On a roll or Righted the ship

My training has been great for the last 2 months. I've been consistent with all 3 triathlon disciplines, core work, strength training, diet, & for the first time in years I'm even getting the sleep needed for proper recovery. My cycling which has been consistently strong all year has gotten just a tad bit stronger, my swimming is at an all time best, & my running has finally started to improve again.

All things seem to be lining up for a great race in Oklahoma city on Sept 19th. That's going to be one of the most important races I've competed in. It's the Halfmax National Championships. It's a race that an athlete has to qualify for. I qualified last year in Boulder Colorado at the 5430 long course triathlon with a personal best Half Iron time of 5hrs 36 minutes. I'll be weighing on race day about the same as I did at last years 5430, approximately 200-204 pounds.

Last year @ the 5430 my swimming was poor, my biking was good, & my running was exceptional. Like I said earlier my swimming & biking is better this year comparatively, but my running isn't up to where it was. I'm hoping the improvement in the first 2 disciplines will even out the lack of running speed & endurance.

I have 2 goals for the Redman Halfmax Championships. The first is to finish under 5hrs 45 minutes. The next goal, which will be much harder to accomplish, but is doable if I stick to the race plan set up by my coach Pete Alfino, is to set a new Half Iron PR of under 5 hrs 36 minutes & 27 seconds. Whish me luck!

As most people know in ultra endurance athletics body weight is VERY IMPORTANT for success. Paying meticulous attention to calories in/calories out is vital! Since early June when I signed up for dietpower I've been kicking tail! I've lost 21 pounds & I believe maintaining a consistent racing weight around weight of 185 for all of next season is attainable for the first time in my triathlon career.

Simply put everyone who is watching their diet has a bad day on occasion. If a person cuts out all the fun foods it's inevitable they're destined to fail eventually. One piece of pizza or any kind of junk food while trying to cut weight is just fine & is actually a good thing to break up the monotony a bit. But because I'm an all or nothing, OCD kind of guy when I have a bad day & temporarily fall off the wagon it can take awhile to regain control & focus. A long while indeed.

This morning I had a bad time with the diet. I got home after a long shift & was very tired. Fatigue is a trigger for over eating for me. Because I work at nights I was missing my babies & wife, which is another trigger for my emotional eating. To top it off I had a bit of an argument with a family member the night before, & BAM! A diet implosion this morning when I got off from work. I ended up going to sleep having downed 1900 calories while watching a Net Flix movie. Ugh.

Once I woke up I decided it was a new day & opportunity. So I decided to jump back on the proverbial wagon. I ate 3/4 cup cottage cheese & 3/4 cup grapes with coffee, & set off to burn off those extra calories. I went on a 1hr 35 minute bike ride consisting of a warm up, 3X12 minutes at high zone 4 with 5 minutes active recovery, then hopped off the bike & went on a 2 mile run. From my workout I ended up burning 1900 calories & earned enough extra calories that I was able to negate my early morning feast & was even able add a small taste snack to the usual meal I take to work! Current weight 206.2. Ah, the wonderful life of a Multisport athlete! How very sweet it is!