So another month has passed! In May I got to become a family man again, focusing on my kids and my wife a lot more than I do when I’m in training for an ironman. I also became a spectator and coach watching athletes achieve their goals. So while this blog will be a reflection on my activities for the month, it will also be a reflection on those that I have coached to their events!
In May I trained for 13 out of 31 days, taking a lot of rest and recovery days. I trained for a touch under 23 hours for the month of May, which as expected is my lightest month in 2016. During May I finished (or attempted to finish) the following Strava challenges:
Running:
- Everest No Filter Climbing Challenge – 607m finishing 31,081 of 55,498 participants
- Strava half marathon – (completed once) 5:44min/km pace finishing 19,466 of 77,807 participants
- Strava 10km – (completed 3 times) 4:46min/km finishing 20,252 of 140,125 participants
Cycling:
- May Gran Fondo – 179km was my longest ride finishing 18,823 of 199,892 participants
- May Everest No Filter Climbing Challenge – 2,146m climbed finishing 124,825 of 152,149 (missing the target of 8,848 by a little bit)
I also competed in the Noosa Ultimate Sports Festival 3.8km ocean swim. The weather for this weekend was amazing, perfect beach and water temperatures, however my head just wasn’t in this race. I got caught in the middle of the pack and suffered a barrage of tangled arms, kicks to the face and all the normal triathlon swim start punishment. Normally I am smart and strong enough to get to a side and keep my distance, but for some unknown reason I didn’t this time and found myself middle of the pack for the first 500m or more! I eventually found some clear water and settled into a rhythm, perhaps a little too settled. I found my mind drifting off to the adjoining national park and tea tree bay beach, not focused on swimming at all. I eventually exited the water in a solid 1 hour and 1 minute and 8 seconds.
Noosa Ultimate, 3.8km Ocean Swim – Official Results
Garmin Connect Data – Noosa Ultimate 3.8km Ocean Swim
The following is a summary of activities for May:
The following little chart is from my excel spreadsheet I use to track volumes & hours, it helps me stay on track for my annual goals, also giving a good summary of the monthly totals:
I am still firmly in a recovery phase, although I am able to complete most training sessions, I tend to suffer for them a little longer than normal. I am always more conservative with my recovery than lots of other athletes, however I have been a victim of over training in my youth and the mental scars still burn bright in my memory! So I have fully accepted that May was a light month and I feel better for it. I am still planning my summer and am currently unsure what my next ‘BIG’ race will be. I have desires to complete a marathon run this winter, although actually entering is the hardest thing for me to get my head around. I am not a runner, I am a triathlete and I need the swim & bike first, pure running scares me! So I’ll delay that decision as long as I can! My options seem to be Brisbane Marathon in early August or the Sunshine Coast Marathon in late August, after that spring kicks in and it gets far too hot to be running a marathon without a swim & bike first 😉 Stay tuned a decision will come soon enough.
As I noted above I became the support and cheer squad for 5 amazing ladies who gave me the privilege and honor of guiding and assisting them over the past 18 weeks and 450km of running to the Noosa Half Marathon. For two of these ladies (my wife included) this was their first time over this distance. The journey over the 18 weeks has been nothing short of inspirational to watch. Every long run would be complete with coffee and tales of excitement of setting a new distance personal record, or sharing bowel movements from the week. There approach to running this half was of total and complete support for each other. Through the low times and injuries, they assisted encouraged and helped each other to get the job done. The bond they formed is amazing to see and really shown through on race day where the smiles continued for 2 hours and 18 minutes and 49 seconds.
Mel Britt – First timer – 1/2 Marathon Official Results
Iva Moller – First Timer – 1/2 Marathon Official Results
Leisa Smith – training for her first 42.2 – 1/2 Marathon Official Results
Tammy Milton – training for her first 42.2 – 1/2 Marathon Official Results
Shirley Malan – A 1/2 PB is on the horizon – 1/2 Marathon Official Results
I cannot put into words the pride I had at the finish line for these 5 ladies, who completed a halt marathon together. These ladies have inspired me to pursue even harder my dream of becoming a coach. I have enjoyed their enthusiasm to embrace any challenge set before them, engage in the advice I provided and put in an amazing performance. I cannot wait to see what challenges they tackle next!
So with a very special May now behind me I am trying to re-focus and get some steady training back into my routine. I have committed to running every day for June, 5km (minimum) a day to be exact. So if your not running & need some inspiration, follow me on Strava & Instagram and lets run 5km a day and see how long the streak can last for. Remember tomorrow is Global Running Day, so make a pledge and get those running shoes on, get out and back some k’s!
Till next time build consistency, keep smiling and live to Tri!
SO, YOU WANT TO BE AN IRONMAN? 