Yesterday I had an incredible running workout! Maybe too good? I ran 6 miles in 49min during an interval workout my coach gave me. Thanks Woody! I’m getting stronger and stronger. It’s like when I hit a performance wall, I’m learning to plow through it instead of backing away or just maintaining intensity.
But as a result, I may have strained an intercostal muscle because last night I was having sharp chest pains. Yikes! On the left side of my chest, right beneath my under arm hair region. This morning its a lot less painful and it feels more bilateral than yesterday. I wonder if the reduction of pain was a result of the 10 hours of sleep I got last night??? Hmmmmm? If I had to guess, I’d say YES!
Just more proof that the harder you try and the better you do, the more obstacles you encounter. “Mo money, mo problems”? Maybe for rappers but not for the rest of us. “Mo effort, mo roadblocks” would be a bit more accurate. But there’s always a solution or remedy. Just a matter of finding it fast and moving on.
I did forego my swimming workout last night as a result of the pain. I’ll be doing it tonight. Surprisingly, my weight is not dropping much at all.
But what I see in the mirror in the morning and the fit of my clothes is quite nice. Woody is looking more like a genius with each passing day! 
Yesterdays Training:
Run – 6 miles (Interval training for 49 minutes)
Planned Training Today:
Swimming – 2500 yd Strength Workout (Pulling Bouy and Paddles)
Still very excited for my new bike to get here! GPS watches may be en route for the new year as well! 2012 is looking bright.
Well, maybe not the one YOU might be thinking of, but a new addition none the less. Thanks to the assistance of my good friend Stu, who’s an awesome cyclist and has tons of cycling knowledge. And thanks to the encouragement of my lovely wife, we are expecting a new bicycle in our house! (Actually, its a very small studio apt and I have no clue how we are going to fit 3 bikes, 2 people and a cat)
Anyway, I found a 2011Fuji Aloha 2.0 on Amazon for over half off and with a $100 gift card that I had recently received, the total came out to less than $600 shipped to my door. Now, I know it is an “entry level” tri bike, but still, this deal is a steal! Recently I’ve been having a lot of discomfort while riding because my disproportionately small torso (as it compares to my legs) forces me to sit forward on the nose of the seat so I can rest my arms in aero position. The geometry of the new frame should allow me to sit comfortably on the seat while riding in aero. At least that’s the hope. And at that price, its worth the chance. The stork should be bringing our new arrival by Dec 20th. I will take pictures!
Training yesterday was REALLY fun actually. After another fun ride on the subway, I ran home from the station and did some power bike intervals while watching the Ironman World Championships, for the second time. Power Intervals are tough though. 30-50 RPM during the efforts at max resistance and efforts can last up to 8 minutes. Yikes! Definitely some quality training, either that or my coach is trying to kill me 
(Just kidding Woody!) I’m confident I’ll be ready for IMNZ. March 3rd is coming fast!
That’s all for today! Follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook! It’s going to be an awesome ride!
Yesterday’s Training:
Bike – Power Intervals for 48min
Planned Training Today:
Run – Interval Run 60min a.m.
Swim – 2500 yds p.m.
Wow! “Feeling better” really doesn’t describe it. 180 degree turn around from yesterday to today and I have no explanation why. I’m glad though!
Things were busy at work yesterday, so I didn’t get my conditioning session in. I’m moving that to today. It mostly consists of kettlebell work, cleans, presses, push ups, front squats and so on; done in a circuit type workout. It goes by fast but is exhausting.
Swim workout was killer yesterday. Coach added 100 yds to each interval, so it was kind of tough. I really do enjoy running home from the subway station then going straight to my swim. I feel more awake than I do when I just stumble off the express bus, nauseated from all of the stopping and starting. I’m also very determined to get through my workout before the pool closes. I cut it kind of close sometimes, much to the displeasure of the lifeguard I’m sure.
A new bike may be in the near future too! I’ve been looking for a frame with time trial geometry for the longest time and I may have found one that’s VERY affordable. It’s not that I want to get a “fancy”, expensive bike, similar to those my competitors ride. It’s just that I feel like my bike never really fits my body dimensions well. I’ve got a very short torso and extremely long legs. So the higher up you go, the farther back you go as well (in seat position). So, my seat position is SO FAR from the handlebars I feel like I’m stretched out and not comfortably resting on the handlebars. Time trial geometry would give me a steeper seat tube angle, and therefore will not push me back as far in seat position. I hope this will result in a “not so stretched out” feeling when trying to reach for the handlebars. The difference in seat tube angle is only about 5.5 degrees (current bike: 72.5 vs. new bike: 78). I hope that’s enough to make a difference. It’s worth a try I suppose. I’m waiting to hear back from the bike shop on a couple of details and if everything works out, I’m buying it TODAY! I’ll update my Twitter feed!
Well, off to another awesome day of training. My deep thought of the day is this…there will always be doubters when attempting something of this sort. Haters too. They are the unknowing motivators. They’re almost necessary. The real sabateurs are those who constantly acknowledge and focus on what you’re NOT doing. Example “you may be doing an incredible amount of endurance, but you’re NOT putting on muscle mass” or “…you’re NOT increasing your strength.” or “…you’re NOT getting any faster.” This is a diversionary tactic to keep you from focusing on your dream and being in love with that vision. They are the real dream destroyers. Let’s stay focused on our dreams and love them for what they are. Let the sabateurs see them for what they are NOT.
Yesterday’s Training:
Swim – 2100 yd workout
Planned Training Today:
Bike – 60 min Power Bike on the indoor trainer
Conditioning – Weights Circuit from Monday (time to play ‘catch up’)
Wow! I can officially say I don’t like holiday parties! Well, they are fun at the time, but they ultimately just get in the way.
Friday night I had a blast at my company’s Holiday party in Manhattan. Casino nights are awesome! I raked in a bunch of chips at the craps table and ended up winning some cool prizes, but it wasn’t worth the aftermath on Saturday. I was SO sleepy. I got no rest Friday night and my Saturday workouts suffered. I only got in one of my two workouts (a Fartlek workout that was incredible) but I had nothing in the tank for my second workout.
Now, after making that mistake once, would I be foolish enough to make the same mistake AGAIN? IN THE SAME WEEKEND?! Uh, YEAH! My wife had a holiday party for an organization she volunteered for this year, so….take two! This one ended a little worse than the first. Yesterday, Sunday, I could hardly wake up! I slept almost the entire day! Safe to say, no more holiday dinners or parties between now and March. I couldn’t even do the slightest workout yesterday and what’s worse is, I woke up this morning with chills, muscle aches, headaches and congestion. I’m sick now!
I will beat this though. I see this as only another challenge on the road to my first Ironman.
I watched a bit of the Ford World Championships this weekend. Wow! Safe to say, I’m scared! I’m amazed at the level of accomplishment athletes can achieve. Hard to believe that I will be one of them. But I will!
Planned workout today:
Survival first
Conditioning – Weights 40 min
Swimming – 1800 yds
Favorite song this weekend:
Black and Yellow – Wiz Khalifa
*helped me put away the last part of my Fartlek run!
Oh yeah, almost forgot! Mondays from now on will be “Motivation Mondays”! Every Monday I will post a motivational quote or YouTube video. One of my favorite videos is below. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3wxF53dq_I&feature=youtube_gdata_player
So yesterday was an outstanding day. I caught up on my training for the week. Core training is tough. I guess its not supposed to be easy, but it wipes me out. Taking that exhaustion into swimming last night was bananas, but something weird happened. I actually felt stronger and more aggressive. I brought a lot of intensity and energy to the workout and performed above expectation. Seems the tougher things get, the harder I want to work; which is encouraging. I’ve never been one to back down I suppose. I’m really happy how my mind, body and spirit are uniting. I really hope I can maintain it.
It seems the harder I push though, the harder life will push back. During my bike ride today my mom called me with news of my grandmother being gravely ill. No matter what we are trying to accomplish (professionally, personally, athletically, spiritually, emotionally, morally, ethically or academically) life will always throw us curve balls. On all levels too, not just Ironman training, but for all training goals; beginners, weight loss, novice and professionals alike. I guess success is dependant on how well we deal with it. Not like that’s deep or anything. Just that I must stop being surprised when it happens. I’ll probably go further in life if I just prepare for it to happen and have the confidence that I can handle it, no matter what it is.
It will take more than just a few obstacles to stop me; that I am sure of. I feel like saying “Bring it on”, but I don’t want to invite trouble. I’ll just say, “Here I am!”. *knuckles up*
Total Training Yesterday:
Core Conditioning Workout a.m.
Swim – 2500 yds p.m.
Favorite Song Yesterday
None – Trained at work so had to listen to….well, let’s say “not so good music”. And it’s hard to listen to tunes while swimming.
Total Training Today:
Bike – 16 miles Interval Training on the bike trainer a.m.
Favorite Song Today:
Lord Give Me a Sign – DMX
Yesterday got off to a great start! I actually had some time to work out while at work. One of the perks of working in the Fitness Industry, I suppose. I don’t really get a lunch break so I guess it counts as one. But big thanks to my boss, Greg for being understanding about it. There’s a lot more training to come and being able to train at work will help a lot.
So, right when I thought I was on top of things yesterday, the bottom fell out. I thought it would be a good idea to take the express bus home instead of the subway. It was raining pretty hard and I didn’t have an umbrella, so running to my apt from the subway station wasn’t very appealing. The express bus turned out to be a monumental mistake! A mistake that would cost me 2 hours. More than twice the time it took for my Tuesday commute home. As a result, I had to choose between my evening swim and sleep; only because I’m doing the opening shift this morning as a favor (shows you where being a nice guy gets you *smile*). Well, sleep always seems to win that battle. Therefore, yesterday’s swim will be done today along with my planned conditioning workout.
I feel so bad sometimes. Any inconvenience seems to be so enormous these days. It feels like all I do is worry about who and what are going to get in my way. That’s not really who I am, but maybe that’s who I’ve got to be to get this done. I’m not sure I like it though. “Whatever it takes” though, right?
So I’m off to handle today!
Total Training Yesterday:
Run – 49 min 5.85 mi
Favorite Song Yesterday:
Vehicle – Ides of March
Planned Training Today:
Conditioning – Weights 30 min
Swim – 2100 yds
Good Morning!
So, yesterday I mentioned how scheduling snafus are my biggest obstacle. Well, it just so happens that yesterday I had to pick up my car from the body shop in White Plains. Of course I couldn’t get a ride from the train station to the shop. The car wasn’t fixed right and I had to show the manager. Major traffic on the way home. It was extremely annoying. At least I got my hair cut
If you’re looking to get your wig tightened up, stop by Al’s Barbershop, 10 Sickles Ave, New Rochelle NY. Ask for Corey. He’s got some skills!
Anyway, looking to pick up the slack today.
Planned Training Today:
Run – 40min (Approx 4.5mi) a.m.
Swim -2100yds p.m.
Morning All!
I’m still trying to decide what information I would like to put here, but I guess that depends on what people want to know and see. I’m open to ideas, but I do have my own.
Yesterday was a good training day. Training obstacles present themselves in the form of scheduling problems rather than injury so far. Unexpected pool closures, inclement weather and lack of transportation have been more of a problem than sore muscles, aching backs and fatigue. I managed to fit in a 1.5mile run from the subway station to the pool after my commute from work in Manhattan to the Bronx. I’m done with work at 7:15pm and the pool closes at 9:30pm, so I had to hustle to make sure I got to the pool with enough time to do my workout. It was a good warm up for my swim and I had a good workout. Guess that’s my way of making lemonade from lemons. Scheduling is tight and its only going to get worse. I will have to find more creative ways to fit in my training.
Total Training Yesterday:
Led a Spinning Class – 45min (14mi)
Running – 1.5mi
Swimming – 2100yds
Favorite Song Yesterday:
Motivation – T.I.
Planned Training Today:
Bike – 14mi Power Workout
Bring it on Tuesday!!!
Welcome everyone to my 88 day journey from “Every man” in the Bronx, New York to “Ironman” in Taupo, New Zealand. I know that sounds kind of corny, but this has been a dream of mine since I saw my first Ironman race on TV as a child (way back in the 80′s)
First off, I’d like to thank everyone who has helped me get here so far. My parents, who always encouraged me to dream big and go hard at everything. My family who supports me in all that I do. My wife, who not only encourages me, but also participates in my madness; all while attending medical school, which is an inspiration in itself. My brothers, Keith, Jim (who got this blog started for me), Bill, Ray, Matt, Andrew, J.J. and Jarrett….all who inspire me in their own way. And there are countless others, including anyone reading this right now.
My coach Alun Woodward from Ironguides has been a fantastic guide throughout this process so far. I have every confidence that he will get me through this. My PT Alex Rosado, who has been keeping me fit this whole time, is an amazing therapist and I’m lucky to have him. World Cup Ski & Cycle, a bike shop in PA who always provides incredible service. Westchester Road Runners in White Plains, NY. Thanks so much for keeping me running! All of their help and guidance has been invaluable.
So this is the place folks! The place where you can read all about my training ups and downs as they’re happening. Read about what’s working and what’s not, what’s good and what’s bad. I’ll post all things that inspire me and keep me going through all of my training. Music, video, personal thoughts and so on.
Thanks for reading and I hope you like it!
Best in health,
Curtis