Everything is on track

Good evening,

Long time no post ! 

Over the last few months of ironman training I have discovered a few things about myself, one is Ironman training is a WAR and number two is family and friends are the nucleus of my Ironman journey. Ironman means so many different things to different people, I had a friend tell me the other day that she could see it In my eyes, the "look" that I was training for an ironman, so I said what look is that and she said "the look that you have accepted that you are now in high gear and nothing will stop you !

So I thought about it and she is right, my body has settled into training and things are actually flowing along nicely.

I've been very careful adding a mere 10% of increase training time each week spending free time stretching and sleeping as well as going to massage and ciropractor with occasional physio for small aches and pains, taking care of them before they get bigger.

My arthritis is at bay for the time being and still sits in the back of my mind that I can have a bad flare anytime soon !

I'm at 130 km on the bike 20 km on the long run and 1500 on the swim and building consistently each week. 

I have adopted the therory of having to get slow to get faster and it sure works.

Oh that's another thing I have learned about triathlon, at any level if you asked a question you will get 100 different answers, I have been able to talk to a few close friends and ironman verterans and piece together some awesome training ! 

Why did I quit posting? Well it has become a private adventure for me and my family, one with joy and fears and occasionally some tears ! And if anyone ever tells me that they have never even shed a small tear they are full of it because this whole adventure is full of surprises around every corner ones you will have to wait till I'm done to hear about as I am still writing but not posting, you will get to read it soon enough.

Maybe a couple posts to keep you up on current events but no more drama about fat and will power, I'm just getting down to business and turning up the heat  

J

Thanks giving weekend!

Looks like awesome weather for a ride this weekend ! Get those warm riding cloths out for a late season ride ! 

Not Perfect

I have tried to write this blog tonight but have erased and deleted it time and time again, my posts have been few and far between, partly because I've wanted to get as far away from triathlon for a while because of the time commitment I'm about to undertake "Ironman" soon it's time to get into shape for the new year when things get serious ! 

I have lots to say about a few things but refuse to talk about them right now because it's not time! But soon enough !

I found a garmin watch in the gym the other day and turned it into the desk, I really hope it found its way to the right owner! Just remember ! Karma is a bitch it will come back and haunt you some day when you least expect ! 

Hope you have a great week ! Train hard stay happy and stay safe 

Things change

Some times I feel like the world is getting crazy ! The amount of people out there that haven't got a care in the world except themselves is amazing. I try to really go out of my way everyday to make someone have a better day, if everyone just would do that a couple times in a day it would sure help !

Try that tomorrow. You might like it !

Dont stop

Have a quick read

Just an interesting clip from an article I was reading !

7. Positive Mental Attitude

If you want to be an effective triathlete, you must have the right attitude. Say to yourself, "I will nail this workout," rather than, "I want to nail this workout." Believing that a positive mental attitude is critical to his success, Kemper seeks outside help to work on this habit.

"I meet regularly with a sport psychologist at the Olympic Training Center, and we work a lot on positive self-talk. It's easy for negative thoughts to come into your head when things aren't going according to plan during a race. It's important for me to notice those thoughts and immediately refocus my thinking on the process," he says.

Part of having a positive mental attitude is being able to move past bad workouts or races. "If you have a positive attitude, you'll get a lot more out of your workouts," says Lieto. "You have to believe you can do it."

So if you want to be an effective triathlete, or if you just want to place in your age group at your next triathlon, integrate these habits into your lifestyle. Remember that good habits are like bad habits—once you form them, they are hard to break. And if you treat the whole process as a formula that includes the above components, you will find success in the sport.

And so it begins

IMMT 140.6 training has begun ! I'm not pounding any large miles or swimming song huge swims I'm just preparing. Eating healthy, cutting a few calories hitting the gym ! I have really let myself down this summer by not focusing hard on training, the only good that could come of this is I might be rested up enough to get on better shape for the heavy volume to come in a few months!

That's my goal now, to build base fitness and drop some lbs enough to turn it up when the time is right!

I've had a great couple first days of eliminating crap from my diet, it's like a purge that lasts for about 2 weeks then all cravings are gone and it will be time to ramp things up!

It's hard to believe I was able to complete  the 70.3 ironman at the weight I was and not have a stroke ! But it's done and a valuable lesson learned!

Time to focus and move forward !

Rest week

So my rest week begins, I'm going to have a small swim tomorrow morning, (I hope) and maybe a short walk tomorrow but nothing serious. I'm hoping for a short bike on Thursday with another swim then a walk Friday followed by a bit of a bike Saturday maybe 20 km, real early though so I can have a full day with Erin for our anniversary!

Sunday it's back to planning for the week to come will be a difficult one ! This is where it all begins, the start of IMMT training, and no I'm not doing any long rides or huge distance on the run I'm slowly going to build an ironman machine, one that's going to take me to the finish line in style! 

Ill add a couple Muskoka race day pictures to show the pain in my face lol 

Muskoka 70.3 IRONMAN 2013

Well the day after shows its ugly head and I can recap the race, only this time I didn't have any excuses, or reasons to have a sub performance day other than lack of training which resulted in the fattest triathlete at the race. 

Ya I know don't be so hard on yourself, but mark my word you will not recognize 2014 Ironman Mont-Tremblant triathlete because he will be 50 lbs lighter, that's the only thing standing in my way of getting faster is the weight. I'm totally capable of pounding up those large grinders in Muskoka so dropping a pile of weight will make a huge difference.

I have a super amazing team also right down the line to the Durham Region Triathlon club, they come out and support and cheer you on, they are an amazing group of people!

Time now to take a full 2 weeks of serious training, I'm thinking light cardio with stretching after with some swimming and start back into weight training, them the beginning of October ease back into triathlon!

Have a great day !

70.3 Ironman Muskoka in the bag

I don't have a lot of time because I'm not sure if I'm going to barf or fall asleep, in either order so I will leave the race story for tomorrow !

Here we go again

2013 Muskoka 70.3 

Wish me luck ! I'd love to get a finishers jacket ! There is only one extra large here, I hope it's still there tomorrow if I finish!

Mont-Tremblant

355 days

The final push

Still trying to wrap my head around what is defiantly going to be my biggest challenge of my life, Ironman Mont-Tremblant  ! Recently I went to the beautiful province of Quebec and volunteered with my wife and my friend Liz, my wife in support of me and my friend Liz to sign up, we were also there to cheer on mark who was on his first Ironman journey. Our friend Sheila was also there as another key support for mark, it's always good to have support !

The experience was life altering for me just to watch the people's faces change through the race, I still haven't put my finger on it yet but eventually I will be able to explain it. There is so much more that goes on in a race that you can't really see or even really understand, like a grown man that is crying and barfing wondering why he can't keep going! He said to me, "I've trained so hard to get here and my legs won't move and I feel sick" I called over the medic right away to access him and she wasn't really concerned but she kept a watchful eye over him as he cooled off and took in some food, I think he stopped right on time as he was about to go down. He came back to life enough he could cary a sentence like normal and asked me what he should do? So I so I said to him "do you want to be a Ironman ?" He said "yes" so I told him to get up and finish the dam race! I turned back to hand out water for a few minutes and looked back and he was gone! I didn't get his bib number and will never know if he finished, I saw him when I was in line for sign up for the race the next day and he didn't have his finisher shirt on and I didn't want to ask him about it so I left it at that !

I had some other friends in that race also, Deanna put on quite a clinic, as I thought she would as she is very strong, very proud of all of them who raced that day ! 

Just getting to the start line of this event is an amazing thing ! Even those who didn't make the finish line I have the biggest respect for being there and putting in the training time, they are all ironman in my eyes.  

When I started writing this blog I didn't tell anyone that I knew about it, then it got out one day and a few people started to read it, as my time each day is limited it is sometimes difficult to get it in but a friend of mine told me and i will keep it up this time, she said "don't miss a day! even if its only one word" and since she is a major contributor to my triathlon life I will honour that until this journey is over. There is many people writing blogs out there, lots with the same content the same  as mine. This one started off as a training journal and now is progressing into a life story for me that should be getting interesting over the next year !

I have the Muskoka 70.3 race coming up in two weeks, this is going to be just a fun race for me ! Just to take the edge of of what will be an intense winter off season training session although I'd like to finish under 8 hours and will do my best I'm just going out for the finish and to have fun ! I put way to much pressure on myself with goal times and dramatic time reductions, this race I'm going into it maybe a little under trained due to a couple injuries I had over the summer but its just about fun and enjoying the festivities, because that's mainly what it is, a couple thousand people getting together to celebrate their fitness it's an awesome event.

I have a couple monsters chasing me still, one who is hot on my heals and has been for a long time (the fat monster) and one who I have been away from for a long time (alcohol). Over  the last two years I've been on a drug called methotrexate, under no circumstances could I drink and when I received clearance to get off the drug due to its ability to make me sick for two to three days a week  that stupid alcohol monster made an appearance just one more hurdle I need to overcome now on my road to ironman !

So my main goals, training plan,  meal plan and life plan will be laid out for the next year !

I'm making a yearly plan (which is already under a year) a monthly plan, weekly plan and a daily plan all of which will be coordinated with my team captain (my wife Erin) who is also ironman training and she doesn't even know it ! Just getting me there to the start line for her will be a challenge!  

We have quite a few members in our club that are going to take a stab at 2014 ironman which I'm happy to see because at least ill have some training partners to hang out with, it would be a long season all alone !! Thanks DRTC you make all the difference in the world !

My goal phrase for this season !

"It's time to build a machine"

Completion date August 17 2014!

Stay tuned !!!!!

365 days away

And so it starts ! After a long couple years of talking about it finally it will soon be on the race books ! Along with a tune up race of the 70.3 in June !

It is going to be quite a ride, but once again team Drinkle is going to be on the hot plate to get this high maintenance triathlete to the finish,

Erin, Liz  and I have a long day ahead of us starting at 5 am to get close enough to get a parking spot to enjoy the festivities !!

Looking forward to see the pros roll through the aid stations tomorrow morn, this will be a first watching a triathlon !

Can't wait great day ahead 

Here we go

So I'm at the 2013 Ironman Mt Tremblant volunteering for the full Ironman race, so far I'm speechless on what I'm witnessing here so far! From what I can explain its like a "jack in the box" we are just winding up the little handle on the side and the little man is about to spring out ! I've seen many faces so far from the experienced veterans to the first timers, you can just see it in their faces. The energy is awesome, the venue is awesome the people are awesome this is an amazing experience !

We are staying off site in the old village which presents a few obstacles but manageable, the accommodations are great and clean, very impressed !

Today's plan is to go ride the bike route and run a few km after to get ready for Muskoka in 3 weekends, can't wait it's gonna be fun.

Monday morning I sign up for the 2014 full ironman, well at least that's the plan anyway as long as the bike course doesn't scare me off !  

Monday ride home from work

Not to bad for a Monday night! Had a fun ride home from work, not an overly taxing ride because its all down hill, average speed of almost 30 km per hour says it all!

I really wanted to say that today was the most stress free ride I've had in a while, just for the fact that I didn't almost get run over a couple hundred times. The general motoring public was ok!

I was on some pretty heavily travelled roads but that doesn't bother me, se people really don't like it but that's still ok too. I really take my section of road and have a very strong attitude about my section of road, and when riding with confidence I think helps the drivers of the cars feel confident also. If a driver sees a nervous rider looking around and wobbling around they to get nervous which creates two nervous people and a all around bad situation !

So just remember to ride positive ad safe and aware of all the surrounding situations that can cause harm!

Bit of good news

My infected to is feeling much better, still has some pain but is feeling much better.

Defiantly need a plan for this coming month, it's gonna be a tough one, every weekend from now till the 3rd week of September is booked.

Going to take a few more days of running off to give this pesky toe some time to heal. The problem with an auto-immune disease is it leaves your immune system at risk of attack when a virus or infection sets in, I was quick enough with this one to get into the docs for antibiotics.

Lucky

My toe feels better I'm sure it was due to my quick response with the antibiotics, last night I soaked it late and was able to drain the infection out, it's not red anymore and I can almost walk on it.

Thinking of only elliptical now until Muskoka but not sure yet, I have to cover the shop at work next week so I have to be early at work so no early gym sessions.

Hoping to be able to ride on Saturday, I won't be going long but anything will be good. We have the annual guys weekend coming up next weekend so I want to be off the antibiotics by then so I can have a cold one lol !

Have a good day 

Another speed bump

I have an infection in my big toe, not sure what its from but it sure hurts real bad, went to the doctors last night and he put me on antibiotics right away.

Hoping it works because Muskoka is 6 weeks away.