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.