Shock to the System

No bicycles and no loitering. Come and get me, copper!

Though my "training season" doesn't officially start until tomorrow, I believe my recent training sessions have shocked me into triathlon training shape. The past two weeks have been chock full of workouts. Though I had last Monday off for a colonoscopy and took Tuesday off to recover from that, it has been full bore since then. 60 minute run Wednesday, 20 mile bike ride on Thursday, 40 minute swim on Friday morning with a 60 minute run in the evening. Saturday, I did some tempo bike work to the tune of 45 miles. Yesterday was a 55 minute recovery run and then today, a 55 mile ride with the Half Ironman Program. I tried to get a swim in this afternoon but a thunderstorm rolled in and cut the swim short.

The ride today was interesting... I was leading a group of Half Ironman Program athletes (HIPsters) from DC Tri Club. I had never ridden with any of them before. One young woman fell off her bike coming out of Glen Echo and then about five miles into the ride, fell off her bike again on Brickyard Road and almost got run over by a car. I was obligated to help her at that point so I told the group to ride ahead while I assisted her with how to change her gears. She was not getting down into the small chain ring for the steep uphills. After about 10 miles, I got her squared away and she actually did pretty well from that point on. I am now unofficially her "Cycling Coach". Additionally, I forgot to take my inhaler (for my newfound asthma) and I could definitely feel tightness in my chest throughout the ride. As I wasn't riding with Chad & KDOG, my effort level wasn't as high as usual so I managed to do ok and get through the ride without any problems.

We are now under 6 months until Ironman Arizona so I am starting up my specific training regimen and nutrition plan. Something that came out of the colonoscopy experience (which resulted in a negative for the Big C... no polyps or anything at all) was the concept of fasting. On Friday's, I am going to try and stick to a liquid diet to help clean out the system for the heavier training days of Saturday/Sunday. I believe that this weekend, KDOG, Chad and I are going to try to head out to Sugarloaf Mountain from their place on Capitol Hill. So... a 100 mile ride is on the horizon... already. The Total 200 is on July 12... so... stay tuned.


Chad and TJ goofing off before the Total 200 2008


Is something going in my mouth... or is something about to come out?

-- TJ