On thursday I did a 3 hour trainings session at http://www.vif-fitness.ch/. Great people! I even met some old-ager-triathletes. Very motivational to see them getting up and keeping pace even after 2:3o hrs, when I had to struggle to focus.
Overall training starts to work! Next weekend I am going for a long jogg. Today I brought my bike to Beat (santa monica). I am thinking about a new bike. So far there are two options:
- Cervelo P2
- Xerox QUARRA extra speed
(Source: http://iamtri.com/profiles/blogs/you-know-youre-a-triathlete )
...You have a lifetime supply of water bottles, safety pins, and t-shirts.
You have trouble keeping lunch under 2000 calories.
You usually wake up at 4:00 in the morning but don't get to work until way after 9:00.
You have a $4000 bike strapped on top of your $2000 car.
You're always wet .... sweat, pool, lake, sea water, shower, bath, or rain.
Your car has at least one energy bar wrapper and water bottle on the floor
You depart in morning with swim bag, bike, and running shoes in case you can get away at lunch for a workout.
You take triathlon junkets instead of vacations
Your kitchen cupboards are organized into "protein", "carbs" and "etc"
You bring bottled water to a party so that you're properly hydrated for the next morning's long run. Everyone else at the party also brought their own bottled water because you don't have a social life outside of triathlon. Oh yeah, and they all showed up by 7pm and left by 10pm.
You mention a race and somebody responds "running or biking" and you are again forced to explain....
You wear your bathing suit under your work clothes to make a fast transition from work to swim on your lunch hour.
You name your two new puppies Kona and Hawi
Your significant other wants dinner out and a movie, so you agree, but fall asleep during the previews.
You've spent more on bikes in the last 10 years than you have on clothes for the past 40
Somebody hands you a cup of water and you have to restrain yourself from pouring it over your head.
You forget that talking about daily LSD and speed weirds some people out.
You feel like you took the day off because all you did was swim 3000 yards.
Cars pass you on the road when you're driving and you either drop back to get out of draft zone or speed up to attack!
You haven't bought work clothes in two years, yet you own bike shorts made by every manufacturer under the sun and can recite the merits of CoolMax, Supplex, etc. in your sleep!
You know you could make a killing at Jeopardy if only the categories were:
- Past winners of Hawaii Ironman
- Legs shaving techniques
- 40-30-30 diet
- Aerodynamics racing wheels
- Gastrointestinal problems and long runs
- How to justify a $4000 bike
When asked, how old you are you answer 40-44.
Your training is more limited by available time then how far you can run.
Nobody believes you when you say 'Never again!' (should be familiar to first time marathoners).
You need a picture for a job application and you only have race pictures.
You use running T-shirts to clean your bike.
You think there are only two seasons during the year: racing and off.
You clean your bike more often than your car.
When asked to mow the lawn in 90 degree heat, you say that it's too hot to do that (and you mean it) and then an hour later you go on a century ride because its so nice out.
You tell your co-workers that you are going to "do a long brick" on Saturday and just expect that they know what you are talking about.
You are convinced that if you rest more than one day, your muscles will atrophy, your ultra-fit body will turn into a pile of goo and everyone in your age group will beat you.
This weekend was the total-immersion fresh-up to be ready swimwise for the upcomming season. I took a first beginners course two years ago and went this time together with Irina for a second time. I focused on rotation and on how to save energy and indeed learned some important things:
- I have to work on my core strength and have to focus to swim "on the "Latissimus" muscle" to be pushed forward by the water
- maintain body-tension and push back the arm/hand as much as possible towards the back
- 
www.swimmersguide.com is a great website to find pools around the world! Check it out.
- www.finisinc.com are selling great equipment. Unfortunately not yet internationally. I ordered a special snorkel to focus more on the technical swim.
- "Swim slow to swim fast"
Happy laps!
One week of skiing in Saas fee with great sunny weather. We had a view at 9 4000m-high mountains and fun, fun, fun. Very impressive. CLose to that:
http://www.tgrmedia.com/tgrclips/hilifetrailfastwm.htm
http://www.tgrmedia.com/tgrclips/sagefastwm.htm
