Author: davecriswell

It’s just after 7 PM on July 25th. The cannon will go off in almost exactly 12 hours and I can hardly believe it!

There aren’t many things we do in life in which we focus so intently on a single activity or goal. For the past six months I’ve put in anywhere from 15 – 25 hours per week training for a single event. Now that it is here it’s nearly impossible to explain the range of emotions I’ve experienced in the last several hours leading up to right now.

Maybe I’ll make an attempt to put them into writing during the free time I’ll be working to fill once the event is over. For now, the one emotion I’ll share is the incredible sense of gratitude I feel, mostly towards my wife and son, but also to the rest of my family, for the support. Triathlon is an inherently selfish sport that isn’t possible without the support of those around you and I hope to sufficiently express to them how thankful I am for that. I have no doubt the gratitude I feel for their support will pull me through more than one of several expected low points tomorrow.

When asked by friends and family my reaction to finishing my first Ironman in 2006 the first response that came to me was that it was one of the best and worst days of my life. In one day I experienced an incredible range of emotions, often all within a few minutes of each other while trying to find the strength to push through the emotional and physical pain to reach the finish line.

Knowing that I’ll likely have a similar experience tomorrow is difficult to put into words, so, rather than try I’ll end it here, put on my “running playlist” on my iPod and work on getting a little bit of sleep before my 12 hours are up.

From handhelds: www.MapMyAthlete.com/pdatrak.aspx?name=024971

The deadline for donations that will count towards the Janus Charity Challenge is Saturday. I need to report to Janus by 2pm. So, it’s not too late to donate! Donate here.

Triathlon, when it comes to long distance racing, is really not very accurate. It presumes that there are three disciplines that you compete in. While that may be technically true I believe that nutrition is a discipline that is as important to practice and master and the other three.

I’ve been doing long distance triathlons (1/2 Ironman and Ironman) now for five years and I’m still not 100% comfortable with a nutrition strategy. However, I’ve done lots of testing and will be testing my latest strategy on Sunday. The intent of this post is to lay out that strategy. Hopefully it helps me think it out again and helps others racing long distance triathlons.

I’ll preface the “menu” below with the fact that I’m a huge fan of Hammer Nutrition products. They don’t have any junk, offer a full line of products for endurance athletes and most importantly are a great company that offers all the help you need. If you haven’t ordered before and you’d like to try them out you can receive a 15% discount on your first order by using this link.

Pre-race: With the race starting at 7am my goal will be to eat at around 4am. Breakfast will consist of 3 scoops of Sustained Energy mixed in 24 ounces of water along with 2 serving of Hammer Gel (I like to mix the apple cinnamon and banana). That will be about 500 calories made up of about 120 grams of carbs and 10 grams of protien.

I’ve also been using a product from Hammer called Liquid Endurance. You can read about the product on their website but I’m using it to help minimize fluid depletion.

Swim: 15 minutes before the swim start I’ll have 1 serving of gel (about 90 calories or 23 grams of carbs)

Bike: After going through the first transition and getting on the bike, I’ll start to take in 100 calories every 20 minutes. I’m planning on a 6 1/2 to 7 hour bike. The calories for the first 4 hours will be from Sustained Energy which is a mix of complex carbohydrates and some protien. Having some protien mixed in for long distance events helps to prevent your muscles from cannibalizing on themselves when they run out of glycogen for fuel.

For the 5th hour I’m planning on having a Hammer Bar which is about 220 calories and has a mix of carbs, protien and a little fat. This is a new addition for me but after trying an all liquid nutrition strategy during my Ironman in 2006 and feeling hungry, I’m trying to add some fat to help feel more full. Fat can tend to slow the absorption of nutrients during the digestive process which has the potential to slow delivery of fuel to my muscles, but I’ve tested it in training and I still seemed to feel OK.

For the balance of the bike I’ll only take in Hammer Gel. I respond very well to the gel and in anticipation of 5 hours of running I want my stomach to be feeling good by the end of the bike. I tried Sustained Energy during the run in 2006 and the slower absorption of the protien didn’t agree with my digestion during the run.

Run: My plan for the run is to try and stick with Hammer Gel. I’ll drop my caloric intake to 25o calories per hour and will also be bringing another Hammer Bar with me in case I get that hungry feeling like I did in 2006. It may prompt a little walking with the fat and protien content but the change in flavors and fuller feeling stomach will outweigh the walk and help me to run the balance of the race faster.

I’m planning on relying more on the aid stations this year for water. In past years I’ve worn a fuel belt with water for the entire run portion of the race. My plan this year is to wear the fuel belt for the first of two loops and then drop the belt in my special needs bag before loop 2. I tend to feel like I have a bloated stomach deep into a long race and I’m hoping that getting rid of an elastic belt around my waist will help make the 2nd loop more comfortable. Once I hit the bike I’ll be shooting for taking in 20 – 30 ounces of water per hour, depending on how I’m feeling. The forecast right now is for muggy weather so I’m going to try to shoot for 30 oz.

Two other things I’ll have with me on the course.

1. Endurolytes – these are electrolytes and I’ll be taking in 2 – 3 per hour to avoid hyponatremia and muscle cramps
2. Tums – Just in case I get any stomach distress, these will hopefully help to provide some temporary relief.

Post Race: While I’ll try to each some high quality protien and carbohydrates to try and replenish the 10,000 – 13,000 calories I’m expecting to burn, what I’ll likely reach for are potato chips and pizza. For whatever reason this is what I crave post race 🙂

That’s it! I’ve tried to keep it relatively simple so that I don’t have to do a lot of thinking about while on course. And, most importantly, I’ve tested everying during training to get as sure as possible that I’ll respond well to the plan.

I’m just a regular Hammer customer who really believes in their products. I don’t receive any compensation from them. I actually spend quite a bit of money on their products. So, if you decide to give them a try please mention my name or use this link and they will provide you with a 15% discount on your first order and give me a referral credit based on the amount of your first order. Me and my wallet will really appreciate it.

This is a cross post from the other blog I write for. As you’ll see, the content is right in line with this blog.

On July 26th your Direct Capital blogger will be competing in Ironman Lake Placid for the 2nd time. The Ironman triathlon consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run and has been called the toughest single day endurance event.

Before joining Direct Capital, I started and owned a couple of businesses which gave me a first hand understanding of the challenges involved with such a venture. Much like the Ironman, you need to have great endurance to handle the ups and downs of owning your own business. Having spent many hours on the road training, my mind has many times reflected on the similarities between these two situations. I decided to put “pen to paper” and share with you five lessons I learned while training for Ironman that are just as applicable to the business owner.

1. Have a goal

For a lot of people their goal is their “why”. It’s why you take on the risks and challenges you do. It’s why you get up every morning. Whether your business is struggling in our current economy, or you’ve found a way to thrive, what is it that drives you to push forward? Signing up for the Ironman (or probably any type of endurance event) crystallized this effect for me. With a full work week in addition to a family at home, finding time to train for an event like this is challenging, but not impossible. It means getting up at 4 AM most mornings to fit my training in so I can be at the office by 8 AM. I can almost guarantee that if I didn’t have the goal of finishing the Ironman, I wouldn’t have been up at 4 AM.

If you haven’t already done so, develop your business goals. Once they are defined, it is inevitable that they will help get you out of bed on those tough mornings.

2. Be passionate about what you do

I’m passionate about triathlons. Some combination of characteristics drew me into the sport. There is something about the business you built that you are passionate about. Identify what that is. Is it the industry? Your customers? Your products? What your products do for your customers? Once you have developed a goal, identify what inspired you in the first place and why you are passionate about it. Being passionate about a clear goal is an unstoppable combination.

3. Be Disciplined

I remember when completing a 5k road race seemed like a huge challenge to me. My perspective has changed and I believe that virtually anyone can complete an Ironman. Whether you are old, young, able-bodied or disabled, everyone that chooses to attempt the event can find out the basic principles of what it takes to finish the race. Once you know the principles then all it takes is the discipline to execute. The secrets to becoming a successful business owner are not all that secret. Once you have your idea, the principles of sales, marketing, financial management, etc. are well documented. Just like training for Ironman, what makes the difference is the discipline to follow the plan. Attention for our time is constantly being pulled in several directions. Discipline is what keeps us moving in the right direction.

4. Have flexibility

Even though I’m pretty strict about my triathlon training plan, there have been several occasions in which the pool was closed, the weather kept me from a bike ride or a family obligation took priority. Just because I had to miss a workout or shorten a training session, the goal of finishing the Ironman never changed. I made adjustments and kept moving forward. If you are currently a business owner, you probably already understand that adjustments are virtually always required even with the most well thought out plans. Business owners need the discipline just mentioned to keep focused on the end goal and the flexibility to adjust to the roadblocks and challenges that inevitably will get in the way.

5. Build a team around you

My idea of endurance sports before the triathlon was 5k road races, meaning, when I signed up for Ironman, I didn’t have any idea how I was going to do it but knew I needed help. So, I went out and got a coach. There are several examples of people who excel, or are the best in their field, and still have coaches and teams supporting their efforts. Even if you are a 1-person business you may already have a team around you in the form of an accountant, attorney, etc.

Our Finance Managers are part of their clients’ teams. Before recommending one of our financing, capital and credit products, or setting up a vendor financing program for a customer we first have a conversation about their business and base our advice on what will serve them best.

What business lessons have you learned from your latest athletic endeavor?

With over six months of training under my belt I thought it would be interesting to look at the aggregate of my training over that time period. I’m a little obsessive about keeping track of my training so putting the numbers together was pretty easy. Here are my numbers since I started my “official” training on a sub zero 10 mile run on New Year’s Day.

Swimming:

• 66 hours
• 166,000 yards (that’s about 94 miles)
• 49,500 calories burned

Biking:

• 148 hours
• 2660 miles
• 140,600 calories burned

Run:

• 98 hours
• 625 miles
• 98,000 calories burned

Thanks to the input of @IronmanJourney (check out his Ironman training blog), I’ll put these hours into some frame of reference. I finished my first Ironman in 13 hours and 55 minutes. My goal for this race is to finish in under 13 hours. Aggressive, but looking at my previous times, its possible as long as weather conditions cooperate.

As simplistic as these numbers are, I do believe it truly is what it takes to do an Ironman. I tried to capture some of the personal characteristics we develop through training on another blog I write for. Take it from someone who used to think that a 5k road race was a challenge, as long as you have a plan and put in the time, virtually anyone can do an Ironman.

A reminder, help to raise money for Bretton Woods Adaptive! Only a few more days to make your tax deductible donation.