Sunday, February 24, 2013

3 days in VT were much needed!

I haven't skied this winter yet, and after all these winters skiing 60+ days per season, not skiing once was just inconceivable! So Brad came to the rescue and offered to drive up to VT for the long weekend (President's day).

We skied at Killington on Saturday and went snowshoeing at Mt Ascutney, a desolated ski resort 1-hr from Brad's parents' cabin. I didn't anticipate Snowshoeing to be that much fun! We found an ice wall that we decided to climb. I think we can say that it was a (somewhat) success, but lots of laughter!

The icing on the cake was the food we cooked...and ate! I found Abondance Cheese at a farmer's markets! I couldn't contain my joy, and at a whopping $22/lb, we still bought a tiny little piece of it for $13! Well worth it in my opinion! I grew up in the Abondance region, and finding some of that cheese absolutely made the day! We cooked some serious dinner that night: French fries, Brussels Sprouts, broccolis, bacon-wrapped asparagus, and grilled some incredible local strip steaks! that was money!

Monday was a bit chilly, with temperatures in the low 10's, -30 Fahrenheit with the windshield! That didn't deter us from riding, though, and with the resort staff turning people away, that left us with almost the entire resort for ourselves! Pretty sweet!

in short, Great weekend for a ski trip in great company and with great food! I hope we'll make it to Tuckerman's this year! that'd be rad! :P


Friday, February 15, 2013

First Week-day early bird ride in a long time!

I finally had the chance to take the TT out today in awhile! a 2-hr ride and 40 miles under the belt. That'll cap off my recovery week.
Now heading up north to Killington and Smugglers' Notch with Brad, Jack, and lij for some ski fun!

4 1/2 hrs on the trainer!

With the bad weather of last week, I did all my rides on the trainer: 150 miles total, with a whopping and painful 4 1/2hr ride on Saturday (77 miles)!
Commitment I tell ya!


Friday, February 1, 2013

Swim, Bike, and Play ping pong!

What a great way to kick off what should be another great month of training!

I went to the morning session of the masters Swim today, getting in the water at 5:50am for an hour,  and came back to hop on the bike for a 45-minute easy stretch out spin on the trainer! I was done by 8:30 and met up with an "acquaintance" to hit the ball at Spin for an hour at 1pm! Thanks Dora for bearing with me, and for introducing me to Paul with whom I played for another 20 minutes! Gosh it felt great to hit the ball again after close to 5 year of involuntary / voluntary abstinence! (Not sure which one is more correct!)! Perfect cross-training workout

Can we call it a triathlon?

Target Race of the Year: Eagleman Ironman 70.3

When? June 9th
Where: Maryland
Objective: Saving some energy on the swim, catching up on the bike, and give it all I'll have left on the run
Distance: 1.2MS / 56MB / 13.2MR

Officially signed up for the Black Bear half Ironman 05.19.13

Distance: 1.2MS / 56MR / 13.2MR

Officially signed up for Bassman Half Ironman 05.05.13

When? May 5th
Distance: 1.2MS / 56MB / 13.2MR

Officially registered for the 2013 Age Group National Championships







When? August 10, 2013
Where? Milwaukee, WI
Objective? Top 15 of my age group!

Focusing on my Nutrition on the bike for the next 3 months

4 months 'til the big day and I am starting to try out different foods (by food I mean gels and gooey energy bars) and energy drinks to see which ones I can stomach.

This is a very crucial step in my preparation. I have never taken the time to try out different gels and energy drinks, but with the training intensifying by the week, and the major event coming up in June, it is important that I feed properly on the bike and my runs during training. This learning process will take a while, and my workouts are the best way to figure this all out! One thing is certain, I am very picky and so is my stomach! Some flavors (chocolate, coffee, or peanut butter) I already know are a "no-go" for me! no Bueno! And so are hard energy bars and shock blocks - Both make me drool and are hard to swallow while running or biking - Not a big fan! The Cliff bars are too sweet, and have a strong taste to them that I cannot stomach. No go either!

I was very skeptical about the gels, but I decided to give it a second chance and opted to try one out in the last 30 minutes of my long ride of Wednesday. I didn't want to sit on it for too long in case I didn't like it, or in case my stomach couldn't take it. I was pleasantly surprised to see that not only did it give me the extra boost my legs needed (and by boost, I mean sugar), but it wasn't that bad at all! I'm going to try it out for few more rides, and in different conditions to see if I really like it. I'll also give it a shot on my long run on Sunday.

What did it try on Wednesday? With a 4 1/2 hr ride scheduled, I figured that I'd break it out by hour, and test a different drink each hour. I also opted to take in an energy bar later (3rd hour), keeping the gel for the last 30 minutes of my ride.

21 oz of Hammer Heed - lemon lime - in the first hour - Very good and light. I really like the taste and texture of it, light in sugar, and easy to drink. It did not feel too powdery, and I can definitely see it being mixed with some energy drinks like the Tropical Citrus Vitamin water - That could be a great combo!

GU Roctane Ultra Endurance - Tropical Fruit - for the second hour - I like it! a bit sweeter than the first drink, and definitely more powdery than the Hammer Heed drink, but it is rich in calories and in Carbohydrates. It gave me the sensation that I was feeding and drinking at the same time. Perfect drink to take in the second hour of the ride when my body needs more than a simple energy drink. I would probably not go with this drink only. I think I would need something less rich to compensate and feel fully re-hydrated.

Honey Stinger Waffle - Vanilla flavor - in my 3rd hour - what can I say - Perfect food when I know I'll be out for a while. Not very convenient to open and eat on the bike, but perfect for when you take a quick break to refuel at one of the cafes on the 9W!

I stopped and got a Gatorade - Orange flavor - for the 3rd hour of my ride - Phew! So intense in sugar, and soooo good for the entire body! I didn't want to tap into my water at that point, and so I opted for a Gatorade! It totally made up for it! I also had a Hammer almond Raisin bar - Not sure what it did to me, but nonetheless I liked the taste of it, and the fact that it was really easy to chew and swallow. I didn't feel like it got stuck on my stomach  - I'm going to give it a shot for few more rides before I decide to go with it or dash it

Honey Stinger Gold gel - honey flavor - was the great surprise of the 4th hour of my ride! Sweet? mega sweet for sure! gooey? definitely! I ate it and took few sips of water with it. It gave me that extra boost I needed to finish my ride strong. And it definitely helped out! Let's see how that goes in my next few rides (tomorrow), and on my long runs. I'd be curious to see if I can take it on the runs, but I don't see why not!  

I'm loving doing all these trials and errors and learn more about my body, what I can stomach, what I like most, and what I should avoid. This is a completely new experiment to me, and working on finding out the right balance in my nutrition should help me in my performances on race days! Exciting stuff!