Weekly Training Log: Week of August 31st, 2015 - Week #33: Visit from my Grandfather and the Last Baseball Game of 2015

In Life:  It was a nice week at work, then my Grandfather  and uncle came for a visit on Friday.  We had planned on having them out to go to another four generation baseball game on Sunday.  My Dad's father is almost 80 and baseball has always been a big part of our lives.  We met up and went to a great dinner on Friday in Boulder, then went down to Coors Field on Sunday for the game, then ended up with a dinner up at my parents that evening.  It was a great end of the summer thing to do.


In Training: I had a fairly hard week of training.  It was less swimming than I really would have liked, but the work I was able to put in on the bike was pretty good.  Most of it was on the trainer and was intense/short threshold sessions.  I have Ironman Chattanooga coming up on the schedule, so I am hoping that the bike work will pay off in a few weeks.




Weekly Totals
Swim: 8,200 yds 
Bike: 223.5ish miles (mostly on Trainer)
Run: 33.3 miles

My Dad, Son, Grandfather, and me

When one spoon isn't enough

Four generations.  That's a peanut in Aidens mouth.

My uncle Tim, Dad, and me

This is the week that Aiden really got into Legos.  I was a huge fan of Legos growing up.

Weekly Training Log: Week of August 24th, 2015 - Week #32: Football and the Good Life

In Life: I had a damn fine week with my wife and son.  I'm at work full time, and I continue to really love having my wife in the same building.  I'm managing the early morning workouts much easier this time around.
Beth and I had a great weekend.  We spent Saturday night down in Denver and were able to go to game three of the Broncos pre-season.  We stayed at the Sheraton to make it extra awesome.


In Training:  I was back in the pool for some good 5,500 yard + sessions this past week.  If only I could do these swims every day.  If only.  The swim is a long-term thing for me.  I really would like to be out with the lead/chase pack by next season in some WTC 70.3 races.  History as a swimmer shows that I have what it takes to be there, but I have some work to do.  The last time I raced a mile in the pool was over 10 years ago.  I think I went 16:50 or something like that.  Swimming fast is a priority.  Volume and speed are going to be a big focus after IM Chattanooga.  That race is a "down stream" and should be a quick one, thus making the swim a smaller factor of the race.
All around fitness really seems to be building steadily and I am noticing a nice progression since my unstructured weeks a few weeks back.
My threshold is back up and my pain tolerance on the treadmill and trainer is back were it was earlier this year.  Less than four weeks till IM Chattanooga.



Weekly Totals
Swim: 12,150 yds 
Bike: 173ish miles (mostly on Trainer)
Run: 38.8 miles

I've tried to get Aiden to wear a Burger King crown for years.  This was the first time he was ever in to it.

Three years ago this past week.  I won the AG at IM Louisville.  It was my second full distance race, and the day I realized I might have a talent at long distance.

Starting the night off right with Beth.

NFL - It's my biggest hobby and interest outside of Triathlon.

Thought this was fitting.  Native kid who loves Colorado.

Weekly Training Log: Week of August 17th, 2015 - Week #31: Back to work and growing as an athlete

In Life: Back to work.

Enough said about that.  Working in schools for the past few years has been awesome in the fact that I have summers off.  The thing that sucks about that is that summer vacation always comes to an end.  Pardon me while I go cry in a corner for a few.

BUT, there is something different about this year.  I am back working at Longs Peak Middle School and I am working in the same building as my wife for the first time.  This is AWESOME.  Seeing your spouse and partner in life throughout the day can be nothing but good for communication.  It's also nice when you see that damn fine lady at your workplace and realize that it's your wife.  win win.

My parents owned a business together and worked at the same location my whole life.  I am guessing that some of the success in their relationship/marriage is due to the fact that they were physically close and were on the same page about issues throughout life.

So yeah.... Back to work and back to managing time a little more effectively. Four a.m. alarms started again this past week.

Another huge thing that happened is that my sister, brother in law, and three kids (nieces and nephews) moved to Colorado.  This makes me SO amazingly happy.  Being able to have them close is going to be a lot of fun.



In Training:  I realized a few things while in the Tetons a few weeks back.  Here they are:

1.)  Triathlon is a true passion of mine.  It's what I like to do, and I want to make a living in the sport one way or another.  I don't care if it's racing, selling product, or coaching.  I love this sport and will commit myself to making connections that will help me make a living being part of the sport I love.

2.)  I have the emotional, physical, and family support to do #1.  Awesome.  I already knew this though.

3.) Training can be balanced with life, but no matter how you balance it, there is a huge cost at racing and training at this level.  When I go on "vacation," the whole family naturally adjusts to let me get in the work that I need to.  Not going to lie - this sucks.  Is it worth it?  Yes, at this point in life it is.  I know that will end sometime, but for now I just have to be thankful to be able to do this.

4.) I'm tired. Not like I am burned out... I just feel like I need a break.  I am planning on racing Chattanooga, then a few more halves.  I think IM AZ might be out for the year.  I am already getting excited to start next spring at Oceanside and IM Texas.

5.)  My future is in sports.

Training has been going well.  Numbers and fitness is there and after two unstructured weeks, I feel ready to make a push for a good race in Chattanooga.  Time to hit it hard for a few weeks.





Weekly Totals
Swim: 2,000 yds - Week off swimming before I hit back hard
Bike: 215ish miles (mostly on trainer)
Run: 33.7 miles

Dinner in Longmont last Friday.  It is awesome seeing this and knowing my sister and family live so close now.

Aiden. Nope, not a fit!  He fell asleep like this on Saturday.

Walking back from our neighborhood pool.

Still Here...

It's been a while since I updated the blog.  I'll start with my weekly training log next week and do a little recap of where I have been and what I've been doing.  I've pretty much been enjoying summer with my family and training a lot.  Nothing new.
I did race Racine 70.3, then did a semi-planned DNF at Ironman Boulder (no pro race) a few weeks back.  I'll do a little writeup on both of those.
I will keep doing my weekly posts as I push towards the last half of my rookie pro season.  Thanks for following along.

Before the IM Boulder swim start