Yup.
You read correctly, a race report. If you've been reading my blog this year you will now be saying "what the...?" And fair enough too. When I last left you I'd just started a new job and the training/rehabilitation was fast slipping back in the priority listing.
So I had to act.
The Bribie Island Triathlon Series has been running for many years and while it isn't a full oly distance, its a great benchmark for the bigger events and a lot of fun too. The first of the season is always a shorter race, being exactly half oly and, well, I decided it was time to stop waiting for the nerve damage to heal enough for me to race somewhere like my old self. Fact is, I'm not my old self and probably won't ever be. So the reality is perhaps its time to start getting on with the self I have now. That meant it was time to test things out. Sure I haven't stepped into a training pool for several months and sure I haven't done much running apart from my 4km, again some time ago, but hey, no harm in trying. So I registered mid-week, prepped the bike and went through my gear to check nothing had disintegrated through lack of use. It hadn't, if you don't count my legs. So here goes...
Race Report
Weather was ideal with a light breeze and air/water temp not too cool, though some were feeling it and opted for a wetsuit. The swim started around 8am and as normal it was with the current in Pumicstone Passage. My group were towards the end so I got to see most others go and watched how the current affected the swim. Since I hadn’t been in a pool for more than two months I let the pack go ahead and took my time, settling into a rhythm, bilateral breathing and not kicking. My fear was not the distance but leg cramps, which I had been suffering on my last three occasions in the pool. They were crippling and forced me to stop each time and cling to the side until I could force it to release. If this happened in the open water it would not be fun. I almost introduced myself to one of the rescue paddle-board riders to ask for special attention. However this wasn’t an issue as there were no signs of cramp and I found myself at the finish buoy without a problem.
Exiting the water I started to remember what triathlon is about, i.e. shifting from one thing to the next and it being a little difficult. I was barefoot through sand and that’s the worst for my foot and leg, so it was a bit arduous. The run to transition was around the perimeter of the bike racks so it was like a mini run leg with me limping all the way! At the bike things went smoothly; I decided to put my shoes on there and run in cleats. Previously I did the shoes-clipped-to-bike thing but again the damaged leg might prove an issue getting into the shoes on the bike, so I opted for the safer approach. The 20km bike leg was reasonably straightforward; basically a T-shape with sections of tailwind and others with headwind, but I am better suited to the 40km Olympic distance. There were two nasty crashes on the bike course, which we had to navigate around; one rookie sneezed apparently while holding the front brake lever on the faster section and was propelled over the bars and onto the road. She broke her jaw badly and was unconscious for several minutes. She did not move from the recovery position the entire time I was on course – that’s three laps! A second rookie took a left hand corner with his inside pedal down and jack-knifed the bike. He was sitting up and seemed ok but he too didn’t not move in any hurry off the road. Both sights were sobering and helped me to stay focused. The Cervelo performed very well; the new aggressive aero bars were comfortable and the bike loves straight lines. Not so fond of U-turns – I took the roundabouts with a racing line and occasionally had rookies attempt to come up on the inside. They received immediate tuition in the art of circuit cycling, with suitable punctuation and emphasis.
Now the hard part; a 5km run. Transition was again good, although I decided on socks and laced shoes as I was using the new orthotics and as I was not breaking any records, decided to make sure my footing was right. Again, I was reminded of what triathlon is about, as the transition from bike to run is painful and I could only manage a shuffle. I settled into my stride and tried to focus on regular steps and balanced foot placement, but the leg was now tiring and when that happens all form goes out the window. But my goal was not to walk if I could help it and that’s what I managed. But Iwas being systematically run-down and passed as older people, large people, people using Zimmer frames, etc, were regularly gliding past. But the spirit is still in the sport and one guy turned as he went past and asked if I was ok. Clearly he wasn’t used to passing people and presumed there must be something wrong with me. “No, I’m ok” I replied, “this is as good as I get for now”. I can’t blame him for thinking something was askew, as by this stage I resembled grandpa heading down the hallway in the middle of the night in slippers to get a snack from the kitchen. I actually sought the guy out afterwards and thanked him for bothering to ask. Anyhow, I kept going and finished in time of 1:22:05 according to my watch. A friend who I used to race against and that I was close in ability to previously did 1:08 so that’s a fair estimate of the pre vs post-surgery difference. But the primary objective was met and I’m satisfied.
So stay tuned, as my intention now is to do all four races in the Bribie series and then finish the season with the Mooloolaba olympic race in March. Sadly, my dreams of Noosa have vanished, but it will be there next year. And so will I hopefully.
Ciao.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Life and all its surprises
Hi Folks,
Yes, its been a while since I posted and it might be a while to come before the next one. My life took a big turn a week ago and I'm trying to find some stability. I realise that sounds dramatic and you might be let down, but it was big to me.
I got a call from the top officer in the government department I work for asking if I'd step into a job for 4-5 months. The jump in classification was 3 full levels, which is just about unheard of. It happened because I spoke to this guy twice at recent seminars and spoke my mind about work issues. Anyway, I've been in the job for just over a week now and its FULL.ON. I've never worked so hard in my life. The day is about 10 hours average but I've put in some longer ones. He warned me the job was not easy and there are some serious issues to resolve, but opportunities like this don't happen too often in a career.
So I've not had much time to blog, run, swim or much else. I have persisted with the riding as I can do that outside work hours but its not easy. So I haven't run again since, nor swum but still riding up Mt Gravatt each Tues morning, the river loop on Thur and a big ride on weekends. I can report this regime is paying dividends, as the 100km ride today to Redcliffe proved I have come further on the road to getting my old self back. I was able to keep with the lead group and maintained a respectable pace all the way; managed to drop all but the strongest guy in our group towards the end. So I'm pleased.
Where this leaves my Noosa dream I'm not sure. There has been some questions about that and whether or not its too soon in the running comeback and frankly without much swim training, I starting to agree. The modified plan might be to skip Noosa this year and build up through the sprint series over summer and finish in March with Mooloolaba; our other premier oly distance tri. I don't like this plan as I tend to do what I set out to do, but as they say in the classics, discretion is the better part of valour. I calculate that I have this week to decide. But the opportunity to train during the day or after work isn't there and Noosa is in 8 weeks or so.
Stay tuned. I haven't given up hope but it might be time to listen to the head.
T.
Yes, its been a while since I posted and it might be a while to come before the next one. My life took a big turn a week ago and I'm trying to find some stability. I realise that sounds dramatic and you might be let down, but it was big to me.
I got a call from the top officer in the government department I work for asking if I'd step into a job for 4-5 months. The jump in classification was 3 full levels, which is just about unheard of. It happened because I spoke to this guy twice at recent seminars and spoke my mind about work issues. Anyway, I've been in the job for just over a week now and its FULL.ON. I've never worked so hard in my life. The day is about 10 hours average but I've put in some longer ones. He warned me the job was not easy and there are some serious issues to resolve, but opportunities like this don't happen too often in a career.
So I've not had much time to blog, run, swim or much else. I have persisted with the riding as I can do that outside work hours but its not easy. So I haven't run again since, nor swum but still riding up Mt Gravatt each Tues morning, the river loop on Thur and a big ride on weekends. I can report this regime is paying dividends, as the 100km ride today to Redcliffe proved I have come further on the road to getting my old self back. I was able to keep with the lead group and maintained a respectable pace all the way; managed to drop all but the strongest guy in our group towards the end. So I'm pleased.
Where this leaves my Noosa dream I'm not sure. There has been some questions about that and whether or not its too soon in the running comeback and frankly without much swim training, I starting to agree. The modified plan might be to skip Noosa this year and build up through the sprint series over summer and finish in March with Mooloolaba; our other premier oly distance tri. I don't like this plan as I tend to do what I set out to do, but as they say in the classics, discretion is the better part of valour. I calculate that I have this week to decide. But the opportunity to train during the day or after work isn't there and Noosa is in 8 weeks or so.
Stay tuned. I haven't given up hope but it might be time to listen to the head.
T.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Four Kilometres Means I'm Back
Quick update boys and girls, I know you’re busy.
I continue to increase all my disciplines; swam twice since last week but still with cramping. I’ve worshipped at the bike altar regularly and completed a 95km ride to the Gold Coast last Sunday with the bunch. I rode strong and am improving up hills to the point that not only am I keeping up but starting to lead the group again. Also went up our lesser mountain here in BrisVegas called Mt Gravatt, as opposed to the Mt Coot-tha I mentioned in the previous post. This one is very popular with local cyclists as its short (about 2km) and not all that steep. 
But it’s a start. If the tri season was on now, I probably would go and enter one just because I could. The other encouraging thing about the 4km is that I did it at 9 kph speed with the last 750m at 10 kph and the very last 250m at 12 kph. And through all of that the body and especially the weak leg, held together and kept a balanced rhythm thanks to the orthotics. Speaking of the podiatrist – I visited them today to have a check-up and refit the orthotics. They are quite thrilled with my progress, although not entirely happy with the fact I’m running so early. But I promised that I’d been careful and listened to my body, blah, blah. I did do those things, but I was prepared to push through any negative feedback from the legs, etc. Luckily there was none and so the foot people predict there’s no reason why I can’t get back to my full run distances. Another day-long smile.
So folks, its all on track. Stay tuned, there’s more to come.
Tomawac out.
I continue to increase all my disciplines; swam twice since last week but still with cramping. I’ve worshipped at the bike altar regularly and completed a 95km ride to the Gold Coast last Sunday with the bunch. I rode strong and am improving up hills to the point that not only am I keeping up but starting to lead the group again. Also went up our lesser mountain here in BrisVegas called Mt Gravatt, as opposed to the Mt Coot-tha I mentioned in the previous post. This one is very popular with local cyclists as its short (about 2km) and not all that steep.
A guess would be an average of 6% with only two sharp parts at 8%. The graphic is a profile of the mountain from the south.
I was told four laps was the norm, but I set out to just do two. The first was the hardest and I was committed to doing the pair, but the second was totally different; as if I found a shortcut because I was at the top before I realised it. So I ended up doing four laps and had a smile for the rest of the day.
I am also now running 4km on the treadmill and ready for a road run. This is the shortest distance of a sprint tri here in south-east Queensland, so it represents a little milestone, i.e. technically I could complete a tri now. Of course, this is not enough.
Not by a long shot.
I am also now running 4km on the treadmill and ready for a road run. This is the shortest distance of a sprint tri here in south-east Queensland, so it represents a little milestone, i.e. technically I could complete a tri now. Of course, this is not enough.
Not by a long shot.
But it’s a start. If the tri season was on now, I probably would go and enter one just because I could. The other encouraging thing about the 4km is that I did it at 9 kph speed with the last 750m at 10 kph and the very last 250m at 12 kph. And through all of that the body and especially the weak leg, held together and kept a balanced rhythm thanks to the orthotics. Speaking of the podiatrist – I visited them today to have a check-up and refit the orthotics. They are quite thrilled with my progress, although not entirely happy with the fact I’m running so early. But I promised that I’d been careful and listened to my body, blah, blah. I did do those things, but I was prepared to push through any negative feedback from the legs, etc. Luckily there was none and so the foot people predict there’s no reason why I can’t get back to my full run distances. Another day-long smile.
So folks, its all on track. Stay tuned, there’s more to come.
Tomawac out.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Much A Do
There are indeed a few things to update you on, but the biggest one is…
I have feet!!!
Picked up my new orthotics last Thursday and if the shape of them is anything to go by, my feet were/are a train wreck. Seriously, they look like a model of the Swiss Alps, particularly the arch. Man, how did I manage to run on my feet before???? Especially a half marathon. It’s a wonder my feet didn’t cave in and become mush. But that’s all fixed now buckaroo. I have been using them as per instructed. Well sort of. I was told to only run in them for 5mins and wear for 1 hour each day. But when I ran in them it felt so good, I kept going for 15mins until a blister started to form and then stopped.
Did you just hear what I said?..... I.RAN. How cool is that?
Now I will qualify it a bit. It was on a treadmill so the surface was perfectly smooth and no change in gradient, etc. But it’s best to start out easy me thinks. On the plus side, there was no pain, no soreness afterwards and my stride was pretty much even and balanced. Even kicked up the pace towards the end as I got more confident.
There is an annoyingly persistent voice in my head that’s actually starting to yell “don’t get too excited buddy, its only 15mins”, but hey, it’s comparatively a huge step forward for me. The process is going to nearly bankrupt me:
1 x orthotics @ AU$475
4 x consults @ AU$145 each
1 x new shoes @ AU$225
Ouch.
But if I can indeed run again, then hell, take my car! My first born! (all non-triathletes please disregard this last statement; it won’t make any sense to you). I was embarrassed about the running shoes I took to the fitting – midrange Asics but no where near what I needed for my foot type (do they have a shoe type called "train wreck"?). The podiatrist all but said “tsk tsk” and pulled out a script pad for the Athlete’s Foot. Yeah, a script pad for a shoe shop. So now its off to buy some decent shoes, but rather than price, style, brand its hand over the script and pick from the one’s offered. Can’t wait.
Now, on the other training stuff, there’s some good and some not-so-good. The good is the rain has eased and I’ve ridden some challenging training rides on my own. The most notable was our resident mountain in BrisVegas called Mt Coot-tha (aparrently it means "place of honey" in the local aboriginal language). This is the pic from the lookout; you can see Brisbane CBD in the background. I rode my heavy commute bike; my story is that I took it for a better workout than I'd get with the light, fast Ridley, but closer to the truth is there were still some rain around.
I have feet!!!
Picked up my new orthotics last Thursday and if the shape of them is anything to go by, my feet were/are a train wreck. Seriously, they look like a model of the Swiss Alps, particularly the arch. Man, how did I manage to run on my feet before???? Especially a half marathon. It’s a wonder my feet didn’t cave in and become mush. But that’s all fixed now buckaroo. I have been using them as per instructed. Well sort of. I was told to only run in them for 5mins and wear for 1 hour each day. But when I ran in them it felt so good, I kept going for 15mins until a blister started to form and then stopped.
Did you just hear what I said?..... I.RAN. How cool is that?
Now I will qualify it a bit. It was on a treadmill so the surface was perfectly smooth and no change in gradient, etc. But it’s best to start out easy me thinks. On the plus side, there was no pain, no soreness afterwards and my stride was pretty much even and balanced. Even kicked up the pace towards the end as I got more confident.
There is an annoyingly persistent voice in my head that’s actually starting to yell “don’t get too excited buddy, its only 15mins”, but hey, it’s comparatively a huge step forward for me. The process is going to nearly bankrupt me:
1 x orthotics @ AU$475
4 x consults @ AU$145 each
1 x new shoes @ AU$225
Ouch.
But if I can indeed run again, then hell, take my car! My first born! (all non-triathletes please disregard this last statement; it won’t make any sense to you). I was embarrassed about the running shoes I took to the fitting – midrange Asics but no where near what I needed for my foot type (do they have a shoe type called "train wreck"?). The podiatrist all but said “tsk tsk” and pulled out a script pad for the Athlete’s Foot. Yeah, a script pad for a shoe shop. So now its off to buy some decent shoes, but rather than price, style, brand its hand over the script and pick from the one’s offered. Can’t wait.
Now, on the other training stuff, there’s some good and some not-so-good. The good is the rain has eased and I’ve ridden some challenging training rides on my own. The most notable was our resident mountain in BrisVegas called Mt Coot-tha (aparrently it means "place of honey" in the local aboriginal language). This is the pic from the lookout; you can see Brisbane CBD in the background. I rode my heavy commute bike; my story is that I took it for a better workout than I'd get with the light, fast Ridley, but closer to the truth is there were still some rain around.
The bad is the swim. I cramped again in the pool on Friday afternoon and only managed to get out and walk it off just in time. This is starting to be a real problem and the magnesium supplement I got is not doing a thing to help. As Otto (A Fish Called Wanda) would say “Disappointed!”. And worse still, I’m baulking at going to the pool. Not only is the cramp a pain (pun intended) but I’m not finishing my sets and that pisses me off more than anything else. I decided on Friday to do at least three, but aim for four, of a set I’ve favoured in the past:
1 x 200 on 4min
2 x 100 on 2min
4 x 50 on 1min
When I’m swimming regularly and more pool-fit, I drop that back 5sec per 50 in each. But the cramps started at the end of the second set and there was no way I could start the third. I even switched to pull buoy and paddles to try and stave off the lockup from kicking, but only just made it to the end. Sigh. I’d done a 400m warm up, so I’m at a bit of a loss for what to do next. But this has to be resolved as I can’t cramp halfway through the swim leg in a race.
The challenge goes on.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Evidence
I was looking through my computer just now and found some pics and video of me at various tri events, and thought I should post some to provide evidence of past exploits.
Seems there's a famous adage in blogland, which goes something like:
no pictures = didn't happen
So, view and believe. These are from my first triathlon, a half olympic and I was terrified. My first open water swim for starters, second my first race of any type since school. Yep, more nervous than I could remember. But the rush at the end was phenomenal.
Note the laces being tied......yeesh
In full control coming in to the finish shute, you know.... for the cameras.
The relief that I'd made it was huge, but man did I want to do another one, and soon!
There are more pics of later races, but this will do for now.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Quick Update
Just a quick review of my weekend and week so far.
Nothing of great significance to deliver I'm afraid, which in the "glass half full" category means I haven't damaged, snapped, strained, cramped, inflamed or crashed anything. And given the year I've had, that's a very good thing.
Sunday was a stellar ride with my crew which took in the sights of Mt Crosby. This is a great loop of about 85km with the first half of that passing over many undulations of about 4-8% slope but culminating in two short but serious bumps that we estimate to be in the order of 20%. Sure they are only 100m or so, but it’s a hard slog up them. Especially if you have nerve damage in one leg and can’t generate power from it. And….if you think a 11-23 cluster is ok. It was, right up until these twin peaks. Man, I struggled and only just made it over. After that, it was all pretty much smooth sailing. We had a nice gallop along the Warrego Hwy in a paceline holding 45+kph for about 10km which is always fun. The reason this put a smile on my face is the Mt Crosby ride is one I've avoided since returning to the road, as my damaged leg just wouldn't handle it, i.e. I would either not get over the damn bumps or struggle so much I'd need the sag wagon at some point. So completing this ride and staying in the middle of the pack is a milestone on my recovery I guess.
Other training includes a return to the pool. I’d be lying if I said there was no trepidation from the previous visit, but while some minor cramping occurred, I managed it better this time. Did a solid 1200m in one go, not to any time but a good rhythm, then 2 x 500m and a warm down. I’m happy with that for this point in time and I plan to go again today and do 100s and just alternate that pattern for a few weeks to build up distance.
Yesterday was a public holiday here so my cycle crew did a modified loop of 70km, again with some hills but no 20% bumps, so all was good. A bit tired though, so I kept the heroics to a minimum. I did get into a sprint finish with one of the group’s gun riders, using the second-wheel in the lead-out to slingshot and pull alongside him, but he heard me approaching (could have been all the gasping) and put the hammer down. I stayed seated for safety – the weak leg just won’t hold me under such conditions, while he stood and we both were giving it everything we had. We stayed locked side-by-side for a few moments nudging 60kph but I tired quickly and he pulled away. Great fun though. I did forget that straight after we had another long 10% climb to traverse and I paid for my sprint then.
I haven’t heard back from the foot people, but they said about a week so I’ll wait until tomorrow to call. I’m starting to think my timeframe for them is too short and perhaps I should start to consider a different target race for the comeback instead of Noosa Oly. The other premier race here in sun drenched South-East Queensland is the Mooloolaba Multisport Festival, but that’s at the end of the season in March, and I’m not waiting that long if the foot people can weave their magic.
Stay safe out there.
T-out
Nothing of great significance to deliver I'm afraid, which in the "glass half full" category means I haven't damaged, snapped, strained, cramped, inflamed or crashed anything. And given the year I've had, that's a very good thing.
Sunday was a stellar ride with my crew which took in the sights of Mt Crosby. This is a great loop of about 85km with the first half of that passing over many undulations of about 4-8% slope but culminating in two short but serious bumps that we estimate to be in the order of 20%. Sure they are only 100m or so, but it’s a hard slog up them. Especially if you have nerve damage in one leg and can’t generate power from it. And….if you think a 11-23 cluster is ok. It was, right up until these twin peaks. Man, I struggled and only just made it over. After that, it was all pretty much smooth sailing. We had a nice gallop along the Warrego Hwy in a paceline holding 45+kph for about 10km which is always fun. The reason this put a smile on my face is the Mt Crosby ride is one I've avoided since returning to the road, as my damaged leg just wouldn't handle it, i.e. I would either not get over the damn bumps or struggle so much I'd need the sag wagon at some point. So completing this ride and staying in the middle of the pack is a milestone on my recovery I guess.
Other training includes a return to the pool. I’d be lying if I said there was no trepidation from the previous visit, but while some minor cramping occurred, I managed it better this time. Did a solid 1200m in one go, not to any time but a good rhythm, then 2 x 500m and a warm down. I’m happy with that for this point in time and I plan to go again today and do 100s and just alternate that pattern for a few weeks to build up distance.
Yesterday was a public holiday here so my cycle crew did a modified loop of 70km, again with some hills but no 20% bumps, so all was good. A bit tired though, so I kept the heroics to a minimum. I did get into a sprint finish with one of the group’s gun riders, using the second-wheel in the lead-out to slingshot and pull alongside him, but he heard me approaching (could have been all the gasping) and put the hammer down. I stayed seated for safety – the weak leg just won’t hold me under such conditions, while he stood and we both were giving it everything we had. We stayed locked side-by-side for a few moments nudging 60kph but I tired quickly and he pulled away. Great fun though. I did forget that straight after we had another long 10% climb to traverse and I paid for my sprint then.
I haven’t heard back from the foot people, but they said about a week so I’ll wait until tomorrow to call. I’m starting to think my timeframe for them is too short and perhaps I should start to consider a different target race for the comeback instead of Noosa Oly. The other premier race here in sun drenched South-East Queensland is the Mooloolaba Multisport Festival, but that’s at the end of the season in March, and I’m not waiting that long if the foot people can weave their magic.
Stay safe out there.
T-out
Friday, August 10, 2007
Good News from the Foot People
OOOOOOOOkay.
I have news peoples.
On Thursday, I went to see the foot people. I say people because there were three of them who checked me out. Now, others might have found that intimidating, i.e. “hey, come have a look at this freak in Room 2”, but I took it as a sign of how much they respected my circumstances and what could be done to fix them.
I was there a total of three hours and was prodded, pulled and drawn-on. They took measurements and lengths (not that one) and discovered much. Turns out I really, really should have visited someone in this field of medicine a long ago. My natural podiatric situation requires, er, some tweaking. There is stuff going on that should have caused me a lot more problems that I had, which was my defence when asked why I didn’t visit them sooner. In fact, I was occasionally complimented on my relaxed, fluid running style, so I didn’t ever consider there was a need for correction or tweaking. But there was and it probably caused the back injury. Yup, we have a culprit. The issues with my feet and posture are known causes of stress and compression in the, you guessed it, lumbar region. So my existing prolapsed disc was a sitting duck and all it took was the increase in running training during our triathlon off-season, namely the half mara and finally the Sydney City2Surf event to start the rupture. More specifically the infamous climb around the half-way mark called Heartbreak Hill, which increases those stresses even more.
Anyway, that’s the bad news. Then came the good.
Much of it can be fixed, simply and quickly. In fact, they expect a 20% improvement immediately once my shoes are adjusted. Woohoo. Then a further 50% within two months. Awesome! Funny, they seemed surprised by the attempt at cartwheels I made in their consultation suite. Apparently we are supposed be aligned through the ears, hips, knees and ankles. I'm not. I suffer from a thing unfortunately called “sway back” which means I lean forward in posture. This is caused by tight calves, which may be genetic or just that way from years of training and not stretching enough. I do stretch after running but not much more. Regardless, it can be fixed and then so will my posture. And then so will my lower back stress. With this on board, they feel my goal to race at Noosa in just over two months time is possible. Not probable, but possible. It will depend on my body’s response to the treatment. That’s cool. I just want to be there and take part really. I know that I’m not going to challenge my PB for an Oly (2hr 16min 02sec in 2005), no, my goal is to finish and not walk at any point. I’m thinking a sub 24min swim, a sub 1:07hr bike and then a steady run to finish.
Now, here’s where it the really good part comes in.
They also have a dude on staff who is a trained sports psychologist and physiologist, and who is doing his PhD in neural-muscular pathways. Seriously. So he was very interested in my case and frankly may want to base some of his research on my results. I spent about an hour with him discussing what’s happened and what I can do and not do. He wasn’t thrilled when I said that I couldn’t raise myself up 1mm on the damaged leg without support, but when he held my foot and got me to point toes, pull them back, twist left and right, and then push the ball of my foot against his pressure, he declared my nerve damage isn’t as bad as I think. “Really?” I asked, then how come I can’t walk or run without a limp. He thinks the neural pathways are recovering and the connections are working, but still weak. Mostly the muscles are affected and must relearn how to work, and more importantly take load. He can help with that. A plan of increased weights and repetitions will change things. Sooooo COOL!!! He said if I couldn’t move my foot in those ways, then things would be more difficult, but since it does work, the other stuff is fixable. IN TWO MONTHS.
So I’m excited. It’s all positive and already I have things to do. We talked about visualizations, which research has proven can trigger muscles and nerves to behave in a desired way. I have to lie quietly and imagine myself running without any problem, smooth and balanced. Over and over. And my nerves will start to fire in the same sequences, etc. Funny, because I already do that now and even dream like that. I’ve had many dreams in the past year where I’m running just fine and even realise this in the dream and wonder how I managed to fix it.
What can I say folks? Its all good and I am going to do this race.
Watch this space dear reader. Watch this space.
I have news peoples.
On Thursday, I went to see the foot people. I say people because there were three of them who checked me out. Now, others might have found that intimidating, i.e. “hey, come have a look at this freak in Room 2”, but I took it as a sign of how much they respected my circumstances and what could be done to fix them.
I was there a total of three hours and was prodded, pulled and drawn-on. They took measurements and lengths (not that one) and discovered much. Turns out I really, really should have visited someone in this field of medicine a long ago. My natural podiatric situation requires, er, some tweaking. There is stuff going on that should have caused me a lot more problems that I had, which was my defence when asked why I didn’t visit them sooner. In fact, I was occasionally complimented on my relaxed, fluid running style, so I didn’t ever consider there was a need for correction or tweaking. But there was and it probably caused the back injury. Yup, we have a culprit. The issues with my feet and posture are known causes of stress and compression in the, you guessed it, lumbar region. So my existing prolapsed disc was a sitting duck and all it took was the increase in running training during our triathlon off-season, namely the half mara and finally the Sydney City2Surf event to start the rupture. More specifically the infamous climb around the half-way mark called Heartbreak Hill, which increases those stresses even more.
Anyway, that’s the bad news. Then came the good.
Much of it can be fixed, simply and quickly. In fact, they expect a 20% improvement immediately once my shoes are adjusted. Woohoo. Then a further 50% within two months. Awesome! Funny, they seemed surprised by the attempt at cartwheels I made in their consultation suite. Apparently we are supposed be aligned through the ears, hips, knees and ankles. I'm not. I suffer from a thing unfortunately called “sway back” which means I lean forward in posture. This is caused by tight calves, which may be genetic or just that way from years of training and not stretching enough. I do stretch after running but not much more. Regardless, it can be fixed and then so will my posture. And then so will my lower back stress. With this on board, they feel my goal to race at Noosa in just over two months time is possible. Not probable, but possible. It will depend on my body’s response to the treatment. That’s cool. I just want to be there and take part really. I know that I’m not going to challenge my PB for an Oly (2hr 16min 02sec in 2005), no, my goal is to finish and not walk at any point. I’m thinking a sub 24min swim, a sub 1:07hr bike and then a steady run to finish.
Now, here’s where it the really good part comes in.
They also have a dude on staff who is a trained sports psychologist and physiologist, and who is doing his PhD in neural-muscular pathways. Seriously. So he was very interested in my case and frankly may want to base some of his research on my results. I spent about an hour with him discussing what’s happened and what I can do and not do. He wasn’t thrilled when I said that I couldn’t raise myself up 1mm on the damaged leg without support, but when he held my foot and got me to point toes, pull them back, twist left and right, and then push the ball of my foot against his pressure, he declared my nerve damage isn’t as bad as I think. “Really?” I asked, then how come I can’t walk or run without a limp. He thinks the neural pathways are recovering and the connections are working, but still weak. Mostly the muscles are affected and must relearn how to work, and more importantly take load. He can help with that. A plan of increased weights and repetitions will change things. Sooooo COOL!!! He said if I couldn’t move my foot in those ways, then things would be more difficult, but since it does work, the other stuff is fixable. IN TWO MONTHS.
So I’m excited. It’s all positive and already I have things to do. We talked about visualizations, which research has proven can trigger muscles and nerves to behave in a desired way. I have to lie quietly and imagine myself running without any problem, smooth and balanced. Over and over. And my nerves will start to fire in the same sequences, etc. Funny, because I already do that now and even dream like that. I’ve had many dreams in the past year where I’m running just fine and even realise this in the dream and wonder how I managed to fix it.
What can I say folks? Its all good and I am going to do this race.
Watch this space dear reader. Watch this space.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Agony at the Pool
I decided that I have to keep getting to the pool. I was inspired by fellow-blogger Bolder who managed a serious swim set recently (38x100s) so I realised that to make this whole return to triathlon work, I have to step it up.
Wouldn't that be the best irony for me - actually manage to get my running back only to find I've neglected the swim and either drown, be rescued or come in to T1 last. I'd probably laugh if I wasn't crying. And I would be.
Soooo, its back to the pool. I managed a 200m warm-up, then 15 x 100m on 2minutes each. I started the set finishing each 100m in 1:35 and so had 25 glorious seconds to recover. But by the time I was at #8 it was down to 15sec breaks and for the last three I was struggling to get 10sec gaps. Yeesh. What's much worse, is that in the lane next to me a woman was belting out solid laps at around the same pace. I was supposed to be the one doing the quick sets with a rest.
Now the story gets ugly.
I have a history of leg cramps towards the end of my swim sessions. I've blamed the fact that I'm swimming in a 25m pool and so there are too many tumble turns for my liking. I used to run 3km to a 50m pool, then run back to work in my lunch hour, but of course that sort of stuff is out now. I'm stuck with the 25m. The other suspect in the great cramp mystery is the fact that I ride a lot. Ok, and I don't stretch enough. So today during the last 100m, I start to feel the left (bad) leg start to tighten. I know that I should stop there and then, but I'm determined (read stubborn) to finish what I set out to do in training. Well, most things really. So I stopped kicking and did manage to finish it. Then I tried to get out of the pool by jumping to the side. Bad idea. Once on the poolside, the left leg cramped like it had a large electric current passed through it. Just locked up like a bastard. The pain was bad. I sat there with gritted teeth and tried to reach the toes to pull back and hopefully release the calf. Not a chance. The leg was now like a piece of iron. The pain started coming in waves and each time the muscles would tighten even further. Now I'm in serious agony. The gritted teeth have become grinding teeth and I'm starting to panic. I can't get up, can't even move. I try to slide backwards in the hope of stretching out the leg, but that just starts other muscles cramping. First the hamstring then the quads. I know that the nerve damage has something to do with the intensity and also the inability to release it but that knowledge doesn't help. I decided to just wait it out; surely it can't keep going. But it does reader, it does. And keeps getting tighter and more painful. The next wave of agony is almost more than I can bear and a groan escapes my lips. I look around in desperation and the woman in the next lane has stopped her machine-like laps and is looking up at me. "You ok?" she asks. "er, no. I'm not really" I reply and I'm a little shocked and embarrassed to hear clear panic in my voice. "Cramp" she asks. "Yes! and its the worst I've ever had!" I answer. "Please, could you help me up? If I can stand and walk, I can get it to release". So my saviour hops out and gives me a hand up. Once on my feet I can force the toes up by leaning forward with the foot staying flat. "Nerve damage" I manage to stammer, although I'm not sure why I mentioned it. Slowly, slowly it starts to ease and then all at once it lets go. Oh the bliss. She lets go of my hand and asks if I'm ok now. I blabber out some thanks and apologies for interrupting her set. Then I walk for 5mins up and down the poolside until its fully gone. But the soreness is still there, even now 7 hours later.
So, perhaps I new plan is needed. I have to find a way to get to the 50m pool me thinks. I do not what to ever go through that again. Fellow bloggers, if you have any words of wisdom on this topic, I'd be more than happy to hear them.
Oh, and I'm so counting the swim as training. Far more than I bargained for. And on a side note, my saviour had an arm like steel. When I pulled myself up to stand with my full weight (still several kilos more than I like) her arm didn't waiver in the slightest. You rock lady, whoever you are.
Wouldn't that be the best irony for me - actually manage to get my running back only to find I've neglected the swim and either drown, be rescued or come in to T1 last. I'd probably laugh if I wasn't crying. And I would be.
Soooo, its back to the pool. I managed a 200m warm-up, then 15 x 100m on 2minutes each. I started the set finishing each 100m in 1:35 and so had 25 glorious seconds to recover. But by the time I was at #8 it was down to 15sec breaks and for the last three I was struggling to get 10sec gaps. Yeesh. What's much worse, is that in the lane next to me a woman was belting out solid laps at around the same pace. I was supposed to be the one doing the quick sets with a rest.
Now the story gets ugly.
I have a history of leg cramps towards the end of my swim sessions. I've blamed the fact that I'm swimming in a 25m pool and so there are too many tumble turns for my liking. I used to run 3km to a 50m pool, then run back to work in my lunch hour, but of course that sort of stuff is out now. I'm stuck with the 25m. The other suspect in the great cramp mystery is the fact that I ride a lot. Ok, and I don't stretch enough. So today during the last 100m, I start to feel the left (bad) leg start to tighten. I know that I should stop there and then, but I'm determined (read stubborn) to finish what I set out to do in training. Well, most things really. So I stopped kicking and did manage to finish it. Then I tried to get out of the pool by jumping to the side. Bad idea. Once on the poolside, the left leg cramped like it had a large electric current passed through it. Just locked up like a bastard. The pain was bad. I sat there with gritted teeth and tried to reach the toes to pull back and hopefully release the calf. Not a chance. The leg was now like a piece of iron. The pain started coming in waves and each time the muscles would tighten even further. Now I'm in serious agony. The gritted teeth have become grinding teeth and I'm starting to panic. I can't get up, can't even move. I try to slide backwards in the hope of stretching out the leg, but that just starts other muscles cramping. First the hamstring then the quads. I know that the nerve damage has something to do with the intensity and also the inability to release it but that knowledge doesn't help. I decided to just wait it out; surely it can't keep going. But it does reader, it does. And keeps getting tighter and more painful. The next wave of agony is almost more than I can bear and a groan escapes my lips. I look around in desperation and the woman in the next lane has stopped her machine-like laps and is looking up at me. "You ok?" she asks. "er, no. I'm not really" I reply and I'm a little shocked and embarrassed to hear clear panic in my voice. "Cramp" she asks. "Yes! and its the worst I've ever had!" I answer. "Please, could you help me up? If I can stand and walk, I can get it to release". So my saviour hops out and gives me a hand up. Once on my feet I can force the toes up by leaning forward with the foot staying flat. "Nerve damage" I manage to stammer, although I'm not sure why I mentioned it. Slowly, slowly it starts to ease and then all at once it lets go. Oh the bliss. She lets go of my hand and asks if I'm ok now. I blabber out some thanks and apologies for interrupting her set. Then I walk for 5mins up and down the poolside until its fully gone. But the soreness is still there, even now 7 hours later.
So, perhaps I new plan is needed. I have to find a way to get to the 50m pool me thinks. I do not what to ever go through that again. Fellow bloggers, if you have any words of wisdom on this topic, I'd be more than happy to hear them.
Oh, and I'm so counting the swim as training. Far more than I bargained for. And on a side note, my saviour had an arm like steel. When I pulled myself up to stand with my full weight (still several kilos more than I like) her arm didn't waiver in the slightest. You rock lady, whoever you are.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Slow but Steady
In keeping with my current mood, I'm still riding a fair bit but not much else. But I have reasons. Good ones too, not something lame or soft. Honest.
Oh, you want to know what they are? Not taking my word for it?
Harsh you are. Doubter you have become.
Well, firstly I have held off on the running, despite a burgeoning desire to get out there and push things along, because I've made an appointment with a sports podiatrist to make sure I am not about to break something else if I start running full-time. The foot doc was recommended to me and they do a full bio-mechanical evaluation, which sounds great. Then a foot and leg assessment for moving forward (sorry about the pun). Then and only then will I know if running is in the future. There's no point setting my jaw and getting out there to clock up the k's to find out in six months time my opposite hip is totally stuffed (Hi Katy). Then running would be definitely goneski. So its off to the foot doc.
I can report that I've made it back into the pool. Yep, twice. Ok, so its not 10km a week, but its a start. And both times were steady, solid sessions. I do not want to rip a shoulder tendon and have that to worry about too. The top half is working fine and I'd like it to stay that way. So I've decided to swim a minimum of three times a week for now and kick it up to four as Noosa Tri approaches. Back to basics. I found that once in the pool, I missed it and enjoyed the solitude and balance of working the upper half.
Of course the bike is getting the most attention. She's needy like that. A great ride last Sunday with my crew out to the airport, Nudgee Beach, and back via the racecourse for flat-whites and tall tales. I also went looking for Katy on the way home, as she was manning a stall to promote GAP or the Greyhound Adoption Program, but my radar was on the blink and I rolled around the suburb but couldn't find the street. Ah well, she would have given me grief over the lycra camel toe anyway. And yesterday I managed a short ride by myself of 55km but kept the average at 31.7kph with some wind and hills about. I found this smoooooooth road towards the Port of Brisbane and despite the plethora of trucks, enjoyed several kms holding >40kph in full tuck. Zoom.
I'll be back here with the foot doc report and maybe some running stats if it goes well. They listened to my history and made some tall promises, so we shall see. I'm keeping my hopes in check for now.
Oh, one last thing. A mate of mine who's moved to Switzerland has met a guy who has a dream. He wants to climb (on his bike of course) 170,000metres of elevation in one year! The man is certifiable. But he has a terrific blog and webpage and it would seem can ascend like Contadour. So if you want to see some climbing prowess, visit Will's blog and his progress on the challenge.
Truly nuts.
Ciao.
Oh, you want to know what they are? Not taking my word for it?
Harsh you are. Doubter you have become.
Well, firstly I have held off on the running, despite a burgeoning desire to get out there and push things along, because I've made an appointment with a sports podiatrist to make sure I am not about to break something else if I start running full-time. The foot doc was recommended to me and they do a full bio-mechanical evaluation, which sounds great. Then a foot and leg assessment for moving forward (sorry about the pun). Then and only then will I know if running is in the future. There's no point setting my jaw and getting out there to clock up the k's to find out in six months time my opposite hip is totally stuffed (Hi Katy). Then running would be definitely goneski. So its off to the foot doc.
I can report that I've made it back into the pool. Yep, twice. Ok, so its not 10km a week, but its a start. And both times were steady, solid sessions. I do not want to rip a shoulder tendon and have that to worry about too. The top half is working fine and I'd like it to stay that way. So I've decided to swim a minimum of three times a week for now and kick it up to four as Noosa Tri approaches. Back to basics. I found that once in the pool, I missed it and enjoyed the solitude and balance of working the upper half.
Of course the bike is getting the most attention. She's needy like that. A great ride last Sunday with my crew out to the airport, Nudgee Beach, and back via the racecourse for flat-whites and tall tales. I also went looking for Katy on the way home, as she was manning a stall to promote GAP or the Greyhound Adoption Program, but my radar was on the blink and I rolled around the suburb but couldn't find the street. Ah well, she would have given me grief over the lycra camel toe anyway. And yesterday I managed a short ride by myself of 55km but kept the average at 31.7kph with some wind and hills about. I found this smoooooooth road towards the Port of Brisbane and despite the plethora of trucks, enjoyed several kms holding >40kph in full tuck. Zoom.
I'll be back here with the foot doc report and maybe some running stats if it goes well. They listened to my history and made some tall promises, so we shall see. I'm keeping my hopes in check for now.
Oh, one last thing. A mate of mine who's moved to Switzerland has met a guy who has a dream. He wants to climb (on his bike of course) 170,000metres of elevation in one year! The man is certifiable. But he has a terrific blog and webpage and it would seem can ascend like Contadour. So if you want to see some climbing prowess, visit Will's blog and his progress on the challenge.
Truly nuts.
Ciao.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Bank Week Part II
Folks,
Seems my bike mate who did the weekend rides with me has penned an ode (?) to the two outtings we did. The first was an open invitation ride with a bunch of about 60 that we joined and of course the second was the run to Noosa. With permission, I've reproduced the words as sent to me below (not sure why the all caps). The man has talent. Oh, if anyone wishes a translation on some points, feel free to ask, as there are plenty of local references.
Seems my bike mate who did the weekend rides with me has penned an ode (?) to the two outtings we did. The first was an open invitation ride with a bunch of about 60 that we joined and of course the second was the run to Noosa. With permission, I've reproduced the words as sent to me below (not sure why the all caps). The man has talent. Oh, if anyone wishes a translation on some points, feel free to ask, as there are plenty of local references.
MARC AND LINCOLNS EXCELLENT ADVENTURE
A FULL WEEKEND UP THE COAST, TWO RIDES WERE A MUST,
MARC AND I WERE CONFIDENT, THE COAST BOYS WE’D BUST,
THE BUNCH LEFT MOOLOOLABA, TO TRAVEL NICKLIN WAY,
AT KAWANA WE JOINED, TIME TO ENTER THE FRAY,
IT WAS CRUISE CONTROL CITY, TILL WE ALMOST HIT TOWN,
THEN THE BIG BOYS TOOK OFF, AND THE HAMMER WENT DOWN,
THE BUNCH WAS NOW SPLIT, AND WORDS THEY DID SLUR,
MOFFAT AND KINGS BEACH, WERE NOWT BUT A BLUR,
THE BLACK NORCO WAS CHARGING, MARC WAS RIGHT IN THE ZONE,
BUT HE MISSED THE CYTEK SLIDE PAST, A MISTAKE ALL HIS OWN,
HE NEVER REALISED HIS ERROR, OR THE BURDEN HE MUST BEAR,
ONE WONDERS THE OUTCOME, IF THE RIDLEY HAD BEEN THERE,
THEY SMASHED INTO THE HEADWIND, ALONG GOLDEN BEACH ROAD,
I WAS WORKING KINDA HARD, BUT IT’S ALWAYS FUN TO BE TOWED,
RACKED THE SMOKING STEEDS AT THE CAFÉ, TO THE DOOR THEY DID STRIDE,
PUSHING AND PULLING THE DOOR FAILED, COZ THE SIGN SAID, ‘PLEASE SLIDE’,
HIS OLD MATES INSIDE ROARED, THEIR MIRTH WAS JUST ENDLESS,
JUST PROVES THE OLD ADAGE, IN THE PELOTON YOU'RE FRIENDLESS,
SUNDAY MORNING WAS CRISP FOR THE COOLUM-NOOSA RUN,
ROLLING ALONG THE PERFECT ROADS, IN THE BRIGHT RISING SUN,
NOOSAVILLE WAS REACHED, JUST ‘SPIN’ BACK TO COOLUM SAID HE,
BUT THE RISES SEEMED FLAT AND WE AVERAGED THIRTY-THREE,
ON THE HILL OUTA NOOSA, WE DANCED OUR WAY UP,
I WAS SHOT BY THE END, NEEDING EPO BY THE CUP,
TWO LATTES AT COOLUM, AND DISCUSSING THE HIGHS,
THINKING OF THOSE OUT AT DAYBORO, SCOFFING THE PIES,
‘TWAS A FUN COUPLE OF RIDES, CANT WAIT TO GET BACK,
SUNDAYS THE DAY THE BIKE BECKONS,,,,,TIME AGAIN TO ATTACK !!
A FULL WEEKEND UP THE COAST, TWO RIDES WERE A MUST,
MARC AND I WERE CONFIDENT, THE COAST BOYS WE’D BUST,
THE BUNCH LEFT MOOLOOLABA, TO TRAVEL NICKLIN WAY,
AT KAWANA WE JOINED, TIME TO ENTER THE FRAY,
IT WAS CRUISE CONTROL CITY, TILL WE ALMOST HIT TOWN,
THEN THE BIG BOYS TOOK OFF, AND THE HAMMER WENT DOWN,
THE BUNCH WAS NOW SPLIT, AND WORDS THEY DID SLUR,
MOFFAT AND KINGS BEACH, WERE NOWT BUT A BLUR,
THE BLACK NORCO WAS CHARGING, MARC WAS RIGHT IN THE ZONE,
BUT HE MISSED THE CYTEK SLIDE PAST, A MISTAKE ALL HIS OWN,
HE NEVER REALISED HIS ERROR, OR THE BURDEN HE MUST BEAR,
ONE WONDERS THE OUTCOME, IF THE RIDLEY HAD BEEN THERE,
THEY SMASHED INTO THE HEADWIND, ALONG GOLDEN BEACH ROAD,
I WAS WORKING KINDA HARD, BUT IT’S ALWAYS FUN TO BE TOWED,
RACKED THE SMOKING STEEDS AT THE CAFÉ, TO THE DOOR THEY DID STRIDE,
PUSHING AND PULLING THE DOOR FAILED, COZ THE SIGN SAID, ‘PLEASE SLIDE’,
HIS OLD MATES INSIDE ROARED, THEIR MIRTH WAS JUST ENDLESS,
JUST PROVES THE OLD ADAGE, IN THE PELOTON YOU'RE FRIENDLESS,
SUNDAY MORNING WAS CRISP FOR THE COOLUM-NOOSA RUN,
ROLLING ALONG THE PERFECT ROADS, IN THE BRIGHT RISING SUN,
NOOSAVILLE WAS REACHED, JUST ‘SPIN’ BACK TO COOLUM SAID HE,
BUT THE RISES SEEMED FLAT AND WE AVERAGED THIRTY-THREE,
ON THE HILL OUTA NOOSA, WE DANCED OUR WAY UP,
I WAS SHOT BY THE END, NEEDING EPO BY THE CUP,
TWO LATTES AT COOLUM, AND DISCUSSING THE HIGHS,
THINKING OF THOSE OUT AT DAYBORO, SCOFFING THE PIES,
‘TWAS A FUN COUPLE OF RIDES, CANT WAIT TO GET BACK,
SUNDAYS THE DAY THE BIKE BECKONS,,,,,TIME AGAIN TO ATTACK !!
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Bank Week
Ok, so its been a little while since I posted an update on stuff.
I’ve been busy. No, not with running. And NO, not with swimming.
That’s next, I promise.
Of course its been with the bike. I love my bike, and she loves me. Well, most of the time. Neither of us like hills at the moment. But that’s coming along.
I’ve been concentrating on the riding lately and putting some k’s in the bank. Lots of them actually. I decided that it was time to step up the intensity and distance as I had reached a plateau of sorts and while I could now stand on the pedals, I was still at the same fitness level. Time to take some safety tabs off, to use a mate’s terminology (Bold et al, 2007). Not all, but some. So the weekend before the last I did a total of 260km over four days, then two days rest and then another 190 in three days. And did I feel it. But its done the trick, as the weekend just gone I managed 150km in two days and was able to keep an average over 31kph on both. And I’m happy with that. There is also definitely more strength in the weaker leg too. So my theory now is more is best.
I intend to do some speed work too in the coming weeks and some more hill climbing, having started that yesterday with the ride from Marcoola to Noosa Heads. I have done this ride in the past but that was years ago and it seems my memory may have suffered nerve damage too, as the series of undulations between Perigian to Sunshine Beach hurt more than I recalled. In total there are 13 bumps that, while not too long, are somewhat sharp and after a while started to take a toll. But the ride is a great place to be as the roads are smooth and the scenery is top shelf. Sadly, no pics as I was focused on keeping the average kph above 30.
So stay tuned. I will pull on the running shoes and get out there. I did jog for a short way on Sunday in a park, chasing children and it felt ever-so-slightly better with less limp, so I was encouraged. As long as the recovery is continuing, I can cope with it being at a snail’s pace.
I’ve been busy. No, not with running. And NO, not with swimming.
That’s next, I promise.
Of course its been with the bike. I love my bike, and she loves me. Well, most of the time. Neither of us like hills at the moment. But that’s coming along.
I’ve been concentrating on the riding lately and putting some k’s in the bank. Lots of them actually. I decided that it was time to step up the intensity and distance as I had reached a plateau of sorts and while I could now stand on the pedals, I was still at the same fitness level. Time to take some safety tabs off, to use a mate’s terminology (Bold et al, 2007). Not all, but some. So the weekend before the last I did a total of 260km over four days, then two days rest and then another 190 in three days. And did I feel it. But its done the trick, as the weekend just gone I managed 150km in two days and was able to keep an average over 31kph on both. And I’m happy with that. There is also definitely more strength in the weaker leg too. So my theory now is more is best.
I intend to do some speed work too in the coming weeks and some more hill climbing, having started that yesterday with the ride from Marcoola to Noosa Heads. I have done this ride in the past but that was years ago and it seems my memory may have suffered nerve damage too, as the series of undulations between Perigian to Sunshine Beach hurt more than I recalled. In total there are 13 bumps that, while not too long, are somewhat sharp and after a while started to take a toll. But the ride is a great place to be as the roads are smooth and the scenery is top shelf. Sadly, no pics as I was focused on keeping the average kph above 30.
So stay tuned. I will pull on the running shoes and get out there. I did jog for a short way on Sunday in a park, chasing children and it felt ever-so-slightly better with less limp, so I was encouraged. As long as the recovery is continuing, I can cope with it being at a snail’s pace.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Dutton Park Hill - My Bitch Now
Time to 'tick off' another milestone.
Seems the athlete-side of my life, which is about half at last count, is now defined by small feats that were once routine. These are not insignificant however.
For example (you just knew there was an example coming, didn't you) there is a hill that is on Brisbane's most-used cycle loop, commonly referred to as the 'Dutton Park Hill' (DPH). It gets called many other things to be honest, but that's its most proper title. Now, this hill is quite short but plenty steep. For those of you who are cyclists, I'm not sure of the % grade but its more sharp than most around town. But as I do this climb a few times each week, its a good measurable (government word, sorry) of how I'm travelling nerve-healing-wise.
Which brings us back to the 'tick off'. This morning, DPH became my bitch again. Once apon a time, I would use this hill to punish the unworthy on the ride by standing and powering up in, oh say, 39/19 gearing. But since the injury, this is not possible on several levels. Mainly the ability to stand on the pedals is the issue, but as you would no doubt have read in previous posts, the situation is a-changing. This morning, it changed a bit more. You guessed it, I powered up it standing all the way. Granted it wasn't in 39/19, more like 39/25 but that's not the point. So while it still doesn't feel like much is happening healing-wise its these measurables that I'm focusing on.
Oh, the stats for the ride were 45km @ 31.5kph average. Sorry no heartrate data. I'm still not grabbing the chest strap as habit yet, but I'm working on it. And for some bike-porn, here's a pic of my bike. I didn't ride it this morning as the facilities at work for bike security aren't great, and this baby is expensive to replace.
I've had this bike for about 18months now and just adore it. Story behind getting it is that an aussie rider was contracted to ride with Robbie McEwen's team, but at the last minute they pulled the deal. He'd already received his team bike, so a friend contacted me and asked if I wanted it at a cheap price. Duh... is what I said. More bike pics to follow of my TT bike. Just because I can.
Ciao.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Old Dogs and New Tricks
What do they say about old dogs and new tricks? Well, change my pedals to strap-ons and call me rookie because this morning I repeated a mistake that I haven't done since, well, since I was scared of clip in pedals. I had good reason to be scared of those but that's a topic for another post.
It started out fine, just a typical mid-week ride with a few mates around our favourite and well-worn loop. Error No. 1: my rear tyre was half flat indicating a slow leak. Clever Tomawac appears on my shoulder and says, "just change it now in the comfort of your home and be sure". Stoopid Tomawac appears on the opposite shoulder and says, "nah, ignore that namby pamby, it'll be right". You have to do that guy in a loud, macho voice to get the full effect. So I listened to HIM. Stoopid.
All was peachy until about 35km down and on the way back to the city, which is strange, because it means Murphy's Law must have been sleeping in, otherwise the next bit would have happened at the furthest point from my destination. Where was I? Oh yeah, BANG, WHOOSH, PHSSST, CLUNKER, CLUNKER. For those reading this who aren't cyclists, that's the sound of your tyre failing on a significant scale, i.e. blow out. Again, Mr Murphy was napping, as it occurred when I was slowing to make a turn, instead of belting down a hill at 75kph. So, I roll to the curb and perform the world's slickest tube change. Looked like a pro mech (apologies to any real pro mechanics reading this). AND I even remembered to check the inside of the tyre for nasty objects. None found, so on went the new tube and I loudly blamed its predecessor for what must be a faulty valve. Enter Error No.2: if you don't find a cause for the flat, look harder. Most likely it is not an act of God. Instead, I blithely start off to finish the ride
BANG, WHOOSH, PHSSST, CLUNKER, CLUNKER.
Phukit.
The other riders now stop, unclip, tip their heads forward and stare at me over the top of their sunglasses. Wordlessly. No need for words really, the stare has it covered. Clever Tomawac pipes up “told you so”. Stoopid Tomawac yells “SHUT-THE-PHUK-UP buddy or I’ll come over there and….” But neither of them offers to help with the tyre. So I put on my i-don’t-care face and settle in to change it again, but with a greater show of investigation this time. “Don’t know what happened there” I exclaim to the group. “You screwed up” came the anonymous reply. Stoopid Tomawac chimes in “just bad luck, can’t happen a third time. Just fix it and get going”. And while the temptation is there to listen to him again, I resist. Instead, I put some air into the tube and listen for the escaping sound and check it out on the tyre in that exact spot. Voila. I find a tear in the tyre where the tube is bulging out once it is inflated and bearing my weight, which is increasing lately, but that’s a topic for another post.
I also notice the condition of the tyre in general. Enter all-encompassing-rookie-mistake. It seems that I’ve been recalcitrant in replacing the tyres and pushed my luck too far. The tyre is a shambles! There are holes, tears, cracking, the works. And me a gear junkie. Oh the shame. Oh the shit that I get from the group. For those non-Aussies reading this, Australian men bond through a complex and confusing ritual of sarcasm. This morning I bonded deeply with those guys. So after taking our relationships to new levels of closeness, I proceeded to lift my reputation out of the gutter by boldly declaring the solution is to insert some layer of matter between the innocent nakedness of the tube and the damaged old hag of a tyre. Namely a $5 note. “DON’T SNICKER OR I’LL….” Be quiet Stoopid Tomawac, your done for the day. Time to fix this baby and finish the rapidly-imploding-ride. Folding money in place. Check. Tyre back on. Check. Tube inflated while holding breath. Check. All done with speed and no haste. Check. Once again I mount the steed and roll away. Looking around I can see everyone holding their breath, waiting for, well, you know. It doesn’t come. All is right and proper in my world and I attempt to create an air of IT NEVER HAPPENED. We reach a point where the group turns for coffee and I quietly declare it might be prudent for me to head straight home.
Believe it or not, Murphy once more is kind and its not until the group are around the corner and out of sight before, yep, you guessed it. WHPCC. Number three. This time I’m out of options. Clever Tomawac draws breath to say “Told you so” again, but thinks better of it and stays mum. I start walking towards home with the dreaded idea of passing a taxi rank and under the cloak of invisibility (surely one would be lying around handy) slip into the taxi unnoticed. I reach the rank to find no cab. “Oh Good Morning Mr Murphy, finally awake are we?”. In my dim corners of memory I recall hearing about how you can ride on a flat if you positively, absolutely have to. I have to. So I do. Guess what? You can ride on a flat. Gently. And with my best “I’ve just ridden 200km and I’m taking it easy going home” look firmly in place, I get myself home.
Lessons for today? 1) Don’t skimp on the gear. Always use the best you afford 2) Be proactive. Ignore Stoopid. He/she is an idiot. They sound cool and confident, but they are not. They are reckless and without a sense of consequence. 3) If you are going to ignore points 1 and 2, then do it away from your ride group.
Ok dear reader, I’m off for a long weekend on the sunshine coast, where the bike will have a full tyre, tube & anything else Clever-Tomawac-can-think-of changed.
Ciao.
It started out fine, just a typical mid-week ride with a few mates around our favourite and well-worn loop. Error No. 1: my rear tyre was half flat indicating a slow leak. Clever Tomawac appears on my shoulder and says, "just change it now in the comfort of your home and be sure". Stoopid Tomawac appears on the opposite shoulder and says, "nah, ignore that namby pamby, it'll be right". You have to do that guy in a loud, macho voice to get the full effect. So I listened to HIM. Stoopid.
All was peachy until about 35km down and on the way back to the city, which is strange, because it means Murphy's Law must have been sleeping in, otherwise the next bit would have happened at the furthest point from my destination. Where was I? Oh yeah, BANG, WHOOSH, PHSSST, CLUNKER, CLUNKER. For those reading this who aren't cyclists, that's the sound of your tyre failing on a significant scale, i.e. blow out. Again, Mr Murphy was napping, as it occurred when I was slowing to make a turn, instead of belting down a hill at 75kph. So, I roll to the curb and perform the world's slickest tube change. Looked like a pro mech (apologies to any real pro mechanics reading this). AND I even remembered to check the inside of the tyre for nasty objects. None found, so on went the new tube and I loudly blamed its predecessor for what must be a faulty valve. Enter Error No.2: if you don't find a cause for the flat, look harder. Most likely it is not an act of God. Instead, I blithely start off to finish the ride
BANG, WHOOSH, PHSSST, CLUNKER, CLUNKER.
Phukit.
The other riders now stop, unclip, tip their heads forward and stare at me over the top of their sunglasses. Wordlessly. No need for words really, the stare has it covered. Clever Tomawac pipes up “told you so”. Stoopid Tomawac yells “SHUT-THE-PHUK-UP buddy or I’ll come over there and….” But neither of them offers to help with the tyre. So I put on my i-don’t-care face and settle in to change it again, but with a greater show of investigation this time. “Don’t know what happened there” I exclaim to the group. “You screwed up” came the anonymous reply. Stoopid Tomawac chimes in “just bad luck, can’t happen a third time. Just fix it and get going”. And while the temptation is there to listen to him again, I resist. Instead, I put some air into the tube and listen for the escaping sound and check it out on the tyre in that exact spot. Voila. I find a tear in the tyre where the tube is bulging out once it is inflated and bearing my weight, which is increasing lately, but that’s a topic for another post.
I also notice the condition of the tyre in general. Enter all-encompassing-rookie-mistake. It seems that I’ve been recalcitrant in replacing the tyres and pushed my luck too far. The tyre is a shambles! There are holes, tears, cracking, the works. And me a gear junkie. Oh the shame. Oh the shit that I get from the group. For those non-Aussies reading this, Australian men bond through a complex and confusing ritual of sarcasm. This morning I bonded deeply with those guys. So after taking our relationships to new levels of closeness, I proceeded to lift my reputation out of the gutter by boldly declaring the solution is to insert some layer of matter between the innocent nakedness of the tube and the damaged old hag of a tyre. Namely a $5 note. “DON’T SNICKER OR I’LL….” Be quiet Stoopid Tomawac, your done for the day. Time to fix this baby and finish the rapidly-imploding-ride. Folding money in place. Check. Tyre back on. Check. Tube inflated while holding breath. Check. All done with speed and no haste. Check. Once again I mount the steed and roll away. Looking around I can see everyone holding their breath, waiting for, well, you know. It doesn’t come. All is right and proper in my world and I attempt to create an air of IT NEVER HAPPENED. We reach a point where the group turns for coffee and I quietly declare it might be prudent for me to head straight home.
Believe it or not, Murphy once more is kind and its not until the group are around the corner and out of sight before, yep, you guessed it. WHPCC. Number three. This time I’m out of options. Clever Tomawac draws breath to say “Told you so” again, but thinks better of it and stays mum. I start walking towards home with the dreaded idea of passing a taxi rank and under the cloak of invisibility (surely one would be lying around handy) slip into the taxi unnoticed. I reach the rank to find no cab. “Oh Good Morning Mr Murphy, finally awake are we?”. In my dim corners of memory I recall hearing about how you can ride on a flat if you positively, absolutely have to. I have to. So I do. Guess what? You can ride on a flat. Gently. And with my best “I’ve just ridden 200km and I’m taking it easy going home” look firmly in place, I get myself home.
Lessons for today? 1) Don’t skimp on the gear. Always use the best you afford 2) Be proactive. Ignore Stoopid
Ok dear reader, I’m off for a long weekend on the sunshine coast, where the bike will have a full tyre, tube & anything else Clever-Tomawac-can-think-of changed.
Ciao.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Seems I Don't Melt
Well, it seems I can ride in the wet.
I just don’t like it. Here I was thinking it was a physical impossibility, but it turns out I don’t melt and its not that bad. But its not that great either.
My Sunday ride with the group was cancelled due to weather, but as it started to fine slightly by 7am, and a few hardy souls sent txt messages about a meet-up. I answered. Certainly not an earth-shattering ride but a ride nevertheless. We looped through Fig Tree Pocket, which is a hobby farm suburb of Brisbane and must be in a well disguised hollow as the temperature dropped several degrees once we rolled through the area.
With the roads still wet, and that basically didn’t change all morning, we nursed the bikes around the corners and even had some wheel-spin on steeper climbs. So there was no aggressive tactics or intimidation going on. Well almost. There was this one part where a certain person did gallop off down a long, gentle descent but no one was up to a response. Shame, but probably wise.
Ended with several coffees and a modest 65k on the odometer. Average was just on 29kph which is a measure of the road conditions really. Honest, we didn’t slack off much at all. But it counts in the bank of kms and will help down the road.
I’m planning the next run, just to keep Iliketoast happy, but I’m not rushing it as the legs were dead from last week’s twin jaunts. Me no likey sore legs.
T.
P.S. No sign of going near a pool as yet. But it will happen. Soon. ish.
I just don’t like it. Here I was thinking it was a physical impossibility, but it turns out I don’t melt and its not that bad. But its not that great either.
My Sunday ride with the group was cancelled due to weather, but as it started to fine slightly by 7am, and a few hardy souls sent txt messages about a meet-up. I answered. Certainly not an earth-shattering ride but a ride nevertheless. We looped through Fig Tree Pocket, which is a hobby farm suburb of Brisbane and must be in a well disguised hollow as the temperature dropped several degrees once we rolled through the area.
With the roads still wet, and that basically didn’t change all morning, we nursed the bikes around the corners and even had some wheel-spin on steeper climbs. So there was no aggressive tactics or intimidation going on. Well almost. There was this one part where a certain person did gallop off down a long, gentle descent but no one was up to a response. Shame, but probably wise.
Ended with several coffees and a modest 65k on the odometer. Average was just on 29kph which is a measure of the road conditions really. Honest, we didn’t slack off much at all. But it counts in the bank of kms and will help down the road.
I’m planning the next run, just to keep Iliketoast happy, but I’m not rushing it as the legs were dead from last week’s twin jaunts. Me no likey sore legs.
T.
P.S. No sign of going near a pool as yet. But it will happen. Soon. ish.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Running Hurts!
Folks, a short post today to update you on my week.
I started to feel ok yesterday at work - physically that is, not emotionally, professionally or spiritually. Those are crushed forever by the oppressive weight of government yokedom. No, in body I felt ready for something more. It had already been a solid start to the week with the Gold Coast jaunt on Sunday and backed up by a run to work on Monday. But I was keen, so I laced up and ran home.
Oops. My performance did not meet my enthusiasm.
All was travelling fine on the first 2-3km although the legs were somewhat annoyed with me for asking them to do this so soon after the last time. But they begrudgingly agreed. In fact, some actual rhythm was found and I was optimisticlly visualising my run at Noosa and desparately tried to imprint this feeling to memory. Then things started to hurt.
And hurt and hurt. By 4km my nerve damaged left leg was complaining and starting to malfunction. All semblence of rhythm was now gone and in its place was a gait more akin to a weather-beaten pirate with a peg leg. A short walk was required to reset the style. Which brough me to the second problem - starting again. Me didn't want to do it. But I did and slowly trudged up the major hill at the end in a metronomic shuffle. Finally at home the impact from the run was evident. I remembered to stretch and try to pull out the kinks in the muscles, and spent 15mins on the legs and managed to feel less like a train wreck.
So a few days rest are in order. Maybe that swim later in the week.
I started to feel ok yesterday at work - physically that is, not emotionally, professionally or spiritually. Those are crushed forever by the oppressive weight of government yokedom. No, in body I felt ready for something more. It had already been a solid start to the week with the Gold Coast jaunt on Sunday and backed up by a run to work on Monday. But I was keen, so I laced up and ran home.
Oops. My performance did not meet my enthusiasm.
All was travelling fine on the first 2-3km although the legs were somewhat annoyed with me for asking them to do this so soon after the last time. But they begrudgingly agreed. In fact, some actual rhythm was found and I was optimisticlly visualising my run at Noosa and desparately tried to imprint this feeling to memory. Then things started to hurt.
And hurt and hurt. By 4km my nerve damaged left leg was complaining and starting to malfunction. All semblence of rhythm was now gone and in its place was a gait more akin to a weather-beaten pirate with a peg leg. A short walk was required to reset the style. Which brough me to the second problem - starting again. Me didn't want to do it. But I did and slowly trudged up the major hill at the end in a metronomic shuffle. Finally at home the impact from the run was evident. I remembered to stretch and try to pull out the kinks in the muscles, and spent 15mins on the legs and managed to feel less like a train wreck.
So a few days rest are in order. Maybe that swim later in the week.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Gold Coast Sojourn
Well folks, I have much for you today.
Part I – The Ride
Sunday’s ride to the Gold Coast was outstanding.
Part I – The Ride
Sunday’s ride to the Gold Coast was outstanding.
It does not get any better. Woke at 5am in darkness, it gets light here around 6:30am nowadays, and put myself together. Saturday was the coldest we’ve had this winter, down to 7deg and I felt it. So I was ready for Sunday, but thankfully it was a bit warmer and I got away with arm and leg warmers, and just a t-shirt under the jersey. Some of the others rugged up more but they were shedding clothing by midway like a moulting Burmese cat in summer.
After the meeting point we formed our pack of eight and settled into a steady rhythm of 33kph. It was decided to follow a new route that hugged the M1 motorway more than the old way that passed through the town of Beenleigh, which is slightly inland and includes a 10% climb of 750m. Nothing to get excited about normally, but when its at the start of a 125km ride it makes some of the group anxious. Anyhoo, we tried this new way and it was certainly flat, smooth surface and fast. We caught up with a group of 30+ who were doing the same ride and that made it easier for a while as we just tagged onto the back of them and coasted much of the time. Bit like cheating really. Interesting thing – they were an organised coaching ride that a guy called Marcel runs out of Brisbane and the rumour was he makes a bundle of cash from these rides. Plus, if someone flats, he stops and changes the tyre for them. And charges for the privilege. Now, that strikes me as a bit mercenary, but perhaps its just to keep the pack rolling. It left us wondering just how much he makes on such an outing.
So once we reached 35km it was decided to lift the pace and bid Marcel et al “au revoir “ and lifted the pace to 36kph for the next 25km. Once on the road to Hope Island, we put our heads down and the stronger riders wound it up to just over 40kph and held it there until we arrived at the northern tip of the Gold Coast. I was starting to feel the pinch at this point, having taken my share of the lead and the breeze was increasing by this time and making it tougher going on the front. But the sight of the Pacific Ocean was enough to raise our spirits and keep the train going to the end. The water was magnificent – slight green tinge sparkling in the early sun, sky perfect winter blue and a small but “totally rad dude” wave happening. Approaching Southport, two of our guys started a gallop that I just couldn’t match and instead stayed with the others and enjoyed the scenery. We caught them on the approach to Surfers Paradise and all rolled to the café where a buffet breakfast was waiting.
Our chief statistician Paul had arranged for his wife to meet us there and before we knew it he had the laptop out of the car and was uploading all the stats from his Garmin. Very handy unit that tracks all his personal data plus the bike’s information merged with the GPS feature. The result is a route mapped to Google Earth’s images with data annotated on the route. I could certainly use that gadget next time as I didn’t mind-stamp all of the turns and could certainly find myself in strange lands asking directions. And since I’m a guy, I.Don’t.Do.That.
My stats? 91km @ 32kph average. Not bad, not great. I’ve done better but not while recovering from nerve damage, so I’m content. Oh and my new heart rate monitor….excellent. I didn’t watch it much during the ride, but did take a peek from time to time and it seemed to be hovering on 145-150bpm. The average at the end was 135bpm so does that mean I didn’t work hard enough? I’m still learning. The max was 175bpm.
The plan was to continue south along the Gold Coast strip after breakfast to the township of Robina where we can catch a train back to Brisbane, however I managed a lift with Paul and wife, so I reclined in leather-interior comfort all the way home. Fighting the pangs of guilt, I closed my eyes and told myself, “next time I’ll ride back”. Two of my group did indeed ride back, finishing with a grand total of 186km!!! Major kudos to them. Personally I will aim for a century ride next time. Maybe.
Part II – The Run
I decided this morning that it was time to multitask my training again. By that, I mean back-to-back training days. Since the injury to my spine I’ve needed to rest between training days and the effort to get the dysfunctional left side of me to perform generally leaves me disinclined to train the next day. However, the road to Noosa in November 2007 will require this to change.
So, I found myself up early this morning and determined to make good on my threat/promise to do a ‘serious’ run in a previous post. The plan started to take form in my mind – run to work the long way. Exactly what that was I hadn’t decided yet, but I knew there had to be a long way. Kind of a yin and yang thing. I knew there was a short way, as that’s what I ran the other week before the head-cold-from-hell struck. So I decided to find the long way. Well I found it.
Distance: 7.8km
Time: 41:15
BPM: Ave 145, max 185
The hardest thing is that this was what I used to consider a short run, but now its my absolute maximum. It was mostly flat, except the monster climb straight out of my street. Can’t say I’m a fan of the hill first up, it just seems to sap the energy from the get-go and you are always struggling to recover. I know that’s where the max bpm was. I failed to find my any rhythm for most of the run and was battling sore legs (I wonder why?) when I found a training buddy. The council bus. Yep, it was picking up passengers just ahead of me on Vulture St and seemed to keep pace with me. I decided that I was going to beat it to the city. Sure he had to stop to pick up people, but my left leg doesn’t work very well, so I figure that was a fair trade. It was touch & go, each of us leap frogging the other. I played fair and stopped at the lights when they were against me. But in the end, he had NOTHING. I found form when it was needed and cruised to victory. I could almost hear the crowd, I’m sure the passengers were on my side.
So there you have it. Two days in a row done. Now to back up and swim tomorrow and see how the body replies. If it’s willing, we are firmly on the road to Noosa.
Tomawac out.
After the meeting point we formed our pack of eight and settled into a steady rhythm of 33kph. It was decided to follow a new route that hugged the M1 motorway more than the old way that passed through the town of Beenleigh, which is slightly inland and includes a 10% climb of 750m. Nothing to get excited about normally, but when its at the start of a 125km ride it makes some of the group anxious. Anyhoo, we tried this new way and it was certainly flat, smooth surface and fast. We caught up with a group of 30+ who were doing the same ride and that made it easier for a while as we just tagged onto the back of them and coasted much of the time. Bit like cheating really. Interesting thing – they were an organised coaching ride that a guy called Marcel runs out of Brisbane and the rumour was he makes a bundle of cash from these rides. Plus, if someone flats, he stops and changes the tyre for them. And charges for the privilege. Now, that strikes me as a bit mercenary, but perhaps its just to keep the pack rolling. It left us wondering just how much he makes on such an outing.
So once we reached 35km it was decided to lift the pace and bid Marcel et al “au revoir “ and lifted the pace to 36kph for the next 25km. Once on the road to Hope Island, we put our heads down and the stronger riders wound it up to just over 40kph and held it there until we arrived at the northern tip of the Gold Coast. I was starting to feel the pinch at this point, having taken my share of the lead and the breeze was increasing by this time and making it tougher going on the front. But the sight of the Pacific Ocean was enough to raise our spirits and keep the train going to the end. The water was magnificent – slight green tinge sparkling in the early sun, sky perfect winter blue and a small but “totally rad dude” wave happening. Approaching Southport, two of our guys started a gallop that I just couldn’t match and instead stayed with the others and enjoyed the scenery. We caught them on the approach to Surfers Paradise and all rolled to the café where a buffet breakfast was waiting.
Our chief statistician Paul had arranged for his wife to meet us there and before we knew it he had the laptop out of the car and was uploading all the stats from his Garmin. Very handy unit that tracks all his personal data plus the bike’s information merged with the GPS feature. The result is a route mapped to Google Earth’s images with data annotated on the route. I could certainly use that gadget next time as I didn’t mind-stamp all of the turns and could certainly find myself in strange lands asking directions. And since I’m a guy, I.Don’t.Do.That.
My stats? 91km @ 32kph average. Not bad, not great. I’ve done better but not while recovering from nerve damage, so I’m content. Oh and my new heart rate monitor….excellent. I didn’t watch it much during the ride, but did take a peek from time to time and it seemed to be hovering on 145-150bpm. The average at the end was 135bpm so does that mean I didn’t work hard enough? I’m still learning. The max was 175bpm.
The plan was to continue south along the Gold Coast strip after breakfast to the township of Robina where we can catch a train back to Brisbane, however I managed a lift with Paul and wife, so I reclined in leather-interior comfort all the way home. Fighting the pangs of guilt, I closed my eyes and told myself, “next time I’ll ride back”. Two of my group did indeed ride back, finishing with a grand total of 186km!!! Major kudos to them. Personally I will aim for a century ride next time. Maybe.
Part II – The Run
I decided this morning that it was time to multitask my training again. By that, I mean back-to-back training days. Since the injury to my spine I’ve needed to rest between training days and the effort to get the dysfunctional left side of me to perform generally leaves me disinclined to train the next day. However, the road to Noosa in November 2007 will require this to change.
So, I found myself up early this morning and determined to make good on my threat/promise to do a ‘serious’ run in a previous post. The plan started to take form in my mind – run to work the long way. Exactly what that was I hadn’t decided yet, but I knew there had to be a long way. Kind of a yin and yang thing. I knew there was a short way, as that’s what I ran the other week before the head-cold-from-hell struck. So I decided to find the long way. Well I found it.
Distance: 7.8km
Time: 41:15
BPM: Ave 145, max 185
The hardest thing is that this was what I used to consider a short run, but now its my absolute maximum. It was mostly flat, except the monster climb straight out of my street. Can’t say I’m a fan of the hill first up, it just seems to sap the energy from the get-go and you are always struggling to recover. I know that’s where the max bpm was. I failed to find my any rhythm for most of the run and was battling sore legs (I wonder why?) when I found a training buddy. The council bus. Yep, it was picking up passengers just ahead of me on Vulture St and seemed to keep pace with me. I decided that I was going to beat it to the city. Sure he had to stop to pick up people, but my left leg doesn’t work very well, so I figure that was a fair trade. It was touch & go, each of us leap frogging the other. I played fair and stopped at the lights when they were against me. But in the end, he had NOTHING. I found form when it was needed and cruised to victory. I could almost hear the crowd, I’m sure the passengers were on my side.
So there you have it. Two days in a row done. Now to back up and swim tomorrow and see how the body replies. If it’s willing, we are firmly on the road to Noosa.
Tomawac out.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Another day older and deeper in debt
Just a quick post to declare I'm another year older and perhaps even a little wiser. I had been a year of ups and downs and certainly one of my most challenging periods, but perhaps I've also learned more in that time than most other years.
My day started very nicely with breakfast in bed, followed by presents and even picked up for a great lunch. My presents you ask? All about the bike of course. Firstly, A HEADRATE MONITOR. Yes, finally I will be getting some input to my training apart from pain and discomfort, which on closer examination aren't the most ideal training aids. Dragged screaming and kicking into the modern age, I will now start to record stuff and even listen to the beeping as my watch tells me to slow down or speed up. Probably the latter mostly. But it has been a long-time-coming and now Ms Polar and me will be out there together.
My other present was the dvd of the 2006 Tour de France highlights, which I have been wanting for, well, about a year now, since its about to start again for 07. Last year was a particularly significant race, with Stue O'Grady fracturing a vertebrae very early in the race due to a fall, but finishing the entire thing anyway. Of course, Queensland's Robbie McEwan winning another green sprinter's jersey, and finally the controveral recovery and win by Floyd Landis. A must have I reckon.
And I'm using today as a 'line in the sand' for the training. I've rested for two weeks now with this head cold and although the retched thing hasn't gone, I've had enough of not doing much. So this weekend is starting back to things. My plan? a light run tomorrow - I know I promised a serious run, but I'll get to that. And then Sunday is a cycle to the Gold Coast with the Sunday crew, which will be about 125km. Its a regular winter ride for this group and its overdue. I'll post a ride report afterwards, but it always has some drama and excitment. Stay tuned.
Slightly Older Tomawac out
My day started very nicely with breakfast in bed, followed by presents and even picked up for a great lunch. My presents you ask? All about the bike of course. Firstly, A HEADRATE MONITOR. Yes, finally I will be getting some input to my training apart from pain and discomfort, which on closer examination aren't the most ideal training aids. Dragged screaming and kicking into the modern age, I will now start to record stuff and even listen to the beeping as my watch tells me to slow down or speed up. Probably the latter mostly. But it has been a long-time-coming and now Ms Polar and me will be out there together.
My other present was the dvd of the 2006 Tour de France highlights, which I have been wanting for, well, about a year now, since its about to start again for 07. Last year was a particularly significant race, with Stue O'Grady fracturing a vertebrae very early in the race due to a fall, but finishing the entire thing anyway. Of course, Queensland's Robbie McEwan winning another green sprinter's jersey, and finally the controveral recovery and win by Floyd Landis. A must have I reckon.
And I'm using today as a 'line in the sand' for the training. I've rested for two weeks now with this head cold and although the retched thing hasn't gone, I've had enough of not doing much. So this weekend is starting back to things. My plan? a light run tomorrow - I know I promised a serious run, but I'll get to that. And then Sunday is a cycle to the Gold Coast with the Sunday crew, which will be about 125km. Its a regular winter ride for this group and its overdue. I'll post a ride report afterwards, but it always has some drama and excitment. Stay tuned.
Slightly Older Tomawac out
Monday, June 11, 2007
Return to the Road with a Surprise
Well folks, I have managed to shake off the dreaded headcold-from-hell and get back out for some light training. I say light, which it honestly how it started out to be, but true to form I had difficulty in keeping it that way. Like a taper, I find that most challenging. Perhaps its just that I get out there and decide "I'm here, I might as well do something useful". Anyway, I kitted up and went for a solo ride. I started gently and rolled through some back streets partly to find a new path to the city and also to check out the suburb where a friend and fellow blogger lives (Ihatetoast). This achieved and finding my lung capacity not totally gone, I kept going to the city and beyond. This took me over Brisbane's largest bridge the Story Bridge (see gratuitous night pic), which is not what anyone would call cycle-friendly. But it was the quickest way to get where I wanted and I figured, "I'll just dash over safe and sound". I was right on the latter, totally wrong on the former. The aforementioned lung capacity.... evaporated on the slight but long climb over the bridge once I engaged "dash" mode on the engine. The result was I spent an uncomfortably long time on the bridge with zooming traffic. But I made it to the northside of Brisvegas and headed out to the airport and surrounding areas. Its a popular route for cyclists here and although it was a solo ride, I found some energy to punch into the wind and keep the speed to a respectable 34kph average for the 55km trip. I did stop on the way back for 5 minutes to check out the docked ship at Brett's wharf. So there was a little breather towards the end. But... the real news is...... I could stand on the pedals!
I haven't been able to do that with any success since the surgery, which is now over 9 months ago. Oh I've tried, but its like running...I need power and control in the ankle and foot. And that hasn't been there. But today I just gave it a try, as I usually do, and it didn't collapse under me as usual. It wasn't perfect but it was better than its been. Man, it felt good. So much in fact, that I stood at every opportunity up hills and climbed like I used to. It was one of my favourite things to do in the past and something that I tended to do better than many and so was my trump card. It also means things with the nerves, etc, are improving. Its so slow, like watching the shadows move across the ground, that unless you measure it over a decent amount of time, it appears there is no movement at all.
Hence I'm quite thrilled at the moment. Sure I overdid it and made my foot/ankle hurt a little, and I stopped standing on the pedals towards the end. Fooey to you doctor. Next step, a serious run. Perhaps to work tomorrow. Maybe the next day.
Stay tuned, there's definitely light at the tunnel's end now.
Stand-in-the-pedals Tomawac out.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Slight Loss Of Momentum
Since my 'breakthrough' last week, ie that I can in fact run. Of sorts. I've celebrated by doing pretty much nothing physical. Now I have some very good reasons for this, which I will now share. Reason No.1: ITS BEEN RAINING. People who live outside our beautiful state of Queensland won't know why this is reason for cheering, but since we have been in the worst drought on record for a couple of years, any light shower that lasts longer than 15mins we call significant rainfall. So as it has rained solidly for days, we are very happy here in the Sunshine State. And athletes are spoilt for great training conditions, hence we tend to avoid the elements like rain, cold, wind.
Reason No.2: I.Have.A.Cold. Not the sniffles but the real thing. Sad eyes, slow walk, complaints, a picture of dejection and suffering. So a run is out. And no, I'm not happy because now that I know running isn't going to completely cripple me, I am ready to start a regime. But both the rain and the headcold can't last, surely. So stay tuned.
I want to do a call out to some special people who have been a big influence on this blog happening. Firstly KatyTheGreaty of Dreams, Ponderings and Athletic Wanderings fame. I work with Katy and she has conquered her own challenges, in particular this, which she managed to do while running the Hawaii marathon. But she still finished the thang and didn't have it fixed until returning to Oz. Now she sports some serious metal in that leg, but she too has returned to running and is wayyyyy in front of me. This girl has some major kahunas and was out there 'justing do it' long before Nike every thought of it. So you rock Katy.
The next person is Bold of Bolder In Boulder, which if you have the slightest interest in triathlon, will have no doubt heard of. He's a legend of the tri world in the US and beyond and personifies everything that us age-groupers are about, namely out there giving it our total best and enjoying the entire experience and people. He has a wide group of 'peeps' who support each other either at events or on-line and share knowledge, wisdom, experience, humour and prove that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. You rock too Bold.
So if you feel like a laugh or just to share in some fine people's experiences, then stop by their blogs.
Ok, I promise the next post will detail some training data to astound and amaze you.
Tomawac out.
Reason No.2: I.Have.A.Cold. Not the sniffles but the real thing. Sad eyes, slow walk, complaints, a picture of dejection and suffering. So a run is out. And no, I'm not happy because now that I know running isn't going to completely cripple me, I am ready to start a regime. But both the rain and the headcold can't last, surely. So stay tuned.
I want to do a call out to some special people who have been a big influence on this blog happening. Firstly KatyTheGreaty of Dreams, Ponderings and Athletic Wanderings fame. I work with Katy and she has conquered her own challenges, in particular this, which she managed to do while running the Hawaii marathon. But she still finished the thang and didn't have it fixed until returning to Oz. Now she sports some serious metal in that leg, but she too has returned to running and is wayyyyy in front of me. This girl has some major kahunas and was out there 'justing do it' long before Nike every thought of it. So you rock Katy.
The next person is Bold of Bolder In Boulder, which if you have the slightest interest in triathlon, will have no doubt heard of. He's a legend of the tri world in the US and beyond and personifies everything that us age-groupers are about, namely out there giving it our total best and enjoying the entire experience and people. He has a wide group of 'peeps' who support each other either at events or on-line and share knowledge, wisdom, experience, humour and prove that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. You rock too Bold.
So if you feel like a laugh or just to share in some fine people's experiences, then stop by their blogs.
Ok, I promise the next post will detail some training data to astound and amaze you.
Tomawac out.
Sunday, June 3, 2007
The Game is ON!
Peoples, this is my first post and, well, its a big one. You'll see from my profile that I am in a state of recovery. Nerve recovery. And that's not anything to sneeze at. Its been just over eight months since my spinal surgery and the nerve damage is very slowly being repaired. It seems such things do take a long time. OK, the doctor did tell me this, but like most things in the world, I naturally figured he didn't mean me. So imagine my shock and horror that the recovery is indeed taking that long. In fact, I was starting to think some of his other declarations might be true too. Namely that the total recovery time will be approximately 18 months. That one I can take, but the others such as "you won't get all the feeling back in your leg, foot, backside, etc", and "you won't be able to run", well he can stick those right up his stethoscope.
But the news is....I've proved him wrong on the last one. Because I did run. I ran about 6km to be more precise. So that counts as a run. The other part of this news is that this means if I build that 6km into 10km, then I can do Noosa again!! That's my goal; to do my favourite event again. Because let me tell you, when the doc said "the operation was a success, and you should walk again, but of course you'll never run again", I screamed inside like a B-grade horror film victim. Over the last four years triathlon has been a big focus in my life and perhaps even saved it. That's a topic for another post, but it certainly fixed some things up. And I've raced in Australia's two premier events - Noosa and Mooloolaba - and loved them. So now it seems I am still in with a chance of doing them again. No, I won't be aiming at a PB but hell I'll take anything to still be there. My plan? A sizzling swim, a blistering cycle and then a non-walk run. To finish will be a milestone for me, and to be there amongst mates and family will be the reward.
So folks, there it is. The reason for this blog I guess. I'll update you next time on my other training, but as cycling is what I do for fun, its never been an issue. Swimming on the other hand, well that'll happen. The run is the challenge. Its not pretty, there's an obvious limp happenin' but hey. I'm there. So stay tuned if you feel like it. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.
Tomawac out.
But the news is....I've proved him wrong on the last one. Because I did run. I ran about 6km to be more precise. So that counts as a run. The other part of this news is that this means if I build that 6km into 10km, then I can do Noosa again!! That's my goal; to do my favourite event again. Because let me tell you, when the doc said "the operation was a success, and you should walk again, but of course you'll never run again", I screamed inside like a B-grade horror film victim. Over the last four years triathlon has been a big focus in my life and perhaps even saved it. That's a topic for another post, but it certainly fixed some things up. And I've raced in Australia's two premier events - Noosa and Mooloolaba - and loved them. So now it seems I am still in with a chance of doing them again. No, I won't be aiming at a PB but hell I'll take anything to still be there. My plan? A sizzling swim, a blistering cycle and then a non-walk run. To finish will be a milestone for me, and to be there amongst mates and family will be the reward.
So folks, there it is. The reason for this blog I guess. I'll update you next time on my other training, but as cycling is what I do for fun, its never been an issue. Swimming on the other hand, well that'll happen. The run is the challenge. Its not pretty, there's an obvious limp happenin' but hey. I'm there. So stay tuned if you feel like it. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.
Tomawac out.
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