Well, following my pretty decent effort on Sunday at the Bay to Bay 12km run (let me remind you a sub 4min per km effort - ooohh yeah!!), I pulled up perfectly, and went for a swim on the Monday morning, courtesy of Koresh Rollo. The swim was good, but by lunchtime, I was completely clogged in the nose, sweating and starting to feel pretty ordinary.
The bloody cold(thats all it was really) got worse on Tuesday, and by the end of the day on Tuesday, i cwas really struggling to breath normally and had a corker of a headache. I dropped the sessions I had that day, but I was not coming right. So, I did the thing I loath, and took the day off on wednesday...my 1st sickie since being in Australia....8 years.....not bad huh! I hate sickies, but with me sniffing and spewing snot frmo the nose all day long I felt it was unfair on the staff around me. So, off to doctor I went, hoping for a quick remedy so I could train again, and the doctor told me to (and I am serious) 'tough up, and ride it out' - WTF!! Devastated, and humiliated, I soon to be an Iron Man went home with nothing. However, my wonderful wife gave me some nasal spray, and voila...cleared nose, so one more day off of the training (by now I was chomping at the bit to get out there, I was due to have my HR zones reviewed by Rollo, but he suggested I dont until I am 100%), Friday morning came and I was in the pool again with Jeff, and Vlad (although Vlad doing his own stuff with HERT (his 'cult'))
Saturday I went running with AC and Freney in hilly fire trails, starting in the dark, and it was awesome. I froze as I usually do, but it was soo good to be running again, and with mates...loved it!
Today I left home at 5.50am, rode on my own until I met up with AC, Freney, Skinny Winkle (Tim), Rollo and Steve and we went down the old Pac HIghway and did some hill repeats....great stuff! I got some aerobars put on the bike, and it was great, however my left knee is tender now, so will have to be careful with that, I think I need to have some measuring done to make sure the bike is set up correctly!
So, a real short week for me this week, only a few sessions due to having that cold, so to summerise :
Swim - 6km (2 hours)
Run - 90mins
Ride - 79kms (3hours)
Total 6.5hours - pretty shit actually, but when you cant breath I guess you cant train...spewing!
Lets hope this week is better.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Am I back in London?? Noah's Ark must be on the way!
Hey hey, post # 3 post for me now, that means, its 3 weeks less to the Iron Man!!
Well, what has the title of this blog got to do with Iron Man, not much, apart from the fact that the weather here in sydney has been shit! And...for about 2 weeks I think. reminds me very much of being back in the UK, crap weather, and pretty bloody cold still! Whats with that! Man, the land of Oz is throwing a spanner in the works for training...well, only because I am a big puss and dont want to ride in the rain and cold....and, I think I might have a little chest cold coming on....hahaha, what a bloody sook! really, I need to HTFU and just get out there!
Well, I have, this week, I did a few LSD runs in the early morning, got frozen and drenched, so I was out there. Its just the cycling, I hate it, so the turbo trainer got a hammering. Man, what a bargain.....$50 for a Minoura W/T and it gets used at least 2 - 3 times a week for at the least an hour each time (usually between 90min and 2hours). Anyway, the gripe is, the weather is forecast again this coming week for rain...great!
Looking back at this week, it was quite tough, but once again really enjoyable. I loved the 16.5km run(in about 80mins) I did into work on Wednesday. Its weird, I enjoy running on my own, and will happily do it, but cycling and swimming.....both are pretty boring for me after a while :-(
The highlights of the week for me would have to be (on top of that run) the 35 x 100m swim session on Friday morning (kept the splits for the 1st 30 between 1.25 and 1.28, the last 5 @ 1.15ish ). (I did this with Vlad and his mate Jeff, who is a really nice guy and doing the Port IM next year as well, so the more the merrier). I did a brick session on Saturday morning at AC's (Andrew) place along with Freney and Rollo. Those blouses did 2 hours, I did 2 hours on the turbo, then finished it with a 40min troot. Today (sunday) was the 12km Bay to Bay Terrigal Trotters fun run. In last weeks blog I said I wanted to complete it around 48mins....well, I did slightly better, 47.39....so thats sub 4min pace for 12km, which is awesome! really chuft. Also, another note, I ran past the 10km marker and a chap yelled out "39.42", which means another PB for my 10km...not bad considering under 12months ago, I ran a 52min for 10km...... So, another tick in the cap for me....Rollo's training paying off, and I am loving it! Ah - beat him to, so if you read this Rollo, cheers!
Another thing to note was my mate Vlad (the animal) did a 40km run on saturday, it was a training run, and the crzy bugga ran it in 2.40,,,what the hell is that! This bloke is a maniac, but an inspiration....and very supportive of my puny times.....but he constantly encourages me, and is so generous with his advice and help I am really grateful. Anyway, he is training for the Gold Coast Marathon...watch this space as he was the 1st Aussie home last year..and he wants to better his time...I will keep updating his progress on this blog.
So another week down, another week ahead, and time just marches on! To summerise this week :
Swim - 8.8km
Run - aprox 50km
Bike - 5hours on Turbo trainer
So all up between 11 and 12hours of training this week, and I feel all quality sessions....its great!
Well, I am signing off for now...hope you all have a good week, and until next time....
Well, what has the title of this blog got to do with Iron Man, not much, apart from the fact that the weather here in sydney has been shit! And...for about 2 weeks I think. reminds me very much of being back in the UK, crap weather, and pretty bloody cold still! Whats with that! Man, the land of Oz is throwing a spanner in the works for training...well, only because I am a big puss and dont want to ride in the rain and cold....and, I think I might have a little chest cold coming on....hahaha, what a bloody sook! really, I need to HTFU and just get out there!
Well, I have, this week, I did a few LSD runs in the early morning, got frozen and drenched, so I was out there. Its just the cycling, I hate it, so the turbo trainer got a hammering. Man, what a bargain.....$50 for a Minoura W/T and it gets used at least 2 - 3 times a week for at the least an hour each time (usually between 90min and 2hours). Anyway, the gripe is, the weather is forecast again this coming week for rain...great!
Looking back at this week, it was quite tough, but once again really enjoyable. I loved the 16.5km run(in about 80mins) I did into work on Wednesday. Its weird, I enjoy running on my own, and will happily do it, but cycling and swimming.....both are pretty boring for me after a while :-(
The highlights of the week for me would have to be (on top of that run) the 35 x 100m swim session on Friday morning (kept the splits for the 1st 30 between 1.25 and 1.28, the last 5 @ 1.15ish ). (I did this with Vlad and his mate Jeff, who is a really nice guy and doing the Port IM next year as well, so the more the merrier). I did a brick session on Saturday morning at AC's (Andrew) place along with Freney and Rollo. Those blouses did 2 hours, I did 2 hours on the turbo, then finished it with a 40min troot. Today (sunday) was the 12km Bay to Bay Terrigal Trotters fun run. In last weeks blog I said I wanted to complete it around 48mins....well, I did slightly better, 47.39....so thats sub 4min pace for 12km, which is awesome! really chuft. Also, another note, I ran past the 10km marker and a chap yelled out "39.42", which means another PB for my 10km...not bad considering under 12months ago, I ran a 52min for 10km...... So, another tick in the cap for me....Rollo's training paying off, and I am loving it! Ah - beat him to, so if you read this Rollo, cheers!
Another thing to note was my mate Vlad (the animal) did a 40km run on saturday, it was a training run, and the crzy bugga ran it in 2.40,,,what the hell is that! This bloke is a maniac, but an inspiration....and very supportive of my puny times.....but he constantly encourages me, and is so generous with his advice and help I am really grateful. Anyway, he is training for the Gold Coast Marathon...watch this space as he was the 1st Aussie home last year..and he wants to better his time...I will keep updating his progress on this blog.
So another week down, another week ahead, and time just marches on! To summerise this week :
Swim - 8.8km
Run - aprox 50km
Bike - 5hours on Turbo trainer
So all up between 11 and 12hours of training this week, and I feel all quality sessions....its great!
Well, I am signing off for now...hope you all have a good week, and until next time....
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Whats that clattering sound? Oh, its just my teeth :-(
Well, first off, thanks for the comments from those who read my virgin blog....its really great to know I have mates and family out there that do believe I can do this (well actually, I know I can, I have seen people complete the Iron Man who look like maybe they are more into doughnut eating competitions, or better suited to racing with walking frames - but you know what - they did it). For most of us its not about a time..its about finishing. I had a time in mind before I went and watched the Iron Man, and seeing the effort required led me to dropping a time, and focusing on finishing...albeit before dark....I think that gives me about 12.5hours.....maybe a little less.....lets put this into perspective. Us mere plebs with full time jobs and families need to complete :
3.8km swim (this I have heard is quite brutal at times to...lots of boxing etc (reminds me of waterpolo in some of the triahtlons I have already competed in)
180km Cycle (Thats probably going to be at least 6 hours for me....say it again...6 hours on a bike....WTF!!! My arse gets sore after 2 at the moment....)
Then, just to top it off
42km run (marathon)
So, if one can finish this epic race, you have well earned the following (in order to by the way) :
1. Beers
2. A message of some sort
3. A hot soak
4. A good rogering (when you are able to)
5. Another good rogering (when you recover from the 1st)
6. Probably a month off training (unless you are like the animal Vlad who qualifies for Kona.)
I must say, the last week of training has been really difficult, purely from a weather perspective. Its winter here now. Getting up at 4.30am to cycle is a tough ask, and running at 5.30am is not much fun either. Vlad got me a 2XU cycling jacket which kept my torso warm during an early morning ride, but I am going to have to sort some gloves out...my fingers were frozen! The same with the run I did on friday morning....18km into work, and by the time I got to work, I could not actually grip the keys for the shower room....crazy stuff, especially for me who hates the cold...I can tell you, its going to take every inch of my will power to get me through the winter months this year....last year, I changed my runs to lunchtimes because of the cold, but this time, with the extended training sessions I do because of the IM, I cant fit them all in at lunch, so mornings it is....
So, just a recap of the training this week in terms of hours / distance :
Swim - 2.5hours (6.5km - probably the least amount I have done in a week in months)
Cycle - 5.5hours on the Turbo Trainer
Run - 5 hours (about 50km)
Its a light week by recent standards, and apart from the cold, a very enjoyable one. Highlights were, a 30km run on the previous Sunday (not included in the above times), Turbo session with Vlad (I love those) and the runs I did on Friday and today. Also narrowly avoiding the transit (train) guards on Friday, they nearly got me as I did not have a ticket...would have proved a very expensive 3 stop trip if they had! Transit Guards 0 - Brett 1.
This week Rollo (coach (Ecplise Traithlon)) has set out a pretty challenging set of sessions, and I am loving it....particularly the 35 x 100 swim on Friday - Cheers Rollo (not sure why, but of the 3 disciplines, I enjoy the swimming the least, by a long way to). I am also competing in the Terrigal Trotters Bay to Bay Fun Run. Its a 12km run, so I am hoping to finish that in around 48mins...never done one before so it should be a hoot. Michelle and I are staying at a hotel the night before, she won a night's stay in a raffle, so really looking forward to spending some time with her...just the 2 of us....doesn't happen very much with 2 energetic girls, but it should be nice and relaxing........
3.8km swim (this I have heard is quite brutal at times to...lots of boxing etc (reminds me of waterpolo in some of the triahtlons I have already competed in)
180km Cycle (Thats probably going to be at least 6 hours for me....say it again...6 hours on a bike....WTF!!! My arse gets sore after 2 at the moment....)
Then, just to top it off
42km run (marathon)
So, if one can finish this epic race, you have well earned the following (in order to by the way) :
1. Beers
2. A message of some sort
3. A hot soak
4. A good rogering (when you are able to)
5. Another good rogering (when you recover from the 1st)
6. Probably a month off training (unless you are like the animal Vlad who qualifies for Kona.)
I must say, the last week of training has been really difficult, purely from a weather perspective. Its winter here now. Getting up at 4.30am to cycle is a tough ask, and running at 5.30am is not much fun either. Vlad got me a 2XU cycling jacket which kept my torso warm during an early morning ride, but I am going to have to sort some gloves out...my fingers were frozen! The same with the run I did on friday morning....18km into work, and by the time I got to work, I could not actually grip the keys for the shower room....crazy stuff, especially for me who hates the cold...I can tell you, its going to take every inch of my will power to get me through the winter months this year....last year, I changed my runs to lunchtimes because of the cold, but this time, with the extended training sessions I do because of the IM, I cant fit them all in at lunch, so mornings it is....
So, just a recap of the training this week in terms of hours / distance :
Swim - 2.5hours (6.5km - probably the least amount I have done in a week in months)
Cycle - 5.5hours on the Turbo Trainer
Run - 5 hours (about 50km)
Its a light week by recent standards, and apart from the cold, a very enjoyable one. Highlights were, a 30km run on the previous Sunday (not included in the above times), Turbo session with Vlad (I love those) and the runs I did on Friday and today. Also narrowly avoiding the transit (train) guards on Friday, they nearly got me as I did not have a ticket...would have proved a very expensive 3 stop trip if they had! Transit Guards 0 - Brett 1.
This week Rollo (coach (Ecplise Traithlon)) has set out a pretty challenging set of sessions, and I am loving it....particularly the 35 x 100 swim on Friday - Cheers Rollo (not sure why, but of the 3 disciplines, I enjoy the swimming the least, by a long way to). I am also competing in the Terrigal Trotters Bay to Bay Fun Run. Its a 12km run, so I am hoping to finish that in around 48mins...never done one before so it should be a hoot. Michelle and I are staying at a hotel the night before, she won a night's stay in a raffle, so really looking forward to spending some time with her...just the 2 of us....doesn't happen very much with 2 energetic girls, but it should be nice and relaxing........
Lastly, my sister made a comment about putting some photo's up, and its funny, because I was sent a reminder about registering for a run on the Norther Beaches which I did last year called the Pub to Pub , its a 13km run, so I pulled up some photos from that run, and compared it to a photo of me in the SMH Half Marathon last month, check out the man boobs I had 10months ago....pretty impressive rack huh!
Well, thats about all I have for now, thanks for reading through this epic....strange, once I start, I just goes on and on...something I will try and make shorter in the future!
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
In the begginning there was....a fat bastard!
Let me roll this story back to March 2008 whereby I began running with the encouragement of a mate from work (thanks Milo). I had decided upon hitting the 'ton' mark on the scales warrented a change from drinking several beers a night and crap eating habits to at least getting back to the mid 80's by the end of the year.
I was also hauled into the BRW corporate triathlon and loved it. I was crap, slow and knackered for days afterwards, but that triathlon did in fact plant a seed, and a goal to compete in the 2009 BRW and be faster and fitter. In fact I missed it this year, because I actually went up to port Macquarie to watch the real deal...the Iron Man, and support some mates as they did it.
Anyway, fast forward to Septemberish in 2008, and this is where I met Allen 'ALM' Pearso who along with the talented Rob Heking, introduced me to Mingara Triathlon club (well, I essentially butted into their conversation during a trotters run, and Allen probably regrets the day he invited me along to the next race)
Well, since starting all this 13months ago, I have now set myself the goal of competing in the Port Macquire Iron Man in March 2010. I have a fantastic support network around me, all the guys from Mingara who I train with (Al, AC, Tim, Freney, Rollo (coach) and the talented Vlad (who is a complete animal!)
Michelle (my wife) thinks I am a nutcase for setting this goal, and the only reason I can give her is - why not? I guess its one of those things you do - set yourself a goal, push yourself to the limit and see just how far you can go. The thing is, I really enjoy the training, I enjoy the times I spend doing each session, I am grateful to be able to do these things, many others physically, mentally and financially cant). I am grateful to Michelle, who even with hr doubts about this goal, still supports me, buys all the things I need, putting my needs for all the kit and nutrition and 'toys' ahead of what she needs....so, I better bloody finish this or else I will need plastic surgery!!
So, this blog is for anyone interested in follow my preperations over the next 9months in order to achieve this goal. Hopefully it will all be as good as the last 13months have been, and maybe provide a little inspiration to someone to set some goals for themselves and follow through, because, lords knows, if I can, anyone can!!
Ah, hopefully not all my blogs will be this long....
I was also hauled into the BRW corporate triathlon and loved it. I was crap, slow and knackered for days afterwards, but that triathlon did in fact plant a seed, and a goal to compete in the 2009 BRW and be faster and fitter. In fact I missed it this year, because I actually went up to port Macquarie to watch the real deal...the Iron Man, and support some mates as they did it.
Anyway, fast forward to Septemberish in 2008, and this is where I met Allen 'ALM' Pearso who along with the talented Rob Heking, introduced me to Mingara Triathlon club (well, I essentially butted into their conversation during a trotters run, and Allen probably regrets the day he invited me along to the next race)
Well, since starting all this 13months ago, I have now set myself the goal of competing in the Port Macquire Iron Man in March 2010. I have a fantastic support network around me, all the guys from Mingara who I train with (Al, AC, Tim, Freney, Rollo (coach) and the talented Vlad (who is a complete animal!)
Michelle (my wife) thinks I am a nutcase for setting this goal, and the only reason I can give her is - why not? I guess its one of those things you do - set yourself a goal, push yourself to the limit and see just how far you can go. The thing is, I really enjoy the training, I enjoy the times I spend doing each session, I am grateful to be able to do these things, many others physically, mentally and financially cant). I am grateful to Michelle, who even with hr doubts about this goal, still supports me, buys all the things I need, putting my needs for all the kit and nutrition and 'toys' ahead of what she needs....so, I better bloody finish this or else I will need plastic surgery!!
So, this blog is for anyone interested in follow my preperations over the next 9months in order to achieve this goal. Hopefully it will all be as good as the last 13months have been, and maybe provide a little inspiration to someone to set some goals for themselves and follow through, because, lords knows, if I can, anyone can!!
Ah, hopefully not all my blogs will be this long....
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