Very Tired!

My triathlon training week is officially over it ended today with a ride and a run. It has been a very hard week of training and my body is really happy the I get to rest tomorrow. My first race is the Beaver Freezer the first weekend of April and then I have a Half Marathon the second weekend of May so I think that my coach has increased my miles in order to get ready for that.

Yesterday my legs felt really tired I swam and rode my bike then today when I woke up my body was feeling tired again but I went for my ride and run anyway. Now time to rest! I wonder what next week will bring!

Worst Run EVER!!

On today's triathlon workout menu was a 50 minute tempo run it was meant to look something like this:
Type: Run
Planned duration: 0:50
Warm up 15 minutes at 10:00+ pace. End with 3X 20 sec strides.
Main set:
1X 7 minutes @PE 5, 1X 6 minutes @PE 6 and 1X 5 minutes @PE7. 2 minutes easy jog in bewteen each set...
Cool down the remainder at PE2...
Make sure HR comes down...
Focus: form, turnover, relaxed upper body.

I knew it was going to be a hard workout but not only was it hard I did not do very well at it. About 30 seconds into the warm up I could tell I was going to have issues. I felt sluggish, heavy, and was having trouble breathing. This was not going to be good. I did it anyway the tempo part of the run was really really hard but I wasn't even going that fast. It was also really hard for me to even bring my heart rate down. I had such a good week last week but after today's run I feel really disappointed.... I guess everyone has a bad day and I have to remind myself of this but it is hard not to be unhappy with these results...

Swim Bike Run

Swim, bike, run, those are the components of triathlon and when training for triathlons I usually do not do all of them in one day but I did today. On the schedule for today's triathlon workout was a 35 minute run and 2400 yards of swimming. It was a relatively nice day here so I decided it would be fun to ride the 4.5 miles to the pool. I decided I was going to ride easy because I do not want my legs to be too tired for tomorrows run.

I rode there and it was kind of windy but I did take it easy and I was glad I did it as there were small parches of much needed sun. On the way home however it was a much different story. As soon as I stepped outside I felt a couple of raindrops. I looked into the sky and saw the dark clouds moving in. By the time I had unlocked my bike it was POURING! The rain continued to drop until I got home I was so soaked! At least I was just coming home and not trying to go anywhere else! I guess that is one of the "perks" of living in the pacific northwest!

LOOK ARC Pedals Gone?!?!

A couple of days ago I was giving my road bike some much needed maintenance when I noticed that the LOOK pedals I have on that bike are starting to get worn out which is not surprising since I have had them for about 3 years. Since I figured that I will soon have to buy new pedals I went online to see how much a pair of lower end look ARC pedals would set me back.

I searched on Performance bike, Nashbar, and Amazon where I am usually able to find good deals and to my surprise all I could find were LOOK KEO pedals. No look ARC to be found anywhere. After searching for a bit longer I realized that no one is selling the LOOK ARC anymore!?

I am very disappointed about this both my triathlon and road bike have look ARC pedals and I have extra cleats for these pedals I am not ready to spend $200 in order to change pedals on a road bike and a triathlon bike. So I have decided I am going to hold on and probably at some point end up buying LOOK KEO pedals. I hate when companies do stuff like this it is so frustrating!

Cycling in Portland

As mentioned before once a month I go to a Tour de Cure Ride for Diabetes comittee member meeting. This ride takes me through different areas of Portland one of them being the Eastbank Esplanade and the Springwater Corridor. These areas are heavy bike commuter areas as well as a good place for people to jog or just go on a little ride. The views of the city of Portland are also great especially when the sun is starting to set.



Last week when I was riding to the Tour de Cure meeting I remembered to bring my camera because I had been wanting to take a few pictures in the past. I stopped to take pictures but as usually happens it is hard to get such a great scenery in a photo. Anyway here are a couple pictures taken from a bike in Portland.

http://main.diabetes.org/site/TR?pg=personal&fr_id=7041&px=4081560

Lance Armstrong in Kona poll Closed!

Ok so the poll on whether on not Lance Armstrong should get a free entry to Kona has closed and the results are:

16 people said YES
20 people said NO
1 person said MAYBE

My posts on Lance Armstrong asking the question should he get a free pass to the word triathlon championship in Kona also generated a lot of interesting debate. Thank you for participating and if you have any more opinions on this matter please share them.

I think he should qualify even when people win the Kona triathlon lottery they still have to participate in a 70.3 to make sure they are able why not Lance Armstrong, what is fair is what is fair.

Oregon Bike Ride

One of the reasons I got into bike riding is because Oregon and the Portland area are great places to go for a ride. This morning as part of my triathlon training I went on a nice sunny but windy and cold 16 mile ride around Marine Drive. This is one of my favorite areas to ride around in the Portland area because there is not too much traffic and you get great views of the airport. The only downside of riding on Marine Drive can be the headwind it can get very very strong sometimes. Anyway here are a couple pictures of this beautiful Portland Saturday morning.

35 minute run EASY?

My triathlon workout for today called for an easy 35 minute run. This was supposed to be a recovery run after having a two hour ride yesterday. As it turns out today is a really really nice day for running so I put on my gear and went on my run.

I ran and ran and looked at my Garmin Forerunner to check out my pace and I was going way too fast. My pace was settling in at around a 9 minute mile. I should be going at around a 10 minute mile to make it an "easy" 35 minute run. But I was not able to maintain that pace. I am not sure why I can't maintain an "easy" pace?!

Well run is done, I think that what I have to work on the most is trying to maintain those easy recovery paces. If I am going to improve and stay injury free I need to slow down!

Triathlon

Today has been a day of thinking. Why do I participate in triathlon? Why do I spend endless hours in the pool, running, or riding my bike? I am not sure why I'm thinking about this maybe I am just starting to think more about why I do triathlons because the season is soon approaching.

I think I do triathlon for more than one reason and that is why it is so hard to decide exactly why it is that I do what I do. I like pushing myself. I like racing. I like being healthy. And I just like the whole triathlon environment in general. That is why I do triathlon. When a race is over I feel such a great sense of accomplishment and I think that that is what keeps me going.

Triathlon is great! Come join the fun!

Signed up for 2010 Portland Marathon

I did it I finally did it! I have officially decided and have signed up for the 2010 Portland Marathon. Just writing that sentence gives me some anxiety. I do not consider myself to be a runner even though I go running about 3 times a week. I have never run more than a half marathon, I did it once and those were the longest 13.1 miles of my life so I am not sure what I have gotten myself into.

The Portland Marathon is in October so I have plenty of time to train for it but this is going to be a busy year as I am signed up for 3 sprint triathlons one half marathon one olympic triathlon and one charity ride (The Tour de Cure). This is so exciting and so stressful at the same time. It will be hard to incorporate triathlon training to half marathon and marathon training but I am sure it can be done! I will keep you posted!

Hamstring of Pain

Yesterday was my day off which was lucky because when I woke up my left hamstring was in a lot of pain. It was pretty painful to just even walk especially after I had been sitting for a little bit. Of course what this turned into was me trying to figure out what was causing the pain and would I be able to do Monday's triathlon workout.

After stressing out about this injury and how it would affect my triathlon training for many hours I think I figured out what caused it. I think I am going to blame it on either the squats or leg curls I did after my run on Saturday's workout. The pain I was feeling made me think that I had pulled my hamstring a little so I did some stretching walked slowly and hoped that Monday it would feel better and I would have no problem going on my run.

Well Monday is here and yay triathlon training semi successful I was able to go on my run. I had to do some strides I did them but was careful to not hurt my hamstrings. The pain is a little better but not completely gone so during my strength workout I just did upper body.

Injuries and pain are part of triathlon it is important to listen to your body and slow down when you need to.

Great Triathlon Training Plans!

Do you have some 2010 triathlon or marathon races planned? Here are some great links to some training programs. Good luck to everyone!

4 Hour a Week Triathlon Training Plan:
Click here to view more details

Olympic Distance Training Plan:
Click here to view more details

Half Ironman Triathlon Training Plan:
Click here to view more details

Ironman Triathlon Training Plan:
Click here to view more details

Half Marathon Training Plan:
Click here to visit Geek Publishers by Julian Dean.

Marathon Training Plan:
Click here to view more details

New aero bars on Felt S32

I few posts ago I wrote about how I got a new triathlon bike the 2010 Felt S32. I am very happy with the bike but could not help upgrading the aero bars. I know that carbon bars make a huge difference in absorbing some of the bumps when riding so I shopped around and found some carbon aero bars that were affordable. I ended up buying the profile design cobra carbon bars that I had written about before.

I got the bars and took the bike to my favorite Portland bike shop Veloce and had Demetri and his crew install the bars. The whole bike was already perfectly fitted so I was a little worried about having to get re-fitted after the bars got changed but Demetri assured me that they would just take the measurements and fit the bars exactly. I have great trust in Veloce so I left my triathlon bike to get its upgrade.

When my bike was ready I went to pick it up and it looked great! What a difference some carbon aero bars look on the bike. I took it on a ride right away and it was so smooth. The fit is also spot on! Overall very exciting! I just cant wait to race!

Pool is a Busy Place!

I went swimming today and when I arrived at the pool the parking lot was completely full. Oh no I thought to myself if the parking lot is full I am going to have a hard time swimming as they usually only have two lanes open for lap swim. I went into the locker room changed came out to the pool and my fears were confirmed. There were about 50 people doing aqua aerobics and only 2 lanes open for lap swim, in one of the lanes there was a guy kind of just floating around.

I jumped in the lane with two people in it and we started doing a clock but all of our speeds and needs were different so I could not get my rhythm going. I managed to get my workout done anyway and my times were ok even though I had to navigate around so many people. I wish they would open at least one more lane for lap swim especially when all the lap swimmers are cramped into 2 lanes.

Tour de Cure Promo Code!

Join Tony's Rides before Monday February 14 and take $10 off registration by using the promo code heart.

The Tour de Cure is a fundraiser bike ride for the American Diabetes Association that will be held on July 31, 2010 at the Hillsboro stadium just outside of Portland, Oregon.

Join the team or make a donation by clicking on the the link below or copying and pasting into your browser. Thank you!

http://main.diabetes.org/site/TR?pg=personal&fr_id=7041&px=4081560

500 Yard Swim

Today my triathlon workouts included swimming for 2000 yards and running for 35 minutes. The run went fine it was routine. The exciting thing today was my 500 yard test swim. I have been following this triathlon training program and I am hoping to see results and I saw them today! I swam my fastest 500 yards yet. I could not believe it I took about 15-20 seconds off of my time!

Looks like the training is helping I am really really excited about it and cannot wait for the Beaver Freezer on April 3 2010!

I'm Back!

After weeks of traveling and having to adjust my triathlon training and deal with smog, heat, and humidity I am back in the Pacific Northwest! I have already done 2 workouts and I feel faster and stronger than I have in a long time. Today I did a tempo run and I felt really strong.

My first race of the season is coming up the Beaver Freezer in Corvallis, OR. It will take place the first Saturday of April and I am really excited about it. In the past I have placed 4th in my age group and 17 overall I am hoping to do better this year but I think it is going to be hard as those results are already so good.

Anyway we will soon find out.....

Tour de Cure

As I posted earlier I am involved in the Tour de Cure Ride for Diabetes in the Portland, Oregon area. This is a very important ride that benefits the ADA. This year I am trying to rise more money than I did last year which was almost $3,000. I have started a team called Tony's Riders. The ride will take place on July 31 2010 in the Hillsboro Stadium in Oregon. So everyone please donate to this cause or join the ride or my team. No donation is too small! Please, please donate to the Tour de Cure in Portland, Oregon.

Click here for donations or more information on the ride:
http://main.diabetes.org/site/TR?pg=personal&fr_id=7041&px=4081560

Garmin Answered!

Garmin finally answered me back about the problems I have been having with my forerunner 310xt. Their response was simple, download the new program onto the forerunner and you should be good. I am pretty sure that I had done that after the first time it froze but I am not 100% sure. It has been a couple of weeks with no freezing problems so maybe I did it that same day? Anyway if the "solution" I hope it actually is was so simple then my did it take so long to get back to me. Anyway as of now Garmin Forerunner 310xt working like a charm, I hope it stays that way.

Smog Smog

Again I am in a big city and went for my morning run today and now my throat really really hurts. I am not getting sick so all I can figure is that it is the smog I have been breathing.

The smog was really strong today I can actually see it lingering in the air when I go outside so it is not that surprising that I have been feeling the smog especially after going for a run. I wish large cities would not have this much pollution.

I wonder how my running will be once I am in clean air again!