Rest

Tonight I decided to rest very tired !

Triathlon is a mental sport

I think I found that out yesterday during the longest run I've ever done and paying for it today !

Live large !

5 weeks 6 days

Ironman muskoka 70.3 is coming closer, just finished my first 20 km last night and just have some weird pain in my foot I've never felt before I will monitor it and decided about track night today !
Helping out this weekend at the Cobourg races really showed me the work I've put into this season and I'm really proud of myself!
The people racing at cobourg this weekend were amazing this was one of my favorite triathlon experiences so far was helping people keep going ! I would get in the middle of the road and cheer them on and you could see that little something inside them light up and away they would go !
All those athletes this weekend were amazing ! And then to have the Drtc at the entrance to the shoot gave me shivers down my back !
Great job Drtc I'm proud to be a member of such an amazing club !

Triathlons make you tired

I don't know how much more of this I can take !
Seriously it's ok lol I love this but it is hard getting up at this hour ! My poor kids are going to be sooooo tired they will be glad to see race season come to an end!
Next weekend is the Kingston long race but we are staying in Kingston so we can sleep in a bit and I'm taking the friday off also so I can rest ! But no running around that day ! Just clean my bike pack my stuff and rest !
Time to get team Drinkle up to volunteer again and watch my sister-in-law race her second race !
Have a great day!

Busy weekend continued

So the long day has come to an end olympic distance triathlon was a blast, it's nice to give back to triathlon with a weekend of volunteering. Team Drinkle was in full gear today and I'm very proud of them !
Giving out water at an aid station is very important and I'm glad that my kids were able to see some race faces!
Now they have a better idea when they see someone running a race and what's going threw their mind ! Some people are focused some are real friendly and some are intense but all were polite !
Right after the race we loaded up and went off to celebrate my friends birthday which brought another set of life's challenges, drinking !!! All my best friends having cold beers and partying something I loved to do !!!!! I'm also missing my annual guys weekend because of the kingston race next weekend something they don't really understand, and that's hard for me to get over but I didn't think I could go away on the trip and not drink ! I know they understand but it's still hard to put into perspective how important triathlon is to me!!!

Now off to sleep to prepare for tomorrows busy day! Volunteer then a picnic then erin is dropping me off in newcastle so I can run my 20 km back to Oshawa!


Have a great night !

Busy weekend

This weekend will be a life ironman!
Up at 430 am to get ready for volunteering at the cobourg race then right to pontypool at 2:00 pm for a surprise birthday party for a good friend of mine then home not to late and up early again for volunteering again in cobourg then picnic at the beach after the race (lucky coach Paul took my long ride away for today) then I'll have erin drop me off in Newcastle on the way home from cobourg so I can get my 20 km run in !!! We will be completely exhausted come Monday.
Follow all that up with a busy week at work and I have to make sure I get enough rest for my race next Sunday which will take me around the 4.5 hour mark and it looks like its going to be hot !
I will try to keep post about the weekends events !!
Have a great day !

Cobourg triathlon tomorrow

So this weekend I'm giving back to the sport by volunteering at the cobourg race! This race is close to my heart because it was my entry race ! Little did I know it would start this new crazy obsession I have ! But I'm also glad I did because I've met some amazing friends and had an amazing life changing experience!
One goal I will hopefully achieve is my ironman race and from the looks of things I will attempt that in 2013 that will give me another year to make up for the weight loss I was shooting for during this off season ! I wand to drop weight to make me faster because I'm am happy with finishing but I'd like to finish strong! So in order to compete with tiny small people I need to either get small which is not going to happen or get fast ! Which can happen If I loose weight !
I feel I will be strong from racing one full season at this heavy weight if I loose 50 pounds I should be faster!
That is my next goal ...... If I loose weight this winter and think I can do my ironman I will register, if I can't loose the weight I will try something else.
The real key for me is the bike but I'm still way to heavy to get up the hills !!! I work my butt off on the flats making great time but loose it on the grinding hills!
I'm taking the half month of September off to rest after muskoka and evaluate what I'm going to do I will have a full race plan for next year ready for October 1st.
Have a great day!

Starting to plan next year

I have three options I'm running over in my head for next season, I know this season isn't over yet but I want a well planned year so that's why I'm starting now !
I can give my ankle a rest for the summer and do short swim bikes and take it easy but I'm afraid with less important and long races I will slack off to much.
I can do two 70.3 ironman races which will be a very busy training spring and summer.
Or I can do a ironman!!!!

I'm leaning towards 2 70.3 races, muskoka again and mont tremblant.

I plan on really focusing this off season on building muscle and cutting fat, mainly losing fat in the mid section and building core muscles if my weight drops during this it's ok but I really want this fat off !

Had a good steady bike/run tonight !
I did my ten km run 15 minutes faster than my race in Gravenhurst a couple weeks ago !

1 hour 22 minutes which should put me around 2:45 minutes for my half ironman run put that with a 3:20 for the bike and a 42 minute 2 km swim and about 10 minute transition that should put me in a little under 7 hours ! That's my goal as long as the right stars line up and the ironman gods shine down on me it will be ok!

Have a great day!

Skipped my lake swim

So both our beaches were posted with unacceptable levels of e coli bacteria tonight so I skipped the workout! I still went up and helped with shore duty because you can never have enough safety when it comes to the swim part of out training !
Tomorrow is my 3rd out of four brick training sessions of the week with a 20 km bike and a 10 km run ! Very exciting !!!! I had an amazing brick last night with a 30 km bike and a 6 km run
my legs are still sore from Monday and my bad ankle is a little tender I will monitor it carefully.
I'd like to mention a little bit about hydration and it's importance !! Bottom line is its just as important as training !! Without the proper hydration you are defeated before you start! It helps keep you cool also keeps your body feeling good ! There is so much to put together in this sport it's very difficult to get it in my head sometime !!!


Be safe and stay hydrated !

Things are coming together

I can't believe how well things are going ! It's just been clicking over the last month mileage is going up and pain is going away along with the psoriasis. I get my forth injection of humira this week and I'd say my skin is 70 % clear with virtually no arthritic pain !
Today's training session was great I just rocked the crap out of the bike run! I'm sure if I ran right out of the gate instead of walking to warm up I might have hit my 5 km in under 30 mins again but really happy with the results !
I just took my methotrexate so I should shut my eyes so I don feel sick

Have a great day

I am a triathlete

So I hit a new mark yesterday ! 18km
2 km short of my ironman race in 6 weeks and 6 days! Next week on Sunday I have a 20 km run, not to sure how that's going to work out but we will see!
My second last race of the year is coming up in 13 days and I'm looking forward to that because it's a little bit longer ! 2 km swim 56 km bike and a 15 km run just long enough the average human couldn't pull it off without training so I will be In an elite group of humans for sure !
This race is a warm-up race for my muskoka 70.3 ironman in September so I'm thinking I better run it like I will run the ironman carefully noting the times I eat and drink to see what's left at the end !
I'm real happy that lots of my iron motivation teammates will be there also lots of Drtc and family members as well.
I'm real disappointed I don't have enough time to post everyday but I will dig a little deeper and get some out there !
Even if my family was the only people that ever read this I would keep posting because it's a great motivational tool for me and a training. Journal all in one !


My gps from my 18 km run !

So much going on

Just on my way to swim in cobourg then spend the rest of the day out there !

Way to tired

So I think I'm learning ! I'm going to give my sore legs a break and hit the sack early and do my training tomorrow morning before I go to the wedding ! I might have a little more success giving myself a bit of a break !
This was the week from hell for me with training ! Tired tired every day I'm a little afraid I might be coming down with something this will be the test how I feel tomorrow. I know that fatigue is a side effect of the drugs I'm on but it's hard to distinguish between tiredness from training and fatigue !
The average person would also be exhausted so that's what I'm leaning with!
After being away from the parting for such a long time I'm really enjoying my family and watching my kids grow up ! It's amazing the rutt you can get stuck in and how drugs and alcohol can ruin your life! In a way triathlon has saved me from certain doom !
I was out running Tuesday night and I ran through a buddies subdivision and I saw that his house had a sign from the sheriff so I'm quite sure that the booze and drugs got hold of him because he was pretty deep into the stuff and it wasn't just recreational for him it was the real deal!
I wasn't far off with the booze but you never know how close you were without getting away from it!
I will never look down on a drinker or smoker or a person who does drugs but I will say it's not for me anymore ! Thanks triathlon and all the family and wonderful friends who are there to support me in my quest for ironman !

So much to talk about

I really need about 5 more hours a day to fit in everything I want to do ! Another road block in the 2013 ironman Canada is the money !!!! I really think that triathlon has put a heavy burden on my financial side of life so flying out to BC next year could be a difficult thing for me ! I will be in much better shape in 2014 to afford flying the whole family out there !
Also a good friend of mine John told me I don't have to rush ironman !! It will come in due time ! I listen very closely to veteran ironman and my coach and triathlon is a way of life I want to life for the rest of my life so it don't want to wish it away I want to savor it and cherish it !!!
I'd really like my kids to take it up it's a great way to stay fit and not have to work like a crazy man to get back in shape id they don't get out of shape in the first place !!!!

7 short weeks

Ironman muskoka 70.3 is getting close the only thing troubling me is my run is suffering and there is not alot to loose!
I'm going to say its one of those highs and lows of training I'm getting used to!
I have good days and bad days and I will have to get used to that !
I think that a full ironman is out of reach for next year I might just do some fun races next year to get in top shape for ironman Canada in 2014
I don't want to rush the full ironman and struggle to finish ! I want to finish upright and happy and not half dead !

Have a great night

Post race comments

With it being Tuesday I get to take my wonderful methotrexate today and have to put up with 24 hours of sickness! With this bad time for me on the way I might as well complain lol
My first 2 races of the year were a subaru series and recharge with milk multi sport series I will say the Subaru series takes the prize ! The people at the recharge with milk series were to interested in winning and prizes to worry about the people coming across the finish line at the end of the race ! I have been thinking about sending an email to the race director about this that they shouldn't give any awards out until the last racer has crossed the line ! When I finished my last race (Olympic) it was a tough one, the only people anywhere near the finish was my family and a couple people with sponges, the rest of the triathlon folks were eating and watching the awards this was very upsetting for me. As it stands right now I think it will be my last recharge with milk race and I will stick to Subaru !


J

Very hot

Please stay hydrated if your training today !
Think fluids ! Place some out on your run or take money and buy some at a store!
Very very important !

Worn out

That's all I can say !
So after that race I can honestly say I was humbled at the true power the triathlon gods have !
And by triathlon gods I mean a bit of luck and yourself !
You are the triathlon god besides things like a crash or a flat tire the things you do leading up to a race determine how you will do! Sleep, food, and stress level are some of the key things you need to focus on !
If you have a coach his job has already been done, your family and friends that have supported you have completed their end of the bargain so all that's left is yourself !
I have figured out that part the hard way !
An experienced ironman finisher once told a friend of mine that triathlon starts at Olympic !and I sure found out it does !
I saw alot of ironman tattoos on the weekend ! So after all the other people have done their job along with a little luck and you keeping up your end of the deal you might finish !
The mistakes I made were numerous ! real rookie mistakes ! I won't get into all of them right now but over the next while I will touch on them here and there!
First I will start with sleep ! I didnt get enough of it ! Sleep needs to be accumulated over time not two days before ! I was way too tired ! Then I went up the day before to Gravenhurst when I should have been home preparing for the race and was exhausted but I got to see the course.
I have been training hard for a long time and it all went out the window on race day !
My next race is the Kingston long course and if I don't take care on that one ill be in trouble!

I'm off to the beach with the kids today for some fun relaxing !
Have a great day

Gravenhurst Olympic

Well I must say I learned a valuable lesson about pace!
I rocked the swim!!! As much as I could rock it and the bike turned into an all out bike race in my mind that left me totaled for the run ! A super famous thing that I tend to do to often!
Although I finished it wasn't pretty !
I need a nap !!!

Rest day tomorrow

I have had a couple hard days and lots of training I'm starting to get worn out ! I'm going to Gravenhurst with the kids tomorrow to check out the race site and have a little picnic , also because I'm so anal I like to have a plan for Saturday morning ! Parking, sitting , run and bike corse ! Just like to have plan A and B and so on down the line. I'm hoping to be back around 2 to get all my gear set up and packed for the morning which is always a hard thing for me cause if I pack it I have to take it out and check it again !
I'm hoping for a nice restful day tomorrow with the kids to get ready for the race !

Wow

So much training so little time!
Shoulder is getting better with rest I know it's not going to heal until the seasons over so I'm anticipating not much swimming from now till the end of the year ! Then over the winter I will take another stab at it ! I think my swimming form is off causing my shoulders to inflame causing impediment syndrome but with psoriasis and arthritis it's hard to tell what's wrong !

One of the members of my team working very hard to get me to ironman is my oldest daughter Jenna she works very hard keeping the ship afloat when erin is working and I'm training hard ! She takes the brunt of the grumpiness from a tired triathlete because she is the oldest ! But with being the oldest comes more responsibility that she handles like a pro ! She is always watching her younger siblings so I can train and making me meals and packing triathlon stuff ! She is an awesome part of my team. Being 14 it becomes uncool to hang around or talk about your parents but that doesn't seem to bother jenna she's proud of what I'm doing and I love her for it !!!! THANKS JENNA !
Your a big part of my life and my ironman !

Towel picked up

So I threw in the towel but team Drinkle grabbed it before it hit the floor!
I had a great ride on Saturday with Liz followed up by an awesome party at Susan's house ! Sunday was a bit of a crappy day but I managed to burn off 14 km ! The longest run yet ! Then Monday hit !
I was already feeling tired and down and told my wife I was ready to pack it in ! She laughed at first then saw I was serious ! All she said was "your not the only one who has been working hard around here to get you to ironman" I saw she still had my back like the best friend that she is and she said she will come to track night to give me motivation ! Sure enough my biggest fan showed up ! I was very happy to see her there watching and felt good till something bad happened!
Another club member and myself got tangled up on our bikes and he fell on me bending my rim and putting a scratch on my bike !
I was told by my wife I handled it well compared to years ago when I would just freek but I gathered all my stuff and raced over to bicycles plus and had john straiten the wheel ! He said it was the best he could do and I paid and went on my way !
Once I returned home I got a message from coach Paul and I told him what I had done and he said to bring it over and he would take care of it so that's what I did!
Paul had it fixed all up he washed it and cleaned the chain all up!
He also painted the scratch looks great!
That's what being a good coach is all about!

Triathlon the life changer

Good busy Sunday morning.
2500+ m in the lake followed up with a 14km run on tired legs.
I had a picture taken and had to compare it to another fat picture it's really hard to believe the change !

Cake with my good friend Susan

Has a great time at Susan's house tonight eating cake !
Thirty or so triathletes stopped bye to wish Susan a happy birthday and all of them brought cakes !
I ate so much cake I got a headache !
It's all good though I had a great bike ride today 92.5 km with my good friend Liz !
No off to bed to do it all over again tomorrow!

First full day

It's my first full day on humira and I'm exhausted. !
Not sure why but I'm done !
Big ride and swim tomorrow !

Two hours after humira

So I did my 20 km bike and 10 km run and yes it all felt great ! A little slow but finished almost pain free !
Rest day tomorrow then big bike Saturday with a swim !

Injection done!

That wasn't so bad !
Now to see how this will effect my training !
I have a 20 km bike and 10 km run tonight !

Hear we go

Just waiting for the nurse to get here so I can get my first injection of humira!
I'm a little worried about needles but happy if the pain is gone !
A little mad it took 3 years to get on these meds and mad I waisted all the money on physio chiropractors and shoes and orthotics to be arthritis !
We will see !
If this doesn't work it will be pain for the rest of my life and I wont ever bitch about it again !

Extra day off

With the weekend the way it went I swam Saturday instead of Sunday and did my brick Monday instead of Tuesday so I had an extra day off but the same amount of training
Today I'm the shore boss for our open water swim so that to me is a very important thing to keep all my 35 tri buddies safe!
The water is very rough and is great I don't have to battle the waves! Big guys don't float as good as little guys !
So this weekend is the start of NEVER BACK DOWN


Have a great day

New drug on Thursday

Although methotrexate is working 50% the side effects compared to the benefit is not good !
I start Humira on thursday and hope it has no side effects like methotrexate and after the humira starts to work I can cease the methotrexate.
Really looking forward to the race on the 14th the longer distance is easy for me rather than a full on sprint, right now my body is feeling the best it's ever felt so I'm hoping I place well even though it's just a training race the mental part of a good race will help out !
I better get to sleep before the methotrexate side effects kick in! I'd rather sleep through them !

Sub 30 min 5 km

Today was a great day for me ! 30 km bike then into a 6 km run and I got a sub 30 min 5 km !!!!
I was so happy at my 2.5 km and I knew I was on pace so I turned it up !
Finished strong with 6.9 km in 39 minutes!


Great day !

Ten weeks to 70.3 muskoka

The countdown is on ten weeks from today I'll be sitting with ice packs on my legs hopefully holding my shinny new medal !
Although these next 10 weeks are critical my fitness level I'm at now will most likely be what I'll be racing at !
I feel very good about the swim 60% about the bike and the run will be my nightmare !
Plus there is so many uncertainties for that day I hope the ironman gods are shinning down on me ! My family has done there part at getting me ready my friends have done their part at getting me ready, my coach has done what he needs to do now it's all up to me to finish and bring it home !
So many things I need to prepare for !
I have experimented with some nutrition on the bike but I think I will stick to the old faithful !! Gatorade, peanut butter and jam sandwich, gels cliff bars and shot blocks !
Tried tested and true !!! This Saturday I will put it to the test !

Have a great day !

Feeling better

So I just did my 12 km long run!!! Very happy with the results switched my shoes up again and took my time and didn't worry about anything just ran ! I didn't break any speed records but it was a slow steady run that I know I could have pounded out another 8 km to finish the 70.3 ironman if I really hAd to!

I have 10 more weeks to go so I'm sure if I follow the program I will grind it out !

July will be intense

Things have been so busy the last few days and it's all I can do to keep up!
Work has been nuts home life has been busy, training crazy, its a busy time !
Then in my email comes July's training plan from coach Paul ! How am I going to pull this one off? I added up the running to 138 km the bike added up to 580 km of biking and 38 km of swimming so just for fun I will work out the times, that's 30 hours running/walking around 24 hours on the bike with 12 hours of swimming !
Add that up with 220 hours of work 248 hours of required sleep 55 hours travel to work, 70 hours of hygiene and eating that equals hours. The month is 744 hours minus 659 for my minimum obligations that leaves 81 hours at 2.1 hours a day to do every thing else lol !!
Good luck !
I could eat up 2.1 hours a day easy !!
I even forgot to add travel time to training up at the lake also my Gravenhurst triathlon plus helping at the cobourg triathlon for two days so I guess I'm totally out of time!
I only have to do it for 10 more weeks then I'm all done !
I'm going to take 2/3 of the month of September off then start training for my ironman !
The fall from October till february will be will be cut cut cut the calories to get down to 220 lbs then February to may will be cardio and leg training to build hill climbing muscles then may to August ironman training !
Hahaha

If only it was that easy ! But you have to have a plan!

I'm off for a 12 km run !


Have a nice day