IMTX Goals

Many, many people have asked what my expected finish time for Ironman Texas will be.  I have had a hard time answering this because I just do not know?

Why am I so unsure?  

The Weather.

If it is a typical hot (90+ degrees) and humid (80%) South East Texas day then my day is going to be longer.  If the winds continue to blow out of the SSE like they have been all year then it is going to make for an even longer day.

If the winds are about 15mph sustained from the SSE these means the last 50 or so miles of the bike course will be into a direct headwind.  I have rode into this headwind many a times during the last year of training and it is pretty soul-crushing.  

But if the winds are out of the North or NW this means the humidity will be lower and the ride home will have the wind at our backs.  This is what every racer on Saturday is praying for!

Taking all the above into consideration and the fact that this is a first year race and you can see how I really am not sure of what my finishing time will be?

Instead of a finishing goal time I will post a Finishing Goal RANGE:

Swim:  

Lake Woodlands - It is a mass start in a pretty narrow lake with one loop that finishes swimming down a canal which will be lined with spectators.  I expect contact throughout the entire 2.4mi and figure it may slow me a little.   It is probably going to be one of the best Ironman swim venues for spectators.  The water temperature will be above the legal limit for wetsuits so I will instead be wearing my TYR Torque Swimskin with my Team Trakkers Kit underneath.  The lack of wetsuits will also slow the field some as well.

My 70.3 swims have ranged in the 35-37 minute range and my swim fitness is a little above average right now.

Projected Swim Finish:  1hr 20m.

Bike:

The course begins in the Woodlands and heads north through the rolling hills of Montgomery and Grimes Counties.  The harder sections of the course begins once you cross over 105 and start North through the State Forest.  This part is challenging but shielded from the wind.  Once you get out of the woods you will past a little town called Richards and then make a left turn and start the ride back to the Woodlands.  This section of the course is chip sealed (bumpy) and puts you directly into the winds from the South.  You will remain in this headwind until a few mies from the finish.  

If the winds are less then 10mph or from the North or NW then my bike split will be around 6hrs.  If the winds are out of the South then my bike split will be 6.5hrs.

Projected Bike Split:  6-6.5hrs.

Run:

The marathon is a 3-loop course around the more plush areas of the Woodlands.  We will run along the canals lined with restaurants and bars and then past some multi-million dollar mansions.  Spectators will have an abundance of areas to view the run from and also a plethora of eating and drinking options.  Makes me wish I was a spectator for this because they are going to have a blast!

My goal for the marathon is to go as hard as my legs and heart will allow.  If the legs aren't cooked from the headwinds on the bike I'd like to do it in 4hrs.  If it is hot & humid and I am really hurting the I'd be cool with 5hrs.

Projected Run Split:  4-5hrs.

Swim - 1h 20m

T1 - 10m

Bike - 6h - 6.5h

T2 - 10m

Run - 4h - 5h

Finishing Goal Range:  11h 40m  - 13h 10m

Probably will fall someplace between this range!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Ironman Nutrition Plan

As you all know I am a big fan of First Endurance nutrition for all of my training and racing.  There is a reason for the FE love:  First Endurance is owned by Triathletes and they make products specifically for Triathletes.  This may sound like a marketing ploy and at first I too was skeptical, until I used the products.  You can go back through the many, many posts on this blog and read about all of the different types of gels, drinks, bars, and salt tabs I have sampled over the years.  They all are average (at best) when compared to the First Endurance product line.

Since FE has done such a remarkable job of differentiating itself from the other nutrition companies I will be using them for most of my race at Ironman Texas on Saturday.  PowerBar Perform, Bars, and Gels are the official IM sponsor so they will be the on course provided nutrition.  I will use this when my FE supply is depleted.

I read an article by Pro Triathlete Michael Lovato after he raced Kona last year and he described his IM nutrition in detail.  He is a little bigger than me so my calories won't be as high as his but I am going to use a similar plan based on his recommendation.  Find that article HERE.

Here is my plan:

Race Morning:

Wake up at 3am and eat a whole wheat bagel (250 calories) with peanut butter (2 spoons - 200 calories) and wash down with a cup of coffee (black) and 2 scoops (320 calories) of Ultragen Recovery drink.  I am aware Ultragen is a recovery drink but I have been training with Ultragen before my longer swim and bike workouts and it has really agreed with me. I like the calories before long efforts.  Then I will go back to sleep until 4:30am.

At 4:30am I will wake-up again and have a banana (135 calories).

I will then walk to transition with a 24oz bottle of EFS Drink (200 calories/2000 electrolytes) and sip on this as I walk to the swim start.  About 10 minutes before we enter the water I will have 2 shots of EFS Liquid Shots (200 calories/600 electrolytes) just to keep the blood sugar level from dipping.

Total Calories before race:  1,305 in 3.5hrs or 372 per hour.

Bike Nutrition:

3 bottles of EFS Drink with 200 calories per bottle (600 calories total). Large drink every 30 minutes.
2 flasks (10oz) of EFS Liquid Shots (800 calories total).  Plan to take every 45mins, should actually only be about 8oz total.
Alternate between water and Ironman Perform at each bottle hand-up.  (200 per bottle x 4 = 800 calories)

Total Calories on the bike:  2200 in roughly 6hrs or 366 per hour.


Run Nutrition:

Begin the run with my Nathan's hand held bottle.  This will be filled with water and I will refill at each station with Perform or water.  I will also carry a 5oz flask of EFS Liquid Shots in my tri jersey.  This is 500 calories and I usually will take a hit every 30 minutes.  This will get me through 2.5hrs and then I will just live off the course.  Each refill of Perform will be about 180 calories in my hand held.  My stomach does very well with perform, especially if I sip between each aid station as opposed to downing large amounts of liquid at each station.

I am choosing to run with the hand held bottle because I train with it and since it is going to be hot and humid I would prefer to constantly take in liquid as opposed to my stomach getting sloshy at each aid station.

Total Calories on the Run:  ???  Estimate will be around 180-200 per hour so if it takes 5hr then 1000 calories.  If it takes only 4hr then 800 calories.

Another key nutritional requirement for what is more than likely going to be a 90 degree day with Texas-sized humidity will be my sodium intake.  One of the main reasons I use FE products is because of the large quantities of sodium in both EFS Drink (1100+ Electrolytes) and Liquid Shots (1500+ Electrolytes).  On a hot day this is essential.  Many Ironman participants complained when PowerBar Perform because the exclusive on course sport drink replacing Gatorade - I though this was great because Perform has over 600mg of sodium per 20oz bottle. Gatorade is like a quarter of this amount.  This is like taking two (2) Salt Tabs per drink.  This is essential on hot & humid days!

Now I have an extremely high sweat rate so I am going to have a few salt tabs on the course just to be safe.  I will keep some in my bento box and in my run special needs bag but really I do not intend to use them.  They are just more of a fall back if I begin to cramp.

So this is my plan.  I have been practicing and tweaking it for over 6 months and am pretty confident it hits my nutritional needs.

Feel free to critique and tell me your plan but with the race 5 days out I am not changing a thing!

Next post will be my Goals and then tracking information.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Rumbling, Bumbling, Stumbling

• Nine Days out from IM Texas and all is well even though I quoted Chris Berman in the header, which is probably cool according to the ladies:

• Taper is going awesome.  All this free time is pretty darn cool.  If anyone wants to play Words With Friends my user name is: Jirvin94

• I stopped to pick up some PowerBar Perform at a GNC in the Woodlands Mall today and ended up spending a half hour playing with puppies in a pet store.  Puppies are awesome!

• More Good News on the Rev3 front.  In August of 2012 Rev3 will be hosting  a Half Rev and Olympic distance race at the Dells in Wisconsin.  Finally a reason for me to grab the passport and leave the great country of Texas!  Might just have to be the location for the 2012 Endurance Blogger meet-up???

• A HUGE Good luck to all of my Trakkers Teammates racing Rev3 Knoxville this weekend!  Very jealous I am not there!

• I sold the Felt B14 yesterday.  The buyer was a young guy and this was his first Tri Bike.  The Zebra fit him perfectly!  And I was happy to send the Zebra off to what is going to be a good new home. Ride her well Danny!

Tip a 40oz in memory of the Zebra!

• Now I have "Walk-Around-Cash" for Ironman Texas week - I am coming for you Ironman Branded Fragrance: 

Smells just like your laundry room

• Did a 2hr run on Monday when it was 95 degrees.  It was pretty tough but I am feeling much better in the heat now.  It is probably going to slow me down some but I am not fearful of it.  Anyway, after the run I showered and jumped in the car and went right to the barber shop.  Head shaved!  It felt like I lost 5 pounds (the scale disagrees with this feeling).  Sorry no pics of a bald(ing) Jeff right now.  Soon.

• All the little nagging pains (hip, knee, shoulder, achilles) have all pretty much disappeared over the last couple of days of taper?  AND my legs feel wonderful.  I am a little afraid this feeling is coming too early and I will be sluggish on race day.  Probably going to up the intensity on a few workouts through this weekend just to wear myself down some.

• Found out we get to do a practice swim in Lake Woodlands the day before the race.  This lake is quite murky (aka: loaded with duck shit and mud) and it will be good to experience it before the big day.

• TRACK-A-JEFF:  My race number is #1320.  You can follow on Ironman.com using this number or my last name.  OR you can track me real time using: MyAthleteGPS.com.  A day before the race I will put up a link that gives you a map and it will show you where I am on the course at all times.  Also, Annie will have my iPad so she will be doing live Twitter updates on my account:  @jeffirvin

That is all I got for today.  Will be back in a couple of days with my IM Nutrition Plan and then my time goals for the race.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

This Should Be Fun ...

Forecast for Ironman Texas:

Mr. OneHourIronMan probably has already checked this 1000x!

If this forecast ends up being accurate then all of us racing are going to be in for a very, very long day.

Jeff

Fun with Numbers...

18 - the number if days until Ironman Texas.

21 - the number of weeks I have been training for Ironman Texas.

318 - the number of total hours spent training during this plan.

143,112  -  the number of meters (88.9mi) spent swimming.

2229.24  -  the number of miles my butt has been on an Adamo saddle.

516.11 -  the number of miles spent running (only 4.5 mi were done on a treadmill).

641 - the number of miles spent riding during the month of March (largest bike month).

128.95 - the number of miles spent running during the month of April (largest run month).

2  - the number of times I was sick (Bronchitis then Flu) and missed training for extended periods.

8 - the number of consecutive days missed at one point while sick.

4 - the number of times I rode over 100mi.

6 - the number of times I order nutrition from the First Endurance website.

5 - the number of times overnight travel for work made training difficult.

67 - the number of bad movies watched while on the bike trainer.

17 -  the number of times I rode parts of the IMTX bike course.

1 - the number of weeks in the training plan until I begin taper.

1,000,000 - the number of times I thought my wife is a saint to deal with me and IM training!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff