The run was the one thing I didn’t really worry about going in to any of the races last season, but it was the one part that I always fell apart on. I can’t think of a good thing to say about any of my run legs  from last year other than “I finished”.

While racing Mooseman 70.3 (my 1st ever triathlon) I blamed the horrendous hills on the bike for killing my legs and at Bangs Lake I actually felt good going in to the run and planned to make up some time from my not so stellar ride… Fail. I’ve never been so angry after a race.

It’s really important to me to do well in EVERY race this year, so I’m open to anything I can do to improve my overall performance. The article was full of great tips, so I suggest reading it.

One of the big things I want to do is take part in a Biomechanics clinic. I’m hitting up a clinic at Runner’s High n’ Tri in Arlington Heights. The purpose of the clinic is to become a more efficient runner by working on your body position. I’m pretty pumped about it.

Another thing the article mentioned and Coach Jen often has me work on is cadence. Running cadence sometimes feels like a tedious task, but it is key to efficiency. Personally I find it diffacult to keep a high cadence, I often find myself over striding.

I’m adding a Garmin foot pod when I run so I get cadence data for all of my runs and not just the one’s where Coach tells me to keep track of!

So like the article says, it’s an “Early Season Check-in”. I think now is the time to start making these little changes to the way you swim, bike and run in order use them properly so you will perform well come race day!

Check out some awesome events and clinics to help you prep for the up coming race season – Endurance Sports Events

Get started with some basic info to help decide if it’s time to get a TT bike – Transition: From a road bike to a TT bike

How do you feel about relay teams being allowed in Ironman 70.3 races? – Relays in a Ironman event, will it hurt the brand?

Get some new shades and help a good cause at the same time – Oakley Charity Editions

You have a family, obligations and training, how to make it all work – Family, Life, Training, How to fit it all in

Right now I’m trying to balance being a Stay at Home Dad of a 2 year old and a 3 month old, and training. Lately I’ve been trying to be a super early morning (like 3 or 4am) person, so I can workout before “work” starts but there are some variables where even that fails. For example the last two days my 2 year old woke up several times between 2am and 4 am. And when he’s up at 4 HE. IS UP!  So that killed my early AM swims.

Yesterday I decided to hit the pool at 8pm instead, unfortunately it was closed for repair. The new plan (with Coach Jen’s approval) was to make the swim up today and do a double workout. I was pretty pumped about this! I would swim in the morning and do my Bike/Run brick in the afternoon. A total swim/bike/run day HOLLA!

Wrong… Well not totally, but it hasn’t panned out so far. My son was up at 4am, good bye morning swim… So the plan right now is to Bike/Run in the afternoon still and then swim tonight.

My only issue with night workout is that at the end of the day, weather I was working in an office downtown or managing 2 kids at home, I’m worn out! I NEED to bang these swims, rides and runs in first thing in the morning to assure they get done, and get done well.

At the beginning of this seasons training schedule, I talked to Jen about my new stay at home situation and mentioned that if I could do a bunch of my runs on a treadmill that it would make my life a little easier. She said that running outside is always best, but treadmill was okay as long as I ran at a 1-2% incline to simulate running outdoors.

So in a couple weeks my treadmill should be here, which theoretically help me get more workouts done during the kids naptime. Right now I can always ride my Felt bike on a trainer while they sleep. Last season even in the nicest weather I had to do trainer rides when I needed to be home, so did them in the back yard!

But running, just like swimming, is an issue because of the weather, amount of day light and length of time I need to run.

Today’s run is only a 15 minute hard run off the bike. Though its not ideal, for 15 minutes in 40 degree weather I can put the kids in a jogger and get it done. But if it’s an hour or more that can be a problem in the winter. So then it’s treadmill time.

So right now I’m trying to find a perfect balance… or maybe a good enough balance.

What do you do to make sure you get your training in?

“People often say they wear their hart on their sleeve, but we know Oakley fans would rather wear theirs on their face.”

Most people are familiar with the Oakley LIVESTRONG collection, sporting Lance’s iconic yellow and black color scheme.

Oakley LIVESTRONG Jawbone

But were you aware of the YSC Breast Cancer Awareness Edition

Oakley Commit SQ Breast Cancer Awareness Edition

or the TACA Series Shades and the Oakley Infinite Hero Collection?

Oakley TACA Fuel Cell

What makes all these cool (besides how they look) is that a portion of the proceeds goes directly to the charity it supports.

Even if you’re not in the market for some killer new shades for the beach or race season, each collection also sells T-shirts, Hats, Keychains and other cool items. You can check out the whole catalog of Oakley Charity Editions here.

Really?

Ironman is the marquee name in the world of triathlon. From the World Championship in Kona Hawaii to the 70.3 or Half Ironman races in places like Muncie, IN it’s supposed to be the ultimate tests of endurance. Your body remains in constant motion from 4 to 17 hours depending on how fast you are.

In an article from Outside Magizine, the question was asked Why race an Ironman?

“Because marathon’s have been ruined by people who think it’s fine to walk.”

That was a great line! It really hammers home why people not only do triathlon, but why they choose an Ironman event. So it makes me wonder why, with that kind of following opening up some races to relay teams seemed like a good idea?

The Chicago Marathon, a World Major Marathon does not allow any relay teams (unless you’re Hope Solo). They are asked to make exceptions every year, and respond to each one the same way. 

“We do not have a relay division. Each participant must individually complete the full 26.2 mile distance.”

The Ironman website says the purpose of the relays is “For those who want to try triathlon, but don’t feel quite ready for all three disciplines.”

Well if you’re not ready for all THREE disciplines in a TRIathalon, that might be a good goal to set for yourself. Think about it… if you’re a runner and your not ready to run marathon or half marathon, you would most likely train, run shorter races and eventually build up to your goal of completing your desired race… TA-DAAAA!!!

If Ironman wants to continue to brand itself as one of the most difficult major endurance events, don’t open up races to everyone who wants an M-Dot t-shirt. If you’re just looking to get started in triathlon this coming season, find a training program or coach, some sprint or olympic distance races, and train hard to perform well!

Coach Jen just said to me yesterday when I was unmotivated to swim “Winners are made in the winter.”

Happy Training

My road bike was great for last years 70.3 and Olympic distance races, but Jen said if I’m going to do an Ironman I needed a tri bike. You may be asking what the difference is between to the two. 

Road Bike: Felt AR5

 A road bike has a style that most beginner triathletes are familiar with. The design is meant to be riden in an upright position with your hands on the handle bars. They’re perfectly good for riding in a triathlon, you can add clip on aerobars to ride in an aero position. 

Triathlon Bike: Felt B16

 A triathlon bike like the Felt B16 pictured above is designed around riding in the aero position. Studies also show that you may run faster off the a tri bike (versus a road bike), by putting your weight forward it relieves pressure on your hamstrings.

Shifting is another major difference between the two bike styles. While the road bike is build with the shifters built in the handle bars. So even if you’re using clip on aerobars, you’d need to come out of aero position to shift gears.

Vision Metron Shifters: Felt DA4

With the Tri bike, your shifters are at the ends of the aerobars. This configuration allows you to shift with very little movement, keeping you in aero. The cables are also hidden in the frame to make the bike a little more aerodynamic. 

Triathlon Bike: Felt DA4

 Those are just a few of the things I’ve learned in the past couple of weeks while I’ve been getting ready to start riding a tri bike. 

With the help of Felt Bicycles, I’m going to start playing with 2 TT bikes this season. The B16 is an entry level tri bike and the DA4 which is a new model based off the DA1, Felt’s top of the line TT bike. In addition to information about getting started training with a tri bike, I’ll be bringing you training tips from the pro’s. Look for a “Transition” article each Tuesday!

So while your mind is wandering, it might as well be thinking about something that could help you come race day. Here are a few good speaker events coming up!

Trek Store of Highland Park
Meet Mat Steinmetz on January 25th 6pm – RSVP Here 
A performance advisor to Ironman World Champ Craig Alexander, Mat will talk about his coaching and training experinces with many elite athletes like Juile Dibens and Mirinda Carfrae. He’ll also talk about the importance of a bike fit and the large role it plays into an athletes success.

Running Away Multisport
My Coach Jen Harrison and my buddy Dan “Cubicle Dad” Malinski will be guest speakers at Running Away Multisport Clybourn Store on Feb 1st, 7pm. Dan and Jen will be talking about his weightloss journey as well marathoning. You can trust me when I say there are no dumb questions to ask Jen… becuase I asked them all already! You can RSVP for this event on the RAMultisport Facebook page.  

Garmin Chicago
This isn’t a speaking event, but it can be really helpful. The Garmin Store on Michigan Ave is offering a GPS Academy. So if you got the new Forerunner for Christmas and need some assistance to utilize everything it offers Garmin is here to help. You can schedule a 1 hour one-0n-one session to learn all the tricks of your new device. There is a charge of $15 ($8 if you have your receipt), but that’s a small price to pay for a tutor! You can make an appointment here.

Fleet Feet Chicago
Hows your form? Each Tuesday Fleet Feet Lincoln Square offers a Good Form Running Clinic at 6:30pm.  Learn how to run fast and more efficiently by doing running drills while getting instruction on how to improve your form. You’ll also get a video analysis of your running form and how to improve it. Each class is limited to 20 people, so make sure to RSVP!

Runners High ‘n Tri
Runners High ‘n Tri is holding some Biomechanic and Dynamic running seminars. During the 4 week course participants will learn more effective and individually beneficial biomechanics. There are 4 sessions 2-times per week and a registration fee of $120. The current sessions are full but you can keep an eye on when new ones are starting on the Runners High ‘n Tri Facebook Page.

ProKine Performance
Jessie Stensland of MovementU will be coming to ProKine Performance in St Charles April 14th & 15th. Jessie will be doing day-long camps showing Stratgies for Speed & Sustainability in swimming, cycling and running. You can register here. Plus check out the ProKine website to learn more about their TRX functional strength classes and training.

After the test, my legs were shot and my lungs worse. I had a long hard coughing session as I uploaded the results to Training Peaks. Apparently doing and all out bike test was a poor decision on my part because the cough got worse and my illness kicked back in.

My plan was to get up early and go to the pool the next morning, but when I woke up my head was pounding, I was congested and still coughing. I skipped the swim in the morning and thought maybe my condition would improve and I could do it in the evening. Boy was I wrong, that evening I ended up at the Walgreen’s clinic getting drugs for a sinus infection.

I sent an email to Jen who told me to take it easy until felt better. That day didn’t come until Sunday. I finally felt okay enough to ride a little.

When you have a lot of training to do in order to meet lofty goals any amount of time your forced to sit out pounds at your brain. Each day I’d wake up to an auto-email from Jen with my scheduled workout and think about how not completing it is effecting Florida 70.3. Sunday I did a modified workout and was really excited get back at it. Not only to get back on track, but it was going to be my first session on a new bike!

For the bike test I rode my Madone but for the remainder of the season I’ll be working out and racing on a Felt B16 and Felt DA4 tri-bikes. It’ll be part of a weekly segment about transitioning to riding a Tri bike.

So you can look for that each Tuesday!

The video, though really cool doesn’t come close to giving a clear idea of what’s to come in the next 2 days. But it does look like what ever it is will appeal to more than just runners.

The video shoes Hope Solo kick boxing and Kevin Durant playing basketball as well as someone golfing, running and walking.

The “+” following the Nike Swoosh indicates it’ll be part of a Nike+ upgrade. I would guess that they’ll be offering new training plans geared towards specific sports.

I’ve always been a fan of Nike+ and it played a huge part in making me a runner, but there was definitely room for improvement. By adding a heart rate monitor and eventually GPS, Nike showed that they were dedicated to staying in the game when it came to training data.

I’m very curious to see what will be next when they unveil the new product on 1-19-12.

When I picked up my road bike I asked what size bike would fit me and based on my height I ended up with a 56cm. As I started looking in to Tri and TT bikes I got mixed answers sizing. What it comes down to is getting a proper bike fit.

I’m going to be riding a one of Felt Bicycles TT bikes this season. Luckily Running Away Multisport is not only a Felt dealer, but they also have one of the coolest fit systems around the GURU DFU (Dynamic Fit Unit).

I met up with Fit Specialist Brian, who went over every detail of what was going to happen. After taking my measurements and outfitting the DFU with a set of Felt TT handlebars, Felt seat and a pair of SpeedPlay pedals it was time to clip in and get fitted!

What makes a fitting on the DFU different is that the unit is equipped with motors that allowed Brian to adjust the seat and handle bar position while I was riding. At no point do you have to get off the bike during the process. At the front of the machine are two laser levels to give your fit specialist an easy way to determine if your knees are in alignment (mine were not).

Brian determined that it may be an issue with the cleat placement on my shoes as well as the length of the stems on my pedals. As it turns it out was a little combination of both. After a few adjustments Brian began setting the seat and handle bar positions for optimal aerodynamics as well as comfort. He explained that while having proper aero position is important, if you’re not able to stay in that position for 70% of your ride then the bike isn’t set up correctly for you.

By making several small adjustments and comparing them much like an eye exam (which feels better #1 or #2), we found the most comfortable aero position to provide the most efficient ride. 

 And as if a specialist standing next to you watching your every move isn’t enough, the DFU utilized a video camera and laser pinpoints at your ankle, knee, hip and shoulder to precisely dial in your fit!

Brian was able to play back the video from my fitting showing those pin points and explain not only what range he was looking for but why it was important. He pointed out that I have some unwanted rotation in my hips and then told me a few ways to correct it including exercises and foam rolling.

The whole process only took a couple of hours and in the end Brian determined I would have no problem fitting on a Felt 54cm bike. Right now the team at Running Away Multisport are building my new ride to the exact measurements from my fit!

Brian said I’ll have to come back a few times between now and Ironman Wisconsin for some small adjustments, but for right now I’m fit perfectly!

A big thanks to Brian for helping me out (and taking all these pictures!)