70.3 Update

Not so long ago a good friend of my said "come do the 70.3 in December". I said why not. It isn't going to kill me is it and it's a good 9 months away. 

For those that are unsure on what a 70.3 or Half Ironman is, it is where crazy people decide to get up early and swim 1.9km then cycle 90km and finally finish on a Half Marathon 21km run. 

My chosen event is in the wonderful Taupo, swimming the lake, cycling the flats and finishing with the half marathon that I have done twice before. 

With 9 months training, everything should have been sweet?

I would like to apologise in advance for how this blog is written. I started writing it 12 weeks out and then updated 4 weeks out and now I am publishing 3 days out for accountability 🙂 

As days turned to weeks and weeks turned to months, I hadn't really started my 9 month training until procrastination ended with 12 weeks to go. Let me clarify, I wasn't doing NOTHING. I was running once a week for 5-10km and I did a couple of HIIT training sessions but I was still focussing on getting my weight down over training (which I did... 75kg and happy).

It then dawned on me that I haven't swam in years (never in the ocean) and I have only ever rode on the road once for 20km. So things needed to pick up.. oh and I should probably buy a wetsuit...aerobars...better running shoes and then it became a list. 

TRAINING PLAN!

Feel free to have a look at my wonderful training plan. Although for the last 8 weeks I have been training purely on a stationary bike and in a swimming pool, I decided to do the three individual events at the weekend to see how I would feel... with only 4 weeks to go till showtime. 

Swim 1.9k - 37mins
Bike 30km.... fell off
Run 21km 1hr 58mins 

So the bike went for a clean, a service and was found that everything was loose as a goose and not properly set up. As I write this my bike is finally race ready. 

I also performed my first 1.6km swim in the ocean today 

Training has been going ok, the high intensity interval training really has been pushing my VO2 to the max, I worry about not having enough muscluar endurance but no time to worry about that now, things I currently worry about is  how bad I look in a tight little black outfit...

I have tried hacking my VO2 cycling with the mask, tbh after a bit of research all it probably does is help me breathe clearer rather then simulating and driving more efficiency in oxygen utilization. 

So far all running is done going up and down Mt Vic in Wellington or long runs around Whanganui flats, cycling is all inside still and swimming is now once a week outside and more inside. To be clear, the prosctination monster hit me hard, for this time period I have not had a social life, it has been eat clean, work out, work, be a zombie dad. 

To break down my 12 week training plan into segments to explain, it can easily be focused on the following as a min every week:

• One Long Swim (2km+) , Cycle (90mins plus) and Run (10km plus)
• 1 x HIIT training working on core with Team Fitness in Wellington 
• 2 x Efficient swim drills 
• 2 x Cycle Tempo
• 1 x Hills Run 
• Build up to 200 squats a day and made my hamstrings more flexi
• rolling out every week 

Training averaged 8-12 hours per week and I believe there is very little "waste" in there. 

I can't go into why my training plan is the way it is and I won't go into why my diet is the way it is but trust I probably spent more time trying to obtain knowledge to hack my body then cycling.... could really do with the cycling. Every small detail in the last 12 weeks from efficiency, to power to yield, to being a tight arse buying stuff and appropriate rest has all been for a specific reason but as I am not a personal trainer or a nutritionist... I do not want to advise anyone on doing anything I am doing until I complete.

Daily Intake (6 days a week)

I decided on training in a train low, then competing in a high. So my idea was that six days a week I would keep my carb intake below my expenditure to ensure I am constantly struggling for glucose and utilizing as much fat as possible so that I am used to it before the event.  Eating three times a week with my magical green smoothie as you can see to the right. Raw veggies some MCT oil and pea protein. I have this about 11am

Any lunch time workout must be 1pm with Mikes Cereal being a mix of good seeds, nuts, honey and almond milk after that lunch time session. 

After the evening session, I would consume a kumara thai curry that was awesome to freeze as I needed to bring them with me to Wellington before 8pm. 

Thus this gave me a 8 hour eating window. 

Pre Race

As I write this I am three days before the big event and have decided to ramp up the carbs from average of 150 to 500, adding 50 of so a day till today it's 500.... I do not know how I am meant to do this! However the curries have got bigger!

For instance here is todays food list: 

During the Race

Strategy?

Don't die would be a good one, I have met a few people doing the event and I have come up with a new revised goal of 6.5 hours.... 35min Swim, 3.5 hour cycle and 2.25hr run. ish

My first real life triathlon training session happened two weeks ago with my longest cycle ever! (1.5km, 40km and 10km) I came in at 3 hours 10minutes. With this and half marathon last week in Rotorua (half trail run) coming in at 1hr 58. I am getting more excited that I will go under 6.5 and maybe closer to 6 then I first thought!

I have been experimenting with diet during race. I normally just have a MCT oil and black coffee blend but seeing as everything is getting a lot longer, I will be fueling during the race as well.

• 1.5 hours pre race - MCT oil and black coffee
• Water after until swim
• After swim my cycle will be packed with goodies x 2
  • UCAN super starch for no insulin release slow release glucose
  • VESPA wasp venom to activate Fat burning
  • Pea Protein for amino acids and bulk
  • Amino Acids blend like arganine for some alertness and mental prep
• After cycle I will hit the VFuel non fructose gels x 3

The aim is to push my body into as much ketone production as possible before and during swim and then focus on burning glucose while pushing more fat burning on the cycle and THEN the 21km run switch to non stop glucose.

I think I have been so focussed on this half marathon over the last 12 weeks that I forgot to even have proper fun at the rotorua half marathon, was my last long run and it was a cracking day (amazing scenery) with my cool running buddies and a new pb. with a sprint finish!

What am I doing now? well it's three days out, I am just eating and relaxing with the odd swim. I have an IT band issue I am not happy about but should be sweet as.

Accountability 

• 35 minutes 1.9km Swim 
• 3 hours 15 minutes 90km Ride 
• 2 hour 5 minutes 21km Run  

Total Time aim: 6 hours 5 minutes