The Tumultuous Lead-in to Run For Glory - Part II

Due to the past week's events, I'll be doing a lead-in entry to my 23 mile birthday run:

2011 was tumultuous, and 2012 began in similar fashion. 2011 kicked off with my Dad's diagnosis of Leukemia just before the new year began, and the following very bumpy and long road from a very scary situation to complete remission to a successful bone marrow transplant (BMT). The transplant went very well and, aside from the inherent difficulties of a BMT, relatively smooth. It was a slow process from initial release from the hospital to gaining strength and resuming most normal activities. A huge day for me was when my dad and I went for a bike ride, it was a great experience to see him make a big step and enjoy himself. Aside from everything going on with my dad, things were pretty good. Leading up to December I had only been cycling and was kicking it into high gear to prep for the PVC Double Loop, a group ride gone awesome race with cash for the 8 sprints. However, the Tuesday before it, I broke my collarbone and was sidelined. My team still did excellently, in spite of preparing for me to be our sprinter...everyone stepped up HUGE and we were able to take two (or maybe three?) sprints in the race.

So I had a broken collarbone only 10 weeks out from my birthday and would take a few weeks to even start running. It was a very premature crunch time sort of situation. I knew my build (from running about 30 miles the entirety of July through early December to a 23 miler late January) was going to have to be well planned, and even better executed. I'd probably be able to do it regardless of planning...but I had set the goal to do 23mi in 2:50:00 (2:50:00 was my time for 22mi last year) - this was the tough part: 7:23/mi for a few hours on a fall season completely void of running. The base fitness was there from cycling, but my injury prone self was looking down an ugly road with a lot of injury possibility to come my way. I like the thrill of being in a fairly high pressure situation. I was ready for the challenge of going from a freshly broken clavicle to basically a sub-3:15 Marathon in 10 weeks.

So the training began. Day 1 after the break, I couldn't walk over 2.5MPH, it hurt like hell. You'd never know how much you bounce when you walk until you are extremely sensitized to it. I biked on an exercise bike. I walked outside for a few miles within that first week. By 15 days I ran 3 miles @ sub-7:00/mi pace...it killed my legs pretty bad, but I was quickly beginning to understand exactly how much fitness cycling gave to me. 8 miles while still in the brace, 10 miles on Christmas morning (~6wks post fracture), 14 the next week, 16 the week after (8 of it on bad ice). Setback - my clavicle aggravated the skin it was pushing into to the point I had trouble going up/down stairs due to the bouncing. Down week. 11mi the following Tuesday. Then my risky, but VERY rewarding, 19.5mi run @ 7:16 pace on January 14th. It was official; I was going to be able to hit my goal barring another clavicle-induced setback.

Then something pretty unsuspecting happened. My dad had some fluid build-up in his body, his appetite dropped to nothing, he felt like he had a cold...then the flu. It was quite reminiscent of just over one year before when he was then diagnosed with Leukemia. But the transplant had gone GREAT, his blood counts had been perfect, the bone marrow biopsies had all been clean...but something was awry. It was  Upon making an unscheduled visit to his doctor at Dana Farber (DFCI) we quickly learned it was his kidneys, hence the massive fluid build-up (20+ pounds). It was a reversible situation, but he was immediately admitted to the hospital that day on Wednesday, January 18th. Thanks to having myself, my brother, and my dad's girlfriend as a great support system, my dad had someone there with him almost incessantly while still allowing each of us to get done what we needed. I stayed in Boston on Wednesday (thanks to my brother's good friends Sevi and Courtney) and in the hospital room Thursday. I came home for the weekend to recover from my lack of sleep and get all my stuff together to camp out in Beantown for the next week. I managed to hit Friday Night Fights, getting a second place on pure adrenaline - as I had been stressed, nearly sleepless, and moving all out for the past two days with all the tests, retests, and checks my dad was going through at the hospital (and he was about 5 times as worn down as me! It's amazing how he just gets through all of it).

I had a semi-relaxing weekend, and went back down to Boston on Sunday. This time I stayed at a hotel down there, and was luckily able to set up my bike/trainer (surprised?! haha...gotta keep the streak alive!). This week was slower moving, most tests were done and it was just all about getting the fluid out and getting the kidney function back in the right direction. Finally, on Wednesday, it looked like he was really back on the right track. So, in a tough decision, I headed home to do my birthday run on my planned route in Maine (to be discussed on my next entry). I was pretty bummed that my dad was in the hospital for my birthday, but was relieved that he was improving and the end of his stay was coming up shortly. He was released today, Saturday, and is extremely relieved to be back in his own bed. Ironically, after his bone marrow transplant he was released on my brother's birthday! I definitely could have run 23 miles in Boston, but my route in Portland had so much meaning and would be a tribute to my mom...so it was something my dad understood very well and something I couldn't let pass. Had my dad not been doing so well, I would have reconsidered.

One huge thing to note is that on January 13th my sister, Alexis, flew out to Beirut, Lebanon for her second co-op at Northeastern. It's something she has been absolutely thrilled about since the opportunity presented itself and she had no idea if it was even possible for not. I am very excited for her experience over in the Middle East and the cultural experiences she will learn to appreciate and enjoy as part of her everyday life. I've never gone abroad with the intent to experience a culture, I've only gone for vacation. So I envy two things: 1) her desire to spend 6 months in a place where she knows no one and 2) to take the step and do what she loves with the confidence to know she's going to have a blast regardless of the circumstances. She is keeping up a blog (probably a hell of a lot more interesting than mine: www.lexinlebanon.tumblr.com) to let everyone know of her adventures in the Middle East. Check it out!...Now!...Seriously, what are you waiting for?

There my sister is...trying to adjust to the 'unknown' in Lebanon, just starting to settle in, and all of a sudden our dad is in the hospital. Even though the situation was well under control and all the necessary tests were being taken care of, she was still thousands of miles away in a time zone seven hours ahead of home. We talked with her on Skype and kept her up to date as best as we could, but it's tough to know how difficult it can be in her shoes. She's stronger than she shows and even tougher than even she knows, but no matter what it hits you like an anvil. My brother went to Italy for a semester abroad just after my mom was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer. I knew what it was like to be separated from home (Lex and Jase had college in Boston - the location of both of our parents' treatments, but I was in Rochester)...but never have experienced the detachment of thousands of miles and time zones and excessively expensive hypothetical trips home. To sum it up, both my sister and brother have had it pretty tough being abroad...which is supposed to be the time of your life. My brother worked through it, had his ups and downs, and walked away with an amazing experience he would never have had another shot at. I have no doubts my sister will keep up her excellent attitude and excitement, and eventually come back to America in July saying "Nooooo but I want to stay another month!".

Overall, we are now home and happy to be home once again. Despite an as usual drawn out discharge and rushing to get medication filled for pickup by the end of the day (many of you know this drill on some scale), his spirits were high and got progressively higher until he was in the comfort of our home.

Thanks to my Dad's strength and the great support of my brother, my dad's girlfriend, and all of our family and friends...we once again have come out of the hospital healthy, happy, and overcoming yet another bump in the road. Coincidentally, this reminds me of a quote from my first entry on this blog: a motivational poster my Dad got me years ago. "Challenges: A bump in the road is an obstacle to be fought or an opportunity to be enjoyed...it is all up to you." My Dad's hospital stay was surely not enjoyable, but sticking together and coming out on top once again is far more complex and much better than simple enjoyment.

When 16-18 turns into 19.5...I smile.

Sunday I had a 16-18 mile run planned. And my shoulder was feeling bad. I teetered on the edge of doing the run or bagging it and spending a couple hours on the elliptical to at least get my muscles prepared for the 23 miler I have coming up. The 16-18 miler was scheduled 11 days before the big run (officially named: The Run for Glory: Part II Maine Edition, check out RFG: Part I), and was supposed to be my most important and longest preparation for my 23 mile run. My big concern was not being aerobically fit for 23 miles (or just under 3 hours of running) as my cycling had that aspect covered. The issue is...ready for a surprise?...injury. 23 miles on 7 weeks of running is an extremely sensitive scenario, regardless of what type of athlete you are. If your body can't handle the pounding, then you're toast. I don't have any intent to finish the run completely dead or fending off pain - I have a really big season to look forward to, and I begin racing in March (yes...March!).

I was going to be running a good portion of it with Owen Lisa, a local triathlete who puts up an intimidating 9:02 Ironman (Arizona 2011). He's just getting back into training and had no issue with running 15 miles at something sub-8:00, as he can throw down a 3:15 Marathon fresh off the bike. Did I mention his bike was the fastest non-pro time by something disgusting like 15 minutes? He's good. Damn good. But he's a great guy.

I took off to meet Owen down Tuttle road in the 6F temps with wind, giving a glorious -10F with windchill at 9:30AM. Our plan was sub-8:00/mi pace with doing whatever was comfortable. Luckily I have a decent running background and wasn't completely boring him...and more importantly, my shoulder felt FINE after being in moderate discomfort for the past 3 days. I naturally clipped off a couple sub-7:30's before meeting him, and the pace once we joined each other at 2.5mi stayed right about that level. Over the next few miles we settled into 7:10-20 pace and it held right there. A couple times I asked if we could ease up slightly, and we did. But the pace only dropped for one mile (which was an elevation gain of about 100ft). Up Sligo and out toward Main St in Cumberland we cruised for under 7:10 until he was at his house, making it a 15 miler for him. Then I was off to home, a bit under 5 miles solo to finish it off. My quads were showing solid sign of fatigue (thanks to 14+ hours cycling Mon-Sat) but the shoulder was good. I tossed in a GU at 16.5 and just rolled home, closed the run in a series of very low 7min miles. Hit the last 0.5mi in sub-7 pace.

The run ended up excellent and a big confidence boost as I averaged 7:16 and my goal for the 23 miler is 7:23 (to finish in my 22 mile time of 2:50:00). I'm looking forward to a last few days of killer training, a bit of backing off, then the 23 miler.

2011: Year in Brief Review

One of the greatest aspects of having a successful year of training is looking back at last year. It is very easy to say "I did well in that race because I won" or "I did poorly because I beat this guy handily a few times but he beat me in that one race". But, something along the lines of "after completing a very difficult workout, my confidence increased noticeably and may have led to my great execution to win the field sprint". While the last line seems more arbitrary with saying "may have", it is much more helpful in looking towards how to improve next year: Why was I not confident before? What physiological advancements gave me the capacity to come out on top once I could mentally execute? What components of positioning played into that finish?

There can be hundreds of questions for every scenario; and to better oneself he or she must consider every one of these...even the seemingly obvious ones.

As both a benefit to myself and anyone who wants to see deeper into my results/training: I'll leave myself open for some Q&A - feel free to leave comments or email me at travis.b.kroot@gmail.com, if there are enough (or any at all) questions, I will do a follow up post to answer those questions.

Now for a quick rundown of 2011.

Started with the intent to focus on Olympic Triathlon, but changed to pure cycling in May due to situation, success in cycling, and enjoyment in cycling.
5th place and 1st place in GVCC Spring Giro's B Group (Cat 4/5).
2nd place at Bloomfield, NY Road Race - Cat 5
Collegiate ECCC Championships @ PSU: Champion in Road Race and Criterium (Class D)
12th Place at Hollenbeck, NY Road Race - Cat 4/5 (8th place for Cat 5)
1st place at NY Road Race State Championships @ Bristol, NY - Cat 5
**Upgraded to Cat 4**
Auburn Road Race - Mechanical resulted in losing the field
5th place at Concord Criterium - Cat 4
1st place at Witches' Cup in Salem, MA - Cat 4/5

Other notable achievements were:
Having a great team (Base36 Cycling/Gorham Bike and Ski) to work with during races and group rides.
Winning my first sprints on the PVC Saturday Morning Ride. One day in which I won 2 of 4 sprints.

By the numbers:
I cycled 8012 miles last year, and ran a mere 775 miles as I only focused on running in January-May and December. My biggest training weeks were:
Multisport: May 8-14: 20.2 Hours; Cycling - 228mi, Run - 49mi, Swim - 4.5mi
Cycling: June 12-18: 20.5 Hours; Cycling - 359mi, Run - 10.2mi

For 2012: I plan to exceed well beyond 10,000 miles, and 12,000 miles would be a stretch - but not impossible. As my focus is going to be more on quality than it was last year, I am not reaching for a specific number...just progress and, eventually, results.

Once again, feel free to throw any questions my way - I'll be more than glad to answer. As my Biotransport Phenomena professor loved to say "No question is a bad question".

Game On

Be weary to take this as some of that New Year's resolution stuff. When I say "Game On", I mean it. The only asterisk here is that I will be almost 100% coaching myself for the time being...I am utilizing knowledge I've gained in training but also from some very intelligent people (read: Doug Welling) and friends who have decades of cycling under their belts. However, dictating my own workouts has fared extremely well in the past. I have been in a mostly constant state of improvement since I quit varsity Track/XC at Rochester in 2010. I had an excellent coach, Doug Welling as I have mentioned on many accounts, who prepped me unbelievably well for the PVC Double Loop - where I was planning on racking in a couple wins, some loot, and a great day with my teammate on Base-36 Cycling/Gorham Bike & Ski Race Team. I had to focus on just training alone once I broke my collarbone, and having a coach was not feasible at that time. But financially and situationally right now, dictating my own schedule is the best option at the moment. No telling what happens in the coming months though...

I know I will be able to continue to make big gains, because with simply training in an unstructured fashion with a broken collarbone I've gone from my FTP being in the mid-290W's when peaking for a race in November...to 301W on 12/15, and over 310W on Friday. The only "workouts" I have done cycling were those all out efforts and some technique work. Enough talking about the past.

My overall goals are to improve as quickly and effectively as I can in the next few months to be prepared to get a super early season upgrade to Category 3, and then come into The Tour of the Battenkill ("America's toughest 1-day race") in good form for such an early race. The big thing I'm awaiting is getting my SRM sent out and returned from Colorado so I have a fresh battery and wonderfully accurate data, until then I will likely do quality work on a CompuTrainer.

What I plan to build into over the next month (from pretty intent to rather strict) is as follows:

1. Exercise with a Purpose: Anyone who is not in a top tier of athletics will make noticeable gains from maintaining a good quantity of exercise. (Note: I gained about 6% on my FTP while doing almost all 'easy miles' with a broken collarbone...in about 1 month since the first 2 weeks of my fracture I was quite useless athletically).
   Bottom Line: So, here is the critical point in improving effectively. I'm working on building a structured repertoire of workouts that I will essentially be testing on myself "in the field". This isn't purely physically stimulating, it's exciting to make something and test it yourself, it's both sides of learning and benefiting from your own knowledge. Some of the stuff I am bouncing off and having friends try out as well.
2. Nutrition: I have a really good grasp on nutrition in general. The only things I can put good work into is reducing fat intake slightly to keep total of my calories from fat under 25% (during high volume base training, you can definitely put in over 30% calories from fat...but when working on weight loss - cut some, not a lot, of fat). Therefore I'm aiming for about 20% calories from fat. Once real workouts and strength training are back on (pending how the clavicle feels) I'm going to need to increase protein intake.
   From a 2 week period where I logged everything I ate and was pretty intent on training/eating for best results (not necessarily weight loss as it was mid-peak season), here's the data:
   Looking back - I'm pretty darn pleased: 57% Carbs, 18% Protein, 25% Fat. Quite well for that time of season.
   BL: Eliminate meats high in fat, increase micronutrients, and eat enough early in the day (night loading calories is a classic flaw of mine). And ditch the alcohol, aside from a drink or two per week - and only the good stuff!
3. Weight: to quote a Bible of Running (Once a Runner. If you haven't read it, go do it. Now. This post is of much less value of your time. Even if you don't like running.): "Gaunt is Beautiful". It is also a classic line by the Men of the URXC team, and seen on many t-shirts. But in realistic terms, weight is one of the ultimate maximization problems known to athletes...especially those who utilize numbers such as "watts per kilogram". All athletes who are serious (and almost any athlete at all) wants to lose weight. And almost all of these people will benefit from at least some weight loss (the rarities are those who naturally have excessively low body fat %age, are already at their optimum - ususally a professional, or people who need gains in muscle mass). I am none of these, and if anything - the opposite. I am naturally built strong, stocky, and the professional thing is clear haha. I could benefit from trimming down fat and losing some (but not a lot) upper body mass.
   BL: Lose weight steadily, and not too much. Maintain enough caloric intake to not sacrifice recovery from exercise.
   I'm not afraid to talk numbers: today I weighed in at 164.0lb at home. I plan to be under 150lb fairly (reasonably though!) soon. My current FTP is around 310W and gave me an estimated power to weight ratio @ FTP of 4.29 W/kg, which (according to cycling charts) matches up to the lower end of Category 2 cyclists. Now I just have to prove it where it counts, which is the only place it truly matters.
4. Core/Lifting: I need to kick these into gear once my shoulder feels the situation is viable.
   BL: Get after it. I know what to do, just doing it is the issue. The only category in which my motivation doesn't get me all jacked up to do it. Once I get in the groove it will move along better.

Other things I want to work on are more life related and also quite important:

1. Reading: I've never been much of a person who is into reading, but I've gone through phases. It's something I enjoy but don't put all that much time into because I'm bad at remaining still.
2. Learn Organic Chemistry: It's something I never took in college and always wanted to. Had I overloaded at the right time(s) I could have taken it without sacrificing too much. But being on a varsity team and overloading wasn't a pleasing thought. Could I have done it? Sure, but not at the sacrifice at enjoying myself. And I like the challenge of learning something thought to be so "difficult" on my own. It's exciting, kind of like building cycling workouts from scratch and seeing how they pan out. (Note: If anyone has a spare Organic Chem textbook...let me know! It'd be a massive help :p)
3. Sleep/Schedule: I will be working (hopefully full-time) in the near future...so I plan to get on a normal sleep schedule. With the training volume I plan to sustain, 5AM may become a relatively normal wake-up time. And with 14+ hours per week training alone, I like 8 hours...add work on top of that, and I'll have to be very efficient with my time scheduling. Bring on the challenge.
4. Pick Up a Hobby: Not sure where to go with this. But it will be a nice, pleasant time-filler.

Today it all begins: Nothing changes, but the focus is different...and thus everything is different, because mentality is everything (almost, haha). Go ahead and read the intro to Jack Daniel's Running Formula, it sums up athletic capacity quite well...and it applies to every aspect of life that has limiting factors and situational benefits.

I leave you with a quote from a phenomenal athlete: Mirinda Carfrae, 2010 Ironman World Champion, 2009 & 2011 Runner-up, 2005 ITU Long Course World Champion. And she's the fastest female Ironman runner out there. She's smart, strong, and whose bite rivals the level of Ali's bark. This quote is from an interview around the time of Ironman Kona 2011.

"You have to be willing to hurt to that next level. Yeah, there are people that go out there and say, you know, 'I'm just gonna go and do my best'. I think that those athletes are not ready to put everything on the line because they're scared; those athletes never win."