Game Over (Part 3: I think)

Dad calls me last week and unfortunately suffered an injury and won't be able to race this year.  I'm so sad for him and disappointed.  He was 80% ready and on track.

I originally planned to race on my own, but once he signed up I was committed to racing next to him and finishing by his side.  Over the past few months, I've wanted to quit to focus on bodybuilding, but didn't want to bail on Dad.  

Today is the last day to withdrawal from the race and get a partial refund.  I've been weighing my options going forward.  

Ironman

Good

• Awesome Race Day experience....like no other
• Admiration and respect of family/friends
• Cool accomplishment to reflect on
• Already signed up, been training 10 months

Bad

• Behind on my training
• Pain in hips, knees, IT band
• Do not enjoy biking or swimming
• Do not look forward to training each day
• Find myself skipping SBR workouts to lift
• Time consuming, especially on the weekends

I think the bottom line for me is that I should enjoy and look forward to the training and the race....and I don't.  So I don't think it makes sense to race the Ironman next month. I plan to step away from endurance racing for a few years to refocus on Bodybuilding.  

As I read through previous blog posts here and at beniger.blogspot.com it becomes clear to me that neither Triathlon or Bodybuilding are a perfect fit for me.

5 Months to Go!

Ironman Chattanooga is only 5 months away....yikes!  I've been training, but not swimming, biking, and running weekly.

Training Highlights from April

• 4/18/2015 Bike for Heroes Ride - 58 mile ride on Time Trial
• 8 mile run in San Diego

Dad is still on track with training and doing really well.

We are on track to race together.  I plan to catch up to him at some point on the bike and stay with him to the finish line.  

I'm getting very excited!

Hot Yoga?

I learned about Hot Yoga several years ago from reading Dan John's book.  I was self-aware...tight, stiff muscles needing serious attention.  The fear of sweating too much and not being able to do most poses kept me away until today.  I bought the 10 session Groupon and jumped in.

It was incredible.  I sweat 4lbs all over the place.  But I experience stress relief and deep stretching.  The heat was great to help me stretch and I didn't feel awkward with everyone else sweating too.

I think this should be a good off-season plan to improve my strength and flexibility that will hopefully keep me injury free next year.

Dad's racing??!?!?

My 62 year old father is crazy like me.....makes sense, must be where I get it.  Last night he called and was about to hit submit on his Active.com registration for Ironman Chattanooga 2015.  I mentioned it to him as a fun thing to do together, but he dismissed it as "too old" to finish.  He's not too old, I certainly believe in him and know he'll do it.

This journey keeps getting better!

2015 Ironman Chattanooga

Well I'm in.  After failing to get in for the inaugural race in 2014, I took all of 90 second to register for the 2015 race.

I haven't been swimming, biking, or running much since IM Branson 70.3 2012....so this will be a fun journey.  I can't wait!

2013 Ironman Texas Update

This week I withdrew from the 2013 Ironman Texas race in the Woodlands.  I do not regret it yet, I will on May 18th 2013....and likely when I turn 40, but for now I'm thrilled to not have to Swim, Bike, and Run daily.

I'm enjoying lifting more, time with family, and more focus with my work.  Praise God that I have my health and am surrounded by loved ones.

Adios!

Game Over: Part 2

Similar to an old blog post. I'm moving on from tri training to get back to my first training love: Bodybuilding. I've missed it.  Started tri in 2004, then 2008 had a brief stint, and now 2012...so the safe bet is that I'll be back in 4 years to "tri" again.

My other blog that I'll keep up with is beniger.blogspot.com

Ironman Texas 2013

I expected Ironman Branson 70.3 to be my triathlon retirement race.  After all, this is the 3rd time I've tried to learn to swim and be a triathlete. Why would it be any different?

Well it was different, the swim was easy and enjoyable at IM Branson.  I finished with a BIG smile on my face and had a great race.  I love to race!  I do not enjoy training...not swimming, biking, or running.  Well I enjoy biking and running in small doses.

I spent 5-8 hours training for the past 4 months preparing for IM Branson.  Ironman Texas would require 6-8 hours for the next 3 months, then would increase to 8-12 hours.

Big problem #1 with IMTX 2013 is I don't want to go through the motions of training for 10+hours a week.  

Triathlon has been interesting to me for years because I couldn't swim more than 100 yards and it was a big challenge. I didn't know if I could even do it.  Now after Branson, I am 100% confident that I could race/finish IMTX in May 2013....so with the unknown now known, I've lost some interest.

I've really enjoyed the 9 months of tri training that I've put in this year with 5 triathlons.  I enjoyed 70% of the training, but really missed lifting and feeling strong.

2012 Ironman Branson 70.3 Race Report

September 23rd 2012 7am Branson, MO

Up at 4:40am, out the door by 5:25am.  In line at the shuttle at 5:30.  It was a COLD 45 degrees out.


I had great support there, my awesome wife, wonderful parents, and my little sister and her husband.


About to go swimming!


Water was 73, but felt so warm


Finished swimming in 52:25, it was the easiest swim ever...thanks Chuck Burr!


Heading out for a hilly 56 mile ride


So happy to be off the bike, this picture was during the 30 min of the race I felt awful!


Ran easy 9min miles


Feeling GOOD!


I did it!!!!


No food, so I drank chocolate milk






Was it worth it?

Calm before the storm...

It's Wed night, I'm off work through Monday to travel to Branson for Ironman 70.3 Branson on Sunday.  I'm packed and thinking about loose ends and just second guessing all I've done training the past few months.  I didn't follow a plan and just trained.  I enjoyed 80% of it, at times training was a chore, but overall was fun.  I'm nervous...thoughts of:

• Will I finish the race
• Will I finish the swim....will the swim finish me"
• Will I be miserable
• Will I get a flat

I'm ready to do this...see you on the other side.

Long Brick

Did a swim/bike brick Saturday morning....nothing special.  Today was probably my key workout before the half.  

43m Bike avg 17.7mph @ avg HR of 120

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/218773218

7m run avg 9:58mph @ avg HR of 144

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/218773225

The run was 93 out when I finished....it was hot and I was cooked!  It was a 4hr brick.  

Keeping it real....

I had another terrible experience in the water at the Benbrook Lake Sprint Triathlon.  Today was my 2nd race experience in the open water.  What a disaster.  I'm swimming, it's hard, I'm out of breathe wondering why the heck I do triathlons.  I started back tri training Jan 7th 2012 and have invested hours in the pool, joined a Master's Swim team briefly, rear tutorials, studied drills, and even hired the best tri swim coach in Fort Worth to help me improve.  And improve I have, I went from swimming 1-2 lengths (25-50y) and was gasping for breath.  Now I can swim 300-400y straight in the pool and feel much more relaxed in the water.

While swimming at the race I had thoughts racing in to my head:

• Why am I doing this again?
• This is the LAST time I do a triathlon!!!
• I hate this and want to quit....no Ironman or Half Ironman....and I DON'T CARE!
• Am I going to make it?
• Is that guy going to run me over and drown me
• I'm so disappointed that this is so hard
• When is this going to "click"?

I want to get my thoughts and feelings down.  The swim is the first part of a race and is the shortest time, so the memory of the pain and disappointment fades quick as I passed 25 people on the bike today and 15 on the run.  

Race Report: Benbrook Lake Sprint Triathlon

This morning I raced the Benbrook Lake Sprint Tri:
500m Swim (Open Water)
13 mile bike
5k run

I won 1st place most improved from the Texas Stampede Race by improving 13 min.  I also was the fastest under 39 Clydesdale, winning 1st place.  There was a mix up with the timing as I was not listed in the Clydesdale category (over 200lbs).

Overall it was a good day...the swim kicked my tail again!  More to come....


http://www.mychiptime.com/searchevent.php?id=6635&bib=131

Going long....56m Bike Ride

Had a nice ride today, 56 miles.  Getting ready for Ironman Branson 70.3.

Am I crazy?

May 18th 2013

Long Bike Ride

This morning I hit a 42 mile bike ride, I had planned on doing 50m.  At mile 18, I broke the 2 screws that hold my aero elbow pad on my right arm.  I decided to cut the ride short.



After the ride, I met the wife at the Y for a pool swim.  I did 1200m focusing on short distance and technique.

With each long workout, I feel more prepared for Ironman Branson 70.3.  I'm praying for health and staying injury free the last 9 weeks leading up to the big race.

Race Report: 2012 Texas Stampede Sprint Triathlon

Where: Benbrook Lake
PlayTri put this race on this year for the first time.  It was supposed to be a 500m open water swim, then a 13 mile ride along the lake, then a 5k run.

I signed up for this race because it's 7 min from my house and I have never raced an open water triathlon before.

The Good: I finished and I got 1st place out of 4 under 40 Clydesdales.
The Bad: I barely finished the swim alive...I didn't have to stop and hold a Kayak or Paddleboard....but I thought about it.

I had to doggie paddle at times, roll over to my back and catch my breath....it was rough.  The swim was officially changed to 700m...way too long if you ask me.  For open water, I'll only do wet suit legal races.

Masters Swim Practice

I went out to the Lockhead Recreation center at 7am to join Chuck Burr's Ridglea Masters Swim Team practice.  It's a 50m outdoor pool and I find the longer pool is much better than the short 25 yard pool at the Benbrook YMCA.

Chuck is great, he's my swim coach for private lessons and has helped me tremendously.

I ended up doing 1100m freestyle with no pull buoy. (PR)

Bike PR

This morning I rode my bike 34 miles, this is a distance PR for me.  It was a 2 hour bike ride and if I had more water I could have gone longer.  It was very encouraging for the half Ironman race I have in September.

Open Water Swim Lesson

Worked with my swim coach Chuck Burr again tonight, but this time at Lake Benbrook.  We spent an hour in the water practicing sighting, turning around buoys.  I wore my wetsuit and felt relaxed overall, but the wetsuit helps me float.  I'm more comfortable now with open water, but still nervous.

I have a 500m open water swim to start my next triathlon race.  It won't be wetsuit legal.  I believe I can do it, but am a little worried.

Great news = Chuck's Masters team is meeting at Lake Benbrook at 5pm each Tuesday for the next couple months.  You can bet I'll be at every practice I am in town for.