Ironman Santa Cruz 70.3 2016 - Race Report

Not much to write this time around, but basically very happy with a 5:07 considering the lack of training, especially bike and swim. I have been running fairly regularly since Archis' birth in Oct 2015. You probably read about CIM which was a disaster and it set me back big time. Things started coming back to normal in late summer and I was running ~30 mi/week for several weeks before SC 70.3. Most of my runs were with the stroller, pushing ~20 lbs which might have helped somewhat. Due to overall lack of training, I had also put on a few extra layers. Most of spring and summer I was hovering around 139 lbs, which is ~8 lbs over my ideal race weight. To not embarrass myself at SC 70.3, I knew I had to at least shed a few lbs and gain some semblance of fitness relatively quickly. When I tried doing that in the past I always tried ramping up intensity and/or volume too fast and got injured. I wanted to try something different this time around -- something safe. And I had only 5 weeks to do so. I basically focused on 4 things:

1. Lose that dead weight - I cut sugars almost completely, ate heavy lunches and light dinners, added protein and cut down on carbs. I went from 139 lbs to 134 lbs in 4 weeks.
2. Strengthen the core - The Abs roller was my staple workout that I could do while watching TV or playing with my kids. I'd mix that up with sit-ups, crunches and a few others exercises.
3. Lots of swim bands - I was barely hitting the pool until a couple of weeks before the race. 5 mins of swim bands and 20 pushups daily helped a lot!
4. Low intensity + high mileage running - Almost all of my runs in the 5-8 weeks leading upto the race were at 8:30 min/mi pace or slower. This allowed me to do several 30-35 mi weeks. Train slow, race fast was the mantra.

Total Time: 5:07 (AG: 20)

Swim: 33:47

Wasn't great, but not as bad as I was expecting.

Bike: 2:48:41

TONS for people were passing me. I did pass a few of them back during the last 10 miles, but overall the bike leg was the worse. My hips were complaining during the first half, but it felt better after the turn around as I started getting out of the saddle during climbs. I'd still call this a success since I was able to control myself and hold back a bit so that I wont suffer as much on the run.

Run 1:36:41 (incl. 2.5 mins in port-a-potty)

This was by far the most enjoyable run I ever had in a half distance tri. I think I raced smart by holding back for the first 6 miles and after that giving it all I got -- thanks Coach Coady for that last minute advice. No one passed me on the run... literally NO ONE. One lady who passed me at mile 6, I caught up with her by mile 9.



Overall a great race and a satisfying end to a non-existent racing season. I also signed up for Ironman Vineman for next year, so I am more tempted to call this as the first race of my 2016-2017 season. The fun begins...