A Bit Like London Buses.....

You don't see one for hours and then two come along at once!

Sarah and I have only just booked our flights to visit the Motherland and today in a rush to grab the decent flight times and good prices, we also booked our flights down to Clearwater for the Worlds in November. You don't have a vacation for months (Charleston in February) and then you book flights for two in a matter of days!

Both should be great trips and Clearwater will be the ending of a long season, just the right time to spend a few days on the beach after the final race of the year (and before winter sets in here in Maryland). Before then however, we have lots of training to do and we have to navigate the infested waters of a trip to England (last two weeks in August)......

Anyone would have thought that going back to England would be an easy trip to plan and one where we can have a two week rest amongst friends and family. Not so fast....except for the four days out in Spain visiting Sarah's parents, which will be relaxing along the Mediterranean Sea on the Costa Blanca coast, the rest is a matter of trying to squeeze everyone and everything into a few days. It will be a positive whirlwind of activity.

For the past week or so we have been trying to organize a schedule for while we are in England and it appears to be working out well at the moment....with the exception of a few stubborn people ;-) it looks as though we will be able to see everyone! The trick now will be getting in some decent training (only a month away from ChesapeakeMan) and not succumbing to the healthy english diet of fish & chips, beer (none of the "Lite" stuff) and stodgy puddings (desserts!).....oh yeah and trying not to catch a cold in the delightful English weather!

Creative menu, huh!

80 degrees at 6AM........

Wow....is all I can say after my 1-hour run this morning! I headed out at 6AM to get a run in before work and quickly decided that swimming in the morning is the better option. Listening to the local news radio while running, the weatherman stated it was 80 degrees and high humidity....IT WAS 6AM! The run was bit of a struggle as well, not only was it hot and humid, it was with an empty stomach and not exactly the best of preparation from the night before....

I think I must have jinxed myself in my last post regarding meeting the key workouts for the week. Tuesday's workouts were hit dead on but then Wednesday's long evening run was shortened when I worked later than expected (or wanted!). Thursday was a complete wash-out and therefore was an unscheduled rest-day. I should probably call it a non-exercise day as meetings and public hearings got me home at 10:00PM (and in bed at 10:30PM, who says we don't live an exciting life!).

And that brings me to how nutrition plays such a huge part in the training/racing and overall lifestyle of triathlon (and I guess it should be life in general). As I mentioned earlier my run this morning was bit of a struggle and yes I did run without first having breakfast but it was primarily due to not being able to prepare correctly the night before.

Typically Sarah and I have dinner at about 8:30PM (after training) and then an hour before bed will have a "dessert" such as fruit, pretzel, yogurt etc. That generally sets me up for a morning workout and if swimming I will eat a couple of slices of raisin bread on the way to the pool. In recent weeks we have made a more conscious effort to limit added sugar in our diet and it appears, so far, to be having a positive effect. I feel as though I have a more constant energy level rather than having peak/troughs throughout the day and certainly do not find myself looking through the cupboards for "treats" as much as I was. I'm sure the long-term benefits will have a much greater effect on both training and health in general, even if it does mean that we spend twice as much time in the grocery store looking at the nutrition labels!

With the heat of the Mid-Atlantic upon us for the summer season, we can't do without a weekly trip to Rita's for some frozen custard and that is the sugary treat for the week....that's what gets you through a 95 degree 5-hour bike ride, knowing a vanilla/chocolate twist frozen custard with caramel is waiting for you later in the day :)

Hank Marvin......

This past week all I seem to have done is eat, I've been Hank Marvin (Starving!). No longer than an hour after I eat I am hungry again and need to search around the house or office for fruit or some other healthy snack. My metabolism must have gone into overdrive and is probably due to the increase in training the past two weeks.

For much of February and March I had plateaued at 14 hour weeks but last week was increased to 15 hours and this week will be about 16.5 hours. Making gains in training and racing is often about breaking the boundaries and not settling for the norm. You need to change things up and strive to push the envelope just that bit extra. As I have often heard the meaning of Madness is to do the same thing over and over and expect different results.

With that in mind I decided to do the group ride last night on the TT bike and then make sure that the run off the bike was hard, fast and not just cruising along at a comfortable pace (having done an interval swim set in the morning). As per usual the group ride turned into a hammerfest and then I ran a rolling 35 minutes at 6:30 pace. Mission accomplished and it made the Belgian waffles afterwards that much better to know that I had earned them.

After another swim this morning though I am once again feeling the need to eat constantly and the plate of donuts in the office kitchen sure is looking tempting, especially that sour cream donut looking forlorn amongst all the more glamorous and glitzy chocolate frosting and glazed ones........

The Domino Effect.......

No this post isn't about pizzas, although after this past weekends hard workouts I was definitely craving some pizza ;-)

The "domino effect" is something that generally goes unnoticed but is a crucial element of the weekend group ride. Without the "domino effect" everyone would be groveling their way back to cars absolutely destroyed from the ride and in no fit shape to get home. So what is the "domino effect" and how can you impact it?

Well, it all starts from the front of the group and therefore whenever you are up there pushing the pace, don't forget about it.....as I mentioned before it's a crucial element of the group ride! So there you are tapping out the tempo at the front and everyone behind is having a good ole time, chatting, moaning about the weather, showing off their new super light, shiny bike part and generally enjoying the drafting effect of a 50 rider strong group.....oblivious to the domino effect!

This is where the domino effect is essential, the riders within the first few rows have to take a drink or have something to eat and then just watch what happens....gradually a huge proportion of the group will follow suit and either eat or drink something! It truly is something to marvel at and probably tells us some very interesting things about human behavior.

There you have it, the beginnings of the domino effect. The key is for the riders at the front to remember every now and again to drink/eat and therefore they are looking after the well-being of the whole group. Without the leaders doing it everyone would get to the 50 mile point and would have not eaten or drunk anything. The problems then begin in the final hour or so when the hammer goes down and BOOM people realize that they have nothing left [due to the lack of fluids/food...or lack of fitness :-)] and get dropped like Jan Ulrich in March!. That just leaves everyone’s worst enemy, the dreaded "Bonk" lurking just around the corner or at the top of that next hill....

The Domino Effect is a funny thing to watch and if you haven't noticed it, just look out for it at your next group ride. If you are at the front remember to look after everyone else and if you find yourself drinking, think why you did it, was it habit? or the fact that the rider in front took a swig? either way perhaps pay more attention to your nutrition needs in the future!