Ironman Training Review: April & May, 2014

It has been two months since I last posted a monthly training review and a whole lot has happened during that time. Of all the things that have happened, almost none of them were on listed on my season training plan. If all had gone according to schedule I would be just about ready to start tapering for Ironman Coeur D'Alene on June 29th. Instead of being Ironman race ready, I'm just starting to build fitness. Here's what's been going on:

First, Ironman Coeur d'Alene isn't going to happen this year. The Queen basically told me that there was no reason to travel across the country to go have a bad experience. With training not being what it should have been for a variety of reasons (see below for more details), she made too much sense for me to disagree. There are always other races, including Ironman Florida, which I'm signed up to do this November.

Second, Knee Surgery. On April 16 The Queen drove me over to the Westfield Hospital to get surgery on my right meniscus. The actual procedure took only 30 minutes, but the process took up most of the day. We headed home and, for most of the next 5 days, I sat on our couch with a few books, my iPad, and Netflix. The long version of the story can be found here.

That post was written one week after the surgery. A few days later I was cleared to ride bike inside on my trainer for no more than 30 minutes ... which, of course, I heard to mean "ride for 30 minutes." Over the course of a week I gradually pushed a little bit harder each day. Not hard, mind you, just a bit more work than the day before. Then, after spending a weekend in Washington DC cheering on The Queen at the Nike Woman's Half Marathon, I received the OK to start riding outside again.

Third, the reality that my pre-surgery training hadn't been all that great. Looking back, even discounting for three months of not running, my swim and bike were both affected by the tear in my meniscus. I was in denial at the time, but soon after getting back on the bike it became obvious just how much I had been struggling. With my knee constantly swollen and painful, riding outside became a different experience. For all but one ride I stayed close to home and on flatish roads.Why? Well, it hurt to pedal in a standing position so hills were out of the question. And with some pain and swelling, I thought it was prudent to stay close to home as I preferred to not have to make the call for the pussy pickup (and by pussy pickup I mean when you have to call to get a ride home because something happened, not this).

With playgrounds that look like this, who
wouldn't want to ride their bike 

Fourth, the combination of crappy weather, too much indoor training, and my achy knee resulted in a lack of motivation to train. Nothing more to say here, but hard to preform at the Ironman distance if you aren't willing to do the work.

Fifth, said lost motivation has been found once again.

So here's how it all has gone down. April started off with no running but some good swims and (finally) some riding outside. Swimming was fairly normal but the bike, not so much. While I was happy to be outside again on a somewhat regular basis, I was counting down the days to get my knee fixed.

After the April 16 surgery I basically spent 5 days on the couch, followed by a week of limited riding bike on the trainer. for no more than 30 minutes ... which, of course, I heard to mean "ride for 30 minutes." Over the course of a week I gradually pushed a little bit harder each day. Not hard, mind you, just a bit more work than the day before.

That weekend we traveled to Washington DC where The Queen was running  the Nike Woman's Half Marathon. She pulled off a big 5 minute PR. Probably not the ideal situation, my knee was able to withstand some 5+ miles of walking and too many hours in the car.

April 28th I was cleared to start riding outside which I did immediately after work that day. Not fast. Not hard. But I was back outside on two wheels. Happy, happy, joy, joy!!!

After three months in the closet, had a little
dusting off to do.

Using the same structure as I did for the indoor riding, I started with a few short, easy rides, gradually adding a little more intensity to each ride. By the weekend I felt comfortable with adding in some vertical, which went off without a speck of pain or swelling.

May 1st I was cleared to start swimming again. Never been so happy to be back in the pool.

May 17th I raced the AquaVelo division (aka "The Injuryed Guy Division") at the Jerseyman Triathlon in Clinton, NJ. I had signed up early in the year for what was to be a shake off the cobwebs race. You can find the race report here.

From there it has been a matter of continuing to rehab the knee, which won't be 100% for some time, working on rebuilding my fitness and building a plan for November's IMFL with the least amount of running necessary to be successful.

Which speaking of running, I did some of that last week!!! Three short and slow runs, but it was actual running.

Anyway, I fell really, really lucky. The recovery has been on the fast side of average and I am back doing what I enjoy. In fact, last week was the first week of 2014 I was able to get a full week of training completed without any issues. Which leave me looking forward once again to a great 2014 race season.

Thanks for reading.

Train hard. Stay focused.
Jon