Crumbling Joints!!

As August approaches I cannot believe how chaotic 2015 has been. Training has been inconsistent, although there have been flashes of feeling strong and getting fit – only for those times to slip away because of various domestic crises. Being in Saudi has not been great for my health or racing ambitions. After a good 2014 and a decent ironman finish I really wanted to keep the momentum going. The opposite has happened and the body has started to crumble! Strangely, during a 3 week visit back to the UK during May when I was unable to train at all I started to get various niggles. The worst occurrence was knee pain. To cut a long story short it looks like I have some sort of Osteoarthritis or body immune system malfunction that is attacking my joints. My knee is swollen and my wrist is giving me problems. I have had an MRI that confirms the problem and inflammation within the synovial lining of my joints. All this is not good, though the advice from the medical folk is that exercise is good; maintain doing what you can. The result is that I can cycle and run ok but it takes a while to warm up the knee and feel ok(ish). Swimming is ok but I struggle to push off with any force – not really a problem with the important racing being open water swims. I am due to see a specialist back in the UK to identify the best course of action. It could be that I will have this problem for ever. Not happy. It makes sense that I have probably had this problem for some time; however, because I train so consistently I have naturally sort of kept the symptoms at bay. Then, with a prolonged period of inactivity the problem hits home. So how do I approach my goal of Challenge Half Bahrain scheduled as my main goal on 20 Nov 15? I just need to crack on and train the best I can. If I feel pain, rather than intense stiffness then I do not train; or I change the specific training that I am doing. I am not yet sure if running makes my joint worse. Cycling certainly feels ok once I am warmed up properly but sometimes that takes over 30 mins. My feeling is that I will need to limit running as much as possible whilst maintaining the potential to run sub 90 mins for the run at Bahrain. I am pretty much in that run shape now. So, bike monster time! Thanks to the RAF Sports Lottery I now have a lovely set of Garmin Vector pedals to monitor my bike training using power! This is a major shift in my training as I have always used ‘feel’ as my barometer for bike training and racing. The last few sessions that I have completed on the turbo using power as a guide have been very interesting. Not only am I monitoring the Watts; I am also completing different sessions. For example, I would pretty much use the same system to get bike fit each year – say 5 x 5 mins as hard as I can manage. These are basically VO2 Max sessions. So I have never completed targeted training levels based on FTP. Yesterday I did the main set as 60 mins at 80 – 83% of FTP with surges every 3 mins to 115% of FTP (lasting 10 sec). This was hard but I can see the benefits. Hopefully, I will have good bike legs for Bahrain and it will not matter too much if I am not running to potential!

Status Report - Not So Good

The 2015 Tri season is slipping away. As May 15 approached I was experiencing some good sessions over swim bike and run. Then BOOM! I had to return to the UK on compassionate leave. As normal I will not detail the circumstances of domestic aspects that impact training and racing; but safe to say that stress levels have been sky high and training all but dried up - unavoidable but frustrating too. So yet again it is time to regroup and build into some training. But I need a goal! Challenge Bahrain (half distance) was always planned to be the main goal of the season as it was scheduled to be in Dec 15. I would surely have time to prepare properly. The last few weeks have made me rethink that theory! But Challenge Bahrain has now opened for entries and I am in! The race will be held on 20 Nov 15. The start is around 1530 and the aim is to have an evening race with floodlit bike and run! That sounds like fun and this plot actually makes that logistics of racing far easier - registration and bike check-in become a leisurely task, rather than the normal stupid o'clock race morning chore. So what are my expectations? Well I have raced many half distance triathlons and I feel like I know what I should be capable. Sub 4:30 is the goal. If all goes well around 4:25 should be doable. I will be trying a few different things in training to prepare for this race. Firstly, I will be using power levels on the bike for training and racing. Previously, I have just used 'feel', with no gadgets whatsoever. There will be a major focus on swimming because I have such good access to pools here. Running has been in a good place all year (not quite sure how or why!); so the plan is to capitalise on this stance and shoot for the most efficient bike split ever (using power as a guide on race day) and unleash a killer run! This year has been so chaotic so far. If I can get 5 months of relative stability all should be good. If more events interrupt training significantly it could all go horribly wrong. I am not too happy about the lack of racing here. There are a couple of shorter races )Du and Tri) near Riyadh in Aug and Sep but nothing else to test the form. I will just have to be focussed on an even paced race come 20 November 15.

The Race to get Race Fit

Time has inched forward since my last brief post that confirmed my arrival in KSA. Yet again, there have been numerous ‘stressful incidents’ that have prevented our settling in to any type of routine. As normal, I will not detail these aspects as this is my triathlon journey. Whilst it is unavoidable to not be affected by personal and domestic ocurrences, I will remain true to the training and racing focus of this Blog. So where am I now with my triathlon ventures as we draw towards the end of March 2015? Well I am training regularly and have now received my bikes from the UK via the shipping company. Thankfully, no damage to anything. So I have 3 bikes here now: the old Caygill, which is permanently on the turbo, the Holdsworth road bike and my trusty Specialized Transition Pro TT race bike. Now that I am here, I wish that I had brought my single speed out also. It would have been ideal for riding round the compound. The only outdoor road riding I can do is round the compound, which is a 2.7 mile circuit, complete with speed humps that can be missed by sticking close to the curb. The circuit is totally flat; hence the single speed would have been ideal. It can be dusty here too; so the low maintenance on the single speed would have been well suited. Anyway, I am pleased to have my bikes and commenced regular pedaling! I had been off the bike since mid-Dec14! Now it is a race to get some bike legs back! I am building outdoor rides to around an hour and a half currently. But the bulk of bike work is on the turbo. I have some sufferfest sessions that I never seem to tire of and these are a great help to make the time fly by on the turbo. I am also maintaining strength and conditioning work in the gym, but always mix this up with tri specific sessions. For example, the last session was as follows: 25 min turbo build warm up 2 mile tempo run (6:30 mile pace) Strength and core 2 mile tempo repeat 12 min turbo efforts 2 mile tempo repeat Strength and core repeat 2 mile tempo effort 10 min turbo efforts 2 mile half IM pace run to cool down So you bag 10 miles of running with shredded legs!! My running is in a good place and far ahead of where I was this time last year. Despite the chaos of moving and regular ‘life trials’ I seem to have maintained consistent running and that has paid off. Last week I managed to get to a local 10k race at a different compound and somehow ended up winning it in 36:59. Whilst his is not a fast time, and the standard of the local running may not be strong, I was happy to be running at this pace at my age! With no speed work completed I am confident that a sub-36 min 10k is possible. However, and it is a big however, I have just thrown my name in the hat to race at The Outlaw Ironman again! This is back in the UK on 26 July 15. The big question is can I gain sufficient bike fitness over that distance to be competitive? I am confident that I will be in good run shape as long as I stay healthy. I have a good endurance base built up over many years and I am hoping that this fact will enable me to keep the bike sessions around 2 – 3 hours max completed at a decent pace. That should enable me to cruise a 5+ hour bike ride at the Ironman. Only time will tell if it works I suppose! As for swimming, I am totally spoilt for pool access! I have a 25m indoor pool that I can use whenever I want. I also have an outdoor lagoon pool that is not heated but ideal for wetsuit swimming, with a 50m stretch to complete laps. I am swimming every day and feeling good in the water. But I am concentrating on technique and I am not particularly fast in the water at the moment. I am banking on getting faster nearer to the race. Looking further ahead, I really want to race Challenge Bahrain in December. This is a half distance race and could be more suited to my abilities. I can drive there from my location and that greatly helps the logistics of traveling with bikes and equipment. So onwards and upwards! I have a 5k handicap race on Friday and would like to run around 17:45 if the course is fast. It will be the weather that is the deciding factor I reckon as the heat is building now as the year progresses. I must get some pics recorded on here; so stand by for that.

I am Alive!

The move to Saudi is complete-ish! Still no unaccompanied baggage, which means no bikes 8-( But the swimming is great here. Numerous pools to choose from that are no more than a short walk from my villa. . . . yes, it is a villa. I will sort some pics and get some training updates underway - in case anyone remains in Blog Land! Liking Saudi and getting used to the driving habits. My problem will be when I go back to the UK! I will have to be more considerate!

Winter Training

Since September, when I carried some very good form out of The Outlaw, trianing took a dip as I was deployed on exercise for 2 weeks. So it was time to regroup. So the focus through October has been starting overall strength and conditioning. Then building on that start through November. To be honest cycling and running with tired and achy legs has been quite tough. But I am getting stronger. Last Thursday I flipped my normal strength session by completing some run efforts prior to the gym work. Normally I include running within the strength work as gas feet treadmill or 2 mile run efforts outside. This time I completed 2 x 2 mile tempo runs with 3 mins recovery. I hit 12:07 for each rep, both with a negative split. With no speed work at all I am quite happy with those times. Then I completed my strength work and ran another 2 miles with wobbly legs in 12:45. A long run today felt ok, although my legs were still aching from Friday. So the running seems to be going well. With a cross country race at Cosford on 26 Nov, I hope to go full effort for the first time in a while. Cycling is going ok but no real distance or efforts. But I do kick in with some fartleck commutes to and from work. I will wait until I get to Saudi before really hitting the swimming big time!

That Was 2014 - Part 1

Well, the race season has come and gone. We seem to wait an age for the season to arrive, battling through the cold dark winter. Then, when we finally get to race in some sunshine the season seems to be over in a flash. Quite depressing really. Looking back at the year, can I call it a success? Let's review the year that was 2014! As normal for me the season opened with the Dambuster Duathlon. Having raced at Rutland Water many times I kind of lack enthusiasm for a race that is early in the year and just too cold for my old bones! A second place finish in my Age Group qualified me for the 2015 European Duathlon Champs. I have to remember that I had done no speed work at all in a quest to stay injury free. So a 38:30 run split was ok.

The next triathlon was The Clumber Park Duathlon, which was also designated as the RAF Duathlon Champs. This was sprint distance, which was far too pacey for me! There was no way I was going to get near Mal Rose and he easily won the RAF Vets race, with me a distant 2nd off my long distance training (3rd age group on the day). April Still rather cold for me, the Inter-Services Duathlon Champs were held 5th Apr over the Sprint distance again. A third place finish in the Vet category was surprising as my lack of speed work really showed and I had not eased down. Next duathlon venture was the English Champs up in Yorkshire

The sun did shine for this, although it was rather chilly. A really pleasing first run split of 36:40 set me up well here for a Silver medal

Happy enough with that result off minimal run speed training. So the early season duathlon training races were over, and I was glad to get the cold races over with. Time to focus on some swimming for the first triathlon of the season. . . .

Drifting Along

Well the final event last weekend has come and gone - The Tour 100 Ride, based on the Staffs Moorlands Tour of Britain stages. This means loads of hills. Actually, for me, it was The Tour 47 Ride 8-( Disaster struck at 47 miles when my rear mech hanger and chain both snapped! What happened I am not quite sure. There was a clunk and then everything flat apart. I was riding steady on the flat so I can't blame my immense power output for the failure. The day started cold but bright and dry. Along with Mat, Reg and an Army pal of Reg`s we were doing ok. But at barely half way I have to say that I was not feeling great. The truth is I suppose that I was not in shape to hammier round 100 hilly miles. The others did well to complete the ride off limited training. As luck would have it I was only 3 miles from home so with my new scooter I bimbled home rather Fed up. It really feels like I have been drifting along with training and that never feels good. After recovering well from The Outlaw I had 2 weeks away on exercise playing soldiers. Then I became ill for 2 weeks. Then recovered and crammed some late pointless riding to try and get some form for the tour 47. And now it is mid October and I am wondering what to do. I fly to Saudi with my family in Jan 15. Then it is settle in time and see what 2015 racing can be done. So the immediate issue is what to do between now and Jan 15. I want to build up some strength work in the gym in order to keep injury at bay. Plus tick over cycling and running. Swimming will have to wait until Saudi where I will have unlimited pool access. All this sounds ok. But why do I feel unhappy with that? I think I need a goal. Last year I had the Outlaw and some key races along the way. I won't have any of that. It is strangely unsettling.