Flip turns vs. tumble turns (part 84)

More on that later.

This evening I continued my attempts to kill myself in the pool, with a set which, despite being a 'mere' 2400m, left me absolutely annihilated. I'm writing this two hours after the end of the session, and I'm still drained. The set consisted of the following:

• 200m warmup
• 400m kick drills (200m 0-1-2 drill, 100m kick on side, 100m 10-4 drill)
• 400m other drills (100m fists, 100m trickle, 100m sighting, 100m hypoxic swimming)
• 2 x 400m paddles (that's a lot of paddles, kids!)
• 8 x 50m sprints on 1:30 (ow, ow, ow)
• 200m warmdown

The sprints were exquisitely painful. I've never scheduled 8 in a row, and it told by the end. The idea (apart from to smash myself to bits, which is a given), was to compare flip turns and tumble turns by doing sprints alternately, to see if there was a noticeable difference. As it turns out, there was, ish. The times for the flip turn reps were [43s, 41s, 41s, 42s], whereas the times for the tumble turn reps were [40s, 40s, 41s, 43s]. That was despite my feet slipping on the last three tumble turns (odd, I usually mess them up in every single way apart from that). I'm still not sure it justifies the extra energy expenditure, mind. Not to mention the danger of missing a turn completely and looking a complete fool.

I doubt this is over :-(

PS. Those sprints were damn quick. I seem to have lost that point in the turn-based madness, but still...

Blog o' the Week - early finish edition

Hello, viewers!

I'm sat wrapped in a blanket with a steaming hot cup of tea, in the rare knowledge that, on Saturday evening, I've already done all my work for this week. In fact, I'd got through all my training sessions by 9:30 this morning!

That's because I've finally been able to get my bike in for a service! It's taken a few false starts, and it could be a full week before I see it again (I'm fearfully working out bike-free training weeks between slurps of tea), but it's now in the care of All Terrain Cycles. I'm really looking forward to riding a bike which actually works - it might improve my time trial times, which I've not been so impressed with thus far (although it's tough to find the conditions needed for a proper time trial round here - quiet and flat are not adjectives usually used to describe roads in Bradford!)

Training this week was pretty decent - got some good bike mileage in (while I could), including some hill reps on Hunsworth Lane which I think bears repeating in forthcoming weeks. Swam and ran decently, too. Nothing stunning, just another building block for the season.

Finally, something I've been doing more and more of recently is comparing the sessions I've done this year to those I did last year. This time last year was a pretty boring affair, sadly, the highlight seemed to be a 90-minute bike ride at a stately 22.0 km/h. Even my slow-feeling sessions this year are a fair way quicker than that...

Aaargh

I've just signed myself and Nom up for Beverley and Driffield triathlons. Aaargh.

20:28 (not a pb)

Last but not least for the week, cycling. Skipton Tri bike route, to be exact. From MapMyTri's elevation graph, it looks like a few gentle undulations, a nice quick course.

It isn't.

The time trial was based on the middle 10km of the 20km course - so avoiding the genuinely flattish out-and-back section to and from Skipton. I started decently (albeit not warmed up enough - to some extent my fault for not spinning in a lower gear on the way, to some extent the fact that it was unexpectedly chilly), but after about 1.5km I was confronted by a deceptively tough climb. Sadly, I was entirely deceived, and a mixture of dodgy hill fitness, not having many gears to pick from, and not picking the right gears from the few available left me crawling to the top of the hill, cursing alternately under my breath and out into the world (fortunately, the middle of nowhere).

I never quite managed to recover from that, although I did manage to recover some measure of pride on the downhill last few kilometres (40+ kph for the last 3 kms). A final average of 29.3kph wasn't exactly what I had in mind.

Looking back, however, it wasn't the quick course I thought it was. At least, the part I used wasn't - the rest of the course seemed fairly swift. I also would've benefitted enormously from being able to drop onto my middle chainring for the climbs. Ultimately, though, I wasn't able to muscle up the hills like I want to be able to. There's only one way to remedy that - more hills!

[unrelated note - Paul Milnes Cycles has moved all the way to Canal Road! I am the opposite of impressed...]

19:03 (pb)

Parkrun, then.

I made very little secret of the fact I was gunning for the 19-minute barrier, and I just missed it today. That's disappointing, and there are a variety of straws I can clutch as to why not (I'm currently blaming the runner in front for being too fast for me to chase after), at least it was a 20-second PB. Extrapolating this year's results, I am on target to break 18 minutes this season.

I suppose I should try out a faster circuit than Lister Park - it seems to be one of the slowest Parkruns knocking about. I reckon that a fast course would be out and back on the Greenway, but starting from Cleckheaton, so doing the first half up the slope.

Cycling in Skipton next - fans of road safety will be thrilled to know that my rear brake's now a lot more effective at gripping my rear wheel than it was. Not so hot at letting it go afterwards, mind, so ideally I won't use it at all during the time trial. What could possibly go wrong?

Truth.

"This is, of course, despite telling Veg and Nom that time trials aren't supposed to be got worked up over at every occasion. The rules don't apply to me, obviously."

Nah. I didn't believe you either.

My tea isn't nice...

...it's from Asda for a start. Blech for sloppy gnocchi (not an euphemism)!

But fings are good for Veg because I have just swum 400m in under 8 minutes! My previous PB was 8.11 which I was flipping happy with, to be honest, but tonight I did it in 7.59! Wheeeeee!!

Lovely pool attendants let us wear our tri suits to the pool (in fact we now have free rein to wear them whenever we want!) and it seemed to make the difference. That or the fact that I'd been getting my head in gear to do it all day.

So now I'm going to pick through the remains of my icky gnocchi (burnt my hand getting it out of the oven too: grr) then have a bath and try to make my hair a bit more sensible than it is currently. Now that won't be difficult.

6:37 (pb)

Looks like I'm the first one to make it to the blog...

It's time trial week! A febrile mix of fun and terror, and in the case of swimming, looking entirely ridiculous in triathlon suits, bombing down the fast lane in Tong Pool (luckily, they're used to us by now).

Last month I had a pig of a cold, and failed to break the 7-minute barrier. I wasn't particularly happy about this (to say the least), so I'd piled some pressure on myself to make amends this time. This is, of course, despite telling Veg and Nom that time trials aren't supposed to be got worked up over at every occasion. The rules don't apply to me, obviously.

So as previously trailed, we rolled up to Tong Pool tonight, put on our tri suits, struggled to get over the unpleasant feeling of getting the suits wet, warmed up and threw ourselves into our 400m time trials. With a bit of luck, the others will turn up to post thoughts on their times, so I'll concentrate on mine. I got through in 6:37, which is a 15-second PB for me. I'm pretty happy with that. In particular, I felt like I managed to keep my pace high in the second 200m, which has been an issue in the past.

The only problem I had, which keeps cropping up, is the turns. Specifically, whether I should persist with tumble turns. I gave them up after about 200m tonight, and to be honest I felt much stronger without them. They may be faster than open turns in terms of turning itself, but unless I can do them perfectly, I think I'm losing more time actually swimming. My instinct is, as ever, to plough on regardless, but there must come a time where either I can actually tumble turn efficiently, or I abandon them for another season.

Still, rest day tomorrow, before Parkrun on Saturday. Hurrah!

Can't really be bothered blogging but this made me laugh:

Article.

That is all.

30 minute run in the wind...

My legs were heavy after a 45 minute swim yesterday. But I have to do an 8 minute 400m on Thursday or the Corporal will wire the water up to an electric charge to make me faster*.

*Horizontally or vertically. Oooo.

Monday Random Roundup

A few quick thoughts, before they cohere into something resembling a narrative...

1) I've just finished my hardest training week (by volume) ever. Surprisingly, I don't feel that bad. I guess that could be because a lot of that was concentrated towards the middle of the week, leaving the weekend (relatively) quiet. Looking back over my training notes, I was very weary on Thursday, far more so than I am now. It probably also helped to finish the week on a high note...

2) ...with a speedy brick! 30 mins on the turbo (10 mins warmup, 20 mins tempo at 29.9kph), quick transition (that's the advantage of doing the bike on a trainer), 15 mins running at 3:48/km pace. That's the fastest running pace I've ever recorded, and to do it on the back of a fairly intense bike session was particularly pleasing. Albeit 15 mins isn't 5K, even at that pace. Still, it sets me up nicely for...

3) Time trial week! Or 'rest week', as I rarely seem to call it. Mental note to myself while I'm here: keep the intensity low for everything that isn't a time trial this week. The thing I find scary about time trials isn't the extremely hurty nature of the TTs themselves, rather the knowledge that I get one shot per month, and if I'm a little under par this time, I have that number in my head for another four weeks. Still, I'm confident that I can post good times on the swim and run, and if I could work out a decent bike route, maybe that as well. Finding bike TT routes is tough.

4) Sun! Not the alleged newspaper. Still not got the warmth particularly, but it's nice to not have to clean my bike after every ride. It currently looks pristine and lovely, as I'm taking it in for a service today, and I don't want to be judged too harshly. At some point, I might even be able to change gear...

Gym!

Getting the old bottom back in gear. I must say, remembering the password here was a major breakthrough!
So what's been going on? Lots of veg, obviously, with onions and chillies being top of the league table here at Veg/Nom Towers. And triathlon. Aaaah, triathlon.

Last year I enrolled on an adult education teaching course with blissful dreams of long summer holidays full of sunbeams and unicorn farts lighting my way. Of course something so wonderful obviously was not to be, so taking a year off triathlon ended with me instead taking on a similar job to the Corporal.

So this year. I did a swim analysis session with the Corporal last year which was a really positive experience (albeit terrifying!) for both of us! LBT coaches are fantastic, the club members are great and if there are actually any triathletes reading this, then the best thing that you can do it look at their website. No, really. They're not paying me. They're just brilliant. I'm loads faster this year in the water, thanks to the Corporal and LBT and am regularly swimming 2,000+m and not thinking much of it. Until I have to sit down to put on my socks.

Anyway, the short version is that I'm doing the Great North Swim this year, as my ambition is to get my head around open water swimming, which I freely admit, is freaky. We're signing up to Skipton as a relay team, I believe, and then I'm still trying to decide on Driffield, Beverley and Ilkley. I foresee many hills in my future. Sigh.

Forgot to mention that the reason for the post title was that Nom and I spent 1.5 hours in the gym today and did a 25 minute run (split into two, there and back again). I didn't die, despite Nom's best efforts!

Swim tomorrow. If I don't post, spare a thought for my poor arms and legs...

Catch-up, part 2: 2011 plans, targets, dreams

With all those distant memories out of the way, it's time to concentrate on this season. It's one where I'm hoping to step it up a level, especially at standard distance, and nudge towards the top of the listings at sprint distance. It's not going to be easy, but it rarely is, and my training performances thus far have given me confidence that I can hit what are some pretty stretching targets.

Race-wise, those targets are:
1) Finish a sprint triathlon in under an hour. That gives me two chances - Driffield (1:04:04 last year) and Ilkley (1:04:36 last year). Conveniently, it's also one relatively flat course and one darn hilly course. For that matter, it's one early-season race and one late-season race. Either way, a lot of things will have to go right to beat the hour, but I don't believe it's impossible by any means.

2) Ripon in under 2:30. Last year it was 2:47, but that was my first standard distance tri, and one where some elements were being taken a little conservatively. Also, it had the sun absolutely blaring down, which surely can't happen two years in a row. The bike and run courses are both pretty flat, which isn't exactly playing to my strengths, but my distance running is a whole lot better now than it was then.

3) Leeds in under 2:25. A more achievable target might be to avoid being disqualified, but again this is a matter of taking 15-20 minutes off the previous year's time. The difference being, of course, that this is a tremendously hilly race - hideously painful, for sure, but more my style. It's an course where racing weight will be a factor, and I'd expect to be lighter than last year. Also with hilly courses, local knowledge is very handy, and I'll be able to ride the course a number of times before the event.

Now, all those targets are very tough, and it's not inconceivable that I could have a very good season without meeting any of them, but there's no point aiming low. Awkwardly, as they're all time-based, they're vulnerable to elements outside my control - inclement weather, for example. They do, however, offer the tantalising possibility of high finishes, and maybe even some minor prizes if things go my way. Everyone likes prizes.

So what do I have to do to meet these targets? The first thing, I guess, is to train consistently. That's always the main building block of any athletic performance, and in triathlon it seems even more pronounced. That includes when the weather is vile (hopefully, most of this should be out of the way now). Having a plan B is very useful for this (as, indeed, is having a plan A!), events have a habit of getting in the way of things, so backup is very useful. Tends to involve the turbo trainer for me, it's not restricted by weather or lighting.

Also key is to train at various intensities. Last year, I was moving up the distances, so there was a lot of endurance work to do. This year, lots of work at tempo and anaerobic levels are in the pipeline. Training at low intensity all the time is the classic trap for triathletes to fall into - after all, any triathlon is neccessarily an endurance event. If you want to get onto the first page of results, though, you need to be able to shift. I've used Parkruns to sharpen up my running, hard turbo work and hills on the bike, and hard interval sets in the pool. It hurts like hell, but let's face it, that's what gets results.

A bit of shiny new gear also helps, of course. This year, I've picked up some proper tri cycling shoes (and attendant pedals), and I'm currently having lustful thoughts towards a pair of Brooks T7 Racers - race-specific running shoes that weigh approximately nothing, as worn by Chrissie Wellington among others. The question is whether the lack of any motion control or cushioning is a good idea for my running style. Sadly, that'll be about it for new gear, like-for-like replacements notwithstanding, so I suppose I'll have to work hard instead :-(

Lastly, I need to sharpen up my transitions. Hopefully this will improve with experience; I've had some horror shows in the past. I'm trying to streamline the process - the shoes are easier to get on and off, and my new bike computer will negate the need for my Forerunner on the bike leg (I can put it on on the move during the run). These little time gains add up - with a bit of luck (and a lot of graft), they'll add up to a successful 2011 season.

Catch-up (part 1)

Not the swim drill, natch.

2010 was, I guess, my first proper year in triathlon. It was the first time I followed a decent training plan (although maybe not quite as closely as I might, in relation to doing the faster stuff), and the first time I did a bunch of races.

The early part of 2010 is fairly hazy in my memory, somewhat understandably. I remember a succession of terribly boring turbo sessions, which indicates the weather was less than ideal. According to my training log, I then progressed to painfully slow bike rides (although I didn't have my slightly nicer wheels back then) and a pile of endurance runs, which was fair enough as I was building from sprint to standard distance. Swimming I'm not sure about, I know I progressed to full structured training sessions in 2010, but I can't remember when. Man, I suck.

[As an aside, it's always fun to look back a year or so, to look at what speeds you were putting out. It bodes well for this year that I'm considerable faster than I was in early 2010.]

Driffield turned up in May, and it feels weird somehow to say it was my second ever triathlon. I was definitely feeling jittery as I turned up (actually, this always happens when I rely on Dad to take me somewhere...), although this was mitigated somewhat by doing a brick session on the course with Veg and Nom the weekend before. What I hadn't practised enough, though, was transition, and it showed, as, after a decent enough swim (to be honest, very good for May 2010), I made an ungodly hash of T1, taking ages to get my bike shoes on, taking another age to get my GPS on, and completely failing to attach my race number, for which I was rather lucky to avoid disqualification!

A slightly freaked-out bike leg followed (due to the number), albeit one that was a clear speed PB, and then further ignominy, as my general flusterment (may not be a word, but it should be) led to setting off for the run with my bike helmet still on! Sigh, waste of time and energy, the worst of both worlds.

The run was solid, though, even if the evil organisers had made it more than the advertised 5K, and I crossed the line in a fairly decent time of 1:04:04. I then discovered how unpleasant Udo's Choice is, and how lovely East Coast fish and chips are.

Ripon weekend deserves its own post really. It isn't going to get one. It really is an awesome experience though, partly due to the whole camping thing (cholera optional), partly due to the sheer size of the race itself, and all the attendant excitements.

Race day is a pretty odd feeling at Ripon, due to the afternoon start time. Waking up at 8 (you are, after all, sleeping in a tent) gives you a long, long time to get nervous. Luckily, The Usual Suspects were there to calm me down a little. Still, I think the most unpleasant feeling in all of triathlon is being in the 'pen' waiting to get into the open water for the swim start. It's genuinely horrible (and it didn't get much better at Leeds...)

The hooter went and, like everyone in the history of open water triathlons, I went off too quick. I tied up considerably by the end, not helped by the seams of my wetsuit chafing (Vaseline does the trick), and exited the water in somewhat of a daze.

[A moment here to remember the guy who passed away in the water - think he was in my wave, actually. Racing for charity as well - very sad indeed.]

I'd not been on the bike course beforehand, reasoning that it was pretty flat, so there was nothing to worry about. This turned out to be essentially correct - apart from a schoolboy error rendering my GPS redundant, everything went smoothly, in fact, more smoothly than I'd expected.

And so to the run. It'd been a lovely sunny day right from the beginning, which is grand for the swim and the bike, but running in mid-20s Celsius is a bit of a toughie. Like an awful lot of people, I struggled mightily, finishing just outside my target time for this discipline (by 18 seconds!) - total time 2:47:39. I was then a great pile of uselessness for at least a couple of hours. Although it turns out ice cream helps a lot...

Beverley was pretty nondescript - apart from the drama of getting ready to set off to the race, only to discover a puncture (aaargh!), and the mini-drama of taking a wrong turning on the way there. This race still contains my current bike PB though - 33.8 kph for 20 kilometres. It's a lovely, fast course. The run was a little annoying, though.

Leeds was a fairly monumental effort, such a hilly course, it still gives me nightmares. A shame, then, that my top-quarter finish was wrecked by being DQ'd for a duff overtaking manoeuvre. Ironic, as I made the overtake to avoid being pinged for drafting...

Ilkley, then, was the last race of the year. I needed a strong result after the disappointment of Leeds.

[Ilkley's such a great event, though, a super atmosphere, friendly people, a course to completely destroy yourself on - what more can you need?]

The swim was somewhat arse - I got unlucky with folks in my lane, and even had to stand up at one point. Not happy. The bike and run were fairly solid, despite a heart-in-mouth moment when I nearly overcooked it going down Curly Hill. Still, I felt that it wasn't quite as fast as it could've been; maybe I was still feeling Leeds, maybe it was the rest of the season catching up with me.

I finished in 1:04:36 and disappointed with that time (although it was nearly 7 minutes faster than in 2009). After sulking a bit, I hung around to catch the presentation, and was amazed to have actually won a prize! Although it was essentially down to a quirk of the prize system, it was a prize nontheless, and having it presented by World Sprint Triathlon champion Jonny Brownlee was an incredible experience. (Note to self: need to spend that gift voucher).

Then: pizza. In large quantities.

And, of course, thoughts of 2011...

A return to blogland

Hello, viewers!

After a prolonged absence, I'm back on the UK's least popular blog.
Having been away for so long, there's an awful lot for me to catch up on, which I hope to get through in due course.
Sadly, as I'm stuck composing this on an iPhone, now's not the time...