It Begins in Earnest

It begins in earnest.

It begins with a video, a fleeting flash of pixels. It begins with a thought.

It begins with success, it begins with failure. It begins when there are no answers to why you shouldn’t.

It begins with a proclamation, as things like this should. It begins with a whisper in the night.

Most importantly, it begins now.

This is my proclamation.

This is my beginning.

Starting on November 15, 2009, I am going to embark on a journey that many (but a vast minority) have done. I will start my training for an iron-distance race. The journey for me will culminate on July 31, 2010 in Windsor, California, where I will participate in the Full Vineman. I will not be alone. Suzanne Duncan will be joining me in training as she prepares for a harder challenge in Ironman Idaho. Marisa Pirih will join me as she prepares for her race of choice, hopefully Louisville or something as epic as her ability. Others will jump in too, with the same single minded determination that brings us out and sets us in motion. I want to hear from those others. I want to share the journey with you. Please write and tell me about your journey and where it will come to fruition. These next six months will be truly a test of time, effort and concentration.

Like any sane person, I have a plan. This isn’t some weekend warrior event, and that doesn’t suit me well. During the past year, I found myself back in the fray with the triathletes, though heavier and slower than I had hoped. But I was in. I proved to myself that I could still survive, still hammer, and eventually I started to see some success. Through all of this I was utterly uncommitted to a consistent training plan. When push came to shove, I trained hard as was evident for the Escape race last year. Then I survived on grit alone for some of the sprints. That was not a good plan. There were times where I knew I could go faster, but I could not find the juice to get there.

Training was a mishmash of different plans, a punctuated equilibrium of weeks seeing me put in 12 hours, only to follow it up with a week of no running and a couple of swims. It is important to note something about my psyche, as well as my life. Things come easy to me. I have always been blessed with success in my activities and this is a terrible attitude to put toward triathlon training. Though some of you may read this as shameless self-promotion, I actually write it to show my shortcomings. My saving grace has always been my mental preparation. Though the physical training lacked, the mental focus was always sharp. I concentrated on every race and often relied on my mind to get me through the failings of my body. As I look toward next summer, I have this suspicion that focus alone will not be able to get me through 12-13 hours of racing. I will need more, and it is time I admitted it and put some real effort into my physical preparation.

As I said before, I need a plan. Without a plan, a rubric, a connect-the-dots approach, I will be apt to drift and lose interest. This isn’t due to a lack of focus, or a waning portion of my desire, rather just a simple choice in balance of my life. With a plan, I can have check marks, and check marks are good. My plan will be extremely goal oriented with definitive results and markers to let me know where I stand. These little markers will tell me if I am on my way to success or not. Here is my plan, and as I look forward I really, really have some apprehension. As the cliché goes though, if it were easy, everybody would do it.

Fueling Plan:
-I will keep my caloric intake at or under 2100 calories per day.

-I will eliminate all manufactured foods from my diet, as they can carry some of the worst nutrition for training.

-I will keep my saturated fat intake to under 10% of my caloric intake.

-I will eliminate sodas, and all foods that contain HFCS.

-I will fuel before and after each workout correctly.

-I will allow myself 200 bonus calories per day that I exceed my workout length or volume.

-I will drink 124 oz of water every day.

-I will listen to my body.


Training Plan:
-I will train six days per week, never less than 12 total hours.

-I will have a run focused plan, with at least 4 scheduled runs every week.

-I will swim three times per week, focusing on volume and technique, rather than speed.

-I will bike three to four times per week, focusing on volume and speed.

-I will brick every bike with a short run.

-My run markers will be measured monthly, to ensure proper progress is being made.

-I will always have at least one rest day.

-I will listen to my body.


Body Plan:
-I will stretch.

-I will take yoga once…grrrr…maybe twice a month. Grrrrr….

-I will get at least 6 hours of sleep per night.

-I will take my blood pressure and weight every week and track results.

-I will monitor my heart rate on every workout and track results.

-I will monitor my resting heart rate every month.

-I will visit a doctor every month and a half for a fitness check up.

-I will have my VO2 max done three times to measure change.

Race Plan:
-I will do all of the indoor series at the beginning of the year to see how my body responds to high intensity races.

-I will race Belews Sprint in April.

-I will race White Lake Half in May.

-I will race Escape from Alcatraz in June.

-I will race Vineman in July.

-I absolutely will not over-race, or race if I don’t think I can give it my all.


I think this can be done, if I stay focused and keep to this plan. My motivation is my fear of not finishing. Iron distances are more of a test of training than a sprint. Support will be critical, and I thank all of you ahead of time for how much you will mean to me with your support.

It begins with a thought, a plan, a hope. It begins in earnest.

Until next time, lux aeterna.

Race smart.

-The Mental-ist