When I made the decision to become a Triathlete, I decided to shoot straight for the moon. Instead of logically working my way up to a longer distance, and getting the experience of shorter races/triathlons; I had signed up for the 2019 Lake Placid Full IRONMAN. If you know me, you might not find it too shocking that I went with the “go big or go home’ approach to starting my racing / triathlon career, but at the time, ignorance was my biggest proponent (I really had no clue what I was getting myself into). I also set out to do some good, and raise money for a cause, which added a layer of inspiration to my motivation. 4 years ago I lost my cousin to a battle with addiction, and I started a fundraising campaign (140 Miles for Matt) to support a charity that was started in his honor (Hope For Healing). With support and a motivating cause, I began my routine, just 7 months before race day.
Before I began training, I had never run more than a 5k; and before the actual event, I had never ran a complete marathon (furthest I got in training was just over a half marathon for my running distances), and had never competed in an actual race. I did through my training complete the full swim and bike distances before the big day, along with some good bricks (50mil bike, 10+ mile run etc), but I will get into my workout regiment later. I never had a coach (except for my beautiful and supportive Fiance, who was my rock and A$% kicker when I needed it), but I did have a lot to pull from on the internet and some good friends who had completed IRONMAN(s), who gave me some great starting points and advice all the way through race day.
12:54:26 (1:05/6:24/5:01) I could not be happier with those times; and above all else finishing in the top 30% in both my age group and overall finishing. In an effort of full disclosure, I was a competitive swimmer most my life, so I had arguably one leg up on other athletes that did not phase me: the swim.
With all that being said, this experience taught me a lot, humbled me completely, and proved that with the right mindset you can accomplish something other people believe you cannot. Your mental state is by far the most important tool you have in your belt, and the best part is: it’s the one thing you can COMPLETELY control. I went into this IRONMAN with only the goal to cross the finish line, but by the end of my training (and realizing I might not be that bad at this for a first-timer), I felt confident enough to raise that bar for myself a bit higher (and set some time goals). Initially all I needed to accept was that the swim and bike are a pure energy burn; and if I could get myself to the marathon, I could walk the 26.4 miles and finish. I needed to learn how to be able to get through a nutrition plan that keeps my body fueled to perform for a very extended period of time. After training my body for endurance,I just need to find my “forever paceâ€, sticking with the speed that my body can sustain almost indefinitely without exhausting. Mentally I was able to see myself to the end of the race, knowing I could complete the swim in at least 90 mins, and the bike in under 7 hours, would leave me with over 8 hours to walk a marathon comfortably and actually finish the race successfully.
There is a chemical and physical game to master in long endurance events, and that came with learning how to listen to my bodies needs. No matter how positive you remain, if you lose your salt, become dehydrated, overheat, etc etc; no amount of willpower will get your body to perform when it shuts down. Recovery is the process in which your body resets and rebuilds, and shocking to most people, that does not mean you have to stop moving (in fact, a lot of science says the best recovery happens while moving). Every single workout I trained for, had some form of mid-performance recovery gap built into it. Run 10 miles, every 3 drop your pace to a “jogâ€, then run the next mile at your race pace or sprint, for example. Over time, your body will condition to using that jog speed to recover, let your heart rate come down, and even speed up its intake of nutrients. This type of repetitive endurance training is all about getting your body to recover while in motion; and very key for endurance. It’s and IRONMAN, not a sprint!
Equally important to your endurance training (and recovery during performance), is the actual recovery process after workouts. Your body needs rest to heal its wounds, and every workout, you are wounded (particularly high impact running). No matter how good you feel afterwards, your body is injured, muscles are torn, lactic acid builds, joints lose their flexibility, and energy stores are depleted. Recovering is a process that needs to be trained and conditioned; and you can chemically train your body to expect and get what it needs out of recovery. This means you need to be ready to provide yourself with protein, water, electrolytes, etc to give it the building blocks it needs to rebuild; at the right time. The faster you recover, the faster you can get back out there and perform; and when a race lasts hours that becomes a very real part of your plan to the finish line.
My Routine:
My training plan began Christmas of 2018, and I really stepped up with a 4-6 days a week plan after January 1, 2019. That gave me 7 months to get ready for the race, find a bike (bought a second hand 2016 Felt-B2 in March), get running shoes (didn’t have those either), and genuinely dive head first into unknown life of triathlon training.
My workouts followed a rotation that was dictated by keeping my legs and knees from getting over impacted from excessive running. I almost always followed up a long run with a swim set the next day, allowing the no-impact swimming to help loosen and rebuild my legs from the long run the day before. I would use the weekends for the longer workouts and my brick sets, designed to build endurance and condition my body to my nutrition plan. Weekend workouts were also a time to practice transitions and get bricks in so I could get used to the “jello-legs†feeling after cycling for hours. For me, I learned it only takes about 2 miles on foot before my running legs are back and stretched out after a ride. That made a big difference, because I knew that if I pushed through for just a little more my legs would start feeling better.
My routine was as follows for the 7 months leading up to the race. I did include a 2 week taper period, where my workouts were cut down to always be less than 1.5-2 hours, but keeping intensity up. I built up to these workouts, and gradually increased distances every couple weeks. I found it was important to get at least 5 good workouts in a week, and to give myself that rest day for recovery.
Months 1-4:
Monday - 3-5 mile run, pace improvement
Tuesday - 60 min swim
Wednesday 1-2 hour cycling (indoor then after March, outdoor)
Thursday - 3-5 mile run or 2 hour cycle or 60 min swim
Friday - REST DAY
Saturday - 1-3 hours cycling, followed by 1-2 hour run
Sunday - Full Triathlon (if I could) / Swim-Bike transition, at least 2-3 hours of working out
Months 3-7:
Monday - 5-10 mile run
Tuesday - 60-90 min swim
Wednesday- 1-3 hours cycling
Thursday - 5-10 mile run
Friday - REST DAY
Saturday - 2-6 hours cycling, followed by 5-10 mile run
Sunday - Full 2.4 mil swim or 50-100 mile bike or 5-13 mile run (benchmark setting day)
Looking back on this, I would not advise anyone to mimic me and go straight to an IRONMAN; but it is possible, and having it been my first race, might be the reason I had such success in the first place. Having never run a marathon before, I had no idea how much they suck. That ignorance was blissful, and it kept my mental game focused on what I was doing and achieving, rather than focusing on how bad that thing I have to do in the future is. You can’t dread something without the experience or knowledge of the effort and outcome; for me that workout out to my advantage.
The last few days before the race, I tapered back to no impact to allow for maximum recovery. I ran my last half marathon 5 days before the race. I proceeded to complete my training with a 25 mile ride along the chicago lakefront 4 days out, traveled to lake placid 3 days out (rest day), rode the first 10 miles of the bike course 2 days before (which was a 1000 ft elevation gain), with the final workout: 1 lap around Mirror Lake (the raceday swim location) to test out half of the swim. That last swim was when I first realized it was going to only take me an hour to get out of the water, and my swim time would be very competitive. That was a great feeling going into raceday, and having tested the course a bit, I knew what to expect.
Or so I thought… My learning experience was only just beginning when the starters gun went off, and throughout the day I quickly adapted my plans and even used my first lap through the course (as each event has 2 laps of the same course to complete the full distance) to get negative splits on my second laps (particularly the bike). The first thing I learned to do from my future father in law (long time triathlete, Sprint and Olympic distance veteran) was to care for my feet. His advice was to lather my feet in body glide or petroleum jelly, to reduce any rubbing or friction and to help them not blister when wet from the swim or sweat. This came in use during the T2 bike-run transition as well, because during the last 10 miles of the ride I got caught in a big downpour. Without spare socks to change into (yes, lesson learned there, always have spare socks), I was forced to continue wearing my wet ones from the ride. The petroleum jelly saved me, and my feet came out of the race feeling softer than ever, without a single blister or blemish. Felt more like I had been to get a pedicure than had just finished an Ironman.
I also learned how to understand the course layout and use it to my advantage. On the first lap of the bike segment, I discovered that I could use the tremendous downhill runs to get up to speeds of just over 50mph (my fastest speeds yet)! I began to use this speed to get back up the subsequent climbs that usually followed that fun roller coaster ride down, and on my second lap I maximed this to its fullest. I hit my top speed of 51 mph going downhill on that pass, and used those speeds to cut over 1000ft of climbing (from 6000ft total) just because I was able to use momentum to my advantage. I would fly by other riders who were peddling their way up a hill, while I could almost coast all the way to the top.
Once I got myself to the run, I knew it was the home stretch. I settle into my marching pace and took on my first ever marathon. I used hills (walking up at times and skipping down) to recover, and kept my nutrition plan.
Every hour I would take a 320 Maurten pack mixed with 500ml of water. I consumed about 100ml of water every 15 mins, with some added salt licks and gatorade from the pit stops. The only food I ate was a cliff bar half way through bike and at the beginning of the run, then about half a banana during the run and bike. I did take some gummy bears along for the run, as a reward for making it to the next water station, but those were the carrot to my horse. My plan kept me hydrated and energized to the point where I never once cramped or felt out of energy
Crossing the finish line was a bittersweet accomplishment. While I was incredibly proud to have not only set out to complete a goal, but to exceed all expectations, is now one of the best experiences of my life. The sour, however, is that it’s now over; and there is absolutely a sense of let down because it was something I had looked forward to for so long, and worked so hard to achieve; and now it was over. I am looking forward to having some free time again, and will quench my triathlon thirst again in August for the Chicago - Olympic Distance - Triathlon.
In the end, I was also able to raise over $7000 for my charity, thanks to the donations of the friends, family, and a few angel donors from social media I had never met. The experience was one of the best in my life, and I was able to prove to myself that sometimes when you shoot for the moon, you will actually get there.
