Saturday, July 2, 2022
After a few days of recovery, and before I forget, here are a few notes on the Tremblant 70.3 Ironman. The short version (given there’s lots of details below) is that the course was fantastic and the race was really well organized. Pre-race This part was easy and the day prior to the race. There were scheduled times for registration and all we needed was the QR code from our online payment.The Ironman 70.3 in Tremblant was a fantastic experience! Gorgeous course – though you really have to like hills – and really well organized. Ridiculously hot on the run though 🥵. Thankfully there was plenty of ice at the aid stations. I ran most of the course with my shorts full of ice 😀.
A huge thanks to my fantastic race crew! Their support and enthusiasm were great, not to mention all their help over the past several months of training. Knowing they’d be at the finish line really got me through the tough kilometres 14 to 17 on the run.
Although a small thing in the context of the WWDC announcements, I like the upcoming changes to the Workout app in WatchOS 🏃♂️
First outdoor ride on the new bike. Great to be out of the basement, though I swallow fewer midges on Zwift 🚴♂️
Tomorrow’s race will be fun! I haven’t been in a proper event for awhile 🏃♂️
Saturday, April 9, 2022
With two school-age kids, this seemed inevitable: All things considered, my symptoms aren’t too bad, which I’m grateful for. Nonetheless, I’ve mostly been in bed for a couple of days to properly recover. Since I’ve been monitoring my Readiness To Train (RTT) score, I was curious to see how COVID would appear in the metrics. Thursday morning was the first indication that something was wrong. I completed what felt like a reasonably strong swim workout, only to suddenly feel really drained of energy while walking home from the pool.Although it seems like a luxury, $70 for always dry shoes is worth it. Especially with spring weather 🏃♂️
Completed an FTP test this morning. Important to do, though super challenging 😓🚴♂️
Just fixed a small issue with my Elite Suito bike trainer: the magnets stopped working, so the resistance couldn’t be automatically adjusted. This is obviously a major feature of the trainer and particularly important for Zwift rides.
Fortunately, a quick conversation with their support team identified a fix that required replacing the trainer’s circuit board. Having recently built a gaming PC with my son, this wasn’t too complicated, though someone with less experience would likely be intimidated. The process took about 20 minutes and I took the bike for a quick Zwift ride to confirm all was well.
Although I’d much have preferred that the trainer hadn’t broken, Elite support was quick and helpful.
Monday, February 21, 2022
The last piece of my training setup was an indoor bike trainer. Canadian winters aren’t great for outdoor cycling (-20ºC with a blizzard just a few days ago, for example). So, I picked up an Elite Suito-t which is well reviewed and on sale at my local bike shop. This is a direct transmission model with built in power and cadence sensors. I don’t have enough space in my house for a spot fully dedicated to cycling.Saturday, January 22, 2022
I knew going in that a first triathlon requires a lot of planning and gear, especially when you don’t have any equipment. Given that the cycling component is the longest distance, it is important to have a good bike. Once I knew my size, the next step was to actually choose a bike. And, oh my, are there decisions to make. As with most things, budget sets a pretty useful constraint.Saturday, January 15, 2022
I’ll be spending many hours and a reasonable amount of money on a bicycle over the next few months. To be efficient, comfortable, and injury free, I want the bike to fit me closely. So, I sought the advice of Scott, a professional bike fitter. Scott has an interesting contraption that is the various parts of a bike, each adjustable, with which he can recreate any frame geometry. He started out with a Trek Domane as a reference point and had me ride it for a few minutes.As a benchmark for upcoming training, my coach had me run a 5k time trial. This is also useful for determining my heart rate training zones. I started off too fast and paid for it near the end, but managed to hold a good pace from KMs 2 to 5 🏃♂️
Tuesday, January 4, 2022
I’ve been in a pool with my Apple Watch before, though only either to splash around with the kids or with a beer at an all-inclusive resort. Today was the first time I’ve used it for an actual swimming workout. It has also been a long time since my high school swimming days back in the early 90s. So, an important day! My coach gave me a straightforward workout: Warm up 2 x 50m and 4 x 25m Main set 10 x 50m with 20s rest and 10 x 25m with 20s rest 2 x 100m with 1 min rest As expected, using the Apple Watch was simple.Breaking in my new shoes with some hill sprints 🏃♂️
After 2.5 years of faithful service (which, honestly, is far too long), I’ve updated my trusty Sauconys with a new pair. The red is a bit flashier than my usual style, but they’re comfortable 🏃♂️
Post COVID-booster recovery run 🏃♂️ 🦠💉
A long run with fresh snow is a great start to a Sunday 🏃♂️❄️
Wednesday, December 15, 2021
In preparation for Tremblant, I had my gait analyzed to find out if there are any issues with my running form. I found the process surprisingly thorough and interesting. Katie (a registered physiotherapist) started out with a general discussion about my running history and goals. Then she filmed me running on a treadmill for about five minutes. We set a fast pace, since that quickly exposes any sloppiness in my running.After likely too much deliberation, I’ve registered for the Ironman 70.3 in Tremblant. Although “only” half an Ironman, it is still daunting enough to make me both nervous and excited (nervouscited, as my daughter often says) 🏊♂️ 🚴♂️ 🏃♂️
First snowstorm run of the season ❄️ 🏃♂️
Urban trail run 🏃♂️
Day 10: The bridges of my morning run 📷 🏃♂️
A nice run along Taylor Creek 🏃♂️. Except for the hill up to Lumsden Ave near the end; that part was horrible
A quiet run along the beach this morning. Certain to be much busier this afternoon 🏃♂️
A misty run this morning 🏃♂️
Humid out there 🥵. Good thing there was a breeze by the river 🏃♂️
Great weather for a short run 🏃♂️
I’ve found my new power up song 🔥 🏃♂️ 🎵
🥶🏃♂️
