Race for a Reason

One of my clients Brett is training for his first Ironman. He will be doing Lake Placid in July. You can read about the reason he is racing at his website http://www.imhalffull.com/. He is raising money for a cause that is important to him. Please visit his website and support him. I decided last year to do my first race and raise money for a cause that was important to me. It was a really great feeling to know that you have a purpose to your training, other than making you feel better physically. We (most triathletes) are very self absorbed in our training. When I was training to raise money for the NSPCA it was a very different feeling. I always had in the back of my mind that I wanted so bad to help all the neglected animals in the shelters. I wanted to get as much money as I could for them. I wanted people to know that I would be thinking about these animals, and all the support I got from everyone every mile I ran. It was the most rewarding race I have ever done. Not because I had a great finish, because I didn't. It was rewarding because I did something to help a cause close to me and many others. I support Brett not because he is my client, or because I have a personal attachment to Parkinson's. I want to support him because I know how it feels to be so passionate about something you want to scream to everyone that will listen. Even if you give a little or if you choose to give a lot you are part of his journey. Once again his website is http://www.imhalffull.com/. Brett's training is going great! We actually ran 12.5 miles of hills today. We ran the Red Rock loop. Then we went for a swim after. I swam fast intervals with Michael and Brett did some longer intervals on his own. He is going to do awesome at Ironman Lake Placid! Yesterday I had the opportunity to get underwater videotaped by Swim Las Vegas. Paul Fritz and Kara Robertsons were great. They videotaped me from several angles and provided me with the DVD at the end of the session. Kara went over a few things with my stroke that I could work on. I know everyone thinks I am perfect but you will clearly see I need a "little" work:)

In the video they have a pro swimmer (not me lol) at first, then they show me from the same angle. There are something like 3 different angles to see. I would highly suggest doing this if you live in the Vegas area. It is only $65.00 and well worth it. You can contact them at swimlasvegas@gmail.com. It is one thing to think you swim a certain way but another to actually see it. From this video I learned I angle my arm slightly in with one hand and I swim with my head a little too high. This is fine in open water but not so good in the pool. I also rush through my stroke. As Kara put it I fight the water. It was a very informative hour and great to actually see what I am doing wrong.

I have to say congratulations to Jason one of my clients in New York. He finished his first half marathon and did a great job. I was telling Brett today as we were running that I get almost as nervous race day for my clients as they do. A few weeks ago Jason had a bad day at a 10K. It was hotter than normal and he pushed a little too hard. I told him what he needed to do for this half marathon so he wouldn't have issues. A lot of the problem was overcoming the mental aspect of the bonk at the 10K and knowing he could do this. I was anxious to hear about his race. I got this reply when I asked how it went: It went perfectly! I finished 1:57:54 with an avg pace 9:00/mile. Another P.R.! I'm so psyched. I couldn't have done it without your advice. I did everything you said. I just concentrated on running my target pace and as the race progressed, I kept on getting more and more confident. The confidence put my mind at ease and i started to relax - I got into a great rhythm and I was feeling really good (so much so that I tried to give a pose to every photobucket camera dude on the course!) I was pretty fired up at the start, I could have run a lot faster, but I kept holding back knowing it was a long race and there was no way of telling how I would feel by mile 9-10. The Garmin 305 helped a lot, kept me consistent, and prevented me from getting too excited. And it paid off - big time. By the last two to three miles, I was feeling really tired, the temperature started to get warm, but I had enough in the tank and enough will power to psyche myself up to finish real strong. Once I saw the finish line from 800m away, I gave a really nice kick at sub 7min pace. As a coach when I see something like that I am just as excited as the client that I coach. Great job Jason!