Living Life

Oct Wrapup

Last race of the season, I did another swim leg of a half ironman. This time it was the Austin 70.3.  As before, I was with great teammates Susan Pope and Melinda Wight. 

 

It was a beautiful race that I fully enjoyed, presenting a minute faster time for a 100m longer swim as compared to Galveston in April.  I was graced with some good fortune on this race.

For November I'm entering into a bit of an eclectic base phase.  Customarily I'd start my volume training now, but my brain is a bit mush from the lack of variety of training.  I intend to do one week rotations, keeping swimming as a base for all weeks, but rotating focus each week on weights, yoga, and biking.  The 4th week will be a bit random or used as a rest week.  I plan to do this for two or three months, then hit more traditional training in time for next race season.

All the best to everyone out there.

September Wrapup

September was an educational month for me.  Volume wise, I exceeded expectations in swimming (45k yards), but was under in biking miles (141mi).  However, I pulled multiple PR's in the pool this month and a PR on my hilly bike route.  Working with Nancy Rehm from Fortemultisport, I'm trying to focus more on quality of training vs volume, and I'm liking it.  I also incorporated a rest week this month, picking the last week to be a little lighter than the others.  Again, I'm also liking this training modality.

For Oct, I'm not focusing on volume, and therefore not writing down all my expectations for the month.  I'm in a good routine now and know what I plan to do every day, so I want to shift from "doing it" to "doing it well."  So, the points of doing it well are what I chose to write.

 

End of Base, Beginning of Speed

March and April have been fantastic months!  March finished base training where I hit most of my goals; April started speed training, of which I have little experience, but am enjoying what I'm coming up with.  In March I pulled a PR for 20 mile bike on flats, riding at 18.5 mph, and towards the end of April I snagged a PR for a 300 freestyle swim (in practice) of 3:55. 

The real highlight of the last two months has been participating in the Galveston IM 70.3, doing the swim as part of a relay with two fantastic teammates!

I absolutely loved the race, the best thing being the talent that showed up.  Lindsey Corbin was there, Miranda Carfrae was supporting Tim O'Donnell, and I swear I saw Charlotte McShane, but I'm not sure.  Maybe that was just wishful thinking.  I ate supper the night before with Matt Russell who took 5th, but missed the podium by mere seconds.  We were talking about racing, conditions, weather, etc, because there was a storm rolling in the night before.  Matt was so cool telling us about some of his coldest races.  Speaking of the storm, we started with a 17 mph wind which put a good chop on the water, but then it kicked up to 20 mph for our biker and runner.  I experienced a nice dynamic of the relay.  We were all smiles, pushing hard, and having a great time, while everyone else was suffering because they were doing the entire race.  I was pretty ok with not smoking myself for 6 hours.

Mauricio Cruz won the race although Tim O'Donnell led every leg of the race.  Everyone was sure Tim was going to come in first, but Cruz rounded the last turn ahead of Tim a short bit before the finish.  The announcer was fairly surprised.  In the post-race interview, Cruz said O'Donnell has been one of his idols for a long time.  This reminded me of the saying to train until your idols become your rivals.

Here are my March and April stats which I'm fairly pleased with.

 

 

May looks to be the most aggressively planned month of the year.  I'll need to be locked in on scheduling pretty tight to make sure I hit these numbers.

As a bit of a side, as most would expect with a change in lifestyle, my weight is dropping.  I've lost 13 lb since the beginning of Dec, and while I think I'm near settling out to an equilibrium, when I look at myself in the mirror I perceive I have a little more of me to give.  I'm not doing anything special on diet, but making healthy choices most of the time.  I choose whole foods most of the time, over cooked or processed; I minimize breads, pasta, and cereals, but don't completely eliminate them (what's life without pizza every now and then?).  I eat red meat, but my most common meat is chicken thighs.  Eggs and fruit are most common for breakfast.  I do need to increase my discipline a bit more as I find I do reach for a junk food option a bit more than I like, when I am looking for quick energy or curing belly rumblings.  Here's how my weight has slightly declined over time; nothing big and fast, but this feels healthy and permanent, and all due to focus on lifestyle rather than dropping weight.

 

I am going to close out these thoughts with one final plug for my teammates.  My swimming wouldn't be where it is without the help of the team I swim with.  I'm always chasing the faster people which motivates me to push harder.  They are also giving me stroke advice which has proved invaluable.  While I don't have a bike team to get the same benefit, I have a network of bikers who are always talking to me about training methodologies, tools, etc.  While I can definitely do things on my own, I wouldn't be where I am today if there weren't others on this journey with me.  Thank you all!

You Will Make It

I've been through a few things as I have traveled on this rock, and I know a few that have been through a few more things.  My experience teaches me that there is nothing in this world that can't be gotten through.  Not one thing.  The key is to realize, when you're in the fight, you don't think straight, so you just have to remember to breathe.  Just breathe for a bit more.  When you realize you're still breathing, you will start thinking straight, start realizing that you've got the skills to make it, and most importantly, that the fight is likely not as bad as you originally thought.

Do You Need that Group?

Observe the video for 2 minutes. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJxqi090Yfc

Spock determines that he does not share the values and discriminations of the Vulcan Council, so he chooses not to enter the Vulcan Science Academy.

Think for today's situation.  There's a group out there that you want to be a part of, but they have refused you because you do not emulate what they want you to be.  You have a few options:

1) Change who you are

2) Try to change the group into accepting you

3) Wave, and with a very resounding voice state, "See ya!"

You don't have to be a  part of that group.  Maybe you wanted to really bad, and maybe it hurts to be refused, but they have shown their true colors.  Go find another group, one that respects you for who you are and accepts your values. 

Like Spock, show gratitude that they revealed who they were.  You don't need them.  Find people who love you for you and live your life well (or is that prosper?)

The Purpose of Life?

Not sure anyone has the answer to this question, but I have found that contributing to the world provides a certain amount of contentment.  I think the type and amount of contribution that brings contentment likely varies depending on the giver.  I've also found that people remember the contributions you make. 

This probably isn't the answer for everyone, but maybe it's a good start.

Where are We at Now?

Lots of changes since I last wrote.  Hip surgery has taken me out of doing full triathlons, but I can still do aquabikes or relays.  I'm still in the game, so to speak :).

I revisited the Patriot Triathlon this weekend and reconnected with lots of old friends.  The following day I connected with more friends that resulted in a ride in a hot air balloon.  This made me realize that our connections with our friends are significant boons to our quality of life.  Who didn't know that, eh?

As I've mentioned, there are times I like to just go places and hang out, for no specific purpose other than to be.  One of the places I go often, I decided to engage with people there.  I'm happy being cool by myself, but sometimes the experience can really be enhanced by making those connections.  It was definitely so this weekend.

So on a couple of social networking sites, I like to write some very obscure words to some very deep meanings.  Usually I'm so obscure that only a few people that think like me understand what I mean. My old writing teachers would tell me I'm failing to communicate, and they would be right.  However, sometimes that obscurity becomes an avenue for others to share what the words mean to them, and that can have some outstanding results.  Here's an example:

I wrote the words "Dogs dig, it's what they do.  Think big."
 

This actually came from a discussion with my daughter who asked how she can get her dog to stop digging.  I gave her alot of silly answers before revealing my opinion that digging is just what dogs do; accept it because you can't change it.

I thought on those words a bit, at first because they just sounded cool.  But, I had to add the "think big" part because there's more to us than just cliche sayings.  Accepting that a dog will dig no matter what you do can be applied to the much larger universe of all things that we should learn to accept.  Using the "dog" metaphor helps to communicate that all those things we need to learn to accept, are probably pretty ok (because dogs are, right?).  Finally, "think big" by spending your time on those things that really can be changed or deserve your attention.

So a friend of mine reacts to these words in a way that expresses his love for his family and his opportunity to influence the environment that impacts his family.  It was very comforting to see his application of my obscure words to his world, and get an insight into his perspective.

What does all this rambling mean?  It means you're cool, so am I, and we're going to be ok.

What is our future life like?

I like to study people, especially older people, because I don't want to be old, when I get older.  Obviously time will take its told on all of us, but here's what I've seen.

When I worked at the University of Portland, there used to be these two older guys that would come into the gym.  I'm guessing they were around 70, and while they weren't very spry, they had some killer arms.  When they did bench presses, they were doing sets of 255.  At 70!

When I lived in Los Angeles, early 90's, I met a guy who was a navigator on B-29's in WWII.  He was at least 70, but more likely late 70's.  He was taking pilot ground school, even though with physical handicaps he would never be allowed to pilot a plane. He told me he took the classes because he enjoyed the topic and he felt that use of his brain was necessary to stave off mental deterioration.

We've all seen plenty of examples like this.  It is clear that use of the body and the mind are our best defenses against becoming feeble. Now, as to what activities, I would recommend the first quality to chase would be fun.  If you like running, then run.  If you like lifting, then lift.  If you like golf, then golf.  Similarly, for the mind, if you like classes, take them.  If you like crossword puzzles, go for it.  If you choose fun endeavors, you'll have a greater chance of continuing them over time.

Have fun living.  See you on the water.

Where's the goals?

Back in December I posted these training goals, targetting June of this year as my testing month:

Run - 5k in 27 min
Bike - 25 mi @16 mph
Swim - 1500yds in 25 min
Bench press - 205
Shoulder press - 185
Dips - 25
Pullups - 21
Squat - 205
Clean - 215
Dead lift - 335

Since then, some folks realize I've had some setbacks that will make some of these near impossible.  I don't intend on changing the goals.  I don't always subscribe to the concept that a goal should be achievable.  If a goal is achievable, it might actually be too low.

I'm pretty sure I won't hit that running goal, but the bike and swim are within reach.  I think I can get close to most of those weightlifting goals by June.

It might be valuable for me to add some of the Crossfit "named" workouts.  Some of those are really good tests.

Till then, races are being targetted, training continues, and life is great.  See you on the water (dang it's cold).

Seek to Thank Someone; It's Good Medicine

The title doesn't suggest anything that we haven't experienced or already know.  For my part, not knowing good ways to live isn't necessarily an issue, but perhaps remembering to give that knowledge attention is.

Many times, we get up, we have an agenda, we go.  We get through our day working our to do lists, action plans, priorities, etc.  At the end of the day we look back and can often be happy with our progress.  However, in the speed of getting things done, it's easy to overlook opportunities to make someone else's day better.

As we all know, the simple thank you, spoken, written, etc, can mean a world of difference to someone.  Communicating to another human that they are valued, that you appreciate what they did for you, may be one of the greatest gifts we can impart.  Some may take that gift and use it to springboard themselves into a new level of success.

Now then, the trick becomes, how do we remember to give this type of endeavor a priority while we are knocking out our to do lists?