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Tuesday 27 February 2007

Recovery

Hi All!

Well, I'm now back out of hospital and on the road to recovery. I have got back a lot of strength now, 4 days since the op, and I think the anaesthetic is just about out of my system, although still a little tired. Face feels like someone has had a good kick at it! That said, my body feels rested and flexibility feels good, and I am losing a couple of pounds which all helps. But my god, it's boring!! I can't do much, can;t watch a lot of tv because my eyes are tired and it hurts my face, same for internet and reading, and I can't settle to much and end up sitting for half hour and then pacing round, very restless.
I have planned my race schedule and the first one will be a duathlon on 25th March in Beaulieu. 10k/30k/5k , run/bike/run. I will be back on the indoor trainer for gentle spinning on Thursday. I will be back in the pool next week for swimming, and later in the week in the gym and on the treadmill. This then gives me 3 weeks to prepare for 25th March. Hopefully my base level of fitness won't have taken too much of a knock, and I certainly won't be going for any PBs. However, I'm confident of being fit for the 25th and I certainly need a race under my belt to give me a confidence booster on the road to UK Ironman 70.3

Wednesday 21 February 2007

More turbo

1 hour and 10 minutes of strong pedalling with intervals pushing a big gear. Felt very strong tonight, legs in good nick.
Another 750 ml of SIS electrolyte, really like it, especially good on turbo as relaces a lot of what is lost through a lot of sweating.

ave hr 147 bpm
max hr 181 bpm
Ave cadence 75
max cadence 115

Rest day tomorrow before my op on Friday.

Lunchtime run

25 minutes at gentle pace, warm up.
Then 5km run - good time, 23 minutes and 34 seconds. Good cool down and recovery.
Feel fresh and strong at the minute.

Tuesday 20 February 2007

Turbo Man Again!

1 hour and 10 minutes turning the pedals over. My bike fitness needs improving on, leg strength needs work. Trainer is doing it's job though.
Ave hr 142 bpm. Max bpm 174. Added a few intervals into the session. Takes ages for me to get going, and really to be honest, I should have had another hour out there, as I only started feeling good after 50 minutes! This bodes well for the Half Ironman in June. I seem to get stronger the longer I'm out there, and especially when I get the nutrition right as well.
750 ml of SIS Electrolyte during workout, and that really works well for me. Will try the SIS Energy powder drink as well.
Have now got a date for my op. This Friday! Good to get it done, but it means 1-2 weeks off. Thank god for turbo trainers. Will be able to turn legs over gently and practice pedal technique towards the end of the second week. But my swimming is going to really suffer. Running not too bad and can happily now run steady for an hour with no problems. I can do the swim distance but as far as time goes, I'm going to have to really work at it to get some good times out.
It's a shame the op has come when it has as I have laid down a really good base layer of endurance fitness and this just comes at a bad time when I really need to be putting in the miles, especially on the bike.

Back in the pool

At last, back in for a swim, and my god how the time out of it shows. I did 1500m, but it was very slow going. 38 minutes slow! Way off what I can swim, but that's ok, at least I did it and a few more sessions will get me back on course.
Will be in the gym tonight and then back on the bike tomorrow. Bike in for repair this week, so will be making the most of the turbo. Need to get my cycling legs back into generating more power.

Sunday 18 February 2007

Sunday Run

I was to be doing the Lytchett 10 today but as I was still behind with my training due to the accident on my bike.
However, this afternoon, I still managed to get out for an 8 mile run. Time of 59 minutes and 34 seconds. Well pleased, just under the hour. Felt tired after 25 minutes and was a little jaded but I picked up around 40 minutes and cruised the last 15, picking up the pace for the last km.
Running is improving, and after trouble with my left knee for most of last year, it feels really great to run completely pain free and enjoy my running shoes which are super comfy!
Back in the pool tomorrow for a good long swim session! Then off to hospital on Tuesday to find out when I have to go in for an op. More disruption, let's hope it's not for too long.

Right back on it!

Saturday Morning brick session, very positive, got me back in the groove. Just my bike was a little on the slow side, but to be expected I suppose in light of recent events.

bike stats
54 mins 8 secs
18.4 miles (29.6 km)
Ave speed 20.4 mph (32.8 kmh)
max speed 30.8 mph (49.6 kmh)
ave cadence 88
max cadence 108
ave hr - 162bpm
max hr - 218bpm( not sure if hr monitor a bit wacky at start of ride)
kcal - 949

Run stats
33 mins and 20 secs.
4.3 miles
ave hr 156 bpm (approx)

Good session, felt very strong apart from when on the bike, legs felt a bit tired after 20 minutes. I had warmed up before session as well.
But on the whole very good. Very quick recovery, hr back down to 90 bpm within 2 minutes of finishing.
Had one litre of SIS electrolyte drink during the bike. Seemed to work well, was enough.
Focus will be on the swim next week, more time in the pool and on the bike for muscular endurance. Really need to work at increasing speed. I seem to prefer the longer distance stuff as it takes me an age to find my legs. 40 minutes of pedalling and I was just about at the point of feeling good. Was good running off the bike, and I don't seem to have any problems with that.
How I wish I didn't have to have an op in the next 3 weeks, because it will really get in the way of my training. Was going to really ramp it up over the next 3-4 weeks as we get into race season. Oh well, stay positive, I'm a lot fitter than 12 months ago!!!

Friday 16 February 2007

Morning swim

I went for a gentle swim this morning. Was nice to get inthe pool, but was a bit of a rush as I was in the car and had to get off for work, so just did 20 minutes.
Nasal cavities ok, bit sore to start but then alright. Swim fitness is ok, just technically not that great and really need to get back in the water and spend some time in there.
Turbo tonight, light workout and may venture out tomorrow on bike.

Wednesday 14 February 2007

More pedalling nowhere fast!

Seems all I can do at the moment is turbo train and run on a treadmill. But this is better than nothing and is keeping my aerobic fitness level up.
However, big change coming again. Just now I have recovered from the initial accident and have had nearly 2 weeks off, getting back to gentle recovery stuff at the moment, I have been back to the hospital and an operation is required to correct my jaw. Might need plates after all. I see a specialist next week who will compare my impressions of teeth before(from dentist) and after accident to see what work will be necessary and then I will be booked in for an op. Could be another 2 weeks before an op, that then leaves me with more time off work for the op and then time off for recovery and then impact on training, so will miss races in March. Might just about be ok to race in April depending on when my op is and how soon I can get back to fitness. My training may well just have to be turbo trainer for a few weeks. Really missing the swimming and because sinuses are still full and a lot of pressure in my head I'm not keen to get in the pool, but so aware of not wanting to lose my improving swim technique. So definitely back in pool for a swim tomorrow lunchtime at work, and then again on Friday.
Some kind of aerobic workout at the weekend, and might even venture out on the road on my bike, just for a couple of gentle confidence builder miles.
The one positive thing is that my fitness level is good and I am managing to keep my weight down. That's because of my jaw and teeth that eating is really no fun!

back in the gym last night

Well, feeling better. ack in the gym for 50 minutes on the treadmill.
Got off while feeling strong, good stretch and good recovery. Legs not at all tired today.
So good positive workout. Rest has done me good. Going to make the most of the time I have before I go back into hospital for an op on my jaw, and get some quality training in while I can because it will be another 2 week lay-off after an op. :(
Means missing some races in March. But least my jaw will be fixed and I can enjoy eating again.

Monday 12 February 2007

Turbo trainer workout

Well, better today, after a hard day back at work.
Focussed on smooth pedal technique and did some one legged pedalling exercises, good for the legs and technique, working on allround smooth pedal action. 1 hour and 10 minutes, including good warm up and cool down and pushed reasonably hard in the middle.
Ave h/r at 147 bpm, maybe 2-3 bpm up over what it should have been for the amount of work I was doing, but understandable after a slight setback, and body readjusting to workrate. But on the whole a positive session.
Very light gym session tomorrow night, will do some weights and strength work on upper body and strengthening my inner core, which will help for getting back in the pool. After the lay off though, I feel noticeably stronger and whole body is actually quite refreshed. Once the remnants of these sniffles disappear and I know where I am with getting my teeth sorted out then when into March should be able to really step it up.
So far so good.

Note to self - easy does it, NOT too much too soon. Plenty of time til June! 17 weeks til Ironman UK 70.3. Actually, does not sound a lot when put into weeks.

Back to work

Back in the office today and back on turbo trainer yesterday for a light workout. 1 hour and 20 minutes on the bike, very easy pedalling and just pushed it harder for 10 minutes to see where I'm at. Legs feel good. I think rest might have done me good. But back on trainer tonight for another light session and so on for the rest of the week, get my legs back in action and then a couple of light runs towards the end of the week. Will swim on Wednesday. I reckon 2-3 weeks before I'm back to where I was before the accident.
Back to hospital tomorrow to find out the course of treatment to fix my face up. Keep you all posted.

Thursday 8 February 2007

Good News at last

Well, I have been to and fro to the hospital and the following is now where I'm at:

The injuries sustained to my face are not as serious as at first suspected. I have fractured my cheekbone in 2 or 3 places, they cannot be entirely sure, due to the complex nature of the facial structure. However, the main fracture is where my nasal cavity meets my upper jaw. The facial structure is mostly intact but has shifted inwards ever so slightly, not enough to be noticeable but enough to shift my teeth out of position and hence I need some corrective work. This will either be orthodontics or surgery. I think it will be the former. ie. Wired mouth for a few months. I am back to see another specialist on the 13th Feb who will then recommend the appropriate treatment. So at least I'll get fixed up.
So on the training side, I can start back swimming next week, and also I can start back on the indoor trainer. No strenuous workouts though yet for another couple of weeks, just light spinning on the bike, really just turning my legs over. But the swimming shoule be the key one to help get back my aerobic endurance. The following week I will start back with light running. I will be ok for a triathlon on the 4th March. That's the first of the season so I will see how I feel before that. If I'm not right then I will save myself for the duathlon I am doing on the 11th. That's the one I am targeting as a good bench mark for my fitness level so far.
So keep reading, and hopefully I shall be back to training without much more of a delay.

Monday 5 February 2007

Big Thank You

Big thank you to all my well wishers for your continued support. I won't be out of action for long and all the continued support and donations coming in will get me right back on track.
Not easy resting with nothing to do and in a bit of discomfort, but won't be for long.

Best Wishes to all


Steve

Sunday 4 February 2007

My helmet saved my life

Well, what a day yesterday, Saturday 3rdFeb. Beautiful sunshine and the ideal day for a bike ride. And yet after 1 hour of riding I found myself lying on a road with people around me and an ambulance on it's way.
I spent yesterday in Poole hospital from 10am to 7pm. I have shattered my cheekbone and I have to go back on Tuesday for surgery to push my top teeth on right hand side back in place.
The impact of the crash forced my upper jaw right side into my face. I am not a pretty sight.
I was coming down Kingston from Langton Matravers into Corfe. At the Scot Arms pub, I lost my back wheel on a bend, hit some grease on the road, and fell onto my right side. Thank god I was wearing a helmet, otherwise I might not be here today, and that's no exaggeration.
Some people came to help. I lay still in the road for 30 minutes before the ambulance came, took me to Poole. Cold, agony, shaken, and concerned, as I could feel my whole right side of my face has moved. Nice load of road rash on my face!!
So after lots of x-rays and finally getting cleaned up and spending 5 hours of my time in a full on head brace, they gave me the news. I got to have surgery on Tuesday, and they will put a plate in my jaw. Bit worried, 1 in 9 end up with an infection, which means they will take it out. But it will be there for all time if all ok. There is a very minor risk of blindness in my right eye, but it's 1 in every 10,000. So that's it, very sore, hard to sleep sitting up, was full of morphine yesterday, now worn off.
No cycling for 4-6 weeks but I can train on my indoor trainer. Very lightly. Swimming is fine after 2 weeks and so is running. So not all bad. But it will set me back a long way in my training.
I am determined to get back on my bike as I can't let this dent my confidence in riding. I want to say a big thank you to the cyclist who helped me and the Scot Arms in Kingston kindly looked after my bike which will be picked up today. The ambulance crew were terrific and the doctors were great.

So there we are, my weekend ruined, but at least I'm still here to tell the tale, and will have some serious scars to make me look all manly!!

Note to self: take your time, be positive and come back stronger after the rest.

Friday 2 February 2007

Swimming pool revelations

Major breakthrough this morning. I cycled to the pool not really looking forward to swimming, and not up for a big workout. So I decided to work on my technique. So up and down with kickboard and then pullbouy. I then did 400m swim in 8 min and 12 secs, very slow, bit disappointing. Then I just happened to try breathing either side every 3 strokes. It felt very awkward for a few lengths, didn't get the timing and not always remembered to breathe to the left( I breather to the right normally). So then I decided to swim just breathing to the left. I kept it going for 2 lengths at a time and rested between each 2. I thought I'll time this and see. So I did a length of to the right and a length of to the left. Felt loads slower to the left, but to my absolute amazement, I was 3 seconds quicker per length breathing to the left! I thought this can't be right, and I tried it over a few lengths of each, and it was consistently the same!
I think what it is doing is forcing me to rotate more to my weaker side and hence is propelling me through the water better. I shall have to try this again and practice to get used to breathing to the left. But if this theory is proven to be right, then I'm looking at shaving nearly a minute off my 400m time in the pool, and could bring my swim time for Half Ironman down considerably. It's got me excited about swimming again!

Thursday 1 February 2007

Thursday training

Well, whatever it was that made me feel a bit ill last night, has disappeared and I woke this morning fresh as a lark! Strange. Cycled to work via Wimborne, easy pedalling for 50 minutes. Then 10km(6.2 miles) run this lunchtime, time 48 mins 43 secs, nice easy pace. Bang on 8-minute mile pace again. Excellent recovery. Will remember next time to get heart rate monitor on, be interesting to get some heart-rate readouts from my run sessions.
Will cycle home easy tonight and up early for a swim tomorrow. Long bike/run Saturday, and long easy recovery bike Sunday.
Note to self: Bike clean on Saturday.
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