“You only need to be fast 3-4 days of the year… the rest is just for talk.” – Pat Wheeler

Athletes have one simple aim… to get faster. The tricky part is this: how do we get faster? It’s actually not as tricky as you think. If you have a good plan, are consistent in your training, practice good restoration and recovery, and utilize proper nutrition day in and out, you as an athlete will improve. It really can be this simple.

Most athletes train too hard, we know this. Scroll through your Facebook news feed and see this  ….keep in mind it is December.

• I ran 8 X 1 mile repeats on the track in 5:52
• I ran 22 miles today at marathon goal pace.
• I did 800 threshold thing-a-ma-bobs with a tire over my head.

(note most athletes who post this kind of thing are looking for one thing. Not race results… peer validation)

You tend to see these posts out of these same athletes on race day:

• I had the fastest bike split, and then……
• I have a great race until……

And trust me…… I have in the past….. been the captain of this movement.

My 2012 and 2013 goals are honestly to practice what I preach to a damn T. I am finally training in the method I am coaching and it’d brought me an entirely new focus as a coach and as an athlete.

While this will seem like a shameless plug for QT2, let’s face it… it’s not a shameless plug, it’s a very proud plug. You will rarely if ever see a QT2 athlete post something like that. You will see a Qt2 athlete post recovery watts (most under 100 watts), and our athletes will just prove it with race results. No argument needed. You won’t hear them talk about bike splits…. what you will see is that five of our athletes ran sub 3:05 in Kona. You will see that Mrs. Jessie Donovan smashed Ironman in Arizona, running a 3:16 off the bike in her pro debut.

As Tim Snow says…. “The bike split gets the press, the run split gets the win”.

So what’s the deal? What gives?

To be honest QT2 training is not glamorous. Sure there are mile repeats on the track, sure there are monster sets in the pool. The work is very very very and if that is not clear….. very structured. To a decimal point. You will hear of our athletes doing 183 minute bikes and try to dissect ……why the odd number? A mental strategy from coach to athlete? No, not at all. There is a reason behind every minute we prescribe. There are no blank spots in our training plans.

Our training programs are methodically configured, constructed and developed to meet all of our athletes. When I began coaching with QT2 I worried a great deal about the Mission Plans. Most of my Train-This athletes who came with me went to this plan. I know I was told it’s not cookie cutter but ….was that true?

I can now say with 100% truth…. absolutely. Each Mission Plan I have written is 110% to the athlete themselves. It’s a freaking good deal.

At QT2 we help you build a giant aerobic foundation. That’s the base of the entire season and depending on the athlete it will last 12-16 weeks of easy aerobic boring as hell training. Actually, let me clarify it.

Weeks 1-4: You will swim, bike and run the slowest you ever have in your life. You will question these heart rate zones, if you are like me totally ignore them (and develop an injury). You will look at FaceBook and see your friend is running 10 miles on Sunday morning, most at 6:30 pace and you will feel behind, out of shape, unfit, and very distrustful. I will hear you tell me you’ve run 10 minute miles when you run 3:30 marathons. You will cover up pace and power and when you finally get the guts to look at it in your post workout data…. you will think…… I can’t go so slow.

Weeks 5-8: You will start to notice something weird. You will see your HR and paces change. This may happen later depending on how many times you ignored your HR during weeks 1-4. You will suddenly be running a few seconds faster than you were at week one…. at a lower heart rate? You will think…. maybe this does work, maybe QT2 is on to something. You will feel good. In fact…. when Joe Joe is still out running his 10 miles on Sunday morning at 6:30 pace and complaining of knee pain….. you will feel like you own this secret. But you wont’ tell anyone anything out of fear that…. you feel too good, and fear of jinxing yourself.

Weeks 9-12: Depending on how well you stuck to those zones….. you will begin to think….. man I have a freaking HOUSE underneath me. You will look ahead and see some BST’s and tempo work and begin to say….. oh man here it comes, I am so ready.

That first race you will come across that finish line a believer. You will think….. holy sh*t I don’t know where that came from.

We do. Look back. You just built yourself into one smokin strong freaking athlete.

It’s a process. It takes a while. If you are me it takes 2 seasons.

*stubborn*think*I*know*everything*.

What we do around here is we push up our threshold from the bottom…… if you think of threshold as a line… there are two ways to raise it. (This is going to be extremely basic; any good exercise physiologist will agree that this is a much too simplistic explanation and that there are many facets to lactate threshold…… but bear with my simplicity.)

You can raise it by pushing it up with a good dose of aerobic training.

You can pull it from the top with interval work.

Again… that’s much too simplistic an explanation, and there are good combinations of both that do the same thing.

At Qt2 we primarily push it from the bottom up. Our athletes have very few if any injuries. Training so aerobically allows us to build very strong and healthy athletes.  With that being said we test our athletes to determine which type of athlete they are. With those results we prescribe the right balance. Some need more intensity work than others depending on those results. Now we have athletes who need a lot of intensity and some who need minimal.

Either way there will be a good solid base / foundation / aerobic base laid down. Think of it as the foundation of the house. The stronger the foundation, the stronger the house. You don’t build a skyscraper on sand.

Another way to say it is this: the deeper the root, the taller the tree.

At the right time and in the right place….. you will realize that your goal…. to become your fastest self…. has been achieved.

There are people who win every training session. That’s for Facebook. Then there are those who nail every race. That’s for a podium spot. It really depends which you care most about.

So remember….. there are 3-4 days of the season you need to be fast. The rest is just for talk.

QT2 Systems has announced the acceptance criteria and application deadline for its 2012 Elite, Age Group Elite, and Advanced teams.  The QT2 Systems racing team is quickly becoming one of the most recognized teams in the nation, due to the consistent performances of its members, and strong industry partnerships with companies such as Blue Seventy, Athlete’s Honey Milk, Cliff Keen, Fuel Belt, Powerbar, Headsweats, Nuun, and Fast:Splits.  Athletes who are interested in taking advantage of this unique opportunity should visit the QT2 Systems website at www.qt2systems.com or click HERE for the full criteria and application deadlines.

Several of QT2 Systems’ top athletes will be basking in the sun of Kailua-Kona, HI for this weekend’s Ironman World Championship.  Headlining this contingent is last year’s 8^th overall female, Caitlin Snow of Brockton, MA, who used her running prowess to cap the 2010 event with the race’s second ever-fastest women’s marathon of 2:56.

Top age group athlete Patrick Wheeler, of Worcester, MA, earned his trip to Kona with a win of the male 25 to 29 age group, and 4^th place overall showing in the amateur race, at Ironman Coeur d’Alene, this past June.  This represents his third trip to the Big Island, where he has continued to make steady progress each year.

Amanda Kourtz, of Raynham, MA, will be making her first trip to the World Championship event after winning the female 25 to 29 age group at this July’s Ironman Lake Placid, where she also finished as the 3^rd overall amateur woman.  Like Caitlin and Patrick, she can be expected to charge through the field during the run portion of Saturday’s race.

Scott Hammond, of Houston, TX, is a veteran triathlete and long time Ironman racer.  A 2^nd place showing at the Ironman 70.3 St. Croix, this past May, punched Scott’s ticket to a day in the lava fields.  Having spent the summer in Texas’ furnace-like conditions, Scott is well-prepared for the infamous heat and humidity for which the event is known.

Wisconsinite Colleen Capper is looking to make a return appearance on the podium.  Last year she placed 5^th in the 50 to 54 women’s age group, and is well-poised for another great performance, following a great race at Ironman St. George, in May.

Jocelyn Cornman, of Leetsdale, PA, will toe the line for her second time. With a 2010 finish time of 11:08, already under her belt, and a 6th place finish in the women’s 30 to 34 age group, Jocelyn is in a solid position to show the fruits of the past season’s labor!

It takes more than just endless hours and countless miles to become a fast cyclist (trust me, I have been at it for 7 years). Like any sport, there are numerous variables and teaching methodologies involved in it. Once such variable is cadence I have tried slow and and fast, Torbjorn Sindballe explores cadence in his article.

He writes; “The debate about choosing the most efficient cadence has been ongoing for many years. Studies in physiology tell us that a lower cadence—about 60 to 70 rpm at moderate workloads—is the most energy efficient, and yet many triathletes race the iron distance with 80 to 90 rpm. Along those same lines, Lance Armstrong’s extremely high cadence—often upward of 110 rpm—baffled the scientific community during his seven straight Tour de France wins.

I believe this inconsistency between science and practice has to do with strength and acceleration. There is a big difference between pedalling on an ergometer in a lab and riding in a peloton on undulating roads, where you need to constantly accelerate or decelerate in response to other riders, the course and the terrain. Acceleration at lower cadences occurs less rapidly and requires far more muscle force than accelerating at a higher cadence. So while a lower cadence of 60 to 70 rpm is more

energy efficient, if you are accelerating at all while you ride—which you almost certainly are— accelerating at a lower cadence also saps the strength you need to run once you get off the bike. To get an idea of the difference between strength fatigue and energy fatigue and why you need to worry about it, imagine going to the gym and doing three sets of 10 squats at your max weight. You aren’t going to use much energy doing this, but you are going to sap your muscle strength and break down muscle fibres, making it very difficult to run well after you’ve finished the workout.

Thus, in triathlon, finding the right cadence is a balance between strength and energy efficiency. You cannot go too low, as it will drain the strength you need to run, and you cannot go too high, as it will deplete your energy stores too fast.”

I have actually found while my coaching team wants me to ride at 90-95 I real better coming off the bike both cardio and leg strength fresher if I red between 80-& 85 but that’s just me.  Not surprisingly I spend most of my time training by heart rate zone in the same cadence while sometimes ridding in the 90′s I find I average a better speed with less effort at 85 cadence.

Sindbjorn goes to finish saying “Other factors should also influence your cadence choice. According to a 2009 scientific review by Ernst Hansen and Gerald Smith in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, cadence has been shown to go up when workload, or power, increases, so you will most likely choose a higher cadence in a short time trial compared to your usual long training ride. Athletes with a high VO2max choose a higher cadence when riding at the same relative intensity as athletes with a lower VO2max, most likely because they push higher watts and thus need to ease the load on the legs. (This phenomenon partly explains why Armstrong chooses a higher cadence than the rest of us—he pushes higher watts.)”

USA Triathlon is creating a task force to determine if anything more can be done to prevent deaths such as those that occurred at recent races in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Louisville, Ky.

An independent panel of three physicians and two certified race directors will review the cases and see if there are common factors among them, USA Triathlon Rob Urbach told The Associated Press. The panel’s findings will then be presented to a larger review committee of medical professionals and industry personnel to determine what, if any, actions should be taken.

The move comes after five triathletes died following U.S. races over the last two months. Two competitors, a 64-year-old man and a 40-year-old woman, died in August during the swim portion of the Nautica New York City Triathlon. Later that month, a 46-year-old man died during the swim leg of the Ironman Louisville triathlon and a 58-year-old professor at Bates College in Maine died after having a problem in the water during a triathlon in that state.

Earlier this month, a 59-year-old man died during the bike portion of the Nation’s Triathlon in Washington.“We felt in all cases we’ve adhered to best practices,” Urbach said. “At this point, I’m being advised there’s nothing (additional) that can be done. But as a responsible governing body, we’re taking a look through this.”

There is no deadline, Urbach said. But one task force member, Dr. Lawrence Creswell, said the group hopes to begin its research in October and wrap up by the end of the year. A progress update will be given at USA Triathlon’s race director symposium in January in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“I thought the events were unsettling,” said Creswell, a heart surgeon, assistant professor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and an avid triathlete. “I think that the participants in triathlons would take some comfort in knowing that USA Triathlon was interested in the problems, interested in understanding the problem better and trying to see if there’s anything that can be done to limit participants’ risk. I think it could be something positive with a broader impact.”

Deaths during triathlons remain rare, and as more people participate there is bound to be a corresponding increase in the number of fatalities. According to research published last year in The Journal of American Medicine, there were 14 deaths among the almost 960,000 participants in U.S. triathlons between 2006 and mid-September 2008, a rate of 1.5 deaths per 100,000 participants.

Of the 14 deaths, however, all but one occurred in the swim portion. ”The results were a surprise to me,” said Dr. Kevin Harris, a cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute and lead author of the JAMA article. “We saw a cluster of events in the triathlon, but we didn’t realize before getting into the details that the vast majority were going to be during the swim portion.”

Some have blamed triathlon’s boom in popularity for the disparity in when deaths occur. First made famous by the Ironman, weekend warriors have flocked to the shorter sprint (typically a half-mile swim, 15.5-mile bike ride and 3.1-mile run) and Olympic (.93-mile swim, 24.8-mile bike ride and 6.2-mile run) distances. Triathlon, Urbach said, is now the fastest-growing adult participation sport in the world.

According to a study by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, 1.978 million people in the United States did a triathlon last year, up almost 64 percent from the previous year and a 148 percent increase since 2007. But it is hard, particularly for first-time triathletes, to replicate the race-day experience of the swim during training. Most swim training is done in a pool, not open water, and some people panic when they find themselves in a cold lake, river or ocean with poor visibility and waves, surrounded by other competitors thrashing around.

Yet the larger, more serious problem, Creswell and Harris said, is logistics.

It is obvious almost immediately when someone collapses or experiences problems while running or biking, and medical attention — even if that’s just a spectator administering CPR — is usually available within seconds.

In the water, despite having lifeguards and water safety personnel nearby in boats or kayaks, it is tough to see someone struggling among all the splashing bodies, which look virtually identical in their wetsuits and race-issued swim caps. When a person in distress is spotted, it takes additional precious seconds to get that person to shore, where there are defibrillators and ambulances.

“It’s hard to tend to them,” Creswell said. “There are a few survivors when people have sudden cardiac death at a marathon or a running event. … But it’s very hard in the water portion of a triathlon. I think that’s the challenge.”

Harris and his group suggested setting proficiency standards for participants, particularly for swimming, though Harris acknowledged that would be tough to implement. A full physical before a race would uncover underlying heart conditions or other medical issues, but even that provides no guarantee.

The first year Bill Burnett was a race director, a 38-year-old man had a fatal heart attack during the swim portion of one of his triathlons. The man had been told by a doctor two weeks earlier that he was good to go. ”He did what he was supposed to do,” said Burnett, whose Streamline Events company produces several multisport events in New England. “Now I often wonder, should there be some type of question you ask before you do a triathlon? The debate is still out there. I’m not so sure about that. You have to trust that when someone is going to do that, that they’re in good shape.”

There are already strict standards for safety, aid stations and medical personnel at any USA Triathlon-certified race, and they are reviewed on a regular basis. But after the recent deaths, Urbach said he felt the federation had to go even further to ensure everything was being done to protect competitors.

“If we find, in fact, something different or additional we could be doing,” Urbach said, “we will.”

Nancy Armour can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/nrarmour

One such project caught my eye, as an entrepreneur and athlete a Hydration bottle was introduced by Brian Hook of Cincinnati, Ohio and quickly caught on.  ”I had the idea for a new water bottle design on a sweltering summer day while training for the Louisville Ironman Triathlon. I was sweating and wishing I didn’t have to hold water in my hands or carry it on a bulky hydration belt. Then I wondered: What if the bottle was shaped to fit into a waistband or race belt” says Brian!

He continues “From that inspiration my wife and I built crude prototypes of various designs and our two great kids “road tested” them by running around our family room. Not only is Simple Hydration kid-tested and approved, it was put through its paces by a runner with 30+ years of experience… me.”

Brian introduced the idea via KIckstarter and it did well, he received 180 backers (funders of the idea) raised $21,1800 exceeded his goal or 20k and off to production he went.  I got my bottles the other day just in time for a hot afternoon run training for the MiamiMan half Ironman race coming up in November.  The first thing I noticed was the non-bouncing feeling I didn’t get like the bulky bottle I use to carry or the bunch of little bottle that went on the waist strap.  The other thing I noticed it didn’t feel like I had to keep adjusting it (the strap with the bottles use to slide around a lot).  The curve of the bottle rest nicely against the waistline and simply works.

Very cool Idea, will be using them on the long runs from now on and those hot afternoons in florida, keep running…..

Oh let’s see another update my oldest son got married to (oh yea add another gorgeous women to the list) Jenny in Atlanta,what a beautiful wedding and what a wonderful family.

Then there is the training, still out there putting it on the line including training for Ironman CdA in Idaho, where I will be completing in the IronmanXC as well as for the Team www.qt2systems.com which is just around the corner on the 26th of June and today starts the wonderful taper period the time where I focus on muscle memory and keeping the fitness I earned and letting the body start to repair any of the broken parts (there’s a few) so 2 weeks to go more letter….

When he started this project over nine months ago he had no idea what was to come. As a designer you always try to simplify things. The original concept started as a type of water carrier but then evolved to simply modifying the bottle itself to do what he wanted – slide onto the waistband of my running shorts.

He then tapped into social sites like LinkedIn and the Dailymile to conduct research to see what other issues needed to be addressed with this new bottle design. What I found out was that other runners were a lot like me and had many of the same issues. Such as:

- Didn’t like to carry water bottles with their hands as it hinders form.
- Didn’t like to use hydration belts because they are clunky.
- Small bottles are hard to put back in hydration belt holsters.
- Didn’t like small cap openings on bottles (harder to fill and clean).
- Didn’t like how the bottle neck/caps were slanted.
- Didn’t like it when a bottle leaked.

He incorporated their feedback into my final bottle design. Whether a runner is sliding it on a waistband/race belt or an active individual sliding it into a pocket it’s never been easier to take water with you.

He spent many months searching for a company in the US that could blow mold this bottle and was able to find one in California. He also found a US company that could supply the push/pull cap that fit the larger size requirement for this size bottle. The bottle design pushes the limits of the blow molding process. The most expensive item that needs to be funded is the bottle mold. The $20,000 pledge goal will be used for the creation of this mold. It will also cover the cost of an initial production run. Our goal is to have product shipping by the middle of August.

You can help bring this product to market by pre-ordering Simple Hydration and being a key backer in helping meet the pledge goal. So please click the green “BACK THIS PROJECT” button and select the level that is right for you. Below are some of the cool rewards at the higher pledge levels.

The best way to support is click on the link above and participate

Saturday came the day to test out the wet suit and lake (temperature was 56 – yikes) lucky that morning it was on the chilly side, so I wasn’t sure what was colder in the water or out so I did both swam for a bit then got out, walked around then back in the water.  It was a good thing, cause come race day the temperature of the water was not of a concern and I was ready to race..

Race Day -
Waking up 3.5 hours before the start of the race just to eat is challenging, but smart, Breakfast 3.5 cups of Applesauce,  a banana, a powerbar drink and a power bar then back to sleep like that was going to happen, maybe I dosed off for a few here and there but no sleep. started to head out the get everything set and noticed its 5:30 and the sun is up and out, first time I got to transition and it was daylight but it did make it easier.

Swim 1:20:37

Normal Swim takes me about hour and 15 to 20 and this one was no different except on thing, it was the WORST start I have ever done, I must have got hit or kicked 6 times and came to a stop 4 times by the time I exited for the first loop I was shocked I expected to see the time like 40 to 45 min thats how slow I felt the swim was but when I saw 39, I thought ok so if I can get back in and swim I should end up arrant the 1:20 mark, very please since ya know I am just a strong swimmer HA!!!

Transition 1 (Swim to Bike) 8:52

I could not for the life of me feel any parts of my hands or feet, so getting socks and shoes were a bit of a bitch, but none the less it got done.

Bike 6:05:13

CdA bike course is a two (2) loop as with the swim and the run and most of the bike contrary to what everyone says is mostly rolling with some quick steep hills.  The goal or should I say the mandate was to stay 1 to 2 beats into zone 2 and thats were I held on to sometimes it drove me nuts to go slow and watch all the people pass me but I know if wanted any chance in running I needed to do what I was told. The course heads out of town and up into Hayden Lake which is just as pretty as lake CdA.  The few hills that climb are pretty steep like 12% grade and not so short.

Over all I felt good on the bike the avg. speed was 18.7 miles per hour which is just slow, but I had legs when I came back to T-2.  Some points to remember, the numb stubs became feet again about mile 35 it was like a light went on all of a sudden my feet were tingling and then full feeling, no accidents, no flats and took the correct fluids 5 full bottles of powerbar drink and 3 water, 3 tubes of “The Right Stuff”, eat 1 powerbar, 10 gels & 1 packet of blocks.

As you can see via the SRM report, it was pretty steady day via heart rate and watts (except the hills) but can do any thing about that.

On to T-2  0:3:04

Run 4:28:52

When it comes to the Ironman, most know its all about the bike, which really means if you push the bike, you will have NO legs to run and that has been the case most of the time for me which is why I have had runs in the high 4 hours and even 5+ hours. This weekend things were to be different, steady on the bike and fresh legs on the run. Prior to the race I had been suffering with a glute injury and working very hard to strengthening it via TRX and well it was going to be a crap shoot, but one thing I was aware of with the race is they changed the run course, before you had a simple steady hill to climb and once you got to the top you turned around and came down.  The change makes the run course just little more challenging cause when you get to the top now you keep going up and over and down all the way and turn around and do it again so now you yahoo basically 4 hills and I realize thats not much but when your suffering with a glute well as my coach says, I lost focus and let the glute get to me and one of the portions just went to hell.

After recovering from my brain fart I was able to get back on track and finish strong for a finishing time of 12:06:40 and 3rd place in the IronmanXC.