Monday And An 80 Mile Solo Time Trial

So my workout (my only workout today) was a solo effort 80 mile time trial. The actual point of today's effort was to get comfortable being on my tri bike in aero position for extended periods and to start working on my nutrition. I use custom and mostly natural foods during my Ironman races and need to know how somethings work (or don't) prior to race day.

And actually aside from the taste of what I prepared last night, my nutrition worked well. I had no bloating issues and was adequately fueled for an effort that took just over 4 hours to complete 82 miles. Physically I was good until about mile 60 as far as being comfortable in aero position. But to be honest, my comfort level had more to do with it being about 103 degrees outside than any shoulder/back/neck stuff from the ride.

The food/fuel I used was new. I tried a liquid fuel based on coconut water, spirulina powder, salt, dates, sesame seeds, chia, almond butter and two scoops of Perpetuem from Hammer Nutrition. The calories for a single 24oz bottle winds up being around 750 highly nutrient dense calories. This blend is a bit different from what I used last year in Arizona but the overall calorie and nutrient make up is similar. Out on the bike for over 4 hours, and with about a bottle and a half of this blend taken in I was never hungry. The cool thing is with liquid, yet nutrient dense nutrition, I don't get the sense of emptiness that can come from some of the commercial products. I also don't experience the dramatic drop in energy that I get when I eat solid food like bars on the bike. As we get closer to Arizona I'll play with the mixture to see if I can get the taste more to my liking because it can be a bit off putting to drink stuff that tastes nasty when it is also hot.

For my fluids I used some new stuff I saw at the store. When I travel it can be hard to find good coconut water (not to mention expensive). I don't drink gatorade or any of the common electrolyte drinks if I can help it. This year I'm experimenting with dried coconut water. It comes in a powder and thus is easy to travel with. The only negative I can see is that it doesn't seem to have the same nutrient makeup and so isn't as calorically dense as regular coconut water. But since I have a good nutrient balance in my liquid fuel I didn't notice any issues even while riding in 100 degree heat for an extended period of time.

All in all, I'm happy with today's effort and the feedback I got.

So Today...

I'm back in Austin and working out. It doesn't get any better than this. I follow my routine no matter what so, today that meant a tempo ride on the bike at my planned 70.3 pace and effort. I was supposed to ride for an hour and a half but I don't think I'm fully recovered from my trip related stress so I stopped at an hour and five minutes. I didn't feel bad per se, but I could feel the stirrings of leg cramps which says to me my diet in D.C. was less than optimal. That is no surprise. While I was in the nation's capital I noticed that though there was an impressive array of restaurants, the quality of the food wasn't what I was used to finding at home or in the Bay Area. So I was forced to make some compromises concerning both the quality and the quantity of the food I chose to eat. Add to that the stress of air travel and you have a formula for an injury if you aren't careful. Plus I hadn't been on my bike in almost 10 days.

But while I was riding I felt stronger as far as the effort I was able to maintain. I think this was evidenced by the heart rate numbers I was seeing. I was able to keep an average pace of 20.5 mph with an average heart rate of 150. This is about 7 beats lower than the last time I did this tempo workout and it was about 5 degrees hotter. So I'm not complaining. I'm pretty sure it was all the walking and hills and in D.C. that did it. I guess I need to thank Marci and Ryan from Salt Lake City for running me into the pavement for this improved fitness. "Thanks guys. You rock!"

After my ride I made it down to Jack and Adams to pick up my packet for the race this weekend. I just want to say, when you have good swag, you almost assure yourself of your race filling up. Jack's Generic has good swag. Decent tee shirt, cool SweatVac running cap, and organic coffee. Sweet!

Things That Make You Go "Hmmm...."

So here are the pertinent numbers. 04/22/08 - Time 22:16, Ave HR 167, 07/22/08 - Time 22:21, Ave HR 157. There are other numbers. But I think these pretty much say it all. Same course. Of course. Almost same conditions except it was about 5 degrees hotter yesterday.

And you know I was actually amazed at how good I felt while I was cycling yesterday. If I hadn't compared the two times I would have sworn to you I went faster yesterday. I was relaxed. I was spinning a good gear. A bigger gear. But I wasn't mashing. I remember the sense of "white, hot pain" from the effort in April. That was brutal. No this was nothing like that. I was attacking climbs, being aggressive with the course and my attitude. Wow. I felt fast. I felt... Alive. I was taking no prisoners and at the end of it all, right there in black and white, I was 5 seconds slower than before.

I've said before we all need a healthy dose of the truth every once and a while. And like the track, a time trial on a known course can be sobering. But at least now I know exactly where I stand. The possibility exists that could point to more efficiency in my cycling. I'm producing the same speed with much less effort. I'm done chasing speed for the year. My goal now is to create as much efficiency as possible so that I am capable of running a half marathon well after a 56 mile bike.

We Roll Real Fast...

Every spring here in Austin, Tx Raul Najera and the folks at RunFar Racing Services are kind enough to set up some timing mats down on S. Mopac, hand out some timing chips and let the speed obsessed cyclists in the area see how fast they roll. Everyone is welcome and the results are posted on the web later in the evening. Depending on who you ask the course is somewhere just over 8 miles (13 kilometers) long and "mostly" flat. I say "mostly" because this is Austin and "flat" is a pretty rare description for the local terrain.

The time trials are free providing you supply your own chip, or costs $5.00 to borrow one. The RunFar Time Trials are held twice monthly on Tuesdays starting at 6:00 PM and go on through September.

If you aren't inspired yet, here are some pictures. Because I don't know about you but I'm thinking "It's GO time!"