"Stick to the Plan!" A few people told me going into this Full Distance Triathlon that I should race my race and stick to the nutrition plan I set out.....well here is how the day went:
Felt good the morning off. Water was a bit choppy but knew if I got through the first 2km I could grab some feet and ride the 4km swim. Came through the first 2km in 28 min. Was feeling good and in a group of 4 so I knew things were looking good. Out of the water on the 2nd lap I was sitting at 58min swim. Not bad and it left a 6min gap from the leaders.
Into T1 3 of us were told we were sitting in the top 10! My first mistake was getting over excited. My bike ride goal was simple, take 500 calories per hour and have about 5 or 6 bottles of water at aid stations every 10 miles. I had a bottle on my bike which contained 1200-1400 calories and a ton of sodium so wouldn't need to load up on salt, 6 salt tablets, 2 GU Chomps and 6 gels. In my special needs bag at 90km a coke, 2 more gels. If I calculate that correctly 5 hours on the bike I would need 2500 calories. With my bottle (1400) plus 8 gels and 2 chomps (1000) and a coke I would be sitting spot on my caloric intake for the marathon.
Now for Mistake 2....
I was sitting 7th overall then another pro caught up and started to push the pace. Nothing crazy I thought, but it did push my watts from 240 to 260-265 and heart rate from 140 to 155...thought it was ok.
Mistake 3... At 90km I opted out of grabbing my special needs bag because I was feeling good and the train was leaving...
When it hit me.... at 140km I went from riding 260 watts to struggling to push 200 watts. This worried me because it was going to be a long marathon . Bike split was 2:20(90km) 2:50 (90km). Really didn't keep that consistent did I? Onto the run the goal was to make it a training day at this point and not hurt myself too bad. I finished 10:13 on my watch and 13 out of 23 pros.
I really enjoyed the distance and am still learning how to race it. I can tell you it is not like a 70.3 race. This takes knowing your body and keeping it below the limits because if not you end up like me.
I have no excuses or reasons for doing what I did. I went out to race, learned the hard way and won't do it again....this being said....I'm heading to Ironman Florida. No messing around this time;)
Canadian Triathlete - ISSA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist - CPT-ADV, CPR/AED
3 comments:
Hi Tyler;
What did you think of the course, organization, aide stations, community etc.? It's a new series, so, as an age grouper,I guess I'm asking if you would recommend doing this Ironman.
Thanks
I really like the venue. It is family friendly and my coach Mike brought his 3 girls and we never saw them. They were in the park all day! Race wise I really enjoyed it, their timing is a bit screwy but there was a ton of aid stations on the bike, painted arrows on the road so you knew where to go and a ton of volunteers. I will be doing this race next year
Dude, it's NOTHING like a 70.3 race. You've heard the expression: double the distance, four times the work. If you're starting to feel it on the ride, you know it's going to be a long day.
First ironman...well done!
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