Time to Become a Caterpillar Again

The 17th World Transplant Games on the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia are finished. For ten days I flew among people from over 50 countries, each of whom share the transplant experience. The dreamlike trance from which I awoke upon returning to the smokey skies of LA made earth seem like heaven. What if you had 10, 20, 50, or 100 friends whose names you never knew, but whose hearts you identified with immediately once introduced?

But as you probably know, all flights to heaven with butterfly wings only last as long as an eclipse. The light shines so intensely you believe that life is always so. It's only when the eclipse has passed, you realized its magnificent glow.

Although my goal was to finish number "1," my numbers of destiny were "1" and "8." And indeed in the 5K Bicycle Time Trial and in the 20K Bicycle Road Race, I finished 8th. Each time I gave what I had, but I didn't quite make it. Maybe for the next World Transplant Games, my number of destiny will simply be "1." Of course, that won't be easy since the next World Transplant Games begins on June 18, 2011. In the meantime, it's time to prepare for next year's U.S. Transplant Games and return to my profession as a teacher and my graduate studies. It's time to become a caterpillar again and prepare for another few days of heaven on earth at the 18th World Transplant Games, June 18-25, 2001 in Goteborg, Sweden.

To All my Supporters.

Thank you.

Sunday, August 16th ... Hansen Damm Triathlon ... Relay

I swam the swimming portion of the Hansen Damm Triathlon as apart of a Relay Team with Jose (cycling) and his friend Willie (running). We finished second overall. I swam 457 meters (500 yards) in 11.05, 47 seconds better than last year's time. Out of the 26 relay teams, I was 10th. My goal is to do that course in 10 minutes or less. It was a fun day with real competition (the nervousness ahead of time) was the competition for day and since I finished so quickly I was able to relax. My friend Becca was also there. She did her first triathlon and took some great pics.

Final Countdown

Today my was my final ride before boarding a plane to Australia tomorrow night. Now my bike is being packed up and I'll take it with me in a large bike case tomorrow. It should be the most fun I'll have during the trip lugging that thing around … not. I rode pretty well today. I didn't break any records for myself but I was three minutes better than I was on the same course going over the hilll first than just last week when I was still feeling very ill. Now I feel better. I felt that I had more power today, but I wasn't fluid. When I get to Australia I need to get to the gym and peddle. That's what I noticed today is that I wasn't fluid because I haven't been peddling enough. As of today, I've ridden 87 days this year, equaling the number of days I rode last year.

Frenetic Friday

This is the best I've felt for three weeks or so. It wasn't my fastest time, but it was the healthiest. My strength still isn't back 100%, but my overall conditioning feels solid. I've lost some weight (2-3 pounds on my slender fame. Still, it makes my cadence and rhythm are better than before Having written that, I wasn't smooth shifting today that cost me some time and energy on the climbs. In order to do well in Australia, I'm going to have to peddle smarter and quicker than most guys. I won't be able to outpower guys. Just four days to go until take off.

Six Days and Counting

Five days off. I feel like I'm slowly … very slowly … getting over the flu I had and the anti-biotics I took for them. It's a long process. I still have some lingering bronchitis and I feel a little bit weak. On the bright side, my weakness caused me to lose a few pounds so that I have a very efficient cadence. I did the hybrid 20.15k ride in Griffith Park. From the start to the turn, I rode in the TT position. My times were 8.37 and 9.10. Those times a little slow, but it was windy and I hadn't ridden in awhile. I've lost some power in my legs. I'll have to make up for it with massive cadence. On the way back, I road in the RR position climbing over the mountain. Good thing I have lots of muscle memory because sometimes it's just hard to climb. The next couple days I need to rest as much as possible. I've done pretty much everything I can to train for the World Transplant Games. It's time to put the work into action.

Second Consequtive Night of Swimming

My second consequtive night of swimming. Adding the 500m distance to my workout has re-energized me. I like the longer distance and my 50m split on the 500m distance is only 1.7 seconds less than my 200m distance. My stroke seems to have come together. I'll have to remember to take it easy during competitions when the easiest thing to do is push. But pushing tightens the muscles and makes swimming easily more difficult. It's kind of like golf. You have to relax in order to do well.

Tick Tock ... 9 days to go ... Swimming ...

It has been two weeks since I have swum. I felt smooth, a bit tired and worried. Still my breathing was calm and rhythmic and my stroke felt most fluid. I swam the 500m distance in order to prepare for next week's Hansen Damm triathlon, in which I'll do the relay with Jose next week. I'm doing the swimming portion. In the future, I'll compete in longer swimming distances. Let's see how I feel over the next couple of days. I hope that I can still can to Australia.

UCLA, LACC, Swine Flu, Exercise, Stress Management, and Too Much

8-4-09

After being very sick for a day with a fever of almost 102.0, I decided to get some "fresh air" as Kinga suggested. I think her idea was that I take a walk. I decided to go for a short ride. I did the first 5K and back. On the way out, I pushed on the way back I took it easy. I got my best time on the 1st 5K stretch, 8.04. Maybe the sickness that I felt yesterday was holding me back on Sunday. At any rate, I do need to be very deliberate in my workouts from now until I leave for Australia, just 14 days away, and absolutely rest. The silver lining to getting sick is that it came two weeks before my departure and forced me to sleep in the middle of a rough work stretch.

8-5-09

Having gotten over the 36-hour flu, I'm now on anti-biotics that kept me awake much of the night and produced cold sweats. Apparently, the anti-biotics were helping my body discharge the toxins. At at any rate, I overslept. I did the first three chapters of the core workout very quickly. It's the best I could do as far as workouts go today. Everyone says you're supposed to taper before a big competition, but I'm concerned about my stamina.
8-6-09

I got over the crazy sickness. But then I took anti-biotics. Wow! That was fun. I couldn't sleep the night before and when I did I had cold sweats. Have you ever experienced that before? It's way overrated. Needless to say, yesterday I overslept. Today I rode the 20k again in the RR position. I'll clock my time at 43:00:00 today since I made it to the turn in 21:30:00. My real time was longer because of some pedestrians who decided that I should "share the rode" (ie ... I share. They take) with them in the "Bike Lane." It's another tiny chapter in the microrespect cyclists seem to get from everyone on the streets of Los Angeles. I really rode at about 85%. I spun well and because of the anti-biotics I have lost some excess water which makes it easier for my legs to spin. On the other hand, I don't have the power to push. It felt like Fall today. It's probably going to feel like Summer in a month. 12 days to go.

8-7-09

Two consecutive days in same time. Today was very similar. I had grander intentions, but I stuck to spinning sprinted and climbed pretty efficiently but didn't feel as powerful in flats. Obviously my kidney function is an element of that, schedule, having been sick and on and on, but it's interesting I had the same results. My PreHab prepartions and 10-15 of warmup rides are very helpful. I also need to stretch for at least ten minutes at end of ride. I hope I can still go to Australia. I have to believe in myself and my health in order to still be able to go. It would be a pity to cancel the trip so close before departure.

Lake Piru 20K Time Trial - Last Race before World Transplant Games

Lake Piru 20K Time Trial, 35.15. I feel good about today's time, my third best overall to date, given my training and work schedule over the last two weeks. I've been working more and training less. I had Kinga's friend Amy and her film crew come with me today to shoot my preparations. It's a project for Amy's directing class at UCLA, but I can also use the footage for ZacharyBrooks.com. I prepared well today by riding 20 minutes and riding almost half of the course. Next time, depending on my conditioning, I may ride the entire course as a warmup. I still need to improve my pre-race stretching and post-race cool down. Still, I'm doing much better than before. Today I focused on keeping my head down and not using my gears so much. I did a good job with keeping my head down, but I was inefficient during the first quarter of the race. My split was 17.50. I finished the second half of the race 17.25. There was a headwind on the way out that was tough to work through. I did a good job on the climbs on the way back by zigzagging up the hills. It cut off the climbing grades and allowed me to keep some momentum. I just didn't have the reserve power I had last month, but as the last significant race before Australia it was a solid ride.

Midweek 5K Training 100%

Today was my day to do the 5k at 100%. I rode the 2nd and 4th sections at 100%, but I felt sluggish, as I have the last couple of days, especially when I start out. Of course the transplant patient in me wonders if everything is okay. It's been very hot lately and there is no AC in my car and I've been driving around town like crazy, not sleeping much, and not eating super well. However, my times seem to be consistent. On the 2nd 5K, I rode it in 9.00. My best is 8.37. I couldn't really get any momentum early. I also had a cyclist drafting off my bike tire. Oh well. on the 4th 5k, I rode 8.35, nearly my best effort. All together, I rode the 20K in 42 minutes. That is a solid time considering that I wasn't pushing on sections 1 & 3.

Spotlight: John Petrick ... fellow Transplant Athlete

Today I rode with fellow US Transplant Athlete, John Petrick. He decided to ride the bicycle in this year's World Games after picking up triathlons this year. Most people "pick up" coins. He "picks up" triathlons, never mind the guy has had a kidney transplant. John is a strong rider and if he just started out, I'm sure he'll do very well in Transplant Games to come. We did the "perfect 20K" course in Griffith Park. It was my day to go "80%" and it's the pace we rode with a few bursts throughout the course. It was a great way to get to know John whom I met at last year's US Transplant Games. I look forward to seeing him in Brisbane.

SPMA Long Course Meters Regional Championships in Thousand Oaks

Today I swam at the SPMA Long Course Meters Regional Championships in Thousand Oaks. It was my first Master's event. My goal was to learn what I needed to do to improve my training. First of all, I need to train more and do more competitions to develop a better sense of how I warm up the day before an event and how that affects my recovery on race day. I didn't sleep well, had a tough week of work, and it was very hot. I swam a "long course," ie a 50m long pool as opposed to the 25m length I'm used to. It makes a difference. Even when I'm tired, I didn't realize how the turns give your arms a break. On the first competition, the 50 freestyle, my goal was to break 40 seconds. My final time was 0:40:52. I did a good job of spotting my dive into the pool and my stroke felt solid the first 25 meters. At 35 meters or so, I started getting tired. At one point, I thought (wanted to think) that the wall was very close. It took a little bit extra effort to get to the wall. The second competition didn't go as I had hoped. I felt more tired than nervous before the 200m heat. I did some a couple of laps in the warmup pool, but I probably shouldn't have given my tiredness. When I dived in, my goggles twisted to the side so that my left eye was only partially covered. It was distracting. For a moment, I reminded myself to relax and take longer strokes to get maximum breath, but because of the goggles I couldn't really spot the wall and reverted to just touching the pool as opposed to doing a turn. Mary, one of SQAC's swimmers, said that the 3rd leg would be the toughest, but after the 1st leg, it all felt tough. I think my strokes were too short and I was distracted thinking about getting to 3.30 as opposed to just relaxing and kicking. My final time was 4.11. It was much worse than I usually swim in a shorter course. I'll know more next time. I enjoy swimming, but I'm not sure if the 200m is my best distance. Probably I should try to get myself to do 400m, 800m, and 1,500m swims to see how my times compare with others in competition. Speaking of competition, it's humbling that so many people are so much better than I am.

Saturday Swim

World Transplant Games, US Transplant Games, National Kidney Foundation, Chronic Kidney Disease, Organ Transplantation

Cycling - July 24, 2009

I did the perfect 20k (20.15), but I stayed in the road position again. My goal for this morning was to go at 100%, but after four days of work, driving and the heat I told myself I would only go at 90%. Surprisingly, my legs felt fluid. It just goes to show you that you never know what you can do on any given day until you do it. My 20.15k time was 40.43. It was probably a slightly better result than a few days ago, but I chose to stay on the flats as the Australian course looks very flat. Now it's time to recover and drink as many fluids as possible in this Los Angeles' heat.

5K Training at 100%?

Today was my day to do the 5k at 100%, but it felt more like my day at 80%. My time turned out a little better, but overall I'm a little disappointed with myself. In fairness, I had to stop at three lights and the wind was strong. I give myself a standard 20 seconds off, but it's hard to gauge the loss in momentum. On the first 5K, I actually was slower than when I did the same stretch at "80%." I redeemed my ride (with less wind) on the 4th 5k with a .34 second improvment from my previous time. I consider the 4th 5k one of the hardest. I think I need to go back to doing 5K intervals at 80%, 90%, 100% etc.

Eight Days off from swimming …

I hadn't swam in eight days and I felt like it. My technique was pretty good, but after I got past 25m I felt sluggish. I've also had a morning and evening work schedule that may have contributed to the lagging feeling. I was also focused on going at only 80%. My times reflected these factors. I still find myself concentrating on my technique while swimming too much. Perhaps it's normal while still in the early phases of learning something and maybe it's good just swimming by constantly reflecting on technique. Sunday's swim meet should teach me a lot about swimming training.

80% Road Ride

I did the perfect 20k (20.15), but this time I stayed in the road position and the distance was 20.93. I also climbed over the Griffith Park Mountain twice, since a big part of Griffith Park was closed. I focused on going at 80% so I concentrated on using my gears and spinning to get up the mountain. I was smooth over the two climbs today so that my transitions were practically seemless. I still don't feel 100%, but right now I'm going to chalk it up to traveling and picking up a low-grade virus. I need to train at this distance in the road position to get a sense of how fast I can go in the 20k in Australia and get a feel for using just the road bars.

Take a look at this:
http://www.youthnoise.com/user/zachbrooks/blog