tonight, I rode my bike for about an hour, and basically just got kind of tired of it. I'm getting sick of riding/running inside, so I think I'll try running outside tomorrow. Maybe it's not even that, and I just needed a few days off in general. I've basically had a hard time being motivated this week. I don't know exactly what's causing it, but I've taken it pretty easy since Saturday, and at least I feel like exercising again. I think I was getting burned out on tri stuff in general (training, podcasts, books, etc.) so I took a few days break. Anyways, hopefully I'll be able to get back on my schedule tomorrow. I plan on running on Thursday (maybe) and Friday, and riding on Saturday. Wish me luck. I still want to make my running goal for the month so I can't loaf for too long.

Speaking of podcasts, I've basically decided I'd rather listen to good podcasts about news and Nintendo than mediocre podcasts about triathlon, so I mostly just listen to the JBST SmartCas, TriTalk, The Fredcast, and then I listen to Infendo (all things nintendo) and some other things like espn and newsweek and what not. Oh, and if you want a good laugh, check out the best of youtube podcast. Good stuff.

My Goal For This Month (With Video!!!)

So, my goal was to get 6 hours this week, and I got up to 3 tonight, so I'm feeling pretty good about things. So far this week, I have 3:00:29 active time. I really don't know how I time it so well, because I have about 3:45 total time. I took a break about every 45 minutes and actually got off the bike to shake my legs a bit and what not, and it really helped. I felt really fresh when I got back on. My legs have felt really good, and my lungs have felt even better. I'm going to start running next week, so that will probably all change. 

Speaking of running, my goal for this month is to be able to run 3 miles without walking. I really liked having a small goal last month. It helped motivate me since I was working towards a more immediate goal. And, it might sound like another small goal, but it would be huge for me to be able to run 3 miles non-stop. I haven't been able to do that since I was 9 years old. Anyways, that's my goal. If I don't post about it by the end of the month, it means I'm a slacker and you should all hassle me about it.

Also, as promised, here's a little video for your viewing pleasure. For a little context, that is the doorway to my kitchen. I ride right between the pantry and the fridge (kind of ironic). You can see how I'm right next to that wall in case I get out of hand. Also, if you look under the saddle, you can see my fan blowing wonderful air on me while I ride. You can't see it, but I'm watching "The Ataris at Hard Rock Live" on my computer, which is on the counter. Also, that's free advertising for Hammer Nutrition you see on my butt. I hope to get some compensation for that. If anyone notices any glaring problems in my technique, other than my cadence is too slow, I bob up and down a lot,  and I'm too fat,  then let me know. Otherwise: enjoy!

Edit: I don't know why it's showing up so dark. Freaking blogger. Anyways, I think you get the idea. We'll get a better video before too long.

Another saturday roller ride

Today I rode my rollers for 1.5 hours active (2:00 total). I ended up stopping for a little while because our neighbors came over and I was talking to them. In all, it was a good ride. I rested every so often and stood up off my saddle, and that helped my butt not get sore. I watched the end of Godfather 2 and listened to some more loud music.

Here are a few things I've noticed since I started training. First of all, my heart rate drops a lot faster than it used to after I stop pedaling. I vaguely remember hearing a long time ago that this can be a small measure of endurance or fitness or some such thing. Anyways, hopefully that's a good sign. Also, I feel a lot more comfortable on my bike. I think, in addition to my flexibility increasing, I'm also just getting used to the saddle and handlebars and stuff. I also find that I get bored more and more easily on the rollers, so here's hoping we have a short winter so I can ride outside soon. 

Also, here are my tentative plans for the Summer. I'm going to do a century at the beginning of May, a sprint tri on June 21, and I'll be doing Spudman (Olympic) on July 26. Then I might do some kind of running event in the fall, like a half marathon or something. We'll see.

For this next week, I'm going to stick to the rollers. I'm going to try to get 6 hours total for the week (1 on Monday and Thursday, 2 on Wednesday and Saturday). Wish me luck.

I Made My Goal!!!!!

I checked an old post to verify, and on January 19 I made a goal to be able to ride non-stop for an hour keeping cadence above 70 rpm. And, I wanted to be able to do it by the end of January. And I mean non-stop. I didn't want to stop pedaling for a second during the whole hour. That's actually one of the hardest things about riding rollers is the fact that you can't coast. When you stop pedaling, your wheels stop moving and you have to hold yourself up. I know it seems like a weird goal, but I thought it would be a good way to measure some kind of progress. Plus, it helps to break the monotony of training on rollers. 

Well, since Wednesday is one of my days for long rides (along with Saturday), and since it's the 30th of the month, I figured that tonight was my chance. And, long story short, I did it! You can see the graph below. That's my cadence in purple, and that's not average cadence. That's actual cadence, baby! The red is heart rate, and the little rainbow stripes are heart rate zones, so you can see that I kept it right in zone 3 for almost the entire ride (yellow=zone 3). You can see that I went a little over an hour. Anyways, I'm so excited. I know it's a small accomplishment, but I really feel like I've come a long way. I'm still afraid of running, but that will come with time. For now, I feel like I'm making progress towards my bigger goals. Now, I'm going to go rest my butt. 

Increasing Flexibility?

Lately I've noticed that it's a lot easier to put on my socks than it used to be. I have a ruptured disk in my lower back, and it's been a pain to put on my socks (especially the left one) for years. I've been stretching and riding a lot lately, and I really think it's increased my flexibility, because it hasn't really been a pain lately.

Also, I've noticed that it's becoming easier and easier to eat healthy. I was pretty miserable for a few days, but since I cut out junk food and stuff, I haven't really been all that tempted by candy and other junk. Anyways, just a few observations that I wanted to note.

More podcast reviews

So, I think I've come to the conclusion that there are way too many podcasts out there, and I enjoy listening to well done podcasts about things like video games than mediocre podcasts about triathlon.

In Transit 2: This is a podcast by two female triathletes that basically goes through their own personal experiences with triathlon, and it's a pretty good podcast, but not the best I've heard. It's worth listening to an episode, but I would listen to tri talk or JBST before this one. I think I'll unsubscribe.

Ironman Talk: Hosted by two triathletes from New Zealand. They're actually really funny, and the podcast is entertaining. It focuses on interviews with triathletes and news about ironman and half ironman races. It's fun to listen to, and I'll keep listening during long workouts. 

Maybe I'll have another review after my ride tonight. I was thinking about running, but it's a blizzard outside, so I think I'll just hit my rollers for a while. 

My first major bike repair

As I mentioned, I broke a spoke on my ride on Saturday. What's more, it was a rear spoke on the drive side, so I had to take off the cassette and everything. I was going to just take it to a shop and have them do it, but I figured it could be a learning experience. 

I borrowed some tools from a friend of mine, and got it all done today. I'm pretty happy because I figured I'd screw it up or something, but the wheel looks really true and everything. So, my training is back on. And, if I feel like getting really dirty again, maybe I'll go out and get my 50 mile ride on Saturday. 

Here's a pic of the wheel after I was done. I spend a while degreasing the cassette because I hope I won't have to take it off again any time soon. I just had to include a pic. It's so shiny.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

I'm getting pretty good at those corny titles. So, I was considering going on a ride outside today, because the temp was supposed to be in the 30's. I told Carl last night, so he let me borrow his full-finger gloves, and I figured I had to go on a ride.

So, I kind of just wandered around Provo/Springville. At about mile 25, I decided I really wanted to do 50 miles, and I was stoked. My legs were feeling good, and I wasn't have any trouble breathing or anything. So, I went up to Hobble Creek Golf Course, and then came back down, and was going to go up past the MTC and loop back around to get right around 50 miles. Then I probably would have just circled the block if I was short of 50.

So, I was almost to mile 38, crossing the intersection on 900 East in front of the MTC, and broke a spoke. I got right off the bike, and sure enough, it was broken. Basically, I kind of tried to fix it for a few minutes (I don't know what I thought was going to happen), and then called Lacey to come pick me up. I think this was God's way of telling me I need to do more missionary work, or I need to go to the Temple more, since I was right in front of both. In the end, it was probably a good thing, because we had to leave for dinner pretty soon after. 

Here are some pics. The first is the route I took. You can tell I was kind of just wanderin randomly around Provo. The second is this cool snow sculpture thing of the ninja turtles. It was right on that street where you turn right to go up the canyon to Hobble Creek.

Good Podcasts

So, I listen to a lot of podcasts, and I figured I'd start writing about a few because I've gotten a lot of new ones lately, and I listen to them while I ride.

My favorite is the SMARTCast at JBST.com (search jbst in iTunes). It's by these two british guys, and it's all about triathlon training and stuff. It's actually really interesting and entertaining. They only put out an episode about every month, but they're worth the wait. There's lots of useful information.

My second favorite is probably The Fredcast. It's a weekly cycling podcast that talks about news, products, and training stuff. The news is a little boring once in a while, but I like to listen to it while I ride and wash the dishes. 

I also really like the tri-talk podcast. More triathlon related stuff. Good production value (which can ruin a podcast if it's crappy). 

That's about it. I'll mention others as I listen to them.

Feeling Good

I rode again tonight (1:23 active time), and I felt really good. I'm really getting tired of riding inside though. It really hurts your hands/feet/butt a lot more because you can't shift around too much. But, I've been feeling great lately during my rides. I wasn't even breathing hard at all, even though I was right in the middle of zone 3 (75% of max) for most of the ride. I cranked up the resistance/speed at the end of the ride until my legs felt like jelly, but I still wasn't breathing too hard. 

I'm scared to go running because I'm sure it will be a lot harder and stuff, but I need to soon. I think I'll try to drop a few more pounds, but I'm really excited to see how I do running. I'm going to take tomorrow off, and then just see how long I can go in zone 3 on Saturday. I'll probably get off once in a while to give my butt a rest, but I'm excited.

New Fan

So, I got a fan, and used it today for the first time on my roller ride. It was really nice. I noticed a few things. First of all, I obviously didn't get nearly as sweaty. Also, I noticed I had to work a lot harder to get my heart rate up than I did before. 

So, I rode for 1:28 half active time (about 1:53 total), and it was really good. I took a break about half way through and actually got off my bike. I had to adjust my cleat because it came loose, but I was glad for the chance to rest my butt and legs. I was keeping my heart rate in zone 3 for the whole workout, and I'm going to try that for the next little while. The strange thing is I really don't feel all that tired now. I was never breathing too hard or anything. I mainly stopped because my butt hurt, but my legs were getting pretty tired. I feel like I've gotten past that preliminary stage where any exercise is excruciating, so now I need to keep building my base. I have 44 days until my actual training schedule begins, but I feel like I'm making good progress. 

One thing I've noticed, as well, is that my heart rate seems to drop a lot faster lately when I stop pedaling or whatever. I think that's a good sign. At any rate, I feel like I'm in a ton better shape than I was before, and that feels good. 

Good Tri Book

I'm almost done with this book called "Breakthrough Triathlon Training" by Brad Kearns, and I've really liked it. It talks about a lot of things, but one thing is how you should have a few really long workouts every week (1 or 2) instead of 5 or 6 medium distance workouts. There are a lot of reasons, but basically it's so you're ready for the long ones, and so you're ready for the race because you only race for one day. Anyways, I'm going to be doing my long rides/runs on Wednesday and Saturday. Then I'll have Tuesday and Friday completely off, and I'll work as hard as I can on the other days. 

Also, he talked about how people are afraid to stay in the aerobic heart rate zone, even though it really helps you get faster and lose weight, so I'm going to stay completely in Zone 3 for now. I think I'll stick with cycling for the next month or so, because I think I need to lose a little more weight before I start running seriously, because I don't want to do more harm than good. I'll also be doing some swimming if I can get my butt out of bed and to the pool. 

Weigh In Jan 2008: 271

So, I'm going to weigh in every 3rd sunday from now on, because I go to my parents house and they have a nice scale. Anyways, I weighed in on Suday and I was 271. I'm going in the right direction, but I still have a long way to go. 

New Record!

So, I decided to get one last, good workout in tonight, and I rode my rollers for 2 hours. It felt really good. I watched Godfather 2 for about an hour and 20 minutes, and then listened to loud music for the rest of the time. The thing that makes me the happiest is that the total time was 2:03 and there was only 13 minutes where I wasn't pedaling, so I was actually pedaling for 1:50. I was usually between 60 and 70 RPM, but I got up around 100 a few times. I know I need to get the average cadence up, but I'm still a bit shaky. 

So, that put my weekly total up to 5 hours, and about 50 miles (not that distance means much indoors). 

My goal for this month is to get to where I can ride non-stop for an hour with cadence above 70 RPM. My actual tri training schedule doesn't start until March 8, so I'm just trying to get a good base. This month, I'm concentrating on cycling, and next month, I'll move on to running. I figure if I can get to the point where I can exercise for longer periods of time and keep my heart rate up and stuff, I'll be ready to start my actual tri training.

Rolling to Music

So, I've come to the conclusion that it helps me to listen to music when I ride. Last night I got on my rollers at around 9:30. It would have been earlier, but I had to watch american idol. Anyways, I was watching Steve Jobs' keynote speech at the beginning of my ride, and I just wasn't feeling it. Then, I put on some music (AFI, Thrice, Thursday, etc.) and it really helped me to keep riding and not get bored. I ended up riding for 1 hour and 10 minutes. It was a really great ride. So, now I have to start making some good riding playlists.

Spudman

So, I got signed up for Spudman, and Clint and Amy couldn't (stupid freaking active.com). I'm still hoping that they'll let them race, but it doesn't look very likely. For a while, I was considering just canceling my registration, but I think I'm going to do it. I really feel like I need a good goal, and I've really been looking forward to it. Even if I have to race alone, and there's not a huge fan section (my wife is due about 2 weeks before the race), I'll be there racing against myself.

Rolling along

I rode my rollers this morning for 45 minutes, with my heart rate 150 and 160 the whole time. I'm trying to keep my heart rate steady, and just put in the time until I get to a point where I can exercise regularly without feeling like I'm going to have a heart attack. 

I listened to music today, and I think it helped me to keep the cadence up a little bit. I don't know if it would work for hours on end, but it seemed to help for this ride.