Wee a bit like Marmite.

Looking Kiwi, an hour before the start...

Need food... pre-race.

Finally back in New Zealand and a chance to update my Blog since the ITU World Long Distance Champs in Perth... it's taken me this long to get over it... Ha! That and the extensive travel I'd been doing meant for the first week I was back I pretty did nothing more than sleep and watch 'day time TV' :-)

Well it was a tough day out there in Perth although I knew it would be... it was a World Champs after all... and I was somewhat ill prepared :-(... although that was my own decision. Since Challenge Roth I had a lot of stuff I wanted to do... I did a bit of training to get a little fit but it was far too inconsistent for any real gains... but you make you're own choices in life... so I was quite prepared for the consequences... GULP...?

The swim was my first undoing... 3K (bad for me!), 2K of it against the current (double bad!), into a constant chop which was like having an annoying fat person hit you with a big fish every 30 seconds, couldn't see the buoys, no one to draft, and I drank a whole heap of salty dirty water... not sure if it was isotonic... GULP!?!? Though I don't know what all the fuss is about that you're not supposed to drink seawater if you're lost at sea or something... I must of drank a bucket full... didn't do me any harm?? Although I didn't wee after the race until later in the evening and what came out looked a bit like slightly watered down Marmite... and was probably just as 'salty'.
Anyway my new found Uber swimming managed to get me through it and I wasn't even last...! I counted at least 4 bikes still in the racks when I got there... ha so much for these Olympic Athletes???

My shoulders are a bit too broad to get very aero on the bike... darn it!

So on to the bike... good fun... plenty of crowds to cheer you on, thanks to all those who shouted my name... I couldn't turn my head to smile and say hello as the gale force winds would've ripped my head off... I wasn't pushing it too hard but the wind was strong so hmmm a pretty tough day....
The rare occasion when I was running.

And then onto the run... I felt bad for the first 2K... I then started to come right for about 500m and then the heart thing happened... hmmm the heart felt 'tight' and I couldn't get any breath my legs felt good and I felt OK in myself but as soon as I went any more than a jog it felt my chest was collapsing and I couldn't breath... hmmm this isn't so good I thought???

I hadn't pushed things too hard on the bike and my nutrition had been OK so it wasn't your normal 'bonk'... deciding the better part of valour I thought I would go for a little stroll instead of the run :-).

I had a issue with my heart a few years ago when I had similar symptoms but much worse and ended up in hospital... I had multiple tests and scans done but they couldn't find anything wrong other than 'too much electrical activity'... and erm... I got better... since then I have just been careful with my training, so I decided not to risk anything bad happening.

However I still wanted to finish... too many elite athletes have a bad day and drop out because they don't want to have a bad placing on the results list... but I was quite happy doing the walk of shame... Ha! Well I still got to cheer on all my fellow Kiwi competitors... Dunc and Liam who had awesome races to get 14th and 15th respectively... "go boyz!" and I could do it all while sipping on a few bottles of water... and even managed to have a little washie and get ride of all the snot and salt off my face.

Good work to Mike and Clay too... I'll see you both back in NZ.

The Champ and the Smashed... Martin had an awesome race... I'm so pleased for him, 3rd in the World and only a few seconds off 2nd... he looks very fresh and clean unlike me... I look like I've had an accident in a salt factory.

Though I think Martin has been watching 'Bruno' too much "Isch don't sink so!"

So my heart thing was it's own little protest of being made to race a World Champs when it wasn't fit enough...
It's time to get aerobically fit again (managed to log 25 hours last week :-), I'm keeping my eye on my heart symptoms and in true Mark Allen style beeping my HR below the magic 155 mark... apart from the occasional race. I do intend to get it checked by a Sports Cardiologist in the future.

I'm off to the South Island soon and looking forward to catching up with friends in Christchurch and Wanaka... as well as the German crowd in January :-)

So that's all for now...

Congratulations to Regis M taking 3rd place in his age group for Luxembourg at the 70.3 World Champs in Florida... his first time at the Worlds... only 7 seconds off 1st place...

Also Nikki B 7th in her age group at Xterra World Champs, Hawaii... in her first time at the Worlds too!
So keep on having fun where ever you are... just look after your health :-)

Westy.
<

My lovely hosts for my trip to perth Uncle Walt, Auntie Gaye and Cuzzy Brandon and Melissa.

Walter is my inspiration... still looking great at the age of 67! Still very active, still likes a beer or two and still has that great Irish wit... just like his younger sister... my mom :-)

ITU Long Distance World Champs - Perth, Australia

OK so here I am the day before the ITU 2009 World Long Distance Champs in Perth. Racing for little old New Zealand :-) and looking at the bikes in the hotel room...
I've been staying at my Uncle and Aunts with my 2 cuzzies Melissa and Brandon... been great they've looked after me and Dunc well.
So me and Dunc are holed up in a hotel ready for the race. It's going to be fast as... not many Ironman athletes but plenty of Olympic athletes who have plenty of speed! Especially in the water... going to be good though and I'm actually looking forward to a bit of pain, I've been missing it a bit since Roth... it's going to be a good kickstart to the NZ season :-)

I have to say a very big CONGRATUALTIONS to Rasmus and Dirk for their excellent performances in Hawaii World IM Champs... 5th and 7th respectively in their first time at Kona... awesome result against the best in the World... hmmm looks as though the training in the Canary Islands must have done some good!
Poor Charlotte (Cervelo Girl) had to drop out with blisters when she was in 6th place... still all looking good for the 'squad' in the future.


Rasmus and Dirk... pre Kona... Denmark v Luxy

I've been hanging with Martin Jensen (and coach of course ;-) from Denmark, he's my tip he's been going very well since the Canary Island training.

So that's it... Dunc wants to use the computer.
Have to say go dam bloody hard to Dunc (of course), Martin, Mike and Clay (who took out the aquathon race here the other day).
Also Nikki and Scott racing Xterra World Champs in NZ.
And all those athletes who have already been racing in NZ...


Don't do it Dunc!!!! Dunc can't take my 'pre-race banter' any more... Jeez... he should try dealing with all the gas that keeps coming out his ass... the ac is working over time!


So I'm off to NZ again after here so will blog from there with an update of how I was last out the swim... Heeeeeee, heeeee.

Bring on the pain!

Westy xxxx

The 'Sunday Session' me and my cuzzy Melissa (centre)... good for a few afternoon beers :-).

Triathlon Musings and how not to ride a bike like a girl... sorry chick... sorreeee Lady...

"So I'd go home, drink a beer, eat some beans and run some more"
Gypsy Cowboy


Well nearly time to head off to the Antipodes, spent the last few weeks darting around Europe catching up with friends and family until I collapsed in an exhausted state back in the UK. Thought I'd take this chance to go over a few things learnt recently... My musings are a bit random today but there's sure to be something in there to learn and entertain you.

Had a great time in Fuetura Ventura playing and working with the Danish Tri Team... and also hanging out with other coaches such as Suzy B from Germany...


Work, work, work...

Here's some of the observations I made of how this group of Pro Triathletes train for IM... there is definitely a familiar trend developing in what is the best way to train for long distance triathlon (and indeed even short distance triathlon), and to a degree it goes against many of the more conventional ideas.

No long runs. Generally long runs are limited up to 2 hours. Most are around 90 minutes. A handful of long runs over two hours were done at the most.

Most runs were steady pace, rarely easy but quite often at a fast tempo. No really killer interval type sessions.

A similar situation for the biking with most being at a steady pace, no intervals but long 'tempo efforts' at IM race pace+.

No killer long bike rides... 5 hours being about the most. Quite a difference from the Kiwi's and there 240K sessions which I think are detrimental for any fitness gained. Better to spend the rest of the time in the day swimming, running and resting.

Swimming was mainly aerobic. Not a lot of intensity done and fins were used a lot. When your training 30 hours a week it's difficult to go hard all the time in the swim. The heart doesn't know whether it's swimming, biking or running.

I don't think I saw one swim drill done the whole time I was in FV.

Swim, bike, run is done most days.

Most running is done separate to the bike unless near to an A-race.

I like to read a lot of books... trouble is I always have a few on the go at the same time. My sis gave me the bust of Socrates... who I am a fan off... when asked where he was from he said he was "not from Athens but a Citizen of the World"... I'm going to struggle to take all this little lot on as hand luggage though??

One of the books I've been reading: "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougal. A very interesting read. It highlights many of the points I've made previously on 'minimalist running'. That humans have basically evolved to be endurance runners... we have big butts, we can sweat, our head remains stationary when we run and we can 'think'... I also never knew that chimps don't have Achilles Tendons (and no glutes) because they are designed to walk. It also explains why some days I can just eat oats (haferflocken ;-) ), cornflakes, berries, coffee and beer / wine and be perfectly happy and healthy. :-)

If you run or are thinking of running then this book will help you, one of the biggest messages I got from the book was that what ever you are doing you should be enjoying it especially if you want to do well, so run with a smile on your face... just like Chrissie Wellington :-)

As for my training... hmmm it's been a little bit suspect over the last few months. I have basically been too busy doing other stuff I enjoy... travel, work, socialising, reading, study, 'watching you-tube clips' and thinking... I also banged the back of my heel (moving furniture!?? Funny how injuries are often caused by doing other stupid stuff!) so my running has been limited, trying to do barefoot running to strengthen my foot is difficult without the beach! And to top it all off just when I was about to try and get a good solid week of training into me I crashed and burnt with the first cold I've had in a year... dam... still a good chance to do nothing except read and hang out with family.

My Brother Ben... being cool... he does like to do a bit of running but likes a fag after :-)

So I have all my excuses for the ITU Long Distance Worlds in Perth at the end of October... like a real Pro?? Ha! Still hopefully I should be fit enough soon to begin some good solid training in Nov and Dec ready for Challenge Wanaka in Jan. It's a difficult task trying to be fit for racing in the Northern Hemisphere season AND the Southern Hemisphere season. Most guys are just preparing for their end of season races (Hawaii, Clear Water, ITU Worlds etc) and then they get to have some good time off before getting back to easy training while I'll be busting my Balls in Wanaka... the World definitely revolves around the Northern Hemisphere... US and Europe.

A pic of Helle displaying some great 'handle bar / upper limb positioning' and gold handle bar tape... we did a bit of work on this in FV... must of helped a bit as she won the latest round of the ITU Euro Cup... Nice work!

Now I'm being sexist here but for most chicks (double sexist... but I am a bit kiwi and so allowed to use the kiwi term for the female of the species) riding a bike doesn't come natural... when I was a kid I used to ride around on my Raleigh Grifter (stuck in 3rd gear) every day... my sis on the other hand would only use her Raleigh 14 to carry her dolls in the saddle bag around the garden???

Anyway chick triathletes (and yes some guys) find it difficult to ride on the drops but road bikes are designed to be ridden on the drops... you have more control, better braking power and better aerodynamics... especially useful when going downhill. Sitting on the hoods is just a relaxed position for when your climbing, enjoying the view or 'catching up on the gossip'.

It can take a bit of confidence at first but keep a relaxed grip on the drop, keep the chest low and the elbows bent around 90 degrees... this bend amongst other things provides a nice suspension system for your front wheel.
Hawaii this week... good luck to all those I know doing it... you know who you are!

So Thats a Wrap...
Enjoy!
Westy xxx

Gold is the New Pink - Training With Team Denmark

Gold is definitely the "New Pink" as far as the ladies are concerned these days... no more pinky girly stuff... Gold handle bar tape looks very stylee... as modelled by Helle (in red)... Charlotte (Cervelo Chick) even has Gold break levers :-)

The view from my room / office at Playitas on Fuetura Ventura one of the Spanish Canary Islands off the African Coast. Basically it's a sun drenched rock in the Atlantic Ocean. The Resort is situated in a quiet bay where people come to do a bit of exercise and hang out by the pool or on the beach all day. A few sports teams come here for warm weather training. I'm here with the Danish Triathlon Team as they prepare and acclimatise for the Hawaii Ironman and other end of season events.

I'm here as their physio, to do some training with them, hang by the pool and eat food -there's lots of 'all-inclusive' healthy food here... but with 'on-tap' icecream, sugar puffs and nutella things aren't looking too flash in the healthy eating department ;-)

There is a beautiful 50m pool here... a pleasure to swim in... Sturke (strengthening exercises) and stretching is performed after each swim session... this of course has to be done in bikinis or speedos because excessive tan lines would be a disservice to the usual crowd of on-lookers.

Danish Team ready to roll...

They don't really bother with hard shoulders here on some parts of the road... which is unfortunate as on the other side of this road is a very big drop. I nearly met my fate going down one hill... If you don't know the road you don't know there's a bend as there's no barrier or directional arrows... luckily Helle was ahead and she slowed down... bringing the 90 degree turn to my attention and preventing me going straight over the edge of it... to what would of been me 'getting some amazing AIR' on my TT bike... as I plummeted to certain doom :-)

Safe to take pics with the girls up front.

The top of a very nice climb...

In true Euro style Charlotte took the opportunity to jump the wall... strip off... squat over the edge of the mountain... and wee into the canyon below... what a woman! Nice... ;-).

Map reading practice...

Ladies perspire...

As you can see from the pics I've been hanging out with the ladies for most of the rides... we have fun, look after each other and they teach me Danish... I think I know about 10 words :-)

First day I got here I went out for an 'Easy' 3 hours with Rasmus and most of the boys. 3 Easy hours which included a heck of a lot of climbing thanks Rasmus! My HR was high just going easy anyway (145+ spinning) this was mainly due to the travel / heat* and that I'd only been back into things for two weeks. Trying to stay with Rasmus on the climb my HR maxed out at 184!!!!! Knappered!

So the next day I thought I would go steady with the ladies. FAR more pleasant! HR nicely around 120 - 130, chatting for 3 hours, enjoying the company and the views... when you're enjoying what you're doing it's never a grind and your fitness just comes to you. Perfect... I could ride steady but I would be there to push them to their limits if need be... and these chicks can go hard if they want to!

After a week of training like this I feel a lot fitter and the climbs I can now just cruise up... I've been getting fitter training a lot easier!?!?! Many people wrongly believe you can get fitter by being 'pushed' by people who are stronger than you. You can not push or force your fitness. That will come if you train steadily and consistantly. If I'd kept trying to ride with Rasmus I'd of learned to handle a bit of pain better but ultimately I'd end up slower as my hypothalums and piturity glands fried themselves trying to push, push, push under the heat of the African sun :-(. When you have your fitness that's when you can push but never too much.

Surrounding yourself with excellence will make you faster but only by changing your mindset as to what you believe (albeit subconciously) is possible... a bit like a Gold fish that grows to the size of it's bowl. Today I've run for 45 minutes and cycled for 2.5 hrs but it feels like I've had a fairly easy day??

Knappered Danish Boyz after a 5 hour bike and 'Hard as' 45 minute run.

It's been very interesting training with the Danish Team and chatting to other coaches here. I've been studying different training cultures such as the 1970's American athletic team, Team Saxo Bank and Tarahumera tribal runners... some very interesting concepts as to what 'works'... I'll write about them in my next blog.

(Sorry I haven't done the 'Swim Blog', I'm waiting on some Blue 70 pics but I will send out some training tips soon).

*Travel has a detrimental effect on our performance. Even a 3-4 hour flight will effect you. The flight, travelling to the airport, packing, airport stress, change in diet, geting used to the new location, heat all effect us and it takes time for our body and mind to recover and adjust. The most common place to see the effects of travel stress is in athletes who travel over seas to competitions. Most will get a 3-4 hour flight to the race destination, arrive 2-3 days before the race and then underperform because of this stress and that the race is different to the local sprint they usually do.

I'd recommend a week to recover from any short flight. 2-3 weeks for longer (intercontinental travel).

Participating in one of my favourite past times.

Triathletes recovering... they deserve it!

I'm here for another week then back to Europe... I should have some fitness for Perth but main goal is the NZ season including Challenge Wanaka. I'm just too busy to train like a Pro ;-)

Good on ya all those who raced at the Worlds! What about Alastair Brownlee... go GB... 29 min 10K... and he's only 12 and a half years old :-)

WESTY xxxx

How Pro's Train... and Recover... and hang out in Underpants

Well I'm back in my house in France. We decided it'd be a good place to hang out and do some training in the heat. My house is in the sleepy little French village of Loulay about a 40 minute drive from La Rochelle on the Atlantic coast.
I love this area of France it has that hot Mediterranean feel of the South of France but without the hordes of tourists... it's real France, unpretentious... apart from the occasional English and German tourist it's Francais all the way!
The land here is steeped in History. In one cycle ride we cycled past Roman remains, through a 16th century castle, medieval abbies and beautiful French villages. It's so cool to imagine Roman legionnaires marching along the Roman roads we cycle along... baking in the summer sun... just as we were... jeez I bet they never even had Coke!
The Frenchies have the right idea though taking their siesta's in the middle of the day they keep their houses nice and cool with the shutters closed... it's only us Northern Euro's who cycle outside in the dry boiling heat of the afternoon.
Spending a rest day hanging out in the French Port of la Rochelle is a great way to relax... Very chic... the towers, castle walls and narrow streets create an atmosphere of French 'mystique'... sitting by the sea, drinking Rose, chatting, and watching the pretty French people walk by :-).

So the training has been hard but good. Jimmy and Dirk are in full preparation mode for Hawaii. In a four hour ride the other day we managed to clock and av speed of over 35kph... over 140km. Apart from the odd turn on the front me and Jimmy spent most of the time behind Dirk... me trying to keep my HR below 145... a little disheartening to learn that his HR av for the ride was 122... but then he is one of the strongest cyclists in Triathlon... you have to always keep things in perspective. You realise you're hanging out with pro athletes when they say things like "Ah, gut! We only have a 5 hour session to do tomorrow... we should be finished by 3" ??? An easy day :-)...

The Triathlon Bit
That brings me onto the heat and acclimatisation issue. Last week when I first started to train here in France the temperatures were between 30 and 40 degrees... Going at an easy pace on the bike still had my HR around 140+ and as for running... well I had to walk to bring my HR below 150. You see I was basically over heating... my heart was having to work 10 - 15 bpm harder just to cool me down, let alone provide oxygen to the working muscles. It's a bit like putting the AC on in your car when it's boiling hot outside... it cools you down but drains power from the engine.
This shows how important it is to be acclimatised if you want to perform well in a race where the temperature will be high... Hawaii is the obvious example. It doesn't matter how fit you are, how much training you've done or how much you drink during the race. If you aren't used to the heat you will be operating 10 - 15 bpm higher than you normally would for the same pace. This is enough to push people into their anaerobic zone and once you reach this in a race like a half or full IM then it's only a matter of time before the radiator blows and it becomes impossible to cool down... unless you start walking... you'll see plenty of those at Hawaii... particularly those poor Southern Hemisphere athletes who have had to train through their winter.
In order to acclimatise you need to spend 2-3 weeks training and hanging out somewhere hot. Of course this needs to be as near to your race day as possible. So if you're racing in Hawaii in an ideal World you'd need to get there 3 weeks before the race day in order to acclimatise fully.
If you can't get somewhere hot then it is difficult to acclimatise, the main thing here is to lower your expectations as to how you well you will perform otherwise you'll be disappointed. This is harsh but true, if you're not used to the heat you won't be able to perform your best if you try and go as fast as your last 'home' triathlon you'll explode and it'll be a long day out there.
You can do a few things to help: train with extra layers of clothing, make sure you avoid getting cold and take sauna's / spa's as often as you can. You don't need to train in a sauna like some crazies do but seeing if you can hang out in one for up to an hour is a good way of getting your body used to keeping itself from over heating.

See you all soon!

ENJOY...

From the 3 Musketeers... and Alicia (Great Britain, New Zealand, Luxy, Germany, Denmark and the US of A) :-)

The Journey So Far

Check out the YouTube clip... the guy doing all the shouting is me:-). I had to ride round in the support car for Dirk as he went hard out at the Luxembourg Time Trial Champs. I was the one responsible for shouting words of encouragement the whole way through the loud speaker on the roof of the car... it's difficult to keep shouting for the full 20+ minutes... luckily the all the swearing was edited out :-). As well as the shrieks of terror from Alicia as we skidded round the corners... she was papping herself... Dirk got 3rd by the way :-)

I've been taking some time out in the UK catching up on all my business and have some family time... it's been good but there are more fun adventures to be had so I head back to France this weekend... the gypsy blood fully coursing through my veins :-)...

So I thought I'd just use this Blog to update everyone on my latest travel plans with a few pics from my recent adventures, pictures take less time than me writing everything down... though I must remember to take more pics of everything...

Favourite places and people (the two go hand in hand I think) so far in Europe have been... Luxembourg, Weinheim, Mainz and La Rochelle... Why? All seem to be happening cool places, plenty of cafes, bars and areas to just hang out and watch the world go by :-). But still have a lot of history, culture and country side too! Lot's to stimulate an inquisitive mind :-)

So I return to France, Loulay near La Rochelle to stay in my family house. Joining me will be Dirk, Alicia, Jimmy Johnson and Stuart. So some hard training times to come, I begin my preparation for The ITU World Long Distance Champs and the Southern Hemisphere season, the guy's will be training for Hawaii... so it's going to be hardcore... but they'll be plenty of time to sit in the sun... eat some bread, cheese, wine, talk philosophy and make friends...

From then I'll be heading off in my new car (yes I thought another car would be a good investment as I can now trip around the whole of Europe) to Northern Europe.

I then fly out to Fuertura Ventura in the Canary Islands to work and train with the Danish Tri-Team as they prepare for Hawaii. This will be so cool I'll be staying at http://www.playitas.info/ the new warm weather training base for the Euro Crowd... I'll get to work with Michael Krüger one of the best triathlon coaches around and the training will be 'Hot-n-Hard'... Dirk, Rasmus Henning, Jimmy J and others will all be there... better make sure my legs are working well!

On return I make a final trip around Europe... probably a good Holiday... hmmm I fancy Ibizia!

Then on to Perth (Oz)... to catch up with my Uncle and of course Dunc and the rest of the NZ possee...

So there you go...

Congratulations to Dirk in his 2nd place at the ITU Euro Long Distance Champs and Jonny J for his 5th place. Also to Regis M for getting a PB at the Antwerp 70.3... 4th in his age-group and qualifying for the Worlds!

And of course to all you guys in the Southern Hemisphere for sticking out a bad winter and still fronting up to all your training and some of you even racing... it'll all put you in good stead in the coming season... I'll see you when it's a bit warmer :-)

Take it easy... keeping climbing up that mountain!

Westy xxx

Holidayz...

Ah yes... I've been taking it easy for the last few weeks since Challenge Roth, some time to recover, travel, see friends, family and hang out drinking Bier...

I stopped in Germany for a couple of weeks post Roth... travelled to Mainz (near Frankfurt). A big thank you to Tati for showing me Mainz... real Germany. This is a cool town on the shore of the Rhine... even has it's own beach?? and the inventor of the Printing Press - Johannes Gutenberg lived there... he invented it in 1440 Tat by the way :-). 'Active Recovery' was spent traversing ropes from platforms in the trees at one of those 'high wire' activity centres... cool but harder than IM I reckon... especially if you don't like heights... cheers Masha :-)

Sister and Niece at the Port of La Rochelle... oh and Jelly Cat.

From there I drove the 1200km trip to my family house in Loulay, near La Rochelle in South West France... Europe is so cool, especially if you love driving... you can just go to so many places and people... and listen to lots and lots of tracks on your ipod... :-)

Some family time at last and a chance to hang out with my niece and nephew.

Recovery Time

After your last race of the season and particularly after an IM race I like to advise 3-6 weeks of no training at all. The most you need to do is walking, the odd easy bike ride or may be something like surfing. Yes 3-6 weeks may seem a long time but if you haven't got any important races coming up in the winter (i.e. you're not going to spend winter in another Hemisphere) the rest will do you good.

Apart from giving the mind and body a chance to rest and recharge it'll give you a chance to do other stuff you haven't been doing because of the training and racing. By the end of the rest time you'll probably be bored and itching to get back to doing some exercise, the down time will remind you how much you loved it in the first place.

I also like to use the term 'You have to get unfit to get fit'. So you will loose fitness and when you get back into training you'll be puffing and panting again and generally feeling rubbish. However I think this 'tricks' the body into believing we are a lazy couch potato again and causes us to kick start our fitness (gains are always greatest when we start exercising for the first time). Once we're up and running again all the training we've done in the past comes back (well all those good aerobic miles you've done will... anaerobic training doesn't come back!) with a little extra boost.

I can think of many top Pro's who swear by an extended recovery time post season... and it's usually the ones who have had long and successful careers... the extra time off helps them to keep competing for a long time.

Lou and Me

So back to real training for me soon... In France with 'Da Boyz' and then the Canary Islands... watch this space... lots to do... lots to experience... lots to learn and lots of fun along the way :-)

Westy xxx

Hmmm the 'Irish' gene is strong in this one...