Monthly Wrap-Up

Today is the last day of January. I'm pleased with the month from a workout perspective. Some highlights include:

361.7 total kilometers (goal = 300). 83.5K running, 278.2K rowing
2 30K rows
1 5K rowing race (in 17:52.6)
Only 3 days in the month without rowing and/or running (consistency!)
My first weigh in of the month (January 2) was 238 lbs (108 kilo); my last weigh in (this morning) was 229 lbs (104 kilo)

February beckons. Key goals are continued consistency and weight loss, and a 10K rowing race.

A Strong Start to the Week

Monday's workout was a 15K row with the middle 5K at AT. This morning, the workout was a gentle 5K recovery row follow by a good 5K treadmill run.

I signed up for the Mid-Winter Classic, a 10 mile road race this coming Sunday. I'm not in sports specific shape to race it, but I'll get through it.

After the race, I'll drink local beer and watch the Super Bowl.

The Winter Doldrums

I woke up this morning to another snow storm. Relatively minor as storms go, but just enough snow to cover the icy patches that prove treacherous when running the roads. I bailed out of my run outside, and couldn't face the treadmill, so I took my third rest day of the month (and year). The result, a light week, but one that featured a race and two tough interval workouts.

Next week: big kilometers, and a Sunday road race (10 miles) that I won't race but that I will get through.

17:52.6

I'm pleased with the race this morning, although my training partner John beat me (in 17:51.5). It was a good, hard consistent effort throughout. I probably should've kicked sooner and I also struggled with clear mental focus with 1500m or so to go (until there were 400m or so to go--then the mind was willing but the body objected).

I topped out at 154 HR, and averaged 147, numbers that indicate I was right where I should've been (compared to a 155 max). This race gives me great information in planning future workouts. I am currently 17th in the world (of 788) in my age group.

Splits were as follows:

3:34.4
7:08.8 (3:34.4)
I hit the mid point in 8:56.6
10:44.4 (3:35.6)
14:20.8 (3:36.4)
17:52.6 (3:31.8)

With warm/cool I rowed 10K total. All in all a good workout.

A Rest Day

With my first race of '08 tomorrow, I'm taking a rest day today. My most recent rest day prior to today was January 1. I am on track for a 350K month or so. The race, a 5K, will also be my first indoor rowing race in the better part of a decade. I think I can pull a (ever so slightly) sub-18:00. But we'll see. I'll be rested and ready.

A sub-18:00 5K would put me in 30th place or so in my age group. This of the 1500 or so other whack jobs who record their time on line:

http://www.concept2.com/sranking03/get_wrankings.asp

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Most aspects of the workout went well today:

15K in 59:07.3 with 10 X power 10s (ten strokes all out) distributed throughout the workout. HR average was 122, with spikes in the 140s during the short intervals.

The bad is that my back side abrasion is back (I guess it never left). It is quite an irritant and it will affect my remaining workouts this week. I may run, rather than row, again tomorrow.

The ugly is the photo from an earlier post, describing the abrasion issue in detail. I won't post it again, however.

An Aerobic Zone Pryamid

It was back on the treadmill today, with a fan at my back and tunes in my iPod. An altogher pleasant workout: a 10K ascent and descent through the aerobic zone.

6:16 95
5:43 105
5:27 109
5:14 114
5:00 120
4:48 127
5:00 128
5:12 127
5:27 122
6:00 118

VO to the Max

Well, not really. But I felt pretty good about the workout this morning, and feel that it will prove to be useful.

5 X 1K with 2:30 recovery. Target time was 3:30 for the work pieces. 3:30 translates to a 17:30 5K, I think I could race 5K in 18:00. I'll find out, we're going to do a 5K time trial on Saturday.

Anyway, after a 4K warm up, I rowed:

3:28.5
3:28.8
3:29.9
3:29.1
3:29.4

After a 1K cooldown, I logged 10K on the day.

Still Tired?

The run this morning was tougher than it should've been. We ran 11.5K and the conditions were less than ideal: 20 degrees F with a nasty, cold wind gusting to 30 MPH. At times my face (the only part of me that was exposed) was in pain. To avoid the wind, we stayed on the pennisula, which meant hills. Anyway, the run took 1:02:04, a significantly slower pace than we've been running. I'd like to blame it on my training partner Scott's cold but I was the one slowing us up, generally.

I wonder if I'm still worn out from yesterday's 30K (probably) or if I am suffering from cumulative fatigue (probably, I've either run or rowed everyday this year except Jan. 1). All I know is that I have a tough interval session tomorrow morning. I better rest up, take in food and drink (beer), and watch the Patriots. Hmmmm, sounds like a plan.

Shattered

Got my 30K row in today, barely, and felt like I did in this picture, which was taken after I ran the Boston Marathon in 2005.

The workout started out well enough. I rowed a gentle 5k (19:57) as a warm-up, then got off the machine and changed clothes (chaffing precaution) and started up again using 2.5K (pettau) splits. I had experimented with a new seat pad (purchased from Concept 2) during the warm up, I elected not to use it during the heart of the workout.

Things went very well for the first 7 pettaus:

9:50.6 113
9:49.2 117
9:49.1 127
9:49.3 122
9:49.1 123
9:49.1 126
9:49.6 127

Then I lost mental focus--I knew this was happening and felt like it was no big deal:

10:08.6 123

Then I fell apart physically. No power in my drive, no energy, severe butt and low back pain (muscular, not chaffing). I tried the pad again, it didn't help. In the end, I just got through it as best I could. I guess that's the key, I got through it:

10:33.5 118
10:24.4 124

So, 30K in 1:59:50.1. I have more work to do but time to do it.

Midweek Adjustment...

.....and a reality check.

I decided that 2 things were critical to a successful workout week: resolving "backporch" issues referenced in my last post; and, sticking my 30K long row planned for Saturday morning. With that in mind I capped my row at 10K on Wednesday and ran short Thursday (5K). I'll repeat the short running workout today and will come in fresh, rested, and with my backside renewed for my Saturday morning long row.

I now have a potential rowing marathon venue:

I am very pleased to anounce the third annual Boston ERG Marathon will be held at the Newton Wellesley Hospital on Patriots day, April 21. The event is held at the hospital which is at about mile 17 of the other marathon that runs that day. Participants row on ERGs set up along side the race course. Individuals rowing the full marathon or teams rowing in relay are welcome. As in past years, this event supports the Newton Wellesely Hospital Breast Center and our breast cancer research program. Participants can be sponsored for the row. This year we will be asking a minimum of $100 per entrant.

Rowers in this event have set one world record (60-69yrs) and one #2 world time (30-35yr)

Schools and rowing clubs are welcome. Local prep crews have enjoyed the event.

Rowers are welcome to bring their own ergs, or row on machines we supply.

Interested parties should contact Fred Millham (fmillham@partners.org)

Help us line Route 16 with rowers this year and support breast cancer research!

Too Much Information.....

.....and the photographic evidence to prove it.

I've become a bit of a slave to my log (I'd really like to get a 100K week in) and my row yesterday was a classic junk workout. Beyond that, I should've used the day to heal, rather than aggravate, my backside chaffing. Despite a liberal coating of "Body Glide" on the afflicted area (not shown in the photo left because the visible thong precisely covers the trouble spot) my troubles continue. Today's scheduled 15K, with short intervals, will be, at best, a "grin and bear it" affair.

Then it's a road trip. I'm packing only running (treadmill) gear. Hopefully my ravaged backside will improve in advance of Saturday's scheduled 30K.

Nothing to Write Home About

But I'll write it in my blog: 10K today (rowing), in 39:15, with HR at 117 or so.

Getting There

Monday has developed into VO2 Max workout day, and today's workout was a legitimate session: 6 X 800m at sub 5K race pace, with a 2 minute recovery between work intervals. I averaged 2:46.3 per interval. Next week = 5 X 1K. I'm about 2 weeks away from reasonable race fitness.

10K total, with warm up/down.

The Weekend: Fatboy Goes Long

Well, fairly long anyway. I logged 20K on the rower yesterday and 13.8K on the roads this morning.

That makes it a 93.8K week. I want to get to 100K next week but some mid-week business travel will make that a bit of a challenge.

Weight (Mine)

"Rowing burns 10 percent to 12 percent more than running and 15 percent to 20 percent more than cycling." In rowing, you catch, accelerate, decelerate, and change direction twice each stroke. You are constantly overcoming inertia. So you are constantly overcoming inertia. So you burn a lot more energy than in an efficient gliding activity like skiing or cycling."
—Fritz Hagerman, Ph.D., Professor, Ohio State University, Exercise Physiology

Okay, the science of all this is out there, and I guess I believe it. But it's inconceiveable to me that I could be logging 80+K weeks of just running and still weigh 236 lbs. (my weigh in this morning).

Adaptation

I am adjusting to the increased workload and am feeling good despite a fairly challenging week. This week my light day was 8.1K on the rower but it included 5 tough intervals. I've rowed 15K twice, one of which included 10 short intervals, and have had two days when I both ran and rowed. Tomorrow's the long row (a shortish 20K this week) and Sunday is long run, 14K or so. I guess i could stretch one or both of those and have a 100K week but I'll probably settle for the mid-90s.

I'm feeling good, I'm uninjured, and I think that with 3 more weeks that include some interval sessions I'll be ready to race effectively. We'll see.

The 5K Daily Double

Well, kind of:

Hopped on the rower and cranked out 5K in 19:46, then moved to the treadmill and ran 5K in 26:19.

Tomorrow will be tougher: 15K on the rower with 8 or so power 10s (short interval pick-ups).

A Slight Improvement

Some progress in my interval session this morning: 5 X 800m in 2:47 with 2:00 rest. It was tough and challenging but the last interval was faster than all but the first. All were between 2:46.7 and 2:47.4 so I feel good about the consistency. A few more of these and I'll try a 5K test. I'll add a 6th next week and then shoot for 5 X 1K.

The total workout, with warm up and down, was 8.1K.

I'm on the horns of a mild dilemma: the excellent on-line log I've starting using on Steve L's recommendation is less excellent for non-running (like rowing) cross-training. I want all the graphs and stuff! Should I pretend I'm running when I'm rowing? Also, why does the pace show up slower on my rowing log even though I'm going faster than when I run?

The Weekly Round-up

This was a good week, with 86 total kilometers in the log. The weekend, in particular, went well: 30K rowing yesterday and 13K on the roads (running) today.

The details:

I split the row in half, and to a 10 minute stretch break between 15K sets. Further, I took a 10 second break every 2.5K. This worked well. I stayed hydrated, and the break in the middle helped stave off the inevitable back and butt pain. Total rowing time was 1:57:13.1. I felt pretty good throughout. My HR increased about 10 seconds (from 115 or so to 125 or so) during the session despite constant pace throughout. Cardiac creep, I suppose.

Today's run was also encouraging. I ran slightly faster than last week despite tacking on an additional mile + to the distance. The effort was reflected in the heart rate, though: 129 on the final split versus 121 last week.

I've experimented with my recovery beverage. Strictly local stuff. Details at:
http://beerlocavore.blogspot.com/

Logging the Kilometers

Logged 15K yesterday and 12.5 today, which gives me 33K for the week (including Monday's 5.5K). I think I'll crank out 5K tomorrow before hopping on the treadmill for an 8K run. Then it's the monster on Saturday. Is it 30K this week? We'll see. I built in a 10 second break every 2.5K this morning and it made a huge difference. I think I'll break the long row into 5K splits and build in a 20 second break. That'll be just long enough to stretch the back a bit and grab a drink. Using this method, and averaging 19:40 per 5K, would result in 2 hours in the saddle. I'd call that marathon training.

In Like A Lion

2008 blew in with yet another snow storm.

The Sun Sets on 2007