Thursday, January 12, 2012

2011 In Review ...

I have always been a big fan of taking an analytically approach when determining how a race season went. Sometimes it is very easy to get caught up in the day-to-day grind and not look at the big picture. The overall training numbers can give you an idea of where a deficiency may have occurred and help with setting goals in the future. For me, I like to go back and review my race reports and compare side-by-side with the raw training data. The correlation between the two is usually spot on in terms of results.

2011 was a different type of year for me as the main goal was Ironman Texas, which occurred on May, 21st.  I spent the majority of my time in the saddle for the first five months of the year which led right into IMTX.

2011 Training Review:

After a successful Ironman I experienced a case of the Ironman Blues. Training became some thing I wanted nothing to do with and every session was a struggle (see June in the graph below). I had the Rev3 Half Rev at Cedar Point in September but spent hardly anytime in the saddle and almost zero time in the pool.  However, I had rediscovered my love of running and that is how the majority of the second half of 2011 was spent.

As you can see from the total training numbers both the swim (45mi less then 2010) and bike (900mi less then 2010) were way down but I increased my run volume by over 600mi from 2010. In 2010 my total time spent training was 457hrs, in 2011 that time stayed statistically flat at 451hrs. In terms of training time I am quite consistent.


2011 Total Training Volume:
     - Swim: 72h 23m - 164594 meters (102.24mi)
     - Bike: 149h 43m - 2,792.55mi
     - Run: 229h 02m - 1,572.45mi
       Totals: 451h 08m - 4,467.24mi


This graph below really tells a story of two completely different seasons. First half of the year training was as a triathlete, the second half of the year as a runner:

Click to enlarge


Overall I am pleased with the way training for 2011 ended. My total volume for the bike and swim were down but considering over 90% of the volume for the bike and swim were done in only 5 months then it is actually really good.

With my focused turned to running in the second half of the year I am extremely pleased with this training. My speed and endurance are at levels never before thought possible and would not have been realized without doing a concentrated block of run training.


2011 Racing Review


Going into this year the one goal was Ironman. Based on that criteria 2011 was a success.  After that I PR'd the 70.3 distance at Cedar Point and continued on to PR every running race after that as well. As my running volume increased in training the correlation was apparent in decreasd race times. I had a goal of going sub-5hrs in a 50K and did that with a 4:39 race at the beginning of November. Then another goal of going sub-1:30 in a half marathon was accomplished the very next weekend at San Antonio (1:29).

Here is a recap (with race reports) of the entire 2011 race season if you have a couple of hours to kill at work!


Total Races: 11

Total Running Races: 7
     - 5k: 1
     - 5Mi: 1
     - 10k: 0
     - 10Mi: 1
     - Half Marathon: 3
     - Marathon: 0
     - 50K: 1

Total Triathlons: 4
     - Sprint: 1
     - Olympic: 0
     - Half Ironman: 2
     - Ironman: 1

Total PRs: 8


2011 Race Reports:
LaPorte Half Marathon
- Run Thru the Woods 5mi Turkey Trot
San Antonio RnR Half Marathon
Rocky Raccoon 50K Trail Run
10 for Texas Race Report
Rev3 Cedar Point Half Rev
Tejas Sprint Tri
Ironman Texas Race Report
Galveston 70.3 Race Report
BridgeFest 5K
USA Fit Half Marathon Race Report



Moving Forward to 2012


Goal #1 for this year will be to Boston Qualify at The Woodlands Marathon on March 3rd. I am continuing only run training until that time. On March 5th the new #1 goal changes to Ironman Mont-Tremblant and the bike and pool are going to become intimate friends once again.

In term of overall volume, I am not setting any volume goals because I am not sure how the year will finish out. If I am unable to BQ in March then another attempt will be made at the St. Jude's Memphis Marathon on December 4th and this will require strict run training once again. If I do BQ in March, then the Memphis Marathon will be nothing more then a long, slow training day and the second half of 2012 will be spent getting stronger on the bike.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff



21 comments:

  1. Crazy looking at those numbers man... 2010 to 2011 dead nuts match?

    June should have been the lowest workout hours for recovery purposes... gotta let the body get ready to work again.

    It was a great year man. Loved the journey, can't wait for 2012!

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  2. youre BQing and then coming to see me in April. One and done.

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  3. Great year for you Jeff! Was awesome racing with you waaaaaaaayyyyy back in April. Seems like a lifetime ago already!

    Its gonna be a great year for you Jeff! Hope you can get that BQ, have some fun up in Canana, and then enjoy a comfy Fall :)

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  4. Stupid reply function isn't working for me??

    Kim - Might need to sleep on your floor!

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  5. You're a machine! I can't imagine that you will not qualify for BQ with your running ability and training discipline.

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  6. You had a great year and I forsee an even better year coming your way!

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  7. jeff - you and annie can absolutely crash in my spare bedroom!

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  8. Congrats on your great year and can't wait to start training "together" for Memphis!

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  9. What about consolidating goals to Boston qualifying during the run leg of an Ironman? I kid, good luck you are already on target and I would be suprised if BQ did not happen.

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  10. I almost want to put a poster of you up in my in my garage...is this creepy?

    Anyway I have a print on demand source - 10 posters for like $25 bucks. I have Photoshop and a vast font library and you (I assume) have a camera. Let's do it.

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  11. Since Woodlands is the day after Dr Seuss' birthday, the BQ should be in the bag.

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  12. Dude, great year! I hope I have half as good a year as you had!

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  13. Only 8 PRs??? Slacker!

    Awesome year! It is almost like the Tale of Two Athletes - the triathlete and the runner.

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  14. This is super impressive, Jeff. Go get it!

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  15. Ahhhhh,
    The 1.25 Hour Ironman... you should write a book...
    You have BQ in the bag...
    DONT GET HURT overtraining...

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  16. Seriously a great year - all you could have asked with awesome experience all the way around
    and the running mojo kickin in has been awesome! sets up a really great flow into 2012...

    more to come!
    D

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  17. Awesome year Jeff! You are an inspiration for slower, older athletes like me :-).

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  18. That is one heck of a year. I love the overall view back at miles, races, and how you broke it all down. Looking forward to a great 2012 for you. Best of luck on the BQ!

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  19. That is just a tremendous year and the best part of it is all the teaching you do. I mean I learned what an Asshat Triathlete is from you. I obviously picked up on the EFS Liquid Shot. I figured out that posting to Slowtwitch is not a great idea.

    Keep up the great work. It was awesome meeting you at IMTX and thank you for letting me crash with Bailey and Ernie.

    Best line of that weekend was Annie:
    I'm giving my key house to a guy I we just met and only speak to online.

    Classic.

    May 2012 be the year of the BQ for you (in early 2012 too.)

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  20. That graph really does show it all. Congrats on a kickass tri season, PR's like crazy and going for a BQ!

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