A few years ago I decided to start keeping a training log and now that I have data for a few years it has been fun to look back and compare how I'm doing now to how I was doing before. This year with Ironman on the race schedule for the first time I know I need to spend a lot of hours sweating it out in order to reach a level of success that I will be happy with. Below is my progress to date and how it compares to the two previous years (up to May 27 of each year):

2012 Training Totals:
SWIM = 1.6 km
BIKE = 1914 km
RUN = 501 km

2011 Training Totals:
SWIM = 8.4 km (5.3 times more than this year)
BIKE = 816 km (2.3 times less than this year)
RUN = 80 km (6.3 times less than this year)

You can see a big difference but, this is not a fair comparison since I didn't do any races last year. To really get a grasp on how I'm doing I need to compare to 2010 where I completed 5 triathlons (4 at half Ironman distance) and 1 marathon. Also, in 2010 a large number of my personal records as seen on the right side of this page were recorded. So here it goes.

2010 Training Totals:
SWIM = 43.3 km (27.1 times more than this year)
BIKE = 871 km (2.2 times less than this year)
RUN = 198 km (2.5 times less than this year)

Well, it's obvious that I need to start swimming more but with more than double the biking and running totals I feel confident that I will be ready come August. And, those 2010 records I mentioned earlier, I have already broke 2 of them this year. I recorded my best marathon a few weeks ago during the Vancouver Marathon, and I dished out my best Mt Cypress ascent last week. So with my long distance running and cycling currently better than they have ever been, and with another three months of training before the big event, I'm feeling pretty good.

Actually, to be honest, the training progression happens so slowly that it's easy not to notice. Until I did this comparison I had no idea that I was training this much or, improving this much. I guess what I'm getting it is, if our successes aren't measured and recorded it's hard to recognize the improvements. Keeping a log of training time and personal records is important and can help anyone who is seeking to elevate their personal abilities.

So for the next few months the plan is to swim a lot more than I am now and keep biking and running like crazy. This is the home stretch now; it's no time to become lackadaisical. I need to stay focused and determined. I'm hoping to hammer out a good Half Ironman in July, ideally it will be my best ever but we'll see how quickly I can build my swimming up. I'm also hoping to beat my Iona TT record, and go sub 40 minutes on my Mt Cypress climb some time this year. It's only May, there's a lot more in store. I'll keep you posted.

So yes, I haven't updated my blog since the marathon in October, and honestly my training has been much like my blog writing since then - nonexistent, but I'm hoping to still have a good year.

My race season last year was a little disappointing but there were some highlights:

I was able to swim faster and further than I ever had before including a swim from Alcatraz to shore, a 4200m swim at Kits beach, and a 33:33 half iron swim time at Sooke.

My cycling which had been my weakest triathlon event in 2009 became my strongest in 2010. I was able to push harder and faster. Some of the top moments were riding my first imperial century, climbing Cypress in 44:30, and going from 141st place at the start of the bike to 65th at the end during the 38km leg of the Banff triathlon.

My running took a big toll last year mainly due to a major neglect in training but with a desire to change that late in the season I was able to pull out my best Olympic distance triathlon run leg of 43:14 and I spontaneously signed up for the Victoria Marathon with 3 weeks to go and pulled out a new personal record with a time of 3:37. While training for the Marathon I felt a passion for the sport that I hadn't felt all year and I gained a renewed love of running.

My training totals are as follows:

Swimming - 75km, 28.2hr
Cycling - 4009km, 155hr
Running - 528km, 48hr

Sadly, the last time I swam last year was Sept 11, and the last time I ran was Oct 16. On the bright side, I started my new swimming plan today and got a few hundred meters in (man, did my arms ever get tired fast!).

So what is 2011 going to bring me?

Although I am planning on doing Ironman in 2012, I will be cutting back my training and focusing on shorter distance triathlons. I love the long distance, but this year I want to spend more time with my family. Janelle has been a great support to me, watching the kids all the time while I'm out getting in the miles, and I think it's time that I support her a little more. Besides, with Ironman next year, I'm going to need to be training a lot so I should be home more this year to try to make up for that.

So in planning my race season I think the Nelson Cyswog 'n fun is on the list, not sure what other tri's I will do. I will also be doing the Victoria Marathon again with hopes to qualify for Boston.

I still plan on training, just at times that are more convenient for others like swimming after the kids have gone to bed, running home from work which takes about the same time as busing, and going for pre-work bike rides come summer time. I'm not a student anymore. I don't have hours free in every day. Training now is much harder to do than before, but I believe that if I set my priorities and goals, make plans and work at it, I'll be able to accomplish the things I want to achieve this year.