Training | Running Without Music

The Unexpected 13.1 PR

03-25-2012

Gah… Second weekend in a row, faced with rain and cold. Fortunately, It wasn’t the downpour as last week, just some drizzle, but it was just as cold. This morning was the team’s longest run, going into Build 1 of our training cycle. It was also my longest since the Austin Marathon just a little over a month ago.

We met at the usual Ocean/San Vicente spot in Santa Monica. Pretty big turnout for a rainy run, but so awesome to see such participation. One of my teammates, Jessica, even had a plastic bag covering her body with the words, “Rain? IronTeam Don’t Give a Sh*t!”, in the nature of the bad ass Honeybadger videos. We started off with a warmup up San Vicente, then south on Ocean, and did a few out and backs up Amalfi and Troll bridge. If you don’t know what that means, it means a very flat first half, followed by a very hilly second half. I seem to perform better whenever there’s hills though because I like to take advantage of the downhill and let gravity take me down. This was the route.

I even thought to take this run very easy because we had a pretty tough bike ride yesterday, but I guess running with people faster than me helped push me. Sad to say that those fast ones were on their LA Marathon “recovery” pace, but nevertheless I was happy to take that opportunity. I mean, a teammate, Adam, completed the LA Marathon in under 3 hours, and here I was running the second half of 13.1 with him. We even had good conversation, catching up on things, then when we realized I could PR this distance (previous PR was 2:01 at the Huntington Beach Half), we pushed it even further! 1:59 – DONE.

8 Hours of Katy Perry

By: Marvin Tabangay

07-14-2011

experiences

I’ve been asked several times, “You’re practicing for so long, what do you think about?” Usually I’m pretty good with keeping my thoughts in check during training. What’s there to do when you’re out there all by yourself on these 8 hour practices? I try not to think about work, chores, bills, or anything like that, but instead I try to think positive thoughts, creative thoughts, or have some sort of inner dialogue.

On the swim, especially in open water, it’s important to not let my thoughts wander. Sharks? Stingrays? Piranhas? Sharktopus? Oh hell no! Ocean, lake, river, it doesn’t matter what creatures belong where. My mind gets crazy like that. So instead, I keep my thoughts back to my swimming form & technique. On the bike, I try to enjoy the scenery as much as I can (but not too much because I still have to keep my eyes on the road for crazy drivers here in L.A!). On the run, I’ll try to think of a song, enjoy the scenery, think about the art & design of nature, fun memories with my awesome teammates, or even nostalgic memories of past trips I’ve taken. I then do form & technique checks time to time to makes sure I’m not straining anything, or if my cadence is most efficient as possible.

So what Katy Perry song was in my head the WHOLE time during that 5/3 brick last weekend? The winner was, Katy Perry’s “T.G.I.F.”. I mean, really?!? I think it was the last song coming out of my car on Amp Radio that morning. Well, here’s the song for your enjoyment so that this will be stuck in your head too! (actually kinda catchy, especially that Kenny G saxophone solo)

Vineman Training Weekend Pt. 2

By: Marvin Tabangay

06-27-2011

run

Just when we thought the weekend was over at 2.4 + 112 miles, bright and early we met back at the high school to do our long run! We ran on the exact path as Vineman, so there will be no surprises. Teammates doing Vineman Full ran two full loops, then a portion of the third loop, which totalled 19.65 miles. People doing other events had modified routes depending on their training schedule. The course itself was relatively flat. Some rollers, but one large hill towards the middle of the loop, which I think I’ll be walking up anyway. Most of it was nicely lined with trees too. It was hot, but luckily, there was a breeze to cool us down. My pace wasn’t as fast as I would be on fresh legs, but hey, we did 112 miles of biking the day before. I was actually surprised I still had some run in me!

Vineman Training Weekend Pt. 1

By: Marvin Tabangay

06-27-2011

bike, swim

Friday
Most people will venture out to Santa Rosa for a little wine tasting, but no, not the IronTEAM, we drive up there to get a preview of what’s to come in a few weeks. We got a taste of the Vineman 70.3 and the Full Distance triathlons! Starting on Friday, I met up with some teammates in the valley and we trekked the long, scenic route up north because some of us have never been there. Pictured above was our pit stop at Big Sur. Such beautiful ocean views! I can imagine why the Big Sur International Marathon is one of the top races to do in North America. Although it was nice and scenic, the drive took about 10 hours! We were unfortunately stuck behind some slow trucks on the cliffs, then took the necessary gas/food exits, so that was pretty much day 1 until we got to the Hilton for a little debriefing of what’s to come from our coaches.

Saturday Swim
Day 2 was the main reason why we went up to Santa Rosa – to test out the course! In the morning, we did a bunch of car/bike shuffling at the high school and on to Johnson Beach, where we will be doing our swim. The coaches set up bike transition racks for our convenience, then it was off for a lovely swim in the Russian River! The “slower” swimmers got a head start (which I’m a part of). The water was amazing! I was so used to the cold, salty, & rough ocean, that this was a sweet departure. Temperature was perfect, and the best thing? It was shallow! Shallow enough to stand. It was tough at some parts because I couldn’t even extend my arm all the way (I shouldn’t anyway). It was nice to be shallow enough to see the river floor so I could get a sense of how fase (or slow) I’m going. My open water skills have improved, and my nerves are much more relaxed. We were supposed to swim the full 2.4 miles by looping from the start to the “Big Green Wall”, which I missed! I was with another teammate and we kept on swimming past it – wayyyy past it! I was wondering why no one passed me up yet? I turned around sooner on the second loop to offset my mistake, but eventually finished! Of course, I was one of the last ones out because almost all the bikes on the rack were gone!

Saturday Bike
After the swim, we had an opportunity to test out the full 112 miles on the bike! The course was two loops through the beautiful vineyards of Santa Rosa. We passed by so many wineries that it was so difficult to resist temptation to stop and get a drink! The course was exactly what people described – hot, relatively flat but rolling hills, bumpy, scenic. It was true test of endurance, but more importantly a test with my nutrition and hydration. I tried something new though – Honey Stinger Waffles. It’s very tasty, but doesn’t have much calories, which I’ll be needing. It’s best to try and fail on this new product now than on raceday! There’s a big hill towards the end, but it’s nothing compared to some of the hills we’ve conquered during training. The bumpy roads masked within the shadows of the trees was a challenge. I lost 2 water bottles because of it! Overall, I was feeling great after I eventually finished the 112 in 7:20 hours. It wasn’t painful, it wasn’t overly difficult. It’s manageable if I set up my nutrition and bike strategy well. I now know how 112 feels, so that completed my puzzle of the IronTEAM unknowns.

THEN, just when you thought it was over, we had to do a 6 mile transition RUN. Yes, a run. My legs were so heavy! I was still able to run here and there, but slower pace nonetheless. It was a preview of what’s to come, but I felt overall good about it. It’s still a little crazy to think I’ll be running 26.2 after the 112, but it’s great to know that really is within arm’s reach!

Our First Monster Brick 57/13

By: Marvin Tabangay

04-09-2011

training

From here on out our team will make making new milestones in training, week by week. This morning’s brick was a monster one. It was approximately 57 miles on the bike, then a 13.5 mile run. It somewhat will simulate Wildflower Long Course coming up, but the hills won’t be as intense (I think).

I felt pretty good for most of the ride along PCH, but I had one problem. I was out of Carbo-Pro, something I usually mix into my drinks. So instead, I offset my carbs by doubling up on the Accelerade, then eating more of the Clif bars. Boy what a mistake that was, the drink was too concentrated, so it tasted too sweet! By this point in training PCH is like home court to us, we pretty much know all the nooks and crannies, but the coaches varied it up with previews of Temescal Canyon, Ensinal Canyon, and Latigo Canyon streets as our major hills. 57 miles. Done. Suprised I felt quite all right!

Oh it was not over. The run was a double “Amalfi Loop” which each loop consisted of a 3.5 mile incline through the Palisades residential area of Santa Monica then a nice downhill through San Vicente. I felt really good the first loop, ran the whole way, then second loop was considerably slower. I was actually good until mile 12, then that’s where my nutrition failed me. I was out of Gu, and out of Accelerade. The weather was hot, and I could feel myself hitting “The Wall”, or some may say “Bonking”. It definitely felt like I was on that last leg of the marathon, out of energy, and the water fountains just wasn’t enough – I had to walk. I was feeling a little dizzy, then my teammate who passed by was a life saver and gave me some shot blocks to help with my energy.

That was the longest mile ever! I eventually made it, but man! I learned the hard way that nutrition is something I should not overlook. I knew right there and then though that I am capable of doing such a distance, but the big unknowns will be the energy spent on the swim, and the intensity levels on the bike and run. I’m a little nervous, but I can’t wait!!!

Old Stomping Grounds

By: Marvin Tabangay

12-26-2010

run

Christmas weekend, family parties galore, food, food, and more food. Saturday’s practice was an optional bike ride, but since I was out of town (and didn’t have my bike with me), I skipped that session since it was a holiday. Sunday was scheduled a 30 minute run, so I went on GMaps Pedometer and found a 4.25 mile loop around my old hometown of Walnut, CA. It came out to be a 45 minute run, but I kept it at an easy pace, especially since it’s been a while on this route. It started at a nice mile downhill to help warm up my muscles, but as soon as I turned on the next major street, it was pretty much a 2 mile uphill climb. The final mile consisted of rolling hills, but net downwards.

Growing up, I never noticed the beautiful scenery Walnut had. I used to always bike this route with my BMX style bike with friends, going through unexplored (to us) terrain, trying to figure out shortcuts, or places with cool ramps. Nowadays I’m used to running on city sidewalks or the beaches in Santa Monica, but today’s run had some birds chirping, air seemed cleaner, not so many cars. It really felt like I was somewhere remote for the holidays. The weather was crisp and cold, mainly because it was the day after the rain.

Back to Basics

By: Marvin Tabangay

12-23-2010

swim

There’s only so much the coaches can do on group swim sessions to beginner swimmers, because there’s usually 20 of us (participants) and only a few of them at a given time. It’s pretty amazing what they have to done to me these past 8 weeks in the pool when I had ZERO swim experience. I can float, glide, do a few strokes, and the rest of the drills, but what I’m missing, is quite the most important part, are the swim basics & fundamentals. Yes, like breathing underwater, and treading water. I really need to get private swim lessons to focus on what really needs to happen before I move on. Even my coaches suggested I do so. By the end of January I think we will be doing open water swims, so I really need to step up my swim game to continue. My friend Petty, from the Westside TNT Tri Team is going through the same challenges (I found out when I tweeted seeking for swim coach suggestions). She reached out to her current coach for lessons, but is unavailable, so we were referred to a swim coach in UCLA.

This morning we met up at the Spieker Pool over in the north side of campus at 6:15am. Whoa! That was super early for my taste, but I gotta do what I gotta do! This pool was probably the nicest pool I’ve ever seen, as it had a modern design, super clean, seemed like professionals were in the pool, coaches on the sidelines – pretty much what you’d see on TV. Of course, it’s funded by some UCLA alums, so it has to be that state of the art. Petty and I met with Julia, our new swim instructor. We were both surprised that there was no shallow end of this pool! I think 8ft was the most shallow. Oh uh! We were so hesitant to get in that pool. “What? How do we… umm… where do I… what… where?!” hahaha! She had us put on some fins to help us float and navigate, but she had us go through some breathing drills by just having us submerge in water, blowing out air bubbles and go up for 1 second to grab air. We pretty much did that for a good 20 minutes, from stationary, to spanning the side of the pool. We also used the kick board moving across the lane, but also focusing on getting that breathing down. We had fins the whole time, with her sometimes testing us to see if we could go in the middle without having to grab something for support. We did a few rotation exercises, and flutter kicks as well. Being this is the first class, I haven’t been more comfortable in the water. She was really good at making us relax in the water, and to get rid of our deep end fears. We will meet again next week at 6am, but she wants us to get as much pool time as we can, so I bet she will make us take off those fins and do some basic swims.

Am I at a Vacation Resort?!

By: Marvin Tabangay

11-10-2010

ironteam, swim

Determined to improve my swim, I went to my gym (Equinox South Bay)’s rooftop pool for the first time this morning. Whoa! I was blown away! It kinda looked like a nice resort, or a downtown LA rooftop pool, like the W or The Standard. Nice! I could get used to this. The point from the locker room to the actual pool was pretty cold (LA cold that is), but the pool itself is heated. One girl was swimming, but I don’t think many people utilize it, which is great for me! Less people to see how bad my swim technique (or lack of it) is. I took one of those floaty boards and just practiced getting my flutter kick the whole time. Our drills at this point doesn’t include any arm movement (yet), but it focuses on getting horizontal in the water, and being able to efficiently kick in the water. Kick, kick, kick, kick, kick… until I was somewhat used to it. By the end of the hour and half, I was actually better! As long as there’s some improvement, I’m happy.

Kick, kick, kick… keep on kicking.

New Summer ’09 Season Underway!

By: Marvin Tabangay

03-07-2009

experiences

Sorry for the lack of updates, it’s been pretty busy with the new summer marathon season, which is already at week 5! As you can see from the screenshot above, I’ve been busy creating and maintaining that website. During the season, I will update fundraising updates on the Westside LA TNT Marathon Blog, and I will post updates on my training here.

Week 5 practice tomorrow will be in Marina Del Rey, one of my favorite running spots. It’s not too busy and it’s relatively flat. The tough part about tomorrow is the it’s Daylight Saving’s Time adjustment so it’s really 7am instead of 8am. I’m so glad to be back in Team In Training though, especially as a mentor. I love helping people out, and so far it’s been a great season. Everyone is so friendly & energetic (as always).

— Running Without Music

The Unexpected 13.1 PR

8 Hours of Katy Perry

Vineman Training Weekend Pt. 2

Vineman Training Weekend Pt. 1

Our First Monster Brick 57/13

Old Stomping Grounds

Back to Basics

Am I at a Vacation Resort?!

New Summer ’09 Season Underway!

Categories

Archives

Blogroll