Week 1 - Day 5

Yeah, fun day on the bike course:

Can you guess how the training ride went? Yep.

Why is it always the rear tire that goes? Boom. Sucks.

When I flatted, at the same place I've always flatted in the spring, on Wye Road past highway 21, I thought: Great! Time to see how long it would take to change a tube in a race. So, I decided to try and swap clinchers as quick as I could!

It didn't end well.

First, check the C02 valve is closed. Didn't. Screw only C02 cartridge in? What's that "hissing" sound. All of the C02 leaving your only C02 cartridge. F*ck.

That said, with the damage above, two tubes and two C02 wouldn't have fixed it. Sucks to happen, but its spring, and you have to expect that the roads and shoulders are a mess, to say the least. I've flatted there so many times, that when I called Kim for a pick-up, I just refereed to it as the place I always have a flat. She knew exactly where I was... :-(

A quick pick-up with the 4Runner, and managed to get the Cervelo home. Good, as I couldn't have ridden it with a chunk out of the side of the tire. Sucks, but Tom said we should look at swapping out the tires on it when I picked it up. He (as usual) appears to know best. 100km on  Vittoria Diamante Pro Light tire, and it's done.

Training

Planned: 60 minute swim (E3), 45 minute bike (E2) 
Actual: Completed about 30 minutes of the bike, and then the flat. Was having fun - really like the new bike, and helmet. As for the swim, went hard for about 45 minutes, and easy for 15. 35 seconds for 25m - need to get to 30 seconds per 25. Did some paddle work as well - new Finis paddles work very well.  

Nutrition

Actuals: xxxkcal, xxg fat, xxxg carb, xxxg protein. xxx% xxx% xxx5%

Notes: Shredded Wheat with Bran and Skim Milk, 3x Sugar for Coffee, 1x Dairyland 1% cottage cheese, new changes upcoming.

Other

Mood: Tired today, no work, on ETO. Good day in general.

Weight: 168.4, lower? Probably a good thing (although was lighter in Hawaii in March, so who knows!?)

Week 1 - Day 4

Training

Planned: 60 minute swim (E3), 30 minute swim (E?) 
Actual: Completed the 30 minute run, 3.5m, 149bpm, 8'39, felt like I was really sucking wind. 20'C, 83% humidity, but still felt it. Could be low on carbohydrates. As for the swim, I planned earlier in the week to push it to Friday morning. I have an extra day off (EDO) - get one every month. Pool will be empty tomorrow, and I can get a good workout in without dodging people treading water in the lanes.  

Nutrition

Actuals: 1921kcal, 52g fat, 197g carb, 161g protein. 24.5% 41% 33.5%

Notes: Shredded Wheat with Bran and Skim Milk, 2x Sugar for Coffee, 2x Dairyland 1% cottage cheese, 12 oz steak, banana, 2x plain extra lean compliments hamburgers with only keg BBQ sauce, and a bowl of Smart Pop popcorn. High in protein, but also too high in fat (steak was half of it, and way too much saturated fat.) Can see dropping a few pounds - would like to drop 7-ish from where I'm at. I raced at 162-164 last time, and wouldn't mind seeing if a few extra pounds off of the frame helps my speed.

Other

Mood: Tired today, maybe not enough carbohydrates in my diet. Would really like some that come in brown bottles, but I'm training... Busy, last day in the office until June 10th. You'd think I was leaving for years - that said, it's nice to be needed. :-)

Weight: 169.0, and really feeling it tonight on the run. Legs felt like they weighed a tonne (and based on the scale, they might have.)

Week 1 - Day 3

Not a good day for a outdoor bike:

Personally, I'd be OK with it, but with the other drivers, I can't trust them to not do something stupid. Drive home was eventful, glad I was in the cage that I call a Jeep. Also glad autonomous cars are coming - some (most/all) people can't be trusted to drive. Here's what it looked like from our friends at Environment Canada:

Yuck, glad it wasn't on the weekend.

Training

Planned: 60 minute bike (Form) 
Actual: Middle of a thunderstorm, decided to avoid riding outside (yep, I'm a slacker...) Went to Millennium Place and spent 60 on a Life Fitness upright bike, 16.7 miles hill training, averaged 121 bpm, 

Nutrition

Actuals: 2051kcal, 89g fat, 181g carb, 118g protein. 39% 35% 23%

Notes: Shredded Wheat with Bran and Skim Milk, 2x Sugar for Coffee, Chicken Pasta Combo with Vegetables at the Mayfair G&CC, a peanut butter cookie, a peanut protein bar, 66 grams of mixed nuts, a banana, Wendy's Cobb Salad with no dressing, and a handful (~9) baked cheddar chips. Too high in fat, although 36g of fat was mixed nuts.

Other

Mood: Good, busy day at work, half day off-site and meetings/meetings/meetings. Yuck. (Same as yesterday)

Weight: 169.4, likely due to the high sodium content of the soup I had last night. Would like to be around 162, but the scale is moving the wrong way. Have to really get away from all of the restaurant food (just as I'm about to head off to a conference - good luck with that.)

Week 1 - Day 2

Training

Planned: 60 minutes pool (Form), 30 minute run (E2)
Actual: 60 minutes pool, not so great form ;-)   30 minute, 3.62 mile run, 152bpm, 

Nutrition

Actuals: 2066kcal, 90g fat, 210g carb, 125g protein. 47% 49% 25%

Notes: Shredded Wheat with Bran and Skim Milk, 2 Doughnuts, Halibut and Salmon salad at the Wildflower Grill, Vietnamese Spicy Soup, Protein Bar. Which ones are 580 calories? Tim Horton's doughnuts I had at our team off-site today. Wow, that's a great number of calories (and 38 grams of fat.) No more doughnuts for me... 

Other

Mood: Good, busy day at work, half day off-site and meetings/meetings/meetings. Yuck.

Weight: 168.8, I hate my scale, part deux... :-)

Week 1 - Day 1

Here's a shot from 2010, people getting ready for the race. Still remember the jitters, fun times...

Training

Planned: Rest day.
Actual: Mostly a rest day, just went for a hike at lunch up and down the Glenora stairs. Nice to be out in the sun.

Nutrition

Actuals: 1971kcal, 36g fat, 308g carb, 104g protein. 19% 72% 24%

Notes: Light for the day, although I'm looking to drop a few pounds to increase my speed before the race. Too many beers over the winter :-)

Other

Mood: Good, busy day at work due to the short work week - off on Friday (extra training?)

Weight: 168.8, I hate my scale... :-)

New bike for the racing season. 2013 Cervelo P3!!!

Here is my new bike for the upcoming season:

Will it make me faster than my Giant Trinity?

I hope so.

I've had it for a week, purchased from a great LBS in Edmonton. I was looking at the previous P5 and P3, and went to WayPastFast in Edmonton. They had this one set up, I liked it, waited on the purchase for a week, and then bought it.

Well, I didn't really buy it - my wife Kim did. I think it's crazy to buy a $5400 MSRP bicycle. I was conflicted, but Kim wasn't.

I went to WayPastFast last week, and Tom fitted me. It's amazing the difference the aerodynamics make. I also bought a helmet, I'll have a review up later this week on that.

So now Kim has a really fast bicycle.

Introductions are in order

So, here we are...

I'm a middle aged triathlete (41, soon to be 42) who has looked at the 13 in 13 program, and wonders if it would be a good fit.

No trainer, per se. Simple goals.

Can I make 13:13 in 2013?