Updates and Up-enders

It has been a physically challenging second week of Ironman preparation in my second meso-cycle. A meso-cycle, in my case, is a month’s load of triathlon-specific training. Each week, I have three sessions each for swimming, cycling and running. I have a heavier workload over my weekends, as this reserved for long rides and runs. It has been three weeks since my flu-troubled Singapore Marathon; I only registered a dismal 3:41, nowhere near the revised Boston Qualifier time of 3:24:59.

It is supposed to be an off-season, and in my personal design I am thick in my racing season. 3 March, in Taupo, New Zealand will be my 12^th assault for an Ironman finish. This will be my third time in Auckland to attempt a personal record for an Ironman course. After my PB plan was up-ended with last year’s pre-Ironman road accident, I had to refocus. I have the numbers to improve on. Numbers do not lie, and plans can be tweaked. Because my weaknesses lie in climbing (and rolling courses) and headwinds, I have dedicated my training towards strength development: time-trials, intervals, and sprints. I am aiming for fresher legs at T2, holding steady for 180K, before the marathon in nine weeks’ time.

Disease and acute fatigue can up-end a well-designed, comprehensive race program. Rest is something I factored in deliberately in recent weeks. I aim for 6-8 hours each night of quality sleep. I am also flexible (with my coach, Fox) with how I attend to my training sessions. For a time-crunched triathlete, you need to be able to shift sessions around without bogging yourself down. You have to be decisive in changing plans and altering your goals. The monsoon season is predictable for its abundant and ubiquitous rainfall. Sometimes, you may miss a session or two, and you move on. It may be useless to recover it like lost sleep. Instead, you could focus your efforts on the next workout/s, or do something else like focus on building your core stability and strength, run on a treadmill, or ride a stationary-bike. Never allow your body to be too clever in adapting to routine. After all, triathletes love routine and structure to their madness.

My nutritional changes include: higher antioxidant-laden foods (mainly unprocessed nuts, tart cherry juice and pomegranate juice); more vegetables, water, vitamin C (with zinc) and protein (including two Muscle Milk whey protein drinks daily).

I am reading ‘Ironstruck’ (2006) by Ray Fauteux, which I bought online as an e-book. He describes his fascination with marathons, ultra-marathons and his 14 Ironman triathlon finishes. John Cooke wrote about his reflection and perspective on preparing for Ironman races. How do you restore balance when this sport is skewed towards a 10-15 hour training week? How can we reduce its impact as an indulgent sport? How do we position it as a sane sport when many perceive it as extreme from the insanely long hours we spend training? When this bolt of lightning strikes you from out of the blue, you can bet your last cup of Kona coffee that life will never be the same again.

Have a very good Christmas weekend!

Switching Gears: My Second Meso-Cycle

I am sore in my arms; a result of a fairly intense swim squad session. This evening’s Monday Night Swim session with 22 members, including recent Ironman finishers was my first serious session after a long season of racing in marathons. Tonight spells exactly one week after my post-flu, Singapore Marathon completion. It is timely to switch gears and shift from pure distance-running to triathlon-specific race training.

I have 11 more weeks to go before Ironman New Zealand. Coach has prescribed my first week of conditioning and it includes no rest, but active recovery. My schedule for the second week of my second meso-cycle (4 week-block) looks daunting, partly because I will be focused on more mileage and power-specific intervals. As I will be on two weeks of vacation, I will be able to train more diligently and enjoy more sleep. Of course, Fox has been kind to suggest some degree of flexibility for a time-crunched athlete. Olympian and veteran coach, Chris Carmichael also wrote a book to address the serious triathlete who is tight for time, yet wants to excel based on the ‘quality time’ approach.

This phase of my training that will run through the end of the year is about engaging adaptation. Apply new stress on the body gradually, and it will adapt by becoming stronger, faster and fitter. Deprive it of much needed rest and nutrition, and it may not recover well and may weaken. The axiom is: Train, recover, and race. Repeat. The delicate line of consideration is: stress the body exceedingly and briefly, but not excessively and prolonged. One hard week is followed by one easier week. Active recovery and rest is an integral part of athletic improvement and progression.

I look forward to this phase of my triathlon training as, after withdrawing from IM Canada this year, I was eager to race again. After a hectic season of running-based races, I ready to race an Ironman. Perhaps, my first 226K-race will be my opportunity to do a personal record (PR) I was denied last year. I suffered a bad crash when a taxi knocked me down while I was cycling one month before IM New Zealand. I eventually raced, although not at my best and posted a 13-plus hour completion. I was disallowed any swimming as my fractured cheek would have risked infection of my sinus.

I also signed up for Ironman Switzerland on 15 July. I chose it as the Australian M-Dot branded races were all sold out. IM Western Australia 2012 sold out in just 69 minutes, as the wave of fervent interest for the 226K-triathlon format increases. All Asian Ironman races have been discontinued, with the other Kona slots distributed over the new Australian M-Dot races.

Leadership Lessons: How do you cope with physical and mental changes? What is your coping mechanism for crisis and emergencies? How open are you to changes? How do you cope with changes in the marketplace? How do you stay relevant and contemporary? How much time do you factor in for rest and recovery?

Purposefully Peaking For Your Performance

Over the last few weeks, I have been focused on building my base fitness for my next Ironman training cycle. My training cycle for IMNZ 2012 is based on a 20-week cycle. The first 4-6-weeks was spent building my aerobic-engine, with long-distance running and cycling. I was aiming to consistently do up to three sessions each of the three disciplines of swim, ride and run. Each discipline will include moderate, medium and mad sessions (terms I learnt from Chrissy Wellington’s former-coach, Brett Sutton). In mileage, I will have one long, lower-intensity session, and two shorter higher-intensity workouts.

The remainder of my preparation time will be based on meso-cycles, lasting three weeks each. Each meso-cycle is based on two hard weeks of training, followed by an easier recovery week. I will build up my fitness through the building blocks of endurance to strength to speed to power. The recovery week will be crucial to my ability to give another strong hit to my fortnightly, hard sessions. A few, short but specific B-races will give me the competitive 'drive' I need to stay mentally prepared for racing.

My reality check is emphasis on my weaker stations and focus on form and fitness. For my swimming, technique will reign supreme. By focusing on my 'feel for the water', specific drills and swim-sets, I should be able to earn a wetsuit-based PB in Taupo. I will focus on over-distance for my riding, and the build interval-based speed as well as hill strength. I will maintain my run fitness once I complete the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2011; I hope to earn a PB in the local course.

Core-stability and strength workouts comprise an additional 2-3 sessions in my week. Each session includes 2-3 sets of calisthenics (bodyweight-based) and weights-based exercises. I have worked up to 5 exercises of push-pull exercises done with no rest. Post-exercise stretching and massage completes my mega-equation for Ironman readiness. This additional core workouts helped me tackle the hilly course of the Hong Kong Marathon 2011 where I secured my first BQ; I had no hill training, except step-ups and lunges as my strength exercises.

I continue to work closely with my coach, Fox who is headed to a possible sub-10:00 hour at IMWA. He recently earned 6^th placing at the Port Mcquairie Half-Ironman 2011 race, and top in his club-level sprint triathlon. He finished with 126^th (sub-5:00) out of 817 participants: In his age-group, he was 1^st in the swim in 26:35, 3^rd off the bike in 2:39, and finished with a 1:49, predominantly-hilly run. He is teaching me how to use Powertap-based, specific power wattage, high-intensity interval sets, training to enhance my bike legs. Fox certainly knows when to peak for his races and his numbers have been quite close to his expectations.

I decided to check ‘leadership lessons’ on Google, and surprisingly, I earned the #1 placement. This is temporary, just as fitness is a temporal thing that needs to be maintained and challenged at times. In Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), consistency is one of the main keys of being noticed. You can stay in race-standard, peak condition for only a short period, so timing is crucial in order to do well on race day. For those doing IM Western Australia, may you achieve near-peak fitness on 4 December and have a memorable race!

Leadership Lessons: What is your performance cycle like? How do you attain peak performance at work? How do you ensure that you meet all your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and more? What happens to your performance after you get your promotion, bonus and incentive?