The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare

Volume
In a previous post I stated that in order to qualify for Hawaii I need to build a basic week of training based on event duration I decided that at least 17-22 hrs PW of training will be necessary to develop the required endurance in order to take my fitness to the next level. Because I aim a bit of a late starter and I had a 4 yr break from triathlons, I need to play catch up in the endurance department. To do that I’ll need to put together a training program that will last for three years. So far, I have been training quite consistently (apart from running) for 12months now. In order, to reach around 17-22 hrs PW each week with a good dose of steady work I need to be able to do 25 hrs PW at any pace. If I can build my volume up to 25 hrs PW, all easy, then I should be able to find time to regularly train around 17-22hr PW. That will be the goal starting in May. I’ll spend time training to train up to the volume I think will be necessary to make substantial improvements in the lead up to the Japan Ironman in May 07.
The correct volume is so important in training. With the right mix of volume and intensity the goal is to train the mind to accept fatigue and discomfort associated with the day. Epic camps, Big day training (BDT), the long bike, and long bricks will be implemented to create a deep level of good fatigue that will allow you to back up from within 36-48 hrs. I don’t think it will be necessary to fatigue the body with any shorts interval work that is anaerobic in nature. It’s just a different type of fatigue that requires extended periods of recovery and can also make you susceptible to injury and burnout.
The volume I hope to achieve each week, in particularly through BDT, will be enough to view an IM as just another Big Training Day. I have never used BDT as part of any previous training program, and I believe this time around it while be a crucial to success and the No1 session in preparing for Ironman Japan.

fluro

Bike setup

So you think that your low at the front. Check out these pics. I still can't believe Bjorn Anderson can ride a 180k TT in a setup like this. Well who is going to argue with sub 4:40 bike splits

fluro

Getting to Hawaii

There’s an interesting article in the latest Imeg (http://www.imemag.com/email.html) which gives the averages times for the top 10 athletes in the 35-39 age group category.
These are
 Swim 52:56 (1:24/100)
 Bike 5:17:34 (34kph)
 Run 3:20:32 (4:45mim/k’s)

This gives an average time of 9:31:05. That is flying but that is what is necessary in order to have a realistic chance of qualifying for Hawaii.
Well this is still my goal for next year. However, I will probably be competing in the Japan Ironman (May 2007) as I’ll be living in Tokyo for the next 2 years. I have always said that you need to train for a 9:30 in order to qualify and the above results at Port this year confirm this.
I gave it a good shot this year and really buckled down and put a good 10-12 months of training together. My goal was to break 10hrs and really aim for that elusive 9:30 barrier. Along the way my swimming and cycling developed well. However, I was plagued with running injuries that I could never really get on top of. It is difficult trying to train and manage a chronic foot/leg injury along the way and in the end it didn’t really do me any justice. My run training over the past 12 months ended being very sporadic and over the course of 12months I only managed to average just over 3 hrs PW. In reality I need to at least run around 6 hr PW in order to have any chance of running a sub 3:30 marathon. To run around a 3:20 is going to be a really change for me and may take another 2 years of consistent and injury free running in order to get to that level. I do think a 3:30 could be a realistic goal for next year. For that reason I need to really sort this running injury out before I start committing to this long term goal. I’ve been told I need to take a least 6 weeks off running altogether so that Ian, my osteo, can really work hard on improving the mobility through my fibula, in particularly, where it attaches to the tibula. At the moment there is just no movement there and this is causing my peroneal nerve to become very stressed out. If I can cure this then I should be able to run again without issues.
In regards to my swimming, things are good. My worst swim in an IM has been a 58:30, this was at Port this year and this was with a chest infection. Current PB in an IM is 54min. I think I could get back to that time and quicker with an extended period of consistently swimming around 3-4 times PW. I find the more I swim the faster I swim. I know that sounds silly but my technique in the water is quite sound and it’s just a matter of me putting time back in the pool. Over the last 12months I averaged 1hr and 46min PW in the pool. It’s not much as I was focusing more on my cycling and running this year, but it still gave me a 58:30 at Port, which wasn’t too bad.
My biggest improvements this time around came from the bike. I really put in some big consistent periods of quality training with Scott and it paid off, unfortunately not in the race. I ended riding a very difficult 5:45. I suffered the whole way around the course with coughing fits and it was near impossible for me to spend time on the tribars without gagging. In training Scott and rode all our 180k under 5:45. In fact I did a 180k TT on my own on a circuit harder then Port and rode a 5:33. So my time at Port this year was disappointing. Not much I could do about it on the day and I couldn’t really ride any harder. Over the last 12months I averaged around 8hrs PW of cycling. Probably still not enough, but the time that was spent in the saddle was all quality work, which was the key. Very little time was spent riding in packs as my only training partner was Scott and if we weren’t riding side by side we would be TTing in a non drafting situation. Next year I’ll aim to ride around 10hr PW consistently. Because I’ll be living in Tokyo I think nearly all of my training will be on my own. I may even have to resort to buying a windtrainer during the winter months. I’m not sure yet as I know very little about Tokyo and the climate.
So, 9:30 is still my goal. I still committed and keen as ever to keep on improving. Even though I’ll be in Tokyo Scott and I will still train under the same plan and keep each other motivated as much as possible. The sort of hours I think we’ll have to commit to are
1. Swim 3-4 sessions (3-5hrs PW)
2. Bike 3-4 sessions (9-11hrs PW)
3. Run 5-6 sessions (5-7hrs PW)

On average, I think we will need to build a basic week of training that will target at least 17 hrs PW. Put that time in and we should be well on our way to establishing a very solid aerobic endurance base to build on.
We will start kicking things off again around the first week in May. I keep a weekly log going for anyone interested in following our progress.

Keep in touch

fluro

IMOZ06

Here are the guys the day before we competed. It was good to have Eddy Barton join us in the photo. From left to right is myself, Bob, Steve, Brian and Scott.
I've been back to the Osteo and Foot podiatrist and I now need to take 6 weeks off completely from running. I have a peroneal nerve pinched which needs to be mobilised again. This is a result of having my Fibula locked and that also needs treatment. I do seem to be progressing with this problem, as I now don't have any foot issues and my peroneals seem to have settled down quite well. Hopefully we can fix this nerve issue and I can finally start doing some uninterrupted running training for at least 12months. Time will tell.

fluro

Fleuren Cornelius

Aged 97.
My grandfather died on the weekend. A great man who was a bomb defuser in Holland during world war II and then for 10years after that. After losing so many of his mates in such a short period of time he decided to migrate to Australia to provide his 5 children and his loving wife with a better future.
I’ll will miss pop and I can never forget those killer handshakes he used to give me as a child when we would visit him and nan each week. I can always remember eating strange biscuits and cakes made from dutch recipes and being too young to really understand their strong accents.
This day is dedicated to you pop. May you rest in peace.

Your loving grandson

Paul Fleuren

Big Sunday

Check out this photo. I took this at North Beach and I have never seen a wave break this far out before. How big do you think the wave is??
Well if you look closely enough, can you see the jetski???

fluro

Post Ironman random thoughts.

Well it’s the weekend after the race and I’m already psyching for my next IM. Not really sure when it will be yet, but at this stage I may either do IM Korea in August or IM Japan in May 07. I think IM Korea may be a bit close to when Katrina and I need to start our teaching contracts in Tokyo. We’ll have to wait in see on that one.
After racing Port I’ve decided that I need to get my health back in order. It is almost pointless trying to train for an IM, manage an ongoing injury and aim for a PB. I think in hindsight I may have put too much pressure on myself by focusing on qualifying for Hawaii before taking time off to sort out my foot problem. Luckily on the day, with the assistance of Nurofen plus, it didn’t end up being a big issue for me. My foot was burning slightly but it wasn’t enough to affect the way I ran.

The plan
Getting to Hawaii. To qualify for Hawaii next year I think you need to do the following things.
1. Volume: event duration related. This year I’m going to build a basic week which will target reaching a volume of at least 2 IM’s each week. That is
a. Swimming 8km (3hrs)
b. Riding: 360km (12hrs)
c. Running: 84km (7hrs)
In terms of volume this will be the minimum basic week of training needed to have a shot at qualifying for Hawaii. In other words I’ll need to do as many 20hrs weeks as I can in the lead to my next Ironman. This year I only managed 1 week of training above 20hrs. I did around 8 weeks between 15-20hrs and the rest of my training was between 12-15hrs PW.
2. Big Day Training: I haven’t done any really big days of training yet. The plan this time around is to do a number BDT which include a 1hr swim 5hr ride and then a 1 hr run. I still believe endurance is my greatest limiter and BDT is probably the single best way to address this issue. The goal here would be to swim for an hour at 4.30am have breakfast and then ride at 7am for 5hrs have lunch and then run 1hr in the afternoon. All intensity will be from easy to Steady.
3. Winter PB’s: After talking this over with Scott we have concluded that as winter approaches it would be a good time to improve out Functional Threshold (ie 40km TT pace, 10km run pace, 1500m TT swim). After doing a bit of research I now understand that IMpace is a percentage of FT (ie 72-78%). Therefore by improving our FT over winter we are effective improving our IMpace too. This would also be a good way to have a break from Ironman specific training, which would resume around October. So between now and then Scott and I are planning on breaking 1hr for a 40km TT we have planned out on a very tough course from Puckeys estate to the Sea Cliff bridge and back. We will also use Kembla Joggers to try and break 3:30min k pace on some of their fun runs. In the pool we are going to aim for a sub 21min 1500m swim. This would be good speed to have in our legs coming out of winter. All we need to do then is to top this up with some Ironman specific endurance work leading up to our next Ironman.
4. Epic camp: The plan next year is to take a week off at around 7 weeks out from the Ironman and do an epic week of training. The goal being to double our normal basic week by aiming for 40hrs. it is a big mental challenge more then a physical one and will resolve any issues with a mental state of minds in an Ironman. After reading all the reports from various peoples of different abilites who have attend an epic camp, I think there is a lot to be gained from performing such a big week of training.
5. HIM’s: As a general rule of thumb your time in ½ when doubled and add on 45min will work out to be your IM time. Training specifically for two ½’s in the lead up to an Ironman would be a good way to monitor your progress. Our goals therefore would be to break 4:30 for a ½ Ironman if I’m to have a shot a getting well under 10hrs in a full Ironman. So if Scott and I could do a 4:30 for ½ Ironman then we would be on target for a 9:30-9:45 Ironman which is needed to qualify for Hawaii.

Well that’s my top 5 for the moment. I think if we can address these top 5 issues and handle them well we’ll be on track to achieving a big at our next IM.
While I’m resting for the nest 4 weeks, the plan is to resume normal training in May. Between now and then I’m going to recover and train with no real structure. Just go out and enjoy myself.
As I start putting together my next training plan I’ll post it on here to share my ideas. Feel free to ask questions etc as the more feedback I get the better it will be. Most of my training will be posted on Reefmans online (refer link) log and is available for anyone to view. You’re more then welcome to use the plan and if you have any questions just contact me at anytime.

Cheers

fluro

I'm off to Tokyo

Yep that’s right, katrina and I are off to Tokyo for 2years. We have both secured jobs at Kist International school. We couldn’t believe it when we received the email being offered a position. We have been trying now for close to 18months with very little success and just to have an interview at an International school is a privilege. So for both of us to be offered jobs at the same school has really knocked our socks off.
We’ll probably head over in August and depending when our contracts start I may even have a chance to race Ironman Korea in August. I’ll have to wait and see when the school needs us to start. So that leaves us with around 4months to get ourselves organized. It’s not long really considering how much we need to take care of before we leave.
I’m looking forward to resting up for the next 4-6 weeks then I resume training again with Scott H. Even if I don’t race Korea, my goal now over the next 4months is to really improve my Olympic distance speed. More on that later.







Take care

fluro

IMOZ06 Race report

Time: 10:45:53

A lot of excess baggage this year. Picked up a chest infection on Wednesday (Doesn’t help being a teacher). Spent each day resting and pumping myself full of antibiotics, Sudafed, nurofen and panadol. Hope you enjoy the read. P.S will edit all spelling and grammar another time

Swim: 58:46
Photo: Aerial shot of the swim





I was a bit worried here. I was having coughing fits since Wednesday and wasn’t looking forward to an attack of the coughs during the swim with 1600 other people to contend with. I decided to start as far left as possible and about 3 rows back. I would normally position myself right in the middle of the field and at the front.
I the gun went off I headed straight to clear water, that way if I was to starting coughing uncontrollably I would at least be able to stop and clear my throat without having to worry about other competitors climbing all over me. Fortunately, I didn’t get an attack but the salt water was making my throat taste like acid and it felt quite uncomfortable.
Throughout the swim I maintained I nice easy pace and I took all the turns quite wide to avoid the traffic. At one stage I could feel the sand and thought this was getting to shallow for my liking. I looked up to see that I was well and truly left of the pack and had to make a sharp turn to try and salvage at least some draft.
The rest of the swim was uneventful, all at times things did get a little congested when we were funneled through some narrow sections on the course. As I neared T1 I thought that I was heading for around 1:01-1:04 swim. I was quite surprised to see 58:30 on the clock. Even with the acid taste in my mouth and feeling low on energy my spirits were pretty good and a sub 1hr swim picked me up even more.

Bike: 5:45:52
Photo: Jason Shortis on the bike





Took my time in transition and things went smoothly. Surprisingly enough when I mounted the bike I thought that I was feeling pretty good. I was thinking ‘Yes’ the antibiotics have kicked in over night and I was over my chest infection. Little did I know!
Once on the bike things settled down quickly and I made a point of taking it very easy through the initial hills. Everybody around me must have been sharing my thoughts as no-one was passed me for at least the first 20km. The pace was quite conservative.
Well things changed pretty quickly at about the 20km mark on the bike for me. I was up to this point just drinking water and eating some powerbar, then I decided to have some Gatorade. Holy crap I could swear I was drinking brake fluid or acid. My throat was on fire and every time I tried to have Gatorade it burned like nothing else and sent me into a coughing fit. I didn’t know what to do. I hadn’t planned on this and I knew I needed to get in the electrolytes.
Things progressively became worse. I found it difficult to sit on the tribars from this point onwards and not cough. My throat was on fire and my energy levels were plummeting. I’ve now managed to complete the first loop on the bike but I could feel my chest infection getting the better of me. I was no longer holding my position on the course. People were continually riding past me and each time I tried to maintain a good aero position on the bars I would cough my guts up. Heading out for that second lap was probably the worst part of my day. My throat was at its worst, I was riding into a strong headwind and I couldn’t get aero. I was having trouble swallowing my powerbars and decided to start getting hold of some powerbar gels at the aid stations. I didn’t really want to do this as I don’t train on this stuff, but I needed to start getting in the calories as I was feeling pretty flat by the 90km mark.
For the next 90km and some real up and downs. On a positive note my sore throat was getting better and I was starting to control my coughing fits. On a downside side I had no energy. I just was not able to get in enough calories early on and the chest infection had drained most of what was left in the tank out of me. I was in survival mode now. Coming back into town wasn’t too bad. Having a tailwind helped ease the pain. Reality set in though when I turned to head back out for the 3rd and final lap. Damm! Another 30k’s of headwind. I new this was going to hurt me and it did. I was struggling. What made it worse was watching everyone come past me one after the other, rubbing salt into the wounds.
My knees and hips were really aching and the back of my neck was stiff and sore. I knew now I was getting dehydrated even though I was drinking more then I had planned for. This infection now was doing me in mentally. ‘Just get to the turnaround’, ‘Just get to the turnaround’, ‘Just get to the turnaround’ I knew if I could just dig deep enough and make it to the turnaround I could use the tailwind to bring me home. It worked. I made it to T2



Run: 4:01:14.
Photo: Me on the run

After I dismounted the bike I was relieved. There was nothing left in the tank. Even though I had a marathon to come I knew that getting off that bike was probably the best part of my day. I would ever normally say that as the bike leg is my strongest leg. Not today though. That was wrong!. I didn’t enjoy that bike leg at all.
In T2 I just sat down and relaxed. This explain why my first run split is around 8min slower then the others. I just didn’t want to leave T2. I could found a corner and curled up and slept for a good couple of hours. No-one would of missed me. Wait hang-on my girlfriend and family are out there waiting for me. Time to get organized again.
In T2 I didn’t have anyone help me. In a way I was glad, I was just too frazzled to worry about someone fussing over me and telling how could I was doing when in fact I knew I wasn’t. I was starting to get pissed off. Why me, why did I have to get this chest infection 4 days before this race. I’ve spent soo much time preparing for this event and this damm stupid chest infection was beating me down with a big smile on its face.
When I stood up to leave T2 I was gone for all money, my day was over. Running is my worst leg and I have never felt this bad before in my previous 4 IM’s. I stepped out of the change tent grabbed a cup of water and the first person I saw was Katrina. The look on her face was enough, that was it. Nothing was said. She just looked at me, smiled through a look of concern which clearly showed that she knew I was hurting. From that point onwards this race was on. It’s hard to describe but she kept me in the race and lifted my spirits to a new level. It was time to deal with this pain and get through this day.
I took 2 nurofen + to deal with the foot issues. That worked. I decided to run the flats, walk the aid stations and walk/run the hills as much as possible. The first 12km were terrible. There was just nothing there for me to draw on. I had no energy. It was such a grind getting through that first hr. At each aid station I took in as much water, Gatorade, coke and Jelly beans I could get my hands on. After an hr of pumping sugar into the system I was starting to pick up. I was feeling better and better after each aid station. The next 2 hrs were quite pleasurable for the first time since starting the race. I was holding my race pace and picking off people one at a time. Even when I was feeling good I still made sure that I walked the aid stations to keep those sugar supplies coming in.
At about the 30km my quads began to cramp. It was tough again from this point onwards but with only 12km to go I was feeling the finishing line getting closer and closer. The crowds were going nuts and that was enough for me to finish my 5th IM. I can't honestly say what happend in the last hr. It was a blur.

Not the time I wanted but a very satisfying day overall. Nothing beats being part the day and I can’t wait to do the next one. Since I’m off to Tokyo in August for 2years. Ironman Japan is looking very good at the moment.

Catch you later

fluro