Hollywood Training

image Today I learned a new oxymoron. “Hollywood Training”. It doesn’t exist for me here. I went to 24 hour fitness and signed up for a 7 day trial, which gives me access to a 3 lane 25 yard (I sure hope it’s a little long, ‘cause I was swimming quite slowly) pool. After that I gave my friend Nigel a ride to work so I could use his car for a trip to Westlake Village, where I was planning to visit the best athletic apparel and footwear company in existence, K-Swiss.

At the K-House I got to see some of the new shoes coming out early next year. I’m super excited for the new Keahou. The current Keahou is the most comfortable and forgiving running shoe I’ve ever used, and still manages to be lighter weight than most trainers in that price range ($90 – if you want a discount on K-Swiss.com, say something nice on my guestbook page 🙂 ). Right now I do some track workouts in the lighter-weight K’Ona because it has a more responsive sole and offers greater stability around the corners, so I suggested to the designers that they find a way to get that responsiveness in a high-mileage training shoe like the Keahou – that’s when they introduced me to the Keahou II. I wish I could show sneak peaks – this new shoe is awesome. Hopefully I’ll have a few sample pairs to try out in the next couple months, which will certainly warrant another blog.

Tomorrow I’m planning a 3 hour ride, and wondering if that’s long enough to actually get out of the concrete jungle of Hollywood and LA. Unfortunately, I won’t have a care tomorrow, so driving to my workouts is out of the question. I hope the treadmills at 24 hour fitness are nice.

Triathlon Swim Warmup

 

This video shows a routine I learned in college when we swam dual meets at schools without a warm-up pool. A lot of guys would jog back and forth on the pool deck and do jumping jacks, but I found these swimming specific motions to be quite a bit more effective in preparing for a swim race. For a triathlon I do this routine after I have finished my bike/run warm-up and have gotten my wetsuit half way on. The wetsuit is helpful because it keeps your muscles warm, which is the point.

I used this dry-land warm-up routine last week before the Kirkland Triathlon, when the police wouldn’t allow us to swim prior to the race start, and I’ve used it at races like Escape from Alcatraz and Treasure Island where even if you could get in for a warm-up, the water is so cold that it just doesn’t seem worth it. Some people bring bands and do many of the same motions. I find that’s a hassle and just one extra thing to pack. You can make up for a lack in resistance simply by increasing the speed of your swimming movements.

2009 Kirkland Triathlon Race Report

KirklandTri 016 Sunday I raced the Kirkland Triathlon at Carillon Point. I won, and was the first person to break an hour at this sprint triathlon. It was fun to get out and race! This was my first time wearing a race kit since May, so I was a little overly anxious to get out there. Also I couldn’t have done anything without Courtenay who schlepped all my crap everywhere before and after the race.

The swim was in Lake Washington. It took me a minute to get my rhythm after a 10 minute delay in the start waiting for the sheriff’s ok. The first 200 meters I was right with Dave Messenheimer and Chris Tremonte, then I pulled away and never looked back. I started the bike 45 seconds ahead of Tremonte, and had a nearly four minute lead by the start of the run. With that in mind I relaxed on the run, chatted with the volunteers and thanked them for all their help in putting on the race. I finished in 59:50, about 90 seconds ahead of second place, Rusty Pruden.

KirklandTri 005 It was fun to lead a race like this. I have only done a few non-drafting races since getting my pro card in 2008, and this race was a reminder of how different non-drafting can be. My strategy was just to go hard and once I was far enough ahead, I went less hard. And, since I was leading the whole way, about 57 minutes of the race were spent alone watching the back of a police motorcycle (his job was hard because the volunteers didn’t expect me there yet)!

The course was challenging, hilly, and beautiful. And I’ll admit, my favorite part was probably that it was close to home. It was a great day to get out there and get back into racing mode. Now I just have to repeat this whole wire-to-wire race experience at another non-drafting event, the LA Triathlon on October 4.

Springing Back to Seattle

image All the other triathletes came back to Colorado Springs this week after competing in Australia at the ITU World Championship Series Finale. They didn’t bring back any medals, but worse yet, they didn’t bring back the kangaroo I asked for ( something about customs and baggage fees). So I’m giving up on these Team USA athletes and heading back to Seattle for some Indian Summer, and some hardcore training.

[Left: View of the Sports Med Clinic from behind the Normatec MVP boots, which inflate and push all the blood out of your legs – like ice bath, but not cold]

I’m really excited to get back and visit inewmed, Phil Spencer Chiropractic, and University of Washington Bone and Joint Center. When I came to Colorado the med staff talked boldly about taking care of me and getting me into some rehab therapy for the injuries I suffered this summer. They did take of me. In three weeks I squeezed in an x-ray of my wrist, some chiropractic adjustments, a few bags of ice, several hours spent on the Normatec, three soft tissue releases for a leg (two left, one right), and even a laser treatment (no idea what that did). The Olympic Training Center medical staff are really nice, and I’m sure now that they know me (quite well) we’ll be able to streamline their care and get even more out of my next visit (hopefully I won’t need so much rehab). The care in Seattle is certainly not free, but much like the OTC Sports Med Clinic, it is professional athlete quality. It’ll be good to see the home team.

After just a short trip, I am leaving the Springs more fit and healthier than when I came. The Olympic Training Center is pretty hard to beat when it comes to training focus, nutrition, access to support, and people to train with. I’m sure I’ll be back soon enough.

Colorado Springs Ain’t Bad

image It’s not so bad being at the Olympic Training Center. This week I’ve been chowing down on some great food here on campus. The cafeteria is the social hub for all the athletes on campus because with the exception of swim practice, we all pretty much train alone. That, and most of the athletes here are not triathletes. For instance, last night I had dinner with Lopez Lomong, Jillian Petersen, Margaux Isaksen, a figure skater, and another pentathlete who’s names I don’t remember. Being here makes the adjective “Olympian” seem banal.

Most of the non-injured triathletes here are leaving for Worlds starting tomorrow (so basically Hunter and I will still be here). Let’s wish them luck, a couple US podiums would really help to keep our USOC funding next year.

Week One in Colorado

image Tuesday I flew into Denver and hopped on a 90 minute shuttle to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. I was approved to stay at the center starting on 8/30, but I bought a plane ticket for the 25th.  I found a spare bedroom to rent out by posting a housing wanted ad on craigslist, and luckily the house was just three blocks from the OTC campus. I was on top of my housing situation, but finding food and making sure I was allowed to use the training center weren’t priorities in my mind until I was about 30 minutes from campus. After a couple quick phone calls I managed to get Jillian Petersen to give me a ride to the grocery store while I waited for my paperwork to be processed for facility access.

After I got settled in, went for a bike/run brick and began my diet of beans and rice (nutritious, delicious and economical), I passed out at 8pm and slept for 11 hours. It was glorious. Then Wednesday I did exactly the same thing, only without the travel, Thursday repeat, plus a good swim workout. By Friday I started to feel recovered from all the fun I was having (and sleep I wasn’t) back in Seattle. I saw the doc at Sports Med and had my wrist re-X-Rayed (it’s healing really well), and put together a plan with the med team for lots and lots of personal attention. I love all the PTs, LMTs, Docs and such that I see in Seattle, but there is definitely something to be said for being 400 meters away from their offices and being able to drop in whenever I feel like it.

Mike Done, coach of Andy Potts and Brian Fleischmann is coaching the swim practices here, which was a good surprise for me. I have high standards for swim coaches, and from what I’ve seen, Mike is great at his job. This week he’s helping me figure out how to get back into a regular swimming routine without jeopardizing the healing of my broken wrist.

I finished off the week with my first USADA drug test. It was exciting, and a little intimidating. Two guys came into my host house and ask for me. They explain the procedure and then ask me to give them 90mL of urine in a sterile cup. Unfortunately, despite not having used the toilet in a couple hours, I had terrible stage fright. I will be the first to admit that I lack a normal human being’s modesty, but something about lifting my shirt and pulling my pants down to pee in front of a stranger made my bladder harder to empty than the oil in Alaska. It was like this:

First Try:

I knew I needed to pee before the USADA guys showed up, so I offered to go right away. No dice. After standing in front of the monitor for a couple minutes trying to imagine running water, he told me we could go relax and try again in a little while. We sat in the living room for about 40 minutes while I drank copious amounts of water. My belly ached and I decided I was ready for

Second Try:

similar to the first try, only I was pushing so hard I let out a bit of gas – a few times. My face turned red with embarrassment and the monitor offered that I sit down as if I were “having a bowel movement, if that might help.” I sat and tried more. A dribble filled the bottom of the cup – 5mL – only 85mL to go!

I gave up and we went back into the living room. I drank more water and the men suggested I eat some food and follow my normal routine. So, more beans and rice (the root cause of my flatulence I’m sure), and more water. I relaxed a bit with food in my stomach and tried to make small talk with the USADA guys. They were really nice, and after a few more minutes of awkward conversation my bladder called me up to warn that the dam was nearing capacity. So 90 minutes after USADA arrived I went for my

Third Try:

We walked into the bathroom, closed the door, took out a sterile cup, dropped my pants, lifted my shirt, faced my new friend and let it rip. The cup was full in two seconds, but I wasn’t done yet. My bladder was like the energizer bunny. So after making these poor guys wait for me to pee all evening, I made them wait a while longer while I kept peeing.

Hopefully next time will go a little more smoothly..

Distractions

image The past week has been way too much fun for me to think about feeling sorry for myself. The USAT Endurance Mobile Tour (run by my friends Rory and Mojdah) has been camping out at my house, and my friends Trish and Matt flew in to join the fun. I haven’t been sleeping a lot, but my cycling and running volumes are backup to respectable, even competitive levels. I’m also becoming a much better sailor.  I love lists, so here’s one with a bunch of links to the various blogs that have been written from my house over the past few days:

 

  • From Trish, a ultra-running PhD student at U of Texas who is studying tripping. She posted pictures of food and fly fishing. I preferred the awesome food from Portage Bay Cafe to the fly fishing (I lost two flies in the rocks.)
  • From Rory, who has been driving around Seattle with me trying to find a local sponsorship for 2010. In exchange I’ve been dragging him around Lake Washington on a wakeboard and in an inner tube.
  • From Courtenay, who spent the weekend winning Seattle’s biggest triathlon, the Danskin Women’s Triathlon. Somehow a single gender race manages to have 5500 women (and it sold out in 2 days).
  • The Endurance Mobile Tour, who were at the finish line selling all the gear those 5500 women needed.

I met Sheila Taormina. She’s my new favorite Olympian (no offense to Victor and Marijana and the Kirk Sisters, you’re great too). I found her sitting on the floor outside the Danskin Expo waiting for a ride. A minute later I was pouring my heart out to her for advice. The gist of it: injury is a time to recover and become stronger, and it gives you the time to focus on giving back to the people around you.

I was on the news and in a magazine

Thanks to everyone for the kind words on my last post. I’m sure I’ll get through this, and somehow be better for it. At least I have some friends coming to town this week to take take my mind off fractures.

I heard a rumor that on Sunday channel 7 news used a stock clip of me from last fall, where I was ducking under caution tape to keep running past a land slide on the bike trail. My sister saw it, and told me, but didn’t have her Tivo running. I remember the camera crew, they were filming around Thanksgiving.

Also, I heard the last issue of Northwest Runner Magazine had an article with a picture of me titled something to the effect of “Can really expensive gear make you as fast as Ben Collins?” This issue, unfortunately, was no longer available when I heard about it.

The Darker Side

The upbeat, happy-go-lucky tone I have tried to force myself into with my sporadic and sometimes uninspired blog posts has finally run out. I don’t know if my current state of mind is typical of an athlete on my chosen path, but these past few months have been quite trying.

In May, the last time I was able to race, my results showed continued improvement, and even an acceleration toward my goal of racing, and beating, the best triathletes in the world. Unfortunately, due to a lack of flexibility training (yoga and stretching) and running too much too soon, I was diagnosed with a stress reaction in my hip. This was actually good news because by the time I was able to see the doctor, I had already run myself onto crutches. I was afraid of stress fracture or worse.

I spent June water running and taking care of my laundry list of non-triathlon related endeavors. My attitude was still pretty good, and I was hoping to be back in time to race the Seafair Triathlon (a big local sprint) in mid July. That didn’t happen. I was running, but figured it wasn’t worth the risk without proper preparation (I hadn’t done any intensity on land.) I was bummed to be relegated to a relay at Seafair, but my spirits were still high. I decided to focus on US Pro Nationals, August 22nd. I was done with Biochemistry, enjoying a great Seattle summer, learning to brew kombucha, sailing, watching bald eagles mate while water running across Lake Washington (they cling together in midair and freefall), and spending a good amount of time swimming fast.

Last week my hopeful attitude took another low blow. I took a tumble from the saddle at the end of a training ride. It was one of those low speed falls that end up hurting your body and ego in equal amounts. My wrist was fractured; my hope of competing at US Nationals broken with it.

I’m trying to find a silver lining. A lesson that will make me better. All I can really think of are all the worthwhile life paths I could be on that wouldn’t involve so many lonely setbacks. If I had taken an engineering job when I had the chance, or become involved in Seattle’s transportation planning (still a passion of mine), then a broken wrist would be the least of my worries. My tendency to overwork myself would meet greater success and more productivity, and I would be striving for something that actually makes a difference in the world. The last point is what’s really been bothering me.

I struggle with this even while I’m healthy, but when I’m racing and doing well I can focus on the highs and the love I have for athletic pursuits. The purity of it quiets my fears. When I’m injured I feel worthless. I’m not contributing to society in any measurable way. Sure, I can help market my sponsors, maybe sell some triathlon gear, and coach some people, but I’m not changing the world. Am I suffering the delusion of youth to think I even have that kind of capability? To make life better for people? If not, then am I wasting my time pushing for a selfish goal of personal excellence? If it is a delusion then what can I accomplish? What am I capable of? Does potential lie in something off the field? Where this much work won’t be eliminated by a broken bone? Am I doing the right thing? Why am I a professional triathlete?