2007 Training Review

The first wave of cold weather is here and with it is the reality that my first season as a triathlete has come to a close. Actually its been closed for nearly a month due to other career aspirations (studying for the professional engineer licensing exam). Before the off-season training begins its important to evaluate the previous season and learn what did and didn't work.

Sometimes I need a kick in the pants or a goal to get me started. A coworker of mine did both when she challenged me to race Vineman 70.3 in July of '07. I had an '05 Litespeed Sienna collecting dust in my garage (gift from a sugar-momma the year before) so I figured what the hell, the race is 24 weeks away. And at the very least I'd get a nice west coast vacation out of it.

Being a flag football and soccer weekend warrior I thought I was in good enough shape to jump into solid triathlon training right away. Wrong.

Let the pain of ignorance begin!

Without a formal training plan I began with three-mile runs every other morning. Seven years ago this workout would have been cake. It was disappointing to struggle for 8:30/mile but I managed. I continued to keep the pace since the level of effort was rapidly declining. During week three a dull ache appeared in my shin but I ran through it. A few days afterward it was too painful to run. For the next eight weeks all the running I could stand was for soccer games.

I shifted my efforts to swimming and biking while the leg healed. Now fully aware of how quickly overuse injuries can happen I swam only three days a week; all drills (thanks Total Immersion). I saved my real cardio efforts for 1-hour spin classes. To say the least, I attacked the spin bike with a vengeance. This turned out to be a bad plan because it prolonged my shin injury. I eventually had to stop both and focus solely on swimming.

With swimming I found success. I quickly improved my stroke and managed to get my volume up to 9000 yards a week. I tried pool running for my shin but found it strained my back too much. I didn't need another injury to nurse.

Once my leg felt healed I took advantage of the warmer weather and began a new biking plan (still no running). It had become apparent after my first ever triathlon (White Lake Half in Spring 07) that spin class was not an ample training tool and that I needed to actually ride my road bike. Who would have guessed? My plan was to ride an easy 30, a hard 20, and an easy 64 miles each week. Like everything else, I stupidly jumped into it. A month later I had a pinched nerve in my foot from an improper cleat position and hamstrings so tight you could play them like a guitar.

I eventually ended up in physical therapy to see if there was something I could do to help my hamstrings. The pain was not debilitating so I could still train, just not hard. The whole injury issue became a question of whether triathlons were worth the trouble or not. One thing was for sure, I was committed to finishing Vineman. I plowed on.

During the last month of training I battled the hamstring pain with a daily regiment of ice and anti-inflammatory meds. I finally managed to run again, but carefully so the shin pain wouldn't return. Luckily I live near a five-mile wooded trail loop that is easy on the legs. I also began to understand how to use heart rates to control workouts and the importance of easy days.

After Vineman I continued to train smarter with a ton of easy days. I stayed fresher for my once a week (per dicipline) speed work days. My hamstrings were still painful now and then but I didn't need the drugs to cope. During that last month and a half I saw my biggest increases in bike and run speed. Finally I felt like a triathlete and not a walking injury. I can only hope this will carry over to my second season.