The One Month Countdown

First it was T minus 363 days--the morning last September where I stood in the volunteer line at Monona Terrace in Madison, Wis., to get my credit card swiped and receive my permission slip to register for the 2010 Ironman Wisconsin. Now the countdown stands at 30 days before I'll be adding the final race-morning touches to my bike, rising way earlier than I do for any other race and floating in Lake Monona until the cannon booms at 7 a.m. on September 12. Scary that only 30 days are left, and even scarier that only about half of those--tops--are reserved for the last of the hard-core training.

I've been quite reserved when it comes to talking about my race schedule here on Fit-Ink. Not for any reason in particular but in part because I'm not big on sharing all of my workout with the world. I feel bad enough for the friends who inevitably end up hearing about it for lack of anything else I can talk about (if you're training for an Ironman, it's a challenge, in my opinion, to focus on other stuff). And well, sometimes I cringe at some of the people who post every single workout and every single reaction to said workout on their Facebook or their Twitter, or both. I'm biased: if it's a pro, I'll eat it up. After all, there might be a helpful hint to my own training. Other than that, I have to stop reading the updates that start looking like Training Peaks entries.

I know I make plenty of right, wrong and so-so actions when it comes to my hours (or lack of) in the pool/lake, on the saddle or pavement pounding and I'm not sure I want to become the laughing stock of the blogosphere overnight. And this time around with Ironman, I've learned fast that everyone has a different way to train. Not that I was surprised the first time but on any given weekend I'll have a friend who wants to ride a century followed by a short run, another friend who's busting out 20-mile bike, 6-mile run bricks, and another who continues to say training has started but the collective group wonders how that person will reach the finish line. Who is it that said that one plan doesn't suit all?

Anyway, with 30 days left before this Ironman showdown, there's definitely some prepping to still be done. And not necessarily the good kind--some items should have been figured out months ago. You think I would have learned that the first time I did this two years ago, but no. I still have to:

• Figure out my nutrition on the bike. I've been drinking Hammer Nutrition's Perpetuem during longer races against the better judgment of my stomach, but it just didn't seem to cut it at the Steelhead 70.3. I blame my bonking on the run largely on lack of proper fuel on the bike. Or running out. Goal: hope that a new drink fits the bill.
• Get bike tuned. I've put this off all season--bad me, I know--but it needs more that a little TLC before this 140.6-mile race. Only problem is that last time I took it to the shop, it messed up my week of workouts (I had to beg to surrender it for less than a week), and cost more than $300 to fix a chain, cassette, tape, wires and more.
• Pack my bags. This was a disaster last time and I really should have followed the advice from the countless blogs I read about laying out all your gear before packing it and taking pictures so you could easily do it over and over again. Nope, instead I spent forever packing, brought enough triathlon gear to last me a week, and didn't use half of what I toted into my hotel room--and then had to tote out by myself the day after the race when I really didn't want to carry anything.
• Select race day clothing. You'd think this would be easy. After all, everyone urges you to train like it's dress rehearsal for race day. I must have earmuffs and blinders on when I'm supposed to hear and listen to that statement because I don't wear my race day outfit as often as I should, and I forget that 40 miles in that outfit isn't the same as 112 miles plus a marathon when we're talking chafing. Goal: find a pair of shorts in my arsenal that cancel any rubbing and burning. Enough said.
• Figure out how I'm going to survive this marathon. Yes, I know after I get off the bike, a time check will tell me if I can walk the entire 26.2 if need be. The question is: do I really want that to happen? Of course not. But when you have your slowest run split ever in a half Ironman, know you've avoided running for a multitude of reasons, and have resorted to walking in every running race this year but a 5K, you start to wonder what's going on.
• Swim a mile, or two, or three. Usually, you'll find me swimming in the lake at least three times a week. That was last summer, the summer before and the summer before that. I don't know what it is this year, but I cannot drag myself into the water. It's almost like I'm afraid to go outside and bake in the sun unless I'm on my bike. And my pool swims? I'm the queen bee of the 10-minutes and she's out--15 if I'm really feeling good. In fact, I should be making my way to the water right now instead of typing this.
• Ride the bike course. This is one thing I've actually handled well this time around. Scared to tackle the hills in year one, it was only with a month left before race day that I started making weekend drives to Madison to check out the course and know it's twists, turns and climbs before thrown out there on race day. I've already ridden the course twice with No. 3 on its way--and that's including the times I had to bail because of work commitments that crept up at the last minute (ahem, June's mid-week Vision Quest ride).

Sure, 30 days might seem like plenty of time to work out these kinks--go running, force myself into the pool for an hour or more, practice properly. But after 333 days, that final 30--or 29 being that it's already later in the day--really isn't a heck of a lot. I guess I have my work cut out for me. To the finish line or bust!

Not So Fit-Food: Fat Meals from the 50 States

I still remember the images of odd food combos I saw when I first visited This Is Why You're Fat last year after Liz shared the link. Not clearly, mind you, as I most definitely couldn't name the bacon-wrapped, deep-fried, Krispy Kreme-covered concoctions I was looking at or pin-point exactly which foods were most cringe-worthy (hmm, maybe all of them?). After a while, they all start to look the same: a stomach ache, heart attack, gastrointestinal disaster in the making.

The Chicago Tribune brought back those noshing nightmares with a feature on the 50 Fattiest Foods Across the Nation--in pictures--from Health.com. The slideshow doesn't exactly offer the type of treats you'd want to add to your list of "Must Dos" when you're driving through or visiting. Would you really want to add 25 fat grams--thanks South Dakota Fry Bread--to your system when you're sitting in the car all day? I didn't think so. In fact, after reading some of the descriptions and fat gram counts, you might be writing a mental note to steer clear of A, B and C when you're in X, Y or Z.

If you ever want to be turned off from gorging on a meal you know you probably shouldn't be eating, check out the first few slides. They'll either gross you out or leave you running for a nearby state with a more favorable fat food. My top five on the gross-o-meter? Alabama's bacon-wrapped meatloaf--I don't even want to know the fat and sodium counts. Alaska's Eskimo Ice Cream--I love ice cream but when the ingredients include reindeer fat, caribou, moose and seal oil, I'd definitely take a pass. Michigan's BLT Sammich--let's just say I'm shocked my home state concocted this number; I'm sweating just looking at it. Arizona's Quadruple Bypass burger--I saw this once on the Travel Channel; seeing it again only makes my stomach churn. Oregon's Redonkadonk--it's an awesome name for a sandwich, but there's enough meat (burger, bacon, Spam) for at least two.

There are a few bright sides to the state selections. I shouldn't be saying this but if you want reassurance for your supper splurge, view slides 30 through 50, where the meals aren't as appalling and include a healthy (maybe not the correct word choice there) assortment of items. Plus you've probably already eaten a few of these items, either sharing with a friend, gorging on your own, or sacrificing the fatty part to create a more health-conscious meal. Now for the not-so-bads. Idaho's baked potato--it's the state's starch that gets dressed with heavy dressings and loads of bacon bits, but can be pared down and nutrient boosted with broccoli, low-fat cheese, vegetarian chili and more. Maine's lobster roll--if I lived in New England I think my cholesterol would be through the roof because I'd eat these at least once a week. But it wouldn't be the mayo that would be the belly-buster--I hate the stuff and go for minimally dressed wherever possible--just the naturally high cholesterol in the shellfish. Washington's Crab Louis Salad--again, if you leave the dressing off, this salad is packed with protein, good fat in the olives, and vitamin-packed greens. Pennsylvania's Philly Cheese Steak--I know it's not even remotely healthy (hello cheese sauce) but how can you not try one of these when you're in the city of brotherly love? Massachusetts' chocolate chip cookie--I was slightly surprised to see this on the list, and while I know no dessert is ever great, I figured this eat-one-and-be-done treat would be an OK option. South Carolina's turducken--this has become an institution at my house for Thanksgiving and like the description says, they're not all artery-cloggers.

What would you eat, if anything, off this list? What would leave you running for the next state?

Photo grabbed from cajungrocer.com.

Fit-Pic: Paving the Way to Ironman Wisconsin

What triathlete doesn't like smooth pavement to ride? Unless you're an Xterra off-road triathlete, I think I can safely say not many. And this triathlete (me) writing this post was definitely in for a surprise come Saturday morning. I wasn't alone. Anyone who went out to ride the Verona loop of the Ironman Wisconsin course was in for a surprise Saturday morning: The road was ripped up. And we're not talking just a few patches of loose gravel--that was later along the course--but we're talking about an entire road, Valley Road if my map skills are working correctly this morning, crunched into tiny rocks. Not tiny enough to ride over comfortably either, in my opinion. I started pedaling, taking it slow and steady, but after one too many rocks kicked up from the road and stuck to my fork, I decided I'd be better off walking. Front wheel locking up on a rickety ride? No, thank you. As it happened, I had to shake the rocks out twice after the mile-plus slog. Beware to anyone planning to ride the Ironman route, but hopefully it will be fixed before next weekend.

Let's just call this a literal interpretation of what I titled this post: paving the way to Ironman Wisconsin. At least we know the road should be smooth come September 12. But for all of us who were up in Madison to ride the course for a big-game training day, it was a little un-Earthing, especially when you learn that it was fine the day before. Doesn't WI DOT or the local road authority know that all the cyclists come out on weekends and Sunday night would be better for our schedules? Or at least give us a Road Closed sign and a detour without having to find it on our own.

A Lollapalooza 2010 Playlist

Admittedly, I've been a little too focused on training (and organizing training excursions) for my Ironman race, selecting and attending races, working and recuperating to pay much attention to the pop culture happenings flooding Chicago this summer.

Transformers 3 filming on Michigan Avenue? I've seen the warnings about street closings, read the headlines in the news and viewed one too many pictures from the scene. But I have yet to see it with my own two eyes.

The celebrities coming to Chicago to run in the Rock 'n' Roll Chicago Half Marathon or participate in its festivities? Missed that too--for the most part anyway--because I was in Michigan over the weekend. Sure, I squeezed in an interview with Josh Cox before I left town (thanks Josh and interview to come soon), but forget seeing Maria Menounos or Five for Fighting at the post-race concert, wins by Patrick Rizzo and Tera Moody, and Al Roker, Kelly Killoren Bensimon and Giuliana Rancic on the course.

So before another happening in the Windy City comes and goes, I'm finally paying attention to its pre-event pandemonium and don't want to miss out. That and well, Lollapalooza, running from August 6 through 8 in Grant Park, really is the talk of the town. My first reminder came on Tuesday while driving up Lake Shore Drive and seeing the assemblage of tents in the park. My second reminder came this morning when the Red Eye contained the weekend's artist line-up. And when I saw who was coming, I immediately thought running playlist.

Who doesn't like an array of new songs to spice up the running mix? If you heard mine with some selections hailing from fifth grade favorites (I kid you not), you might think my answer to this question would be "not me." But on the contrary, it just takes a really good song to make it onto my hardly unchanged from 2006 playlist. I confess: That's partially because I fear I'll never find select songs again if I remove them from the list. I won't miss many of them though if I do some updating from this year's Lollapalooza artists; some are already playlist favorites that I don't dare part with. We're talking Arcade Fire, Green Day and Empire of the Sun, which has a one-hit wonder that I've been loving since it carried me up a tough hill at Grandma's Marathon. Others--mainly Lady Gaga--might float your boat more than my own.  Here's what I'd be listening to:

• Phoenix: 1901
• Phoenix: Lisztomania
• Arcade Fire: Keep the Car Running
• Arcade Fire: Rebellion (Lies)
• Neon Trees: Animal
• Green Day: Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
• Green Day: Know Your Enemy
• Green Day: anything off the Dookie album (like Welcome to Paradise and She)
• The Strokes: Last Nite
• Empire of the Sun: Walking on a Dream
• Lady Gaga: Alejandro
• Lady Gaga: Poker Face

There's no order to the above songs, but their beats will liven up a playlist for your next long run--and if you're attending Lolla, you may just hear them live this weekend. Do you have any favorites from Lollapalooza that you're listening to? Too bad The Killers performed last year, or they would have made my list, too.

Where Social Media and Sport Collide

Need to run but can't motivate yourself to get out the door and go alone? Want to meet a few runners, maybe even potential partners? Like the chance of winning cool prizes to keep you fueled and geared up for your next run--or have a lucky streak any time you enter a contest? Set the alarm early Saturday morning, beat the heat, lace up your shoes and finish your run before the Saturday line-up at Lollapalooza starts (sorry, but that's all the news here in Chicago this weekend).

But this isn't just any 7 a.m. run we're talking about. Not only is this a TweetUp run, but it's a training run for the Chicago area Team World Vision runners that will meet at North Avenue Beach and traverse the Lakefront. And to make things even better, runner Josh Cox will be in attendance, bringing giveaways from K-Swiss and PowerBar, two of his sponsors. It's safe to say that Josh likes hanging with Team World Vision when he's in town--that's where I first met him back in April and when we met again, he mentioned a TWV buddy was racing Steelhead just as I was last Saturday--and for good reason. Josh was part of the Team World Vision contingent that ran South Africa's Comrades Marathon in May. Now rather than bust out another long run on the Lakefront alone--Josh logged marathon-distance and longer runs when he trained for the 56-mile race--he'd prefer to share his miles with the rest of Chicago. It gets boring running alone anyway, right?

All paces and all distances are welcome to attend the TweetUp--the more the merrier. Just think: then your run will be done for the day.

Follow Josh on Twitter or like him on Facebook for more details, especially as they unfold in the morning. Or if you're like me and have to miss the run--I'll be on my way to Madison for a long bike ride--check out the tweets and flip through the September issue of Runner's World for some Cox candy. Photo grabbed from TweetUp.