So how many race simulation workouts have you done? For most, like me, that would be a big fat ZERO! Somehow I guess we just think we can determine pace like we always have in shorter races.In my first Ironman this year, this is exactly what I did. The plan goes something like this...I want to swim X minutes, bike about such such an average and run X minutes per mile. This has certainly worked in the past and I think for shorter course Tri it is probably fine. I know I got where I could predict my short course times pretty closely last year, even my Half IM distance races. However, since I started training for a full distance IM, I have learned a FULL distance IM is nothing like any other race. You train differently and you have to "think" when you race.
Well, think about it, do you really think you can simply say, OK I am going to try and average 20.5 on the bike for a 112 mile ride. Here are the factors that make that next to impossible. You could swim too hard due to rough conditions or poor pacing, the wind could be howling at 20+, the course could be hillier than you realize, the temp could be unexpectedly hot or cold on race day. Bottom line, you have to race no matter what race day brings, so how do you learn to judge your pace correctly? I have been reading many articles about race pace training and everyone seems to suggest it, but few actually do it. So I decided this weekend I would try just that. Here is my plan for the weekend.
Saturday - I will ride about 65 miles with my normal "roadie" group and do "some" work at the front but simply try to get in some good work but make sure I do not trash myself for the next day.
Sunday - I have roughly a 30 mile loop marked. I will ride the loop 3 times with a stop after each loop just long enough to grab nutrition. Dan, one of my training buddies is planning on joining me (maybe I can talk someone else into this madness before then). NO drafting allowed, ride side by side when possible but no drafting. I plan on riding this like I would the race. First lap VERY easy, drink and eat more on this lap. Heart rate goes no higher than zone 2. Lap two pick up the pace to "steady tempo" which is zone 2 reaching into zone 3. Lap 3 I will push a little when I feel good but mostly steady with "some" upper steady zone 3 and possibly 4. Hills do not exceed 155bpm (That HR is for me, others will be different). Bottom line you should still feel pretty good when you get off the bike, remember you have to run a marathon on race day.
Once I have completed the bike I will transition no longer than 5 minutes to a 1 hour run, 2 x 30 min loops. Again hitting nutrition between loops.
Here are my goals for the workout:
1. Learn how to pace the distance BEFORE race day.Try to negative split the bike and run.
2. Learn pace by Heart Rate and Effort, NOT average speed - the average speed will be what the average speed is due to conditions beyond my control.
3. Run off the bike for 1 hour and see what my Heart rate does and what pace that translates to. This is the "real" test, seeing what effort I can actually do on the bike and how that translates to the run.
I would love to have a power meter to add to my data, but plenty of people did Ironmans long before the invention of a power meter so I should be fine.Not to mention those things aren't exactly cheap!
There are plenty of things that are not accurate with this test such as, the course is NOT the one I will be racing on, the conditions will not be exactly the same and most of all I have been hitting the training pretty hard for a few weeks now and I may be getting tired, but I have a recovery week planed for next week. Race day I will be all tappered up and feeling great. However, with all that said, my EFFORT should not change that much. For example: if I can hold X Heart rate over the chosen distance and I am tired then holding that same effort on race day when I am fresh will simply translate into a faster average. Therefore, the test helps you gauge your effort better on the bike while still understanding you have to run a marathon after the bike. How much difference can this make? A whole lot. If you back off the bike say 5 - 10 minutes you "could" actually easily make that up and then some on the run. So that is the idea and the plan. The other HUGE win with this type of workout is determining how much nutrition you can actually absorb per hour. The average is 200 - 500 calories but everyone is different and if you go too hard you will shut your stomach down and your race is over.I have also recently read that it is important to eat when you are not working as hard. One of the lines in the article said... When you feel good don't go harder EAT!
There is some good proof for the pacing argument in the recent CDA Ironman. I went out and looked at the results for my age group almost no one negative split the bike or run but the top 5 guys appeared to do the best job riding and running steady across all distances. You can clearly see where many of the top 15 guys have a bike split that is anywhere from 2 - 10 minute slower than the top 3 competitors, however their marathon time is anywhere from 20 - 40 minutes slower. I guess you "could" say they may not be as good a runner but I suspect the answer is... they probably went too fast on the bike. If they would have eased off just 5 minutes on the bike they may have picked up 10 minutes on the run. Is this easy - no way, but the better you get at the pacing game and the steadier you can ride and run the distance the better result you will most likely have. Anyway that is what all the so called "experts" say - ME not included! Anyway that is my goal for the weekend and I plan on doing 1 or two more of these before Louisville. I also plan on a swim / bike brick before Louisville as well. I will have to figure out how to do that one.
If nothing else I am sure I will learn something and still get in about 150 miles of riding this weekend and probably 8 or so running. Certainly cannot complain about those numbers.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Lose a pound or two!
I found a really good article about estimating calories burned – it is VERY technical, but I think some of you like that. Here is the take away from the article:
So what I would do, when I was watching this stuff closely, is use these calorie calculations as an estimate. I would take the most conservative one and then take off another 15-25%. Then I would watch the trend over the long run (say 1-2weeks) and I would see if the calorie deficit I was supposedly creating was really translating into lost weight. A 3500 calorie deficit should translate to 1 lbs of body weight.
Here is the full article:
Interesting enough, I used to think the scale I had at home was wrong, I have one that shows body fat% and water weight etc. I also used to think BMI was wrong or maybe wrong for me. I do not have Calipers and I have never been dunked in water for a % body fat test. I did use one of the “measurement” methods online to calculate body fat and compared this to my scale, as well as compared that scale to an older scale I have at home AND even the triple beam scale like the one in the locker room here at Duke.
Bottom line… all of this says almost exactly the same thing, simply put my calculations for how many calories I thought I was burning was NOT correct. In hind sight and after reading this article it was kind of a “Duh” moment. If you are cutting your calorie intake by roughly 3,500 calories per week in an effort to lose weight (roughly a pound a week) and you actually gain or do not lose after “closely” monitoring this for 2-3 weeks, your calculations MUST be wrong somewhere. They were for me! In addition, I had to figure out what caused my hunger and what foods gave me the energy I needed to train. It is as important or more important to eat the right things AND limit portion size not just cut calories. Now do not get me wrong, I HAVE been doing this for a while and with some success – just not correctly in many ways! What I was doing was not bad, in fact I eat VERY healthy as compared to my non-tri friends and my weight is not bad just not optimum for racing. I suspect I simply learned a little more about nutrition and lot more about ME and nutrition as we all do over time if we keep at it.
This started when I realized I actually went into The Arizona IM at 170+ somehow convincing myself this was added muscle I put on over the winter - :-o Nice Try!
Last year I raced my best race down in Cancun and weighed about 162 – 164. I have been watching this closely and really working at this and I am now at 160 with a race goal weight of 155. With 11 weeks to go until IM Lousiville I wanted to make that weight loss, make sure I could hold it easily and then have full “tanks” of fuel to train very hard in the last few weeks. It appears I am on track to do just that. Again from my reading, the experts say to try to lose the weight early during BASE, BEFORE your more intense training kicks in. 155lbs would not even be close to SUPER lean according to everything I read and according to BMI. As I have done this, I have not felt MORE tired but LESS tired (Part of the formula is eating not only less but the right food as well). Believe it or not when I get to 155lbs I estimate my body fat will still be 12% while maintaining the NEW muscle I put on in the winter. It is just a number though and what really matters is how you feel, are you healthy and does it help performance. I believe all will be there in the end.
A few of the key elements that worked for me was realizing I did not need the amount of food I thought I did for training. I would feel tired and think - well I am training a lot more now and I must need more carbs, more food etc. No, I was simply tired from training, my food intake was fine, I needed more rest. I had to figure out a better recovery interval, a better way of structuring my workouts so that I got just enough recovery before my next workout. In addition, I simply eat a LOT more vegetables through salads at lunch and cut the fat where I can, like dressings, spreads, jams, jelly, dairy etc. Finally, things high on the GI scale really affect me, probably more than some, so I cannot eat cereal in the morning with raisins. Raisins are simply loaded with carbs and good for you, but also very high on the glycemic index (GI). I could take some protein to counter act this, but I chose to just change my cereal choice. High GI food will have you eating an hour later and you generally crave the wrong types of food only making the problem worse. So watch the GI thing very closely.
Another bit of information that really captured my attention was something I read “somewhere”? For every pound of fat you lose this enables you to run 2 seconds faster per mile. Sure does not sound like much, until you add up the miles for a half or full marathon. When you see how it affects climbing on the bike, the results are simply unreal. I can see in my training this working in both my running and my cycling so that is very rewarding to see the pay off. Gordo is probably right many Pros are probably in a state of starvation but many age groupers are simply overweight or could certainly lose a few pounds that can have HUGE affects on performance both in training and racing. The trick is to figure out how EACH person makes this happen – one way to start I found was… you have to be honest with yourself first and if what you are doing is not producing results, then something MUST be wrong. The scale, the body fat % measurement and the BMI is probably not wrong – your burned calorie calculations and/or the amount of food or types of food you are eating is probably the actual problem.
In summary:
Calculate calories burned - conservatively!
Make sure your calculations are matching up with your weight loss results and goals.
Eat healthy by eating more vegetables and less pasta and high GI foods.
Only use gels, sports drinks and bars for workouts - these are "high test fuel" use them conservatively!
Eat at least two healthy snacks a day between meals, never starve yourself, never skip a meal and always eat breakfast.
Give yourself a treat now and then like low fat ice cream but try to make sure you eat a full meal first with a LOT of veggies and/or a salad.
Finally look in the mirror! - that is right, look in the mirror! If you look better, leaner, more healthy - you probably are!
One last benefit from eating well; I like a lot more foods than I used to and enjoy more variety than ever before.
So what I would do, when I was watching this stuff closely, is use these calorie calculations as an estimate. I would take the most conservative one and then take off another 15-25%. Then I would watch the trend over the long run (say 1-2weeks) and I would see if the calorie deficit I was supposedly creating was really translating into lost weight. A 3500 calorie deficit should translate to 1 lbs of body weight.
Here is the full article:
Interesting enough, I used to think the scale I had at home was wrong, I have one that shows body fat% and water weight etc. I also used to think BMI was wrong or maybe wrong for me. I do not have Calipers and I have never been dunked in water for a % body fat test. I did use one of the “measurement” methods online to calculate body fat and compared this to my scale, as well as compared that scale to an older scale I have at home AND even the triple beam scale like the one in the locker room here at Duke.
Bottom line… all of this says almost exactly the same thing, simply put my calculations for how many calories I thought I was burning was NOT correct. In hind sight and after reading this article it was kind of a “Duh” moment. If you are cutting your calorie intake by roughly 3,500 calories per week in an effort to lose weight (roughly a pound a week) and you actually gain or do not lose after “closely” monitoring this for 2-3 weeks, your calculations MUST be wrong somewhere. They were for me! In addition, I had to figure out what caused my hunger and what foods gave me the energy I needed to train. It is as important or more important to eat the right things AND limit portion size not just cut calories. Now do not get me wrong, I HAVE been doing this for a while and with some success – just not correctly in many ways! What I was doing was not bad, in fact I eat VERY healthy as compared to my non-tri friends and my weight is not bad just not optimum for racing. I suspect I simply learned a little more about nutrition and lot more about ME and nutrition as we all do over time if we keep at it.
This started when I realized I actually went into The Arizona IM at 170+ somehow convincing myself this was added muscle I put on over the winter - :-o Nice Try!
Last year I raced my best race down in Cancun and weighed about 162 – 164. I have been watching this closely and really working at this and I am now at 160 with a race goal weight of 155. With 11 weeks to go until IM Lousiville I wanted to make that weight loss, make sure I could hold it easily and then have full “tanks” of fuel to train very hard in the last few weeks. It appears I am on track to do just that. Again from my reading, the experts say to try to lose the weight early during BASE, BEFORE your more intense training kicks in. 155lbs would not even be close to SUPER lean according to everything I read and according to BMI. As I have done this, I have not felt MORE tired but LESS tired (Part of the formula is eating not only less but the right food as well). Believe it or not when I get to 155lbs I estimate my body fat will still be 12% while maintaining the NEW muscle I put on in the winter. It is just a number though and what really matters is how you feel, are you healthy and does it help performance. I believe all will be there in the end.
A few of the key elements that worked for me was realizing I did not need the amount of food I thought I did for training. I would feel tired and think - well I am training a lot more now and I must need more carbs, more food etc. No, I was simply tired from training, my food intake was fine, I needed more rest. I had to figure out a better recovery interval, a better way of structuring my workouts so that I got just enough recovery before my next workout. In addition, I simply eat a LOT more vegetables through salads at lunch and cut the fat where I can, like dressings, spreads, jams, jelly, dairy etc. Finally, things high on the GI scale really affect me, probably more than some, so I cannot eat cereal in the morning with raisins. Raisins are simply loaded with carbs and good for you, but also very high on the glycemic index (GI). I could take some protein to counter act this, but I chose to just change my cereal choice. High GI food will have you eating an hour later and you generally crave the wrong types of food only making the problem worse. So watch the GI thing very closely.
Another bit of information that really captured my attention was something I read “somewhere”? For every pound of fat you lose this enables you to run 2 seconds faster per mile. Sure does not sound like much, until you add up the miles for a half or full marathon. When you see how it affects climbing on the bike, the results are simply unreal. I can see in my training this working in both my running and my cycling so that is very rewarding to see the pay off. Gordo is probably right many Pros are probably in a state of starvation but many age groupers are simply overweight or could certainly lose a few pounds that can have HUGE affects on performance both in training and racing. The trick is to figure out how EACH person makes this happen – one way to start I found was… you have to be honest with yourself first and if what you are doing is not producing results, then something MUST be wrong. The scale, the body fat % measurement and the BMI is probably not wrong – your burned calorie calculations and/or the amount of food or types of food you are eating is probably the actual problem.
In summary:
Calculate calories burned - conservatively!
Make sure your calculations are matching up with your weight loss results and goals.
Eat healthy by eating more vegetables and less pasta and high GI foods.
Only use gels, sports drinks and bars for workouts - these are "high test fuel" use them conservatively!
Eat at least two healthy snacks a day between meals, never starve yourself, never skip a meal and always eat breakfast.
Give yourself a treat now and then like low fat ice cream but try to make sure you eat a full meal first with a LOT of veggies and/or a salad.
Finally look in the mirror! - that is right, look in the mirror! If you look better, leaner, more healthy - you probably are!
One last benefit from eating well; I like a lot more foods than I used to and enjoy more variety than ever before.
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