That probably will get the attention of my fellow triathletes. Let me clarify that statement though. Compression socks are good (in fact I am wearing some now!) compression in your cervical vertebrae is bad. Perhaps I should have started out with Spinal Compression is the Enemy!
Starting about two weeks ago when I finished my long Saturday bike ride I put the key in the door with my right hand but couldn't turn the deadbolt. I thought that was odd but didn't think to much of it. I changed into my running clothes and headed back out the door for my run. Later that afternoon when I got to work I realized that though I had almost full range of motion in my wrist I had no strength in it. I could open and close my fingers together but not individually and could not, no matter how hard I tried, move my ring finger. I could grab something with my hand but I could not hold on to it. I had no gripping strength. Throughout the week it got a little better each day and I was able to move my fingers more freely by the end of the week. The next weekend the same thing happened after my Saturday bike ride. This time it was a little worse. There was no pain but certainly something was not right. There was a problem and I needed to get this looked at soon.
I made an appointment with Mark Kane (http://www.kanetraining.com/) who has worked wonders on my poor mis-firing left glute. Long story short, I have some restricted mobility in my C2 and C3 vertebrae as well as my C6 and C7. This is causing some neck tension and resticted movement. Though that is not the primary cause of the issue with my hand it certainly is related. Mark also believes that the number of hours that I spend in my aero bars on the triathlon bike, which is not a natural spinal position, is causing the nerve damage in my right hand. If you could picture what the aero position looks like on a bike like this it is essentially like you are looking straight up above you for hours on end. That is the compression being inflicted on my cervical vertebrae.
So what is one suppose to do? Well that is an easy question for most people to answer- "Don't ride your bike so much". Well I am not happy with that answer so I chose a different path. I started riding my road bike more. On that bike my spine is less compressed and so far so good. Since this is me we are talking about though...I am not happy with that answer. I am going to try some new aero bars and a new base bar on my triathlon bike and see if we can make it a little more "natural" and cause a little less nerve damage. Additionally, I have been doing some stretches and foam rolling for my neck and will be seeing Mark again this week to do some more manual traction work on my cervical spine. We'll see what happens after this weekend's rides. If it gets worse then we are on to the neurologist.
I'm training for a double ultra distance triathlon...did you think I'd need to be seeing a neurologist? A psychiatrist perhaps but not a neurologist! With each passing day I am realizing more and more the reality of what I have signed up for. The hours being put into this race are adding up but so far so good. Each week is a new milestone with regards to training and each week I learn something more about myself and this triathlon lifestyle. Swim, bike, run, eat, sleep, and repeat. It's now time for the sleep part. Good night!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 22, 2009
One workout at a time
One workout at a time is how I am going to approach my training for the next few months. If I look ahead to the entire week or the entire month I start to feel overwhelmed. Everything is becoming a little more real each day. I know the distances I must cover for each leg of the race and I know the cutoff time. When I look at the big picture and put all these pieces together in my mind my heart starts to race and I start sweating (literally). Baby steps...that is how I need to approach my training. By focusing on each individual workout as a "baby step" towards my goal training seems more manageable.
To help me structure my training I started working with a new coach, Peter Kotland, a few weeks ago. He has the task of helping me prepare physically and mentally while at the same time making sure I remain injury free and do not overtrain. The line between being training and overtraining is a thin one and I need his guidance and experience so I remain on the training side of the line. This, I assure you, is no small task. In addition to Peter I am fortunate enough to have many other people willing to help me achieve my goal. From a ready and willing support crew, to friends and training partners willing to swim bike and run with me, I am lucky to be in the company of such good people.
The intention of this blog is not to share all the details and data of my training. I do not want to get into specifics of heart rates, paces, speeds and distances but rather I want to focus on what this training is doing to me physically and mentally. I am doing this race because I don't know if I can. That said, we will all find out together if I can do this and what I learn about myself and others along the way. Ready, set, GO!
To bring you up to speed I am now three complete weeks into training with Peter. Over the past few weeks I have been building up my endurance in all three sports. This past Saturday was the longest workout to date and I now have an idea of what it feels like to be beyond exhausted. Between waking up in the wee hours of the morning, training for almost nine hours, and doing so in hot and humid conditions I certainly felt tested. When I got up to train on Sunday I was already tired, irrationally angry, I couldn't think straight, and I was so hungry that I couldn't eat. That was frustrating to say the least. I woke up famished but nothing sounded good to me. Everything that I thought about eating made my stomach turn. Since I had a long workout ahead of me again on Sunday I knew I had to fuel appropriately or I would be reduced to nothing and be left out on the road for the vultures. I know what Peter is trying to do. I can see the logic behind pushing yourself when you are already exhausted. I am teaching my body to continue to move forward when all it wants to do is shut down and stop moving. It was just as hard mentally to train yesterday as it was physically. I am so thankful for such good friends who are willing to ride all morning with me and keep me motivated when all I really wanted to do was stop and throw my bike at an oncoming car.
Today I rest! The first rest day I have had since May 28. No recovery run, no strength training...complete, much needed rest!
"It is easier to quit then to endure." - This is nothing new and you have heard it before. It applies to so many aspects of one's life. What do you really gain by quitting though? If there is something I have learned this week it is that there will be many times during this race when I will want to quit. Quitting will be the easier option but it will not get me to my desired outcome. That leaves me with only one option...keep moving forward.
To help me structure my training I started working with a new coach, Peter Kotland, a few weeks ago. He has the task of helping me prepare physically and mentally while at the same time making sure I remain injury free and do not overtrain. The line between being training and overtraining is a thin one and I need his guidance and experience so I remain on the training side of the line. This, I assure you, is no small task. In addition to Peter I am fortunate enough to have many other people willing to help me achieve my goal. From a ready and willing support crew, to friends and training partners willing to swim bike and run with me, I am lucky to be in the company of such good people.
The intention of this blog is not to share all the details and data of my training. I do not want to get into specifics of heart rates, paces, speeds and distances but rather I want to focus on what this training is doing to me physically and mentally. I am doing this race because I don't know if I can. That said, we will all find out together if I can do this and what I learn about myself and others along the way. Ready, set, GO!
To bring you up to speed I am now three complete weeks into training with Peter. Over the past few weeks I have been building up my endurance in all three sports. This past Saturday was the longest workout to date and I now have an idea of what it feels like to be beyond exhausted. Between waking up in the wee hours of the morning, training for almost nine hours, and doing so in hot and humid conditions I certainly felt tested. When I got up to train on Sunday I was already tired, irrationally angry, I couldn't think straight, and I was so hungry that I couldn't eat. That was frustrating to say the least. I woke up famished but nothing sounded good to me. Everything that I thought about eating made my stomach turn. Since I had a long workout ahead of me again on Sunday I knew I had to fuel appropriately or I would be reduced to nothing and be left out on the road for the vultures. I know what Peter is trying to do. I can see the logic behind pushing yourself when you are already exhausted. I am teaching my body to continue to move forward when all it wants to do is shut down and stop moving. It was just as hard mentally to train yesterday as it was physically. I am so thankful for such good friends who are willing to ride all morning with me and keep me motivated when all I really wanted to do was stop and throw my bike at an oncoming car.
Today I rest! The first rest day I have had since May 28. No recovery run, no strength training...complete, much needed rest!
"It is easier to quit then to endure." - This is nothing new and you have heard it before. It applies to so many aspects of one's life. What do you really gain by quitting though? If there is something I have learned this week it is that there will be many times during this race when I will want to quit. Quitting will be the easier option but it will not get me to my desired outcome. That leaves me with only one option...keep moving forward.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Here we go again
It has been more than a year and a half since I have felt moved to post on this blog. During that time there were some big changes in my life. Some for the better and some for the worse.
As I sit here thinking ahead to October I have fears and self doubt. On October 10-11 I will be competing in a double iron distance triathlon. The race follows the traditional swim, bike, run format of a triathlon but the distances are double that of an ironman race. The race starts with a 4.8 mile swim, then moves on to 224 miles of cycling and it capped of with a 52.4 mile run. The race will be non-stop throughout the night and there is a 36 hour cut off time. The race will be located at Lake Anna State Park in Virginia and it appropriately named the Virginia Double Iron.
So now you are probably asking, "Why would you do this?" I am attempting this race because I don't know if I can do it. It's that simple. Over the past two years I have built up my endurance and completed two iron distance triathlons and a 50 mile ultra marathon. This race however is a totally different beast. That said, I have a lot to do to get myself ready and to the start line on race day.
Training for this race began on May 28 and am currently almost three full weeks in. Over the next few months I want to use this blog to share with you my thoughts and feelings along the way. The next 16 weeks will go by quickly and with each passing day the reality of what I have set out to do hits home a little more.
As I sit here thinking ahead to October I have fears and self doubt. On October 10-11 I will be competing in a double iron distance triathlon. The race follows the traditional swim, bike, run format of a triathlon but the distances are double that of an ironman race. The race starts with a 4.8 mile swim, then moves on to 224 miles of cycling and it capped of with a 52.4 mile run. The race will be non-stop throughout the night and there is a 36 hour cut off time. The race will be located at Lake Anna State Park in Virginia and it appropriately named the Virginia Double Iron.
So now you are probably asking, "Why would you do this?" I am attempting this race because I don't know if I can do it. It's that simple. Over the past two years I have built up my endurance and completed two iron distance triathlons and a 50 mile ultra marathon. This race however is a totally different beast. That said, I have a lot to do to get myself ready and to the start line on race day.
Training for this race began on May 28 and am currently almost three full weeks in. Over the next few months I want to use this blog to share with you my thoughts and feelings along the way. The next 16 weeks will go by quickly and with each passing day the reality of what I have set out to do hits home a little more.
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