ZenTri 559 - Sami Style

How to train with intervals and heat, news with Tawnee Prazak, and Kai coaches us on how to ride your bike in a race.

 

Training for Ironman Texas starts getting really hot and heavy in this episode.  The heat of IMTX is incredibly oppressive, so I'm pulling out all the tricks. Above, I'm cycling in a long jersey and full gloves on a warm day.

In the pool, it's time to start adding in paddles and leg bands to amp up the resistance.

I've started collecting gear for the race.  I apply sunscreen again about halfway through the bike and again during the run.  The little tube is small enough to carry the whole race after the swim.

The Vaseline is the perfect size to apply to any hotspots that unexpectedly pop up.  And Thermotabs can be carried in a small Ziploc and eaten as needed.  I eat about two an hour.

With all the time on the bike, it was just a matter of time before my rig fell over and took a nasty hit.  The right rear tip of my Zipp Vukas got cracked off when my dog knocked over my bike in the living room.

I was feeling pretty bummed out, but managed to patch it just fine with some black Sugru.  Then to make myself feel better, I bought this cool shirt.  It worked.

The funniest thing happens over and over again when I wear it.  People stop, stare at it for a moment, then slowly say, "I... Texas... Texas."  Then they nod, and... nothing.  Conversation over.  Often, they just walk off and go about their business.  It's funny how it happens just like that every time.

Sami Inkinen is my inspiration for my latest round of training. He recommended RestWise in his training plans, and here's a screenshot.

When you get smart and zero in on how to do Sami Style right, you can do HARD intervals for two days in a row and be almost fully recovered in 48 hours.  Crazy stuff!

Sami Style training freed me up from eating mass quantities of junk just to keep up with the workload.  After a couple of days, I was able to go enjoy a nice salad at Freebirds.

I can't tell you how nice it was to enjoy some fresh greens without worrying about if all that fiber would wreck my next workout.

Back to the heat training, one thing I'm doing is spending any time in my car with the heater on full blast.  In this photo my watch is showing the temperature at 97 degrees while I'm wearing three layers of clothes.

It eventually got up to 99 degrees before I stopped that session.  It definitely seems to be working - I barely sweated at all.  

Alright! Stay tuned for more fun in the next show!