Retiring the Booby Box

Preparation for Operation Ironman Coeur d’Alene 2011 The Sufferfest continues to be going swimmingly! And bikingly and runningly for that matter. There’s actually a lot going on this time around that I feel is over and beyond the effort I put into the last 2 Ironmans. I’ll get to some of that in a later post. For this particular blog entry though, I wanted to delve into a little sumpin’ sumpin’ that’s kind of a big step for me but is already paying off big in my training and nutrition for the season.

So, here’s the confession. I drink way, way, way too much wine. I love it. I hate white wine – too sweet. But put a glass o’ red wine in front of me and I’m all over it. And I don’t mean the crap that folks like the Gallo brothers do in those big jugs, or even that horse swizzle that they make in Australia, or any of that damn fur’iner wine from France. $45 a bottle?!?!? Please, brotha! I’m talking the really, really top shelf stuff that you can only buy in the finest cardboard boxes. Slap a nice box o’ Almaden Burgundy on the counter, poke that easy pour spout out the end, and fill ‘er up! And just in the name of classiness, you can go ahead and rip the whole wine bladder out of the box and cram it in the fancy African carry-all with the picture of the topless Zulu chick toting her basket o' corn that my sister got for me once on a safari.

Ahhhhh, my beautiful vixen! Such sweet libations you poured from your Liberian breastesses. Until we meet again.....

I’ve known it wasn’t the most prudent thing to do for someone claiming to be addicted to multisport. But I figure it’s okay to imbibe as long as you put in the mileage to earn those sips. I never put any math to it, but I’d have probably been alright with something along the lines of

{(X hours on the bike) x (Y avg mph)} x 2 = wine earned (in ounces)

No, really.

This was a pretty typical evening recovery scene in the last few triathlon seasons.

Every time I see one of those articles in the triathlon magazines saying it’s okay to have a glass every evening I think, “Well, hell, if one is that good for you imagine what 6 will do for me!” So, how bad can it be? Do you really need a liver for triathlon? Hey, maybe I should look into that as a weight saver….

I should have caught it back when I did my first marathon back in 2006. I had decided at a half iron race just prior that perhaps over indulging in the sauce wasn’t as big a factor as we are typically led to believe. I had wined and dined myself the night before and managed a comfortable 5:22 for the swim, bike, and run, which I was ecstatic about at the time (Admittedly, this would leave me more than just a little disappointed with myself at this point in my multisport journey). So, the night before my first marathon a month later, it seemed perfectly natural to take on a bottle of red in the hot tub. Some 4 hours and 20 minutes of painfully walking and jogging the next day through the marathon taught me otherwise. But I’ve also had plenty of good races and training sessions after drinking enough the night before to swell myself up like a dog tick. I just didn’t want to sacrifice that much.

But, this time it’s different. I wanna know! I really, really wanna know how far I can push myself. I just don’t figure I can keep that up if I’m really going to do everything I’m hoping for in this Ironman. So, even if it really may be a serving of fruit per glass, the path to antioxidant nirvana, or some other barely believable argument to justify that glorious intoxicated stupor…….I’m giving it up. No more wine, beer, or any alcohol. At least until after the Ironman.

Tuesday will be 3 weeks. And I haven’t missed one drop. Neither has Angie. She shelved the Natty Lights alongside my own sacrifice. Ain’t she awesome? It’s been great too. I feel stronger, lighter, and when I wake up in the morning I’m eager to get going with the day and find I have much more motivation.

So, rather than the old familiar glass of wine in my hand that you might have been used to seeing me with, you’ll now see me sipping a cup of green tea, a glass of water, or a lemonade in the late evening. I find that, when I was dehydrating myself with that succulent bloody looking libation, I’m now hydrating much better, aiding the recovery process from the day’s training, and setting myself up for another great day of race preparation.

So, drink one or two or nine or four for Angie and me! And if you want a Fat Tire, please come over……….there are still tons of them in the fridge in the garage!