It's Fiesta Time!

At some point during all this multisport endurance phase of my life, I got the notion that competing in races wasn’t enough.  There’s always been a side of me that enjoys owning a project, and directing a race seemed like a fun task to get into.  That opportunity showed up when Kip Sloan (well known as the so-to-speak eccentric director of all things involving running here in Pitt County) offered to turn over directing duties of the Fiesta Biathlon to me back in 2007.  I was a little bit daunted, but as a lover of this great event – the longest running road race in Greenville at 26 years – and even previous 2-time winner, I was excited to take on the task.

Angie and I did it together from the get-go, and our vision was naïve enough that we thought we could blow this event up to epic proportions.  Our goal was to bring it back to what it was in the ‘80’s when it would get 200 participants or so, both newcomers and competitive racers (nowadays, a 55 minute effort will easily win the race, but back then it would have only been good enough for top 20!).  We wanted to upgrade the shirts, offer cool, unique trophies, hand out fun prizes, and really pump this thing up.

You gotta understand what we were up against, though.  Back in the ‘80’s and ‘90’s if you wanted to do a 5k or duathlon or triathlon, you might have to travel a couple counties to get to the event.  There just weren’t that many.  Nowadays, even in our little town of Greenville, you can easily pick any spring weekend and find two 5k’s and a duathlon/triathlon all right on top of each other.  The competition has gotten fierce due to the popularity explosion of the sport and all the charities that try to put on events to bring in some support dough.  So, we had our work cut out for us.

All this to deal with, and we still had to make money for our charity (the first year it was Uptown Greenville, but after that and still to this day the event benefits the Mediation Center of East Carolina, which I’ve always joked sends bigger bullies to your kid’s school to beat up on the bully that is pestering your kid).  The previous couple years had not been moneymakers in the slightest sense.  Making money for the charity had to be foremost in our minds if it was going to be any sort of success at all.

If you don’t know this first hand already, here’s the single most important message of my post: it is WAY harder to put on an event than to participate in one.  What a great lesson to learn and a wonderful experience, but man it takes a lot of work!

I can’t say we breathed a lot of new life into the Fiesta Biathlon over the years, but it still is going on strong, and this weekend is its 26^th event.  It’s not going anywhere and I’m glad to be able to say that I was a part of its history.  But this is Angie’s and my last one that we will be directing.  We’re turning it back over to Kip.  It’s been lots of fun, but very stressful trying to put it all together on top of a career and all the training I already put myself through every spring.  I expect next year to be a little different for Angie and I, and it’s just the right time for us to turn over the reigns to someone else.

But don’t count me out just yet – I may be there to toe the line at the 27^th Fiesta Biathlon to get my old “title” back!

Bruce's Top 10 Tips for Eating Healthy (and Perhaps to Lose Weight)

Losing weight and keeping it off is not easy by any means.  There are few of us who are lucky enough to have a metabolism that allows them to eat whatever they want (curse you Phillip Rowan!).  I am certainly not one of those and can guarantee you that if this 160 lb’er were to stop all this exercise and eating right I would swell up like a dog tick to at least 215 lb.  I know that because that’s where I was before I started all this triathlon stuff.

So, I thought I’d share some ideas on how I perceive eating healthy.  I’m not an authority by any means, but I’m a fella that, through discipline and good habits, has consistently been able to go from an already healthy BMI in the off-season to 5-7% body fat by the time triathlon season starts – about a 15 lb weight loss as needed.  I've been accused of not needing to lose weight, yet in my mind I know there's a certain range at which I'm most competitive.....and it's important to me to be there by whatever big race I'm training for at the time.  I certainly don’t claim to have the secret to getting lean, and I would never suggest that any one part of doing so is easy and can be accomplished without discipline, consistency, and hard work.  None of this was invented by me, but perhaps there’s a nugget in here for you.

1.      When you’re hungry, understand what it is you’re hungry for.  Just because you feel like eating something doesn’t mean you should look in the fridge and grab whatever looks appealing.  Maybe you’re low on sugar and need a small adjustment.....so grab a piece o' fruit.  Maybe you just worked out, feel low on energy and need some protein.....so dive into some almonds.  In other words, know the difference between what your body needs and what your brain wants.  Develop a habit of listening to your body and don't eat "what looks yummy" just because it's there.

2.      Develop a daily meal routine with healthy items and stick with it.  You might have to adapt a tolerance for a little bit of monotony, but try to pick something you like and that you think you won't get sick of.  The consistency ensures you always eat what you need to and you don’t create alternatives that are unnecessary.  For me, I bring a mid-morning snack to work consisting of a banana, an almond butter and Nutella sandwich, yogurt, and a Diet Pepsi.  And lunch is always a salad with a side of low-fat cottage cheese.  The bonus for me personally is that when I work out at lunch, I know lunch is the same old thing after I get through, and there's no temptation to cut my workout short so I can get to that plate of leftover bbq ribs my mouth might have been watering for all morning if I had played that way!

3.      There’s no such thing as a “reward day.”  Consistency and discipline are tantamount, so it’s not okay to say to yourself, “I ate healthy for the last 3 days so I’m going to reward myself tonight with a pizza.”

4.      I prefer “actual food” to meal replacement shakes, but I’m not against the latter if you’re the type of person that eats on the go and doesn’t have time for a sit down meal, usually breakfast.  Which leads me to.....

5.      Breakfast is mandatory.  You need it to kick start the metabolism, and with a full day’s effort ahead of you the energy is imperative.  My breakfast is some fresh fruit – usually pineapple – and a piece of wheat toast with Nutella on it.  I wash it down with OJ and a coffee.  An hour later, I usually eat a Lara Bar (love these things for their minimal list of ingredients - pure goodness!) and a piece of fruit.

6.      Try to eat an early dinner.  If you’re like me and exercise late, make dinner as soon as you can tolerate eating after your workout.  In general, I make sure that all my eating is done well before 9 pm (a lot of my workouts push me to eat as late as 8:30, which is later than I wish, but I allow myself the indiscretion in light of a good 3 hour workout after I get off work!).

7.      No calories from drinks.  That means no sodas unless they’re diet, no juices, etc.  I do allow myself an OJ with breakfast (for downing vitamins, getting some additional vitamin C, and the caloric value is still high given the time of day it's consumed) and a chocolate milk post-workout to reap the recovery benefits from its high protein, but that's about the only place where I cheat on this rule.  In general, the point here is no “empty calories,” which many drinks - like sodas - are.  Unfortunately, this rule knocks out the ability to have alcoholic beverages, which I love.  You gotta decide if the sacrifice is worth it or not for whatever goal you’re working towards though.  But it’s really not a hard task to swear off the sodas, substitute a diet soda or two in place, and drink water all day.  If drinking water is monotonous to you, add Mio or some other low/zero calorie flavor additive.

8.      In general, dinner is a piece of lean meat (fish and chicken over pork and beef) and some steamed veggies, and a side of rice or couscous or equivalent if the extra carbs are needed for tomorrow’s workout.  I often add an apple or some sort of fresh fruit for dessert too.

9.      Look for casein protein as a recovery method for your workouts.  It’s in cottage cheese and milk, and is unique as it is a “time released” protein.  They say that’s a good reason to take it before bed – so the protein releases into your system throughout the night as your body recovers from the rigors of the day - but I’ve not tried it that way yet.  It’s available as a mixable powder if you want to try it in that form.

10.  I do allow myself a piece of dark chocolate (not a whole bar!) as a treat as long as I’ve completed my planned workout of the day.  My taste is expensive and I prefer Belgian, which is partly how I justify eating it (ie, Belgians like cycling, they allegedly make the best chocolate, therefore Belgian chocolate is good for cycling!).

Battling Burn Out and Eating Disorders

Feelin’ like I’ve been off the radar for a while here, but I’m right back into training and feeling on par with where I was this time last year.  In fact, I seem to be hitting all the numbers I hit last year this time – weight is crossing the 165 lb border on the way south, track intervals at the same speed, swim intervals the same speed, etc.  But I’m realizing how much I put into this training thing last year and it’s literally blowing my mind as I attempt to repeat it in order to be ready for St Croix and the early summer races.  This effort is taking a lot out of me!

I intend to stay on the plan through Lake Kristi in June.  After that, I’ll get off the wagon and allow some boozin’ and snoozin’ to preserve my sanity, with the idea of stepping it back up on September 1 to get ready for Ironman Florida.  Well, maybe sometime in August.  Maybe August 1.  I dunno.  But I’m gonna need a break for sure, and I’m already finding my mind drifts to thoughts of 2013 and not giving a rip about all this fitness and training stuff for a while.

Anyway, back to the here and now.  The body seems to be adapting to the training well, even though I now have 40 years behind me.  It’s the mind that seems to struggle the most through all this though.  Meals on time, no second helpings, no boozing, nailing every workout even when sometimes I just don’t wanna…..it takes its toll.  I’d love to sit on the porch and sip some wine tonight, but it isn’t in the cards. 

And getting my weight back down to sub-160 is consuming me.  I nailed it last year by my early May half iron race, and all is on schedule to do so this year too, but I feel like I have this creepy exercise induced eating disorder (I know there’s a name for it, but if I don’t use it then I feel like I’m not quite admitting I have it).  Two bites of chicken from completing a half a breast last night left me in disgust of what it might have done to my morning weigh-in had I given in to them.  So, I threw them out.  I went to bed early just to make sure I wouldn’t feel a hunger knock later that evening.  I have two scales in the bathroom and I check my weight every morning on each of them – one because I’ve always trusted it, and one for a “second opinion.”  This healthy lifestyle is, perhaps, not the most healthy after all.

So, how does a Kona qualifier do it?  Clearly, they must have more talent to draw from so that the sacrifices aren’t unbearable.  But I can just imagine what a rearranging of lifestyles it is to be one.  I will never understand how one does it with kids and a career. 

All in all, I suspect this is really just some form of burn-out trying to get hold of me.  I made a mistake doing that late fall marathon last December as it didn’t allow me enough of an off-season to bounce back into my routine here in the late winter/early spring.  I still have good days but there are a few bad days in there where I just don’t want to perform.  So, for now I’m just trying to cowboy up to the training but also looking forward to that post-Lake Kristi beer……

A couple notes about the shoulder.  Since the cortisone shot in January I’ve had much improvement.  The PA suggested possible surgery in the long term but for now the shot seems to be doing the trick.  The only time I notice discomfort is after I’ve swam yardage over 2500.  It’s noticeably weaker on the pull phase of my stroke, but otherwise bearable.  I still ice it from time to time and try not to raise my right arm above my shoulder any more than I need to.  I miss doing lateral raises in the gym when I hit the weights but I’ve been diligent to exercise the rotator cuff in place of that.

Spring is happening all around and now there’s still daylight after work for a good workout.  At the very least, there’s gumption to be drawn from all o’ dat!  Peace out!

BAMFs

When you think of a BAMF, who comes to mind?  Probably not this guy, but I'd say he fits the bill.....

This is Juan Jose Mendez, and he's a paralympic track cyclist with an obvious handicap.  I love this picture, because despite the handicap, there is shear determination in his face and he looks like he's flying! 

Today was a big day for BAMF's as Lance Armstrong rekindled my 1999 man-crush on him by coming in a close second in his first on-road triathlon since his early days before he stole babies from the Frenchies at the Tour de France.  I figured he'd throw down a 4:05 or something for today's Panama 70.3 half ironman, but 3:50?!?!?!  Never mind he's 40 now.  Awesome.

Awesome performance in Panama today by Juan Pelota himself.

So why all this talk about BAMF's and what does that have to do with the Richter Kid and his training?  I woke up for the Sunday Morning 10 Miler to find 9 degree windchill temps and near 20 mph winds. Earlier in the week I had tried to breathe some life into this (lately) poorly attended run amongst the locals by adding on a pot-luck style breakfast in the park afterwards.  When the forecast told of winter's ugliness that would collide with my plans I was afraid the event would unravel before any of us even woke up.  But what a great group that showed up today!  Tyler and Jarrod made a longer run out of it and tore up the course running 6:30's or better.  Choo came out on tired legs from placing 3rd in a 5K yesterday and ran some early social miles with us.  Amy (after running 12 miles prior) kept me company for a fast (for me!) 69 minute 10 miler - damn, she's a BAMF for real! Marina, Jason, Emily, Lizz, John, Katie, and Troy toughed out their run as well, and though we all started with numb fingers and frozen snot we completed our run and even finished what we said we would do by having a freezing breakfast in the park.  Angie, Vince, Hank, and Tyler's girlfriend (I didn't get her name!) came out to support - more BAMF's! - and eat with us, and even though we never got the eggs or bacon cooked in the frigid temps we at least had great coffee, fruit, shrimp and grits, muffins and more!  On a day where many enjoyed the comfort of their warm beds, this crowd showed they were BAMF's and got out in the cold and carried out what they said they would do.  And that's damn inspiring to this.............BHMF!!!!

The Breakfast in the Park crew warms up after a great Sunday Morning 10 (or whatevah) Miler!!

The Science of Swimming Tall

It’s no secret to anyone that when it comes to swimming, length matters.  The whole notion of swimming tall and lengthening your stroke while maximizing the glide is probably not foreign to you, but few bother to think of the physics behind it.  So I offer this explanation from what I’ve learned as a design engineer of marine vessels.  I introduce you to the nerd in me:

The Math

There is a basic fundamental mathematical relation that proves that two vessels, in which all other variables are the same, the longer one will have a higher velocity.  This is a relative equation defined as the speed-to-length ratio, and it holds true for watercraft of all sizes.  For example, a canoe can have the same speed-to-length ratio as a destroyer even though their speeds and lengths are remarkably different, but because their speed-to-length ratio is proportional to these two variables it is possible for the outcome to be the same (or at least very similar).

Speed-to-length ratio = V/√L

Where V is velocity in knots, and L is vessel length in feet.

So, let’s use an example that applies to us swimmers and see how length affects speed.

Given: speed-to-length ratio = 1 (this is a typical value for a proper running hull, and one that also makes sense if the hull in question is your body)

Now, let’s take two swimmers, one 5' tall and one 6' tall, and see how they compare in the formula:

1 = V/√5, V = 2.23 knots

1 = V/√6, V = 2.44 knots

You can see clearly that as length increases so does velocity.

The Physics

So, we’ve proved mathematically that length effects speed of a vessel but what’s happening that causes that?  This is where it gets interesting.  First, let’s take the glamour out of this swimming thing and say that a swimmer – when compared to a vessel type – would best mimic a barge as it moves through the water.  I’m sorry if that hurts anybody’s feelings but, obviously, a swimmer doesn’t move fast enough to get on plane, so we can hardly call ourselves a planing vessel.  And without a sail or a deep keel the swimmer is not achieving propulsion or stability by those means.  No, the swimmer is simply pushing the water in front of it out of its way – plowing through the water – no matter how good of a swimmer you think you are.  We call this a displacement vessel, as it displaces the exact volume of water in front of it that matches its own volume in order to move forward.  In fact, it’s not just the equality of volume that is present here in the motion of the displacement vessel: the wavelength of that volume of water displaced (the wake) actually also equals the length of the waterline of the vessel itself.  As it moves through the water – as optimally as this displacement vessel can – you can see the fwd crest of the wavelength right at the bow and the aft crest of the wavelength right at the stern.  This boat moves seamlessly displacing the water as it was designed.  It’s just not all that sexy when you compare it to its planing brethren like speed boats or something you might see on Hawaii 5-0.

Now, if you could pluck this vessel out of the water and immediately put one in its place that is exactly like it in every way except it is shorter, what would you see?  The wavelength displaced by the first boat is longer than the length of the boat we just dropped in its place.  It’s like a little boat has been placed in the trough of the wake of the longer one.  Remember that the fwd crest of the first boat was exactly at the bow of that boat, and the aft crest was exactly at the stern.  This shorter boat is fitting in the trough between the two.  

The shorter vessel sits in the trough created by the longer one, with the bow wave clearly providing an uphill bulge that must be overcome.

And we know it moves slower mathematically, because we already proved that, but what’s actually happening here is the smaller boat must push uphill to gain the fwd crest of the wavelength!  And of course this causes a reduction in speed.  The water simply is not getting out of the way of the shorter boat fast enough so it therefore must be moving slower.

Or, from another perspective, if the smaller boat could maintain the speed of the larger boat it would have to increase its power monumentally over the longer boat to overcome the bulge of water at its bow.  To put it into perspective, if the taller swimmer typically swims his main set of 15 100’s at 1:10/100, and the shorter swimmer typically holds 1:17/100, imagine the increase in perceived effort it would take to overcome that speed gap.

Obviously, there are shorter swimmers that are faster than taller ones, but the physics as described above could only get us this far.  At this point, it’s up to the swimmer to overcome the physics of their inheritance and apply efficiencies to their stroke and position, the mechanics of how they apply propulsion via the kick and the catch and pull.  This is exactly why we’re taught to swim “tall,” to maximize the glide and lengthen your hull as you plow through the water in front of you.  Keep those arms in front of your head as much as you can, think about your arms existing in that “forward quadrant”, and turn yourself into the longest barge you possibly can.

You can resent the swimmer in the lane next to you that stands a foot-and-a-half taller than you with his floppy long arms, gifted as he may be in physique and stature, or you can be a good little tugboat and do the work!  It’s all in the math! 

Da Richter Kid Back in Da House!

Hello and happy Thanksgiving, faithful followers!  (sound of crickets chirping........)

Well, anyway, I'm back after a long hiatus! Thanks for checking in.  Waddya think of the new look?  It took forever, so I hope you like it.

I hope to put some time into some regular posts again, now that the off-season is upon us.  I kinda gotta get over this marathon hump that's in the next couple weeks, but I look forward to posting about new techniques in achieving peak fitness, the occasional scientific application to training, and of course, epic days in a triathlete's addiction to multisport!

In the next 12 months I have some exciting races ahead of me.  One of the biggest and most eagerly anticipated for me is the St Croix 70.3 (Half Ironman) in May.  As some of you may know, I tackled this race in 2007 as my first Half Ironman and it was an extremely humbling experience.  I hope to show up with a few more bullets in my pistol and my machete a bit sharper than that brutal day of torture, tears, and cramps.

Then, in November, I'll be heading to Ironman Florida for the first time.  This will be my first crack at covering 140.6 miles in completely flat terrain.  I can't wait to see what I can do tucked in aero on the bike for 112 miles rather than the undulating terrain of Coeur d'Alene and Louisville - the only courses I'm familiar with on the Ironman circuit.

So, I appreciate your interest but question your use of your time......as this cat ain't nuttin to purr at!  But I'll give 'er a go and do my best to entertain and enlighten as long as you are willing to read!  Stay tuned for my next post as I apply a little old school naval architecture to explain mathematically why swimming "tall" equals swimming FAST!

Have a great Turkey Day!  We have LOTS to be thankful for!

A Straggler in the Herd

Nobody likes to play the role of easy prey, but at the Washington Olympic Triathlon yesterday I suppose I was that straggler in the herd that looked like easy pickins. I was having an awful race, and by the time I started the run in the 100-something degree heat my heart rate was through the roof. I couldn't believe I was stopping to walk just a few steps out of T2. I'd run a block or so, and then walk til my heart eased up, then run a little more, and do it all over again. I must have looked a terrible sight as runners constantly were asking me if I was okay, handing me water, shouting something encouraging.

Volunteers are awesome, and working a water station is a difficult task even on a cool day. But one of the water stations was just overwhelmed as runners came from both directions demanding everything the volunteers would throw at them. By the 2nd time I came to this station, they didn't know what to do. The two adults running the station had their hands full, and their kids were splitting their focus between handing out cups of water and perhaps playing with blades of grass.

I asked for some water, took a swig, and downed the rest over my head. It was so cold and refreshing! As I walked by I knew it wasn't enough so I turned around to ask for a second. "Water, please!" "Can I please have some water?" "Water!" "Water!" I finally got a cup, and as I turned around to drink it a girl came running up shouting for water, grasping through the air at imaginary cups offered by imaginary people, and then it happened.......

Her eyes locked on me. As if in slow motion I was lifting this seemingly golden chalice of ice cold glacial water to my lips, and something told her there wasn't another drop in existence. In a half a second she had measured me, assessed I was too weak to fight back, licked her lips, reached her crooked claws out, snatched my cup out of my hand, and poured the entire contents of it down her gullet. As she threw the empty cup down at my feet and ran away, I hollered, "Hey, you b-.....aww, forget it."

I watched her run away as I stood there, shriveling up in the heat next to the crushed paper cup that a few seconds ago had been so precious. Sigh. 4 miles to go.......