This weekend marked the one-year anniversary of my life as an endurance athlete. Last year on this date, I ran the Lake Hodges 50K, stepping into the unknown with only an 18-mile training run under my belt. The events of the last calendar year yield a similar pattern of redefining my limits, chronicled here within this blog and embodied in my young adult life.

My journey has lead me to the summit of what I thought was previously possible only to be afforded a fleeting glimpse of higher mountain tops and greater challenges. First it was the 50K that presented the challenge, then came the 50-Mile distance that  broke me until I achieved success. I'm currently preparing for a 100-mile run in June and already registered for a 140.6-mile triathlon in November. Then what..?

"What the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve."

To celebrate my passion for endurance, I participated in my first official triathlon, the Ford Ironman 70.3 California at Oceanside on Saturday. The race itself is a classic—season opener for the sport of triathlon. The field was stacked with Pros in both the men's and women's divisions. It was cool to hear all the hype before the race but I was there to push myself for a killer training session—all to build my body and mind for the San Diego 100 Mile Endurance Run on 6/7-6/8.

I like to set the bar high so it leaves me with more to be desired—this way, I remain motivated at all times. I projected my finish in less than 5 hours and a PR in the half marathon. I didn't reach either of these goals (haha) but I sure had a blast along the way!

The swim was nice and warm (60-degrees) in the protected Oceanside Harbor. No swell to battle, just a bunch of flailing bodies. I was surprised to see the different color swim caps (yes, mine was pink) during the swim--I must have caught up to at least two waves that started before my age group. I knew my swim was solid and projected 32-minutes which was pretty much spot-on as I was out of the water and into T1 in 33-minutes.

The bike portion began with a mistake within the first half-mile that would cost me later on. I somehow managed to drop my electrolytes on the ground, never to be seen again.

"Punishment = Glory"

Right?

In the meantime, I enjoyed pushing myself on the bike, which remains my weakest link in the trio. I've only been riding a road bike since August and my longest ride was done in the Anza-Borrego Desert with the Triathlon Club of San Diego (TCSD). We covered 60-miles that day in 106-degree dry desert air so 56-miles through the rolling hills of Camp Pendleton seemed easy, so I pushed harder.

Towards the end of the bike, my lack of electrolytes began to creep up on me in the form of cramps in my quads so I switch to Gatorade at the aid stations. I finished the bike portion in under 3-hours, averaging 19-miles per hour. My bike dismount into T2 was greeted by a full contraction of my hamstring when lifting my leg over the top-tube of my ride--foreshadowing the first portion of my half-marathon run. My right foot was numb for at least 4 miles and my legs were heavy and the impact of each step was loud—not my typical efficient running stride. The temporary discomfort was quality punishment training

The run remained the highlight of my day. I train alone so often that I was absolutely blown away by the volunteers, fans and spectator support--it was beautiful. I was proudly wearing TCSD apparel and encouraged by familiar faces and countless supporters along the 13.1-mile run course.

I appreciate you all joining me on this adventure--stay tuned for another year!

Saturday morning, Marie and I made our third-straight weekend pilgrimage to Cuyamaca State Park for our last long trail run this month. We got on the second portion of the SD100 race course for seven hours. There are still lots of downed trees blocking the trail from last year’s firestorm. No way will these be removed before the race which will be quite the surprise for runners who haven’t previewed the course. They got the best of Marie on several occasions. Her sexy legs still look sexy, but were badly scraped by the end of our 27-miler—ouch!

We’ve now scouted the entire race course and I’m feeling optimistic. I’m confident in my support crew, even more so now that it includes my brother—making a guest appearance from the east coast. Secondly, I’m stoked because my fitness level is right where it needs to be. This became more evident when the alarm sounded at 6:30 am Sunday--my legs were fresh and I crushed an 8-mile recovery run, followed by 2.5 hours on the bike like it was nothing. Training at altitude is amazing!

Monday, I spontaneously took the day off from work to capitalize on a mountain bike trip with my good friend Tim. He got us full suspension bikes for the day because he is scouting trails out near Idyllwild for a trail running event he is directing in October. The route we took was by no means suitable for this type of running event but we still had blast.

Training for my first 100-mile run is exciting and throwing a half-ironman in the mix has made it even more fun. The Ford Ironman California 70.3 on 3/29 is almost here. I’m going to hold off on any more long runs until April. Once April hits, I’m going to peak with some serious mountain running sessions (including night running sessions) into the beginning of May and then taper down to harness the energy for 6/7-6/8.

While Marie and I were traveling to Catalina earlier this month for the Avalon 50, we were discussing my race calendar for the year that I’ve since settled on and shared with you Tuesday. I use the expression “settled on” because I felt as though something was missing from my schedule. More specifically, I wanted to attempt an Ironman-distance triathlon in 2008.

Yesterday, my wish was granted. I received the news that the SD100 has been moved up four months from October to June. Not only will I be faced with the challenge of preparing for a 100-mile run with 4-months less time, but I’ll now add an Ironman-distance event to 2008, the Silverman full-distance triathlon. I’m not sure what to say except thank you. Is that sick? In no way is this meant to discredit the difficulty of the SD100 but it seemed like the year was very spread out and I feared burnout with my peak race so late in the season.

Adjustments to my racing calendar will be minor. The major change leading up to the SD100 will be an increase in training volume with attention to the long runs. Since the race will be in Cuyamaca State Park, and not on the Pacific Crest Trail, I’ll be sure to get out there as often as possible between now and June 7.

When I shared the news with Marie, she responded by asking, “What do we need to do to make it happen?” (Isn’t she amazing?) She even suggested we replace the Mountain of Gold race on March 16 for a training run in Cuyamaca SP. Plus she had already recruited her coworker/training buddy, Rebekah, to be a part of my crew team for the race. Marie and Rebekah crewed for Joe Decker and his girlfriend Nicole in the 2007 SD100 so they already have experience crewing in Cuyamaca SP. I’m honored to have them in my corner and that much more confident things are going to workout.

Are you guys in my corner too!?

My ultimate fitness goal for 2008 is to complete the San Diego 100-mile endurance run (SD100) on the third weekend of October. With some guidance, I’ve outlined a series of incremental goals, races and periods of rest over the course of the year that will gradually prepare me for this main event.

After finishing 2007 with a 52-mile training run and beginning 2008 with a 50-mile race, I’ve decided to use the sport of triathlon to build my fitness while taking a small yet strategic break from ultra running. My first half-Ironman distance triathlon is on March 29 in beautiful Oceanside, California. To prepare for this particular 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run, I’ve broken my training schedule into three phases and the first phase began Monday.

Bike course:   

For the next 16 days, I’ll be training in all three triathlon disciplines, a variety of cross-training exercises, plus racing a Triathlon Club of San Diego (TCSD) Duathlon on February 2. My next break is President’s Day weekend, where I’ll use a long-weekend of backcountry skiing in the Sierra Nevada as active recovery before beginning the second training phase.

The focus of phase two is “brick” training or the combination of two triathlon workouts into one and less of a focus on cross-training. For instance, upon arriving home from cycle-commuting, I will immediately go for a run. The purpose of this is to train my legs to learn how to make this transition and get used to the switch so on race day, I can jump off the bike and break out into a fast half-marathon. During this phase, I will bump up the weekend mileage on the bike and race in another TCSD Duathlon on March 3.

Phase three includes brick training, a long training ride, plus a trail race in San Luis Obispo called the Mountain of Gold on March 16. I plan on running the 25km option and Marie will run the 50km race. This way, I can fit one last long run in before my event and I will be able to pace Marie for the first two loops of her four-loop course.

I’m nervous about the half-Ironman since it is an unknown but I like the pressure since it is rapidly approaching. I need to focus right away and get to work. Having confidence in my base fitness helps, but I’m honest with myself and admit that my swimming needs work, my cycling needs work and I must include plenty of brick workouts between now and March 29 to have a decent race.

Now that I have my sights set on the SD100 in October, I’m excited to get into triathlon shape and to roll over the fitness into the next event on the list: The Leona Divide 50 on April 19. This year is off to a great start and I plan on checking in with you all along the way. Let's make thisa fun and exciting year. All the best to you and your 2008 goals!

Yours in Adventure,

~Toby

The Avalon 50 was a tougher race than I expected, but it still went really well and I learned an important lesson. It was a hot day, mid-70s, and the race wasn’t on trails—it was on fire roads and paved roads. The hard-packed terrain punished my feet and joints since I primarily train on trails that offer more natural cushioning.

Special thanks to San Diego ultra-runner Jerry Armstrong, who ran the race last year. He advised me to wear my road shoes for the race, so I ended up packing them in my drop bag, which was accessible at mile 18.9. As beautiful as the sunrise was from the highest ridge on the island, all I could think about was changing out of my trail shoes and into my lightweight road shoes.

Once I made the switch, another issue surfaced--but not so obvious. I had slowly become hyponatremic because I was not taking in enough sodium to counter-balance my water intake. I was still thirsty as I took in more and more water. I developed a headache and I couldn’t think clearly so it became increasingly difficult for self-diagnosis. I finally figured out what was going on when I recalled Joe Decker’s story from his first Badwater 135 experience. He told me that he literally had to drink salt out of a Morton’s salt container to counter-balance his over-hydration symptoms, which were very similar to mine.

At the next three aid stations, I used potato wedges to scoop-up and ingest heaping piles of salt. I finally began to feel better around mile 38 which was over 7 hours into the race. As crazy as it sounds, I felt my best for the final 10 miles. My head was clear, I had positive self-talk, my run-walk intervals up hills were pain-free and I had solid momentum. I finished with a personal record of 10 hours, 21 minutes, which is almost five hours faster than my last 50-mile race. It sounds like a significant improvement but it’s relative to the terrain differences. Mt. Disappointment was all above 5,500 feet of elevation, through rugged mountainous terrain. The Avalon 50 never climbed above 1,400 feet on hard-packed fire roads.

It was a learning experience to say the least. I have a much better understanding of my hydration needs and I’m just thankful I was able to hold it together and finish on a positive note. Now I’m excited to start training for the Ironman-70.3 in Oceanside on March 29. I’ll be taking a break from long runs to concentrate on swimming and cycling, but I’ll get into those specifics in my next series of blog posts.

I want to be sure to mention the outstanding performance of my girlfriend in her debut 50-mile race this weekend. Marie made the giant leap from 50-km races to the 50-mile distance on Saturday and finished close on my heels with a time of 10 hours, 55 minutes. I’m so proud of her and thankful that we had such a great experience together on Catalina Island.

I couldn’t do this stuff without your support--thank you all so much for believing in me.

Before things get too crazy around here with holiday travel, I’ve decided now would be the best time to check in with you all and let you know what I’ve been up to and what the next few weeks have in store.

That said, I want to introduce the latest addition to the team: Active Expert, Joe Decker Joe is a fitness expert who lives and breathes endurance. He lives here in San Diego and I’ve been training with him and his Gut Check Workout Group on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Joe holds class every day of the week, twice a day and his workouts are always challenging and offer a diverse combination of speed work, calisthenics, plyometrics and strength training—all outdoors from 6 a.m. until 7:15 a.m. I leave these group workouts feeling fulfilled because I pushed it to the max and started my day off as well as I possibly could. I feel that this style of workout has been missing until now. I encourage you to get in touch with Joe to learn more.

Then there is ActiveX Training which you may or may not have caught glimpse of here in the community. ActiveX is very similar to Joe Decker’s workouts but it’s even more concentrated, rarely lasting more than 40 minutes. These workouts are held Tuesday and Friday mornings at 11:30 a.m. I’ve been doing both Joe’s workouts and ActiveX Tuesday workouts all month.

I’ve also been quite consistent with my Friday morning yoga class which helps me recover from the high intensity, back-to-back workouts throughout the week. Yoga has been my sanctuary and has kept me balanced and injury free. I encourage you all to give yoga a try for your first time. I’m still usually one of the only guys in the class and often the least flexible out of everyone but that never discourages me because I can feel the benefits of each class and seem to learn more and take more away from each session.

This new level of training was put to the test on Sunday when I successfully ran four, 13-mile loops through Los Penasquitos Canyon. The double marathon distance run lasted just over 12 hours which breaks down to a 14-minute mile pace. This is right on par with where I need to be for the Avalon 50 on Catalina Island, January 12. The run was smooth and I felt strong from sunrise to sunset. My nutrition plan was spot-on and my recovery has been quick and with minimal soreness. I'm excited to end the year on such a positive note!

I’ll be training on the east coast for the remainder of the year. They have two feet of snow where I’ll be and I can’t stop picturing the Rocky IV training montage from the barn in Russia.

This weekend was “domestic” in the sense that I actually slept in my bed in the house that I pay rent to live in and not in a tent or bivouacked on the side of a mountain or in the desert.  I got caught up on chores around the house and managed to fit in 25 minutes of hill running on Saturday. I played some hoops on Sunday before an hour-long beach run--which reminded me of the training I must do to prepare for the Avalon 50 on January 12.

This 50-mile race on Catalina Island has a 12-hour time limit which translates to a 14-minute-per-mile pace, minimum, just to finish in time. This is a great deal faster than the 18-minute miles I averaged in the Mount Disappointment 50, but the course itself it much easier. This time I won’t be at elevation and the temperatures will be mild. This makes it easier to fathom improving my time by over 3 hours. It’s going to take plenty of work to get there and I plan to include you all on my recipe for success. Speaking of recipes, check out Melissa’s latest blog post. I was lucky enough to sample her tasty Sweet Potato, Corn, Kale and Squash Chowder today and I give it two thumbs up.

I started off the work week by cycle-commuting with Jesse@Active. We ended up riding the train with our bikes so it was only 18 miles round trip and not the full 42 miles that we usually ride. My Tuesday-morning workout was with JoeDecker, who happens to be the Guinness Book of World Records World Fittest Man title holder. The workout itself is a fantastic combination of cardio, calisthenics, plyometrics and flexibility that lasts just over an hour. There are an average of twelve people who meet every morning and some are training for the Avalon 50 as well. Working out with a great group of people and having an enthusiastic coach has left me feeling stronger and stronger after each workout. You’ll definitely be hearing more about these workouts as I attend both Tuesday and Thursday sessions leading up to race day in January. Plus, Joe has recently joined the Active Community--check out his blog, Get Fit with the World's Fittest Man.

I’m looking forward to a return trip to Joshua Tree National Park on Friday. I had initially planned to explore the small mountain town of Idyllwild, California, this weekend but I learned that their forests remain closed due to fire threat. Southern California has plenty of options for the weekend getaway and Joshua Tree remains my favorite. If my calculations are correct, this will be my eighth trip during the two years that I’ve lived in San Diego. It’s a holiday weekend for some so the park is expected to be busy. I’m very much looking forward to a long trail run through the desert.

Stay tuned for more details on my Thanksgiving Grand Canyon trip. I hope you all have a great active week.

Active Toby

Active Video:

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Photo by Gill Weiss