Race Schedule and Results

Thursday, December 29, 2011

I believe...

On Tuesday I did my first training test for Coach Sharpie... my HR test.   After what seemed like a plethora of mishaps leading up to it (I won't tell you about all the things that should have pointed me in the direction of doing it another day), I found myself at the track doing my prescribed workout.  In the pouring down rain.

But it went well, despite some technological mishaps (I'm telling you, someone must have been doing voodoo on me somewhere in the world...) but I was able to get the numbers that Sharpie wanted.  Success. 

After giving her my data, Sharpie very calmly explained (in a great way that incorporated pizza... I knew she was the perfect coach) that I've been cooking the edges of my crust and not letting my insides cook properly.  It made sense... that's what I've always done.  She said "heart rate training is hard.  You are going to be running and biking slow.  You will get frustrated.  You will question what I'm doing.  Believe in the process".  Fitting that she says this... if you remember this post, I got an Endorphin Warrior Training Bracelet recently with my chosen word and new motto for 2012... BELIEVE.

And I do believe in the process.  Even after getting my HR zones and being told where I will be training for the next few weeks, I didn't freak out (okay, I kind of freaked out a little, but it wasn't bad).  I believe that Sharpie knows her stuff.  I believe that she's going to make me a better athlete.  I believe that she will teach me a million things in the process.

And after talking to Tom about it all over lunch, today's "aha" moment came (I think I'm going to have a lot of these working with Sharpie).  So for the last three or four years, I've done no heart rate training.  None.  I have a great watch with all the functions of HR training, but I don't use it.  Our training has always been together, with me going hard in hopes of "getting better" and Tom along side of me, never seeming to put out as much effort.  I always said to him "you are holding back to train with me and you'd be so much better if you just went at your pace", but he never left my side.  Come race day, I've not had the ability to go hard without dying.  Tom gets faster with what seems like little effort in training.  It baffled my mind for so long.  And yet, after one conversation with Carole and it all makes sense. You see, he's been cooking his crust at a slow, even pace.  He's building his aerobic engine every time we train together.

And now it's my turn to make my crust better.  I haven't even really full on started training with my coach (that "officially starts" on Monday), but I already see what I've been missing.  It's going to be a great year.

I do believe.

And yes Sharpie, game on!

38 comments:

Unknown said...

I think I've been burning my crust too!!!!

And now I want pizza!

Janet Edwards said...

Way to go Colleen! Woohoo, for that awesome crust you will be baking!!!

Emz said...

You're awesome.
Love
Love
Love
Those endorphin warrior bracelets!!
Believe. ..... Perfect!

Pamela McGowan said...

Coleen nice post! let me know how how you like the HR training. I am too impatient to do it. I am however forcing myself to do some slower stuff.

Betsy said...

Awesome! I love the analogy. And anything involves pizza, really.

I'm mixing it up this year too & really excited about my new coach.

Let's get training!!!

Matty O said...

It is good stuff. I got my 13.1 PR last fall after doing all of my IM training at H's side :) Soooo moral of the story, us husbands pretended to be "helping" you and "holding back" while secretly we were slowly dominating the races!!!

Stick with it. Throw all aspects of PRs and time out the window. From what I know about my experiences w/ HR training is that everyone is different and takes to it differently. It took me 3 weeks in 2010 to run at my target HR (155bpm) at 7:30 pace/mile or faster.... What is frustrating is when you get to a hill and have to walk haha.

Good stuff though, glad you and Mandy are on board w/ HR stuff!

Caratunk Girl said...

Mmmmmm pizza.

Was it from mellow mushroom?

Cooking my insides too :)

Alisa said...

This is an awesome analogy and actually makes a lot of sense. I've never trained on HR before either but always wanted to! I don't have a HR monitor but Justin's watch has one. I should borrow it and see where I'm at. Can't wait to watch you cook those toppings to perfection!

Anne-Marie said...

That's a great analogy with the pizza, I've never thought of it that way before.

Good luck with the new training!! I'm so excited to start 2012! :)

Carole Sharpless said...

You're a rock star, Colleen.
Believe...!

xo.

Michelle said...

Love this analogy! I've never trained on HR but have been thinking about it. Can't wait to see your progress!

ONEHOURIRONMAN said...

Im hungry,
First Jason does a Pizza post and now this...

Steve said...

Well, that sounds exciting. I like the "believe" thing and you trying new things, and giving over the reins, so you can be even more of an athlete, and less of an analyst. You wore both hats it seems, so now you can concentrate on the one. That has to help too.

Best of luck fo sho!! :)

Kim said...

pizza! and wine! i want some!

i have a love/hate relationship with HR training - love because it does get you faster but hate because i want to run/bike faster NOW! i cant wait to see your progress in 2012. believe in yourself sister, bc i believe in you!

Unknown said...

BELIEVE in the process
BELIEVE in your coach (she knows what she is talking about)
BELIEVE in yourself

:)

and just so you know, BELIEVE was my "word" for 2011 and every single dream came true. I think I have something I would like to pass on to you for your BELIEVE year. I think it has a lot of good mojo left in it

Kristin Deaton said...

It's all part of the master plan, BWWWAAAHHHHAAAAHAHAHAHHA!!!

TriMOEngr said...

Great insight. Continue to BELIEVE!

Tonya said...

Great Post! Believe :)

Unknown said...

I run slow in training all the time. Been working on it for 3yrs. It is boring. But, dammit, it works and I am proof positive of that. Be patient and you will see some dramatic gains.

Hollywood said...

It works. I give it to my athletes, and my coach gives it to me...and we all get lots of complaining in return. But then the athlete goes out and lays down a crazy PR, then they say 'thank you'. I'm excited for you!

RockStarTri said...

One of the eureka moments of working with a coach is when you realize that you need to turn off your brain and just do what they "advise" you to do. Another is when you actually do it.

Eureka moments of this type lead to wonderful things. Sounds like you are on the yellow brick road.

Ironman By Thirty said...

Gee thanks. Now I just want pizza!

I've had a bit of the same thing as Tom training next to Jennie. It is funny what works and what doesn't.

Good luck with the heart rate training!

Unknown said...

Awesome! I'm doing some VERY SIMILAR training right now too!! Can't wait to watch you get faster right before my very eyes!!

Aimee said...

BELIEVE..love it! I'm so excited for you!

Christi said...

You are on the right track with the right coach for you. That is awesome! BELIEVE!

Carolina John said...

You're going to love it alright!! HR training is supposed to be very complete. Feel free to pass on any available tips.

Anonymous said...

Don't you just love "Aha!" moments? Looking forward to following your training, especially since you'll be using HR monitor. I have yet to attempt but definitely want to implement.

Jason said...

Like that dude in P90X says you are going to hate it but love it too. I hated it when I started as it never felt like enough but over time I have gotten faster and stronger. The base has been built and each session the base building starts at a higher point than previous.

It is going to be awesome to see how well you react to this training in races.

Molly said...

The analogy makes perfect sense, my goal is to get faster this year, I know I've got the endurance thing down, now I've got to focus on the speed.

Matthew Smith said...

That HR stuff sounds like it really is wise, but I think it would be sooooo hard to do. From the sounds of it, Mandy has really been going slow too. Good luck! I'm sure Sharpie knows what she's doing.

Jamie said...

Leave it to sharpie to relate everything back to italian food. haha.

Great analogy too. Helps me feel better about that run I just did at 10:15/mile.

Jennie said...

Great analogy! Substitute "Kevin" for "Tom" and I could have written the "you are holding back to train with me... but he never left my side." paragraph. Glad to know that I've been helping instead of holding back! :)

Happy 2012!!

Caroline said...

thank you for your kind comments today, you are one of the nicest bloggers for sure.
I wish you all the best for 2012!

adena said...

I am naturally slow, who knew it would be such a plus. haha

I love following your progress, especially with your new coach. Plus she's awesome!

Big Daddy Diesel said...

I had to read this twice, first time, all I thought about was pizza while eating my salad for lunch

Unknown said...

So good to see this post and all of the subsequent comments. I am on the Coach Sharpie go slow to go fast plan too; and when she lets me do a non-monitor fun run, I feel better, stronger and faster. I have no idea if I am, but a little confidence can't hurt, right? (I also freaked out, a lot. In fact, went and did a VO2 test b/c I didn't believe the numbers). Now I have Coach CS and another guy doing some kind of algebraic equations to figure out which numbers are correct. Gawd, I'm high maintenance!!!

Kristin Bradfield said...

My coach has had me on HR training and race pacing since 09 and it really works. I'd like to upgrade to power on the bike but don't feel like dropping another 1800 bucks right now so it works for me! Good luck, can't wait to hear how it goes for you.

TRI-ROB said...

You, my dear, are going to be AMAZED with your year! Can't wait to follow along!

Breathe...