Howdy from the Finish line...
So this was my first real test for my progress. The goal was to do miles 1, 3, 5 easier and 2, 4, 6 hard, and then see what the time was. Personally, I wanted to do sub 40, which was a stretch since 4 weeks ago I did a 5km in 21:33 and it nearly killed me. With that being said, I am 4 weeks further into training, and feel a lot better on foot.
The plan going in:
Slight basal reduction last night. I had done 17u the night before on a rest day. Yesterday was also a rest day, but went for 16u of basal in anticipation of a hard race. So I woke up at 4am at 155, did 2u rapid acting, and at 5:45 (official wake up) I was 120, had 30gm carbs from Oatmeal, with Almond butter, and my standard two Americano's to get me going. I was 126 when I walked out the door, with a slight blood sugar 6 points higher then 5 minutes before. Then it was a 1.5 mile jog to the start. BS got up to 136 at the start. I managed to get to the front of my group, which was the 30-39,000 group. That's right, there were close to 55,000 people at this race, which is America's biggest 10km! I have NEVER competed in an event this big, with so many people.
For the first mile I had open road, and HR quickly got up to 170, which it wasn't supposed to. So I had to work on easing up a little, but not too much. Then I hit 1 mile, and picked it up, keeping my HR right around 170-173. When I finished this mile, I was starting to catch people from the group ahead. All I could see for miles ahead was runners. It was actually pretty cool to see so many people out exercising at 7am on a holiday weekend. So I tried to slow it down for mile 3, which was downhill, so I actually sped up. I also had 4 Dex4 tabs at tis time. I was dodging people left and right. Although the race was 10km, I must have done 12km with all the left and right. I have done bike races where it is a struggle to move up and get to the front. But usually with enough ducking, dodging, and pedaling, you can hit the front. This time: no chance. It was cool, but was tough as there was never a chance to relax. After the 4th mile, I was hurting, and had to dig. I forced myself to recover letting the HR drop to 163-165 for a few minutes, and then I saw the 5 mile marker (first marker I saw.) Put down a gel, and then it was go time!
At this point I was in pain, and wanted to walk. But I went back to old school days, and just turned the pain switch off. My goal was the finish line, and to get there as fast as possible. Note to self: know exactly where the finish is. Why? Well, I made the left hand turn which symbolized being close to the line. I am full on sprinting now, seeing cross eyed, but still passing people, and I see balloons, and think I am done!!! But wait, people are still running, and I hear someone yell "it's all downhill from here!" But wait, I'm not done??? Holy sweet mother... I am at 38 minutes at this point, and 40 is still in reach, so I throw down again. Dodging people, barely breathing, digging into a world of pain I had long forgotten about, and then I hear: ".1 mile to go, almost there!!" I was cracked like an egg dropped from far above, but had to push. One last dig, one last sprint, and hit the line, with a time of 40:13. Will bet official time is 40:13-40:25.
Never had I been so glad to be done. I was just trying to keep myself standing, satisfied for leaving it all out on the road, but kind of pissed for not having gone under 40. So I grab my Navigator, and look at it for the first time since the start. 159 it said. 5 minutes later 171 trending up... TIme to get home, get insulin and eat: How? Oh yeah, didn't plan that far. So I just started jogging... Funny enough ran into another type 1 out for a morning jog. I made it about 3 miles (with 3 to go) and I found a cab who got me home... All in all about 11 miles in today, with 6.2 of them really hard. Got home, with 125 arrow going straight down, which was a HUGE surprise to me that soon after the finish. Did 4u rapid, showered, stretched, foam rolled, and then ate a massive bowl of pasta.
Now I have a benchmark to go by. This was a test. If I had come in above a 7minute mile, it would have not been good for the marathon goal. But I managed to avg 6:30/mile, which is 27 seconds faster than my goal marathon pace, granted 20 miles shorter... No it is time to rest and celebrate a great day, and then get back on the program, trying to get faster, stronger, longer...
And please remember: these are my personal goals. I think some of the biggest awards should go out to the people who did the 10km in 1.5 hours. The people who push themselves to try something new. Everyone has a goal, and should not compare to the other. If I had been racing the winner's, I would have (and did) gotten killed. But the only person I was racing out there was me! And I won. What is your next race?
Happy 4th To ALL!!! Enjoy it!
Phil
P.S. Get your Team Type 1 and Team Type 2 kits on our site: www.teamtype1.org
Thanks for the support!
PPS: Congrats to Allison Powers for winning Fitchburg TT, Darren Lill and Jen McCrae for getting 2nd in the circut race. Go Team Go!!!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Friday, July 3, 2009
A record and a record
Howdy from HotLanta,
How about last week? Pure craziness, but everything I could have ever dreamed of.
Team Type 1: 5 days 9hrs 5 Minutes: Avg spd of 23.41 which sets a new record for the Race Across America. What these guys went through to prepare for the race, do the race, win the race is unbelievable. The strength of this team: No weak links! Everyone had their moment to shine, and everyone had their low points, but they all persevered, and busted their butts to get that record.
Here is a great piece from Tara Parker Pope in the NY Times:
and also a great Q+A on how we do it:
Then I went back to the Diabetes and Exercise Association (DESA) conference, where everyone was so pumped to hear about the record. It was awesome seeing Tim, Andy, and Kyle spread the word about the team, and field the questions about TT1. I also got to spend some time with Tarin, Michael Riddel, and Kate Ackerman to name a few. Exciting research brain storming done, and next steps soon to follow.
For me, the true excitement of the week was Team Type 2. These guys are my hero's! They each have their own stories of the path they took to type 2, and then they each have their own stories about how they made major changes in their life, and the path to good health, and to the team.
After training camp in January, there were many, many doubters of these guys. A lot of people who said "Can they do it? Will they do it? Will they survive it?" But meeting them, knowing them, talking to them, I never had a doubt. They are the coolest, most down to earth people in the world, and they all have one vision: Show the world that it is NEVER too late to make change. If Bob Avritt can lose 140lb.s, bust his butt on the bike, get a good A1C, and lead a team of type 2's in a bike Race Across America, then anyone can do anything.
To me, the World Record of Team Type 2 began on the start line. It began when they set foot. Entering a race the caliber, and difficulty of RAAM was a record in of itself. But to cross the country, in 7 days, 7 hours, and 23 minutes, is absolutely unbelievable.
This is only the beginning, and I cannot wait to see the future of all type 2's with leaders such as these.
Now to the anonymous wonders of the blog world: I like the accusation of my team hiding things, and making it easier for people to dope in cycling. I laugh at that.
Team Type 1 has hired Paul Scott, and Michael Roshon to implement a strong internal anti-doping program. We will provide the # of test done in a few weeks when the mid-year report is finished. Team Type 1 is built on inspiration of working hard to achieve goals. Our fans ( and I am a fan) would rather see us finish dead last, so long as we do it clean, and with integrity, and that is what I push in my program.
Another questions as to what happened to Ricardo? He violated a team policy, and was let go. He is no longer part of our program.
Any other questions or comments Mr or Mrs. Anonymous? Happy to answer, but why don't you put a name to go along with your questions?
As for me: been doing the run thing. Up to 9 miles on Monday and it felt good. My body is adapting, and feet no longer hurt all the time. I have become more efficient on foot, and carb needs have decreased. It has taken me 6 weeks, but I am getting a system for pre, during, and post run down. Not quite as good as my bike system yet, but getting there, one mistake at a time. I am running the Peachtree Road Race, which is 10km tomorrow. Should be fun, and should suffer lots. I am hoping for a good time. My dad did a 32 minute time here some years ago, or a 5:22 mile average, which I am not hoping to break...yet
Thanks to everyone for all of your comments during RAAM, and thanks to everyone who pushed us to go faster, go strong, go longer, and win that bad boy!
Have a great day, and a Happy 4th.
Thanks for reading.
Phil
How about last week? Pure craziness, but everything I could have ever dreamed of.
Team Type 1: 5 days 9hrs 5 Minutes: Avg spd of 23.41 which sets a new record for the Race Across America. What these guys went through to prepare for the race, do the race, win the race is unbelievable. The strength of this team: No weak links! Everyone had their moment to shine, and everyone had their low points, but they all persevered, and busted their butts to get that record.
Here is a great piece from Tara Parker Pope in the NY Times:
and also a great Q+A on how we do it:
Then I went back to the Diabetes and Exercise Association (DESA) conference, where everyone was so pumped to hear about the record. It was awesome seeing Tim, Andy, and Kyle spread the word about the team, and field the questions about TT1. I also got to spend some time with Tarin, Michael Riddel, and Kate Ackerman to name a few. Exciting research brain storming done, and next steps soon to follow.
For me, the true excitement of the week was Team Type 2. These guys are my hero's! They each have their own stories of the path they took to type 2, and then they each have their own stories about how they made major changes in their life, and the path to good health, and to the team.
After training camp in January, there were many, many doubters of these guys. A lot of people who said "Can they do it? Will they do it? Will they survive it?" But meeting them, knowing them, talking to them, I never had a doubt. They are the coolest, most down to earth people in the world, and they all have one vision: Show the world that it is NEVER too late to make change. If Bob Avritt can lose 140lb.s, bust his butt on the bike, get a good A1C, and lead a team of type 2's in a bike Race Across America, then anyone can do anything.
To me, the World Record of Team Type 2 began on the start line. It began when they set foot. Entering a race the caliber, and difficulty of RAAM was a record in of itself. But to cross the country, in 7 days, 7 hours, and 23 minutes, is absolutely unbelievable.
This is only the beginning, and I cannot wait to see the future of all type 2's with leaders such as these.
Now to the anonymous wonders of the blog world: I like the accusation of my team hiding things, and making it easier for people to dope in cycling. I laugh at that.
Team Type 1 has hired Paul Scott, and Michael Roshon to implement a strong internal anti-doping program. We will provide the # of test done in a few weeks when the mid-year report is finished. Team Type 1 is built on inspiration of working hard to achieve goals. Our fans ( and I am a fan) would rather see us finish dead last, so long as we do it clean, and with integrity, and that is what I push in my program.
Another questions as to what happened to Ricardo? He violated a team policy, and was let go. He is no longer part of our program.
Any other questions or comments Mr or Mrs. Anonymous? Happy to answer, but why don't you put a name to go along with your questions?
As for me: been doing the run thing. Up to 9 miles on Monday and it felt good. My body is adapting, and feet no longer hurt all the time. I have become more efficient on foot, and carb needs have decreased. It has taken me 6 weeks, but I am getting a system for pre, during, and post run down. Not quite as good as my bike system yet, but getting there, one mistake at a time. I am running the Peachtree Road Race, which is 10km tomorrow. Should be fun, and should suffer lots. I am hoping for a good time. My dad did a 32 minute time here some years ago, or a 5:22 mile average, which I am not hoping to break...yet
Thanks to everyone for all of your comments during RAAM, and thanks to everyone who pushed us to go faster, go strong, go longer, and win that bad boy!
Have a great day, and a Happy 4th.
Thanks for reading.
Phil
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)