I’ve gotten a few questions about my race schedule, so I just wanted to share that I have switched things up and am going to save my energy for Ironman Wisconsin in four weeks. I hate not following through with a plan—especially to experience Mont Tremblant because I have heard such great things about this race venue. But I had to take a good hard look at things after the race on Saturday and re-assess.
Yes, I had a bad day and felt pretty crappy for most of it. The training plan we created was done with the intention of being better in Mont Tremblant. But after Saturday, I concluded that simply feeling better the following weekend was still not going to be enough to race the way I want to race.
I love the challenge of racing back-to-back ironmans and doing three in a month. But the truth is that this is not a new challenge for me. I’ve done it before, and I knew that I could go to Mont Tremblant and survive just fine.
That thought no longer excites me. I want to race, and Madison is my all-time favorite place to do it. And as I mentioned in my race report, with just five weeks of training with a healthy body under my belt, using this time now to log four more could likely effect a pretty significant change in my fitness in time for Wisconsin.
Doing this under Coach Siri’s guidance back home in Tucson, where our routine cuts out the 2-4 hours/ day in the car and allows time for proper recovery and nutrition is, I think, my best plan of attack at the moment.
So as I write this, I am actually very happy to report that we are headed back HOME!
puppy car seat for safety!
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
good stuff- exactly the thought process I had to go through with IMLOU. I think for us, it is hard to step back because we are commitment people, but being able to be adjustable for your health and meeting your goals are important. Dave had to point out to me that drudging through an IM unhealthy and unfit just to say I did it had nothing to do with my true goal….and I am sure the same for you. Back to back is a no-brainer for you- that goal has been done! Glad you were able to re-shift your focus!!!!
Good Girl. I am glad that Madison made the cut:)
Can’t wait to see you in Mad City. Have a great race!
Bummer. Was looking forward to meeting you. Totally the right choice though. You need to listen to your body. Better to be rested and healthy come Wisconsin then to survive Mt. Tremblant. Cheers.
Looking forward to seeing you up at IMWI! Thats a super-tough decision though and as long as you know inside it is for the right reason then its all good.
omg that is so awesome you will be there! looking forward to seeing you in mad-town. in the meantime, crush it this weekend!!
A decision which I’m sure will pay off
Oh I love that puppy seat, what a cutie
YAY! you must be super thrilled to get home and get all vedged out again.
Makes sense and now my FOMO can subside–heading there to cheer you on would have ended in divorce given the weekend
Perhaps some day we’ll end up there at the same time! Excited for you to lay it all out there at IMWI!!
I think this is a wise decision.
I’ve been following your blog for several years now and have watched you recently try to regain the form that lead to your IMWI victory in 2008. There are two big differences I see between then and now: you’re much leaner and vegan. I try to eat a healthy diet and one of the aspects of your blog that I enjoy is the healthy eating. However, many people feel a vegan diet doesn’t work for endurance sports. I’ve never tried a vegan diet so I can’t say one way or the other.
You’ve changed coaches a couple of times in the past few years looking for new and better training plans that will get you back in the winner’s circle. Have you tried returning to the diet you had prior to WI 2008? I think it would be a very interesting experiment.
I hope you don’t find this comment disrespectful in any way. That is not my intention. As an outside observer, the biggest difference I see between then and now is diet, and as someone interested in healthy eating I’m curious if you’ve experimented with your diet recently and if so if you’ve noticed any differences in your training and recovery.
Best of luck to you in Wisconsin.
Mike,
Appreciate your comments so much and I have had these very same thoughts. The funny thing is back in those days I had a coach who kept insisting that I’d be faster if I was leaner. I thought I was doing everything I could to get there and yet I was not really “lean.”
Then I changed my diet not for that purpose but because I did a bunch of study and, quite simply, could not live with myself eating animals or knowing about the environmental impact of eating them any longer. Ultimately I accepted that even if this choice compromised my performance, ethically, that was a sacrifice I was willing to make. The side effect of these dietary changes, and later, cutting out gluten, was that I leaned out. Of course I have to continue to believe that my diet is not limiting my performance, but I will never know for sure because going back is just not an option that I am comfortable with any longer.
Hope this makes sense. My old way of eating is just not something I can justify, even in the name of performance.
Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment. Appreciate your support!
hillary
I’ve been a fan for years, but ironically came to your web site this week after making a snap decision to go vegan this weekend after watching too many shocking documentaries about our food system. I’m finding it hard to eat enough calories, but will keep trying to maintain a plant based, whole food diet. Hopefully I will get a chance to see you on the course in Wisconsin. Good luck and have a great race!
If you havent had a chance so see these documentaries yet they are very interesting.
Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead
King Corn
Forks over
Knives
love this, troy! OMG i LOVE “fat, sick, and nearly dead”! that one is a life-changer. must see KING CORN–that’s a new one for me. Forks over Knives was good but after Food Inc I guess that one wasn’t as much “new” stuff for me. So if you haven’t seen Food, Inc , check that one out too!
please do say hello in madison! see ya there!