Wow another post this quickly?! Its a long one!

So I find myself actually wanting to start writing again. Towards the middle of last year I lost enthusiasm as I had been keeping a training blog for the best part of three years, since I started triathlon, and writing came at the bottom of a long list of things to do. However I think it is important partly for me so I can brain dump without having to bore the family completely with tri stuff - they put up with enough of it already, but also for you, the reader. Why do I think this? Well, if you are reading this you are either a friend (I do have some!) who is interested in finding out what I spend my time doing, or you are a triathlete who is probably struggling with some of the same challenges I encounter - in which case I might either help or be of no use whatsoever - it is your view!!

So why am I rambling on about this? Up until now this blog has always been about training for an event, either Wimbleball in 09, IM Switzerland in '10 or three 70.3s in '11. This year, 2012, will be a little different - why I hear you ask? Well, I have no big goal. For the first time since I started this triathlon lark I am not going for a BIG race this year, I am just looking for consolidation and a relatively easy year. There are sevel reasons behind this, the main one is in the photo below:

Evie or Evelyn Charlotte Iona Sainsbury (to give her her full name) is our yougest of three, born last year in November. Since then she has not slept much - I think Lizze and I have managed a maximum of 4.5 hours in any one stretch since! Even when I go away on work I still wake up as I cannot hear her on the monitor!!

When Anja and Julia were born I was still very much involved with the Reserve Forces and missed a lot of time with them at this age, and with my new role I am away a lot (between now and my birtheday in March I am going to Paris (lots), Amsterdam, Barcelona, Montreal, Toronto, Israel, Chicago and maybe a few other places) so I am keen to spend time with the family - enjoying our new member. Therefore something has to give and this year it is triathlon.

In addition, I am seeing a orthopaedic surgeon on Monday for the results of an MRI on my knee to try and work out why it is painful (I reckon Posterior Cruciate Ligament damage) and at the beginning of Feb I am finally having my (worsening) squint sorted out (only 30 years after first diagnosis!). So lots of things going on!!

So where does training/racing fit in.....hmmmm...tricky!

At the moment I am doing a winter program - which is mostly long tempo or short interval work on the turbo, long(ish) hard swims and lots of running (aerobic tempo work). This seems to be improving my running/maintaining my bike and the swimming has fallen back as I struggle to get to the pool in the morning with trying to get the kids to school!

The solution I have found is 5.30-6am get up and train for the bike/run, however this us unfed and not ideal, but it works...I am still working on the swimming but on days where there is no time challenge in getting the kids to school (no tutoring or choir) I can sometimes get away...

Where this is failing though is on the fatigue (and waistline) front - having a little one is draining and trying to get longer run/bike in is hard. Also Christmas was fun but bad for the waist and I am back up above 92kg :-( something to work on over the next few months...

This was highlighted when I tried to do a field testing week this week....OMG....utterly failed at it! On Monday I managed to do the swim test:

300 w/u EZ
100 build 75-95%
1500m TT
400m TT
50m TT
all with 2mins rest between and a 50 EZ
100m CD

The 1500m TT I managed in 23:15 - although I had to stop for about 15s to check that one of the other swimmers was okay - she swam into my tumble turn...muppet....the 400m in 6:10 and the 50 in 38s. All respectable but not my best efforts!

On Tuesday I tried to do the Bike test on the turbo:
10m EZ spin @65%RPE
3x1min 110RPM spin up +1min rest in between
5min @65%RPE
5min TT ALL OUT (max effort)
10min @65%RPE
20min TT (hold a high pace)

It was all going well - good pacing, the 5min effort was mostly >300W - happy with that, right up until the computer that runs my Tacx I-magic froze - 10mins into the 20min TT....I was so hacked off....

On Wednesday I was out in Paris so I had a fab 30min steady run from the Arc d'Triomph, Eiffel Tower and Champs Elyssee (one benefit of travel - I do get to run in some nice places!) Unfortunately my Garmin refused to pick up the GPS satellites until part way through the run - the green line - the red line doewn Avenue Kleber to the Trocadero was the route I took...

I thought I would rerun the bike test on Thursday - completely failed on that one....my max W were down in the 260s and I died completely 10mins into the 20min TT..... the feedback from my fab coach Mike Redshaw (@Mike_Redshaw) from The TriLife was take a rest day today, Friday, and come back to it fresh next week - sounds like a plan...of course the only challenge is next week I am in Paris for one day, Barcelona for two and Amsterdam for one...oh well time to start juggling balls or spinning plates again I guess!!

That is it for now...rambled on too long...fingers crossed for Monday and the surgeon...

Later
I

Cooper 12min run test

Well Mike had me do my first run test in ages - what a session to start the week with! Last time I ran this was in Nov 09 - I thought I did it in early 10 but I cannot find any reference in my blog - and I managed 2110m when I did it.....


Well today's session consisted of:


15min warm up - 10mins easy then 3x30sec build/30sec easy followed by 2min easy
12min MAX effort
5min cool down followed by stretching


This is the Cooper 12 minute assessment it is a surrogate way of identifying VO2max - it is meant to be conducted on a flat running track - The roads around here are fairly flat and I managed 2560m in the 12mins, makes me above average as an athlete for my age :-) not bad for a 15hr18min IRONMAN plus my max HR was 187 

The following table rates performance for athletes:

Age	Excellent	Above Average	Average	Below Average	Poor
Male 20-29	>2800m	2400-2800m	2200-2399m	1600-2199m	<1600m
Females 20-29	>2700m	2200-2700m	1800-2199m	1500-1799m	<1500m
Males 30-39	>2700m	2300-2700m	1900-2299m	1500-1999m	<1500m
Females 30-39	>2500m	2000-2500m	1700-1999m	1400-1699m	<1400m
Males 40-49	>2500m	2100-2500m	1700-2099m	1400-1699m	<1400m
Females 40-49	>2300m	1900-2300m	1500-1899m	1200-1499m	<1200m
Males >50	>2400m	2000-2400m	1600-1999m	1300-1599m	<1300m
Females >50	>2200m	1700-2200m	1400-1699m	1100-1399m	<1100m

VO2 max

An estimate of your VO2 max can be calculated as follows:

• (Distance covered in metres - 504.9) ÷ 44.73

My VO2max was 45.94ml/kg/min (which puts me in the excellent bracket)


From Wiki:


Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂max) is widely accepted as the single best measure of cardiovascular fitness and maximal aerobic power. Absolute values of VO₂max are typically 40-60% higher in men than in women.”^[1] Clearly, then, VO₂max varies considerably in the population, with sex being a primary determining factor in this variability.

The average young untrained male will have a VO₂ max of approximately 3.5 litres/minute and 45 ml/kg/min.^[2] The average young untrained female will score a VO₂ max of approximately 2.0 litres/minute and 38 ml/kg/min.^{[citation needed]} These scores can improve with training and decrease with age, though the degree of trainability also varies very widely: conditioning may double VO₂max in some individuals, and will never improve it at all in others.^[3][4]

In sports where endurance is an important component in performance, such as cycling, rowing, cross-country skiing, swimming and running, world class athletes typically have high VO₂ maximums. World class male athletes, cyclists and cross-country skiers typically exceed 75 ml/kg/min and a rare few may exceed 85 ml/kg/min for men and 70 ml/kg/min for women.^{[citation needed]} Five time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain is reported to have had a VO₂ max of 88.0 at his peak [1], while cross-country skier Bjørn Dæhlie measured at an astounding 96 ml/kg/min.^[5] Dæhlie's result was achieved out of season, and physiologist Erlend Hem who was responsible for the testing stated that he would not discount the possibility of the skier passing 100 ml/kg/min at his absolute peak. By comparison a competitive club athlete might achieve a VO₂ max of around 70 ml/kg/min.^[2]World class rowers are physically very large endurance athletes and typically do not score as high on a per weight basis, but often score exceptionally high in absolute terms. Male rowers typically score VO₂ maximums over 6 litres/minute, and some exceptional individuals have exceeded 8 l/min.

To put this into perspective, thoroughbred horses have a VO₂ max of around 180 ml/kg/min. Siberian dogs running in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race sled race have VO₂ values as high as 240 ml/kg/min.^[6]