2013 Arsenal: Weapons Added

It has been a while since I took the time to sit down and record my thought on training and racing. The winter months aren't very exciting, leaving me with little to comment about. The break in the weather and the thought of the 2013 season approaching find me far more inspired than years past.
The completion of my graduate studies have left things up in the air, with a few close calls in the months of February and March. The plan was to finish my master's degree, seek a permanent teaching position, and move out of state if it were required.
I graduated from UB in December and knew the job market for teaching in NY was garbage so I began to look out of state. For some reason, North Carolina seemed particularly appealing and I submitted applications to all the vacant positions I could find. I also took a look at the Virginia  Beach area, trying to land a job near Rusty Cat. Virginia Beach didn't have much going on but I received a job offer in Jacksonville, NC right away and chose to decline the position. After scoping out the area and the school, it did not feel like a good fit for me. A few weeks later, I received an offer from Wendell, NC located just East of Raleigh. This position appeared to be my dream position. 7th grade classroom, awesome location, great schedule, cooperative staff and administration, etc. The fact that the offer was late in the year, February, the county is not allowed to offer permanent contracts. It seemed like far too big of a risk to accept a position that could only be temporary, far away from home, when I have to be in NY racing all summer anyway. I decided to sit things out and wait until next school year - stress averted.

On to he racing side of things, I believe that I have a few weapons in my arsenal for the upcoming season.  I decided to start working with QT2 Systems at the end of the 2012 season. I have always coached myself and believed that I had a solid understanding of training principles and a fair amount of experience with the sport and its distinct disciplines however, I decided that it couldn't hurt to see if there was anything I could learn and I'm glad I did. QT2 is helping me see how the entire picture falls into place.

QT2 Systems Training Protocals:

QT2 is a company out of Boston, MA which specializes in training endurance athletes. I was first turned onto them from some local athletes who have worked with them and decided to bite the bullet after watching their athletes perform at Ironman Lake Placid. Not only did they have a number of professional athletes racing extremely well, their age group athletes were putting in phenomenal races. The biggest selling point for me was the fact that all of their athletes reported seemed to have the same story, "QT2 does things slightly differently but if you are patient and adhere to the protocols, your efficiency will improve tremendously."
I began working with them in early January, after a two month hibernation and a one month prep phase.I knew my aerobic system had some holes in it and I was looking for QT2 to make the system sound. Immediately after receiving my training zones, I realized that I was really going to have to slow things down in my base phase. I started running my Z1 Efforts around 8:00 and within the first month, the paces had dropped to sub-7 miles. After my first race, the zones were adjusted to lower heart rates and I noticed the same effect again. An intial slowdown, keeping my HR in zone, led to the paces coming down at the prescribed heart rates. 10 weeks into my plan, I am running sub-8 miles and my engine is barely even turned on (HR 136-146). I'm sure that with time, these paces will continue to drop, as their goal is to become as fast and efficient in these zones as possible by race day.
Early March left me dealing with a cold for a little over a week so it was hard to see gains in my fitness although things are really starting to fall into place now that I have kicked the cold. My power is increasing dramatically on the bike in my zones and my running paces are starting to come down more. I believe in this system and cannot wait to see the results in Musselman and Ironman Mont-Tremblant. I have seen, firsthand, the damage that QT2 athletes deliver at races, and I cannot wait to be a part of that mayhem.
In March, I have already dropped to racing weight, and my body composition seems to be changing drastically.

RunSmart Running Analysis:

My  2012 season was plagued with injury. In my early season training, I had patellar tendonitis. Later in the season, I developed some Achilles issues which stayed with me through Ironman Lake Placid, Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Vegas, Pain in the Alleghanies, and The Great Lakes 100 Mile Triathlon. The injury is not to say that I couldn't run or that I was not pleased with some of the run splits I recorded in the late season however I do believe it impacted my training and created a ceiling for my race potential. I had attributed the injuries to not taking the time to stretch frequently enough, but I am now convinced the issues were directly related to running form.
I took advantage of a Black Friday deal with RunSmart. Since I was planning on getting an analysis at some point, the deal made the opportunity one I could not pass up. I recorded my running form and sent it into Steve Gonser who quickly analyzed it and get back to me with detailed instructions on improvements I could make. Through his video tutorial session, he taught me to pay attention to things I had never looked for in a running stride. Being a math brain, I appreciated the way he used physics and clear explanations to describe the different forces acting on the foot, leg, body, and how we can tweak our run form to not only limit the braking forces, but to maximize our efficiency and work with the ground and our bodies to run fast.
A single 30 minute session based on a 30 second clip of my running form showed me that I was overstriding and lacked knee drive and trunk rotation. It was interesting to see that my footstrike was considerably different on opposite feet. I have been working on the tips that Steve gave me and I never feel any issues with my knees or Achilles. The changes in my running form allow my body to support itself through the muscular system instead of the skeletal system, as I used to put a lot of stress on my bones. I am intrigued to see how my running improves, especially at longer distances, while keeping Steve's pointers in mind. If you have never had a running analysis, get one! I was a runner all my life as a soccer player, track athlete, cross country athlete, and triathlete. It's unbelievable to see and feel the changes that one session of running analysis can make.
Big shout out to Steve Gonser at RunSmart for all of his help and a happier, stronger, injury-free version of me!

Trek Speed Concept 9 Series:

My final weapon for the upcoming season is one of the most exciting, I mean, who doesn't love a new bike? The number one woman in my life, Cecilia, is no longer happy with me due to the fact that I've been spending a lot of time with her new, younger brother; who has yet to be named. As everybody knows, it will take at least one desolate outdoor ride in the countryside before my new steed whispers it's name from underneath me. I have a few more adjustments to make until I can cruise down the pavement with my new ride but that day is quickly approaching.
I found my new Trek Speed Concept 9.5 at a fantastic price and bought it on somewhat of an impulse. I knew that an XL speed concept frame is comparable to a 58, which is a tad on the large side for me but the amount of adjustment on the bike allowed me to dial in my position and the bike feels great. I will always have an issue dragging around excess frame from a weight perspective, although I understand that this bike is an upgrade from Cecilia and is the best I can do for this season and possibly next. Once I land a permanent teaching job, I can start setting some money aside for an even more superbike. In the meantime, I will proudly mount my new ride, in Grants Gang green, at my big races this year and hope to see some improvements over last season. I'm sure the 8-10 hours per week I have been spending on the trainer will have something to say about some fast bike splits, but a fully-integrated superbike certainly won't hurt the mixture. If you are unfamiliar with the technology of the 9 series Speed Concept, I highly suggest you take a look at how engineered bikes have come. Trek seems to have though of every detail, including plugs for the screw holes that enclose the front brake in the fork, unbelievable.