Regardless of what my thoughts were/are, race day is going to come one way or another. All I can do is stay positive and just enjoy the journey. The path to get to where I'm currently at has truly been great. Looking forward, I need to continue to stay in control of the things I can control and just let the uncontrollable come and take them as they come. All the work and sacrifice that has brought me to this weekend, believe it or not, has been simply awesome! I have loved nearly every minute of it. I have gain a new respect and appreciation for endurance training. Don't get me wrong, I have truly missed my family and time with my kids. But, I have enjoyed pushing myself to new limits. I have learned a few things from training for the Ironman.
1. I have learned to appreciated the journey and not stress about what the clock says at the end.
2. I have learned that you can really do anything you set your mind to, with determination and dedication.
3. I have learned that no matter how tough things get, if you refuse to quit you will get through it and it will get better.
With my 2013 training season coming to end, I have compiled a "By the Numbers" for the past training season....
- 3389.98 Total miles traveled
- 4373.98 Total miles technically traveled (considering time spent on the indoor bike)
- 387:40:18 Total time spent training
- 213,326 Total calories burnt
- 448 Total individual workouts
- 42,605 Total feet of elevation gain
- 270 Total calendar days of training
- Average of about 10 hours of training in a 7 day week throughout the duration of the plan
- Equivalent of slightly over 16 straight days of training
- 9.5, 40 hour work weeks worth of training
- 3 Trips to Madison
- 4 Bike rides over 100 miles or more
- 5 Loops biked on the bike course
- 3 Pairs of running shoes
- 2,293.48 Miles biked
- 957.79 Miles ran
- 138.71 Miles swam
- 3 bee stings on the bike
With the impending race, I left for Madison on Thursday after my last bike/run workout. I got into Madison around noon and went directly to the Monona Terrace to complete the athlete check-in. It started with double checking the athlete medical card and waiver. After completing that, I had to get weighed in, since they do a pre-race weigh in and a post-race weigh in to assess your hydration status. I weighed in at 177, a little high, but I was wearing clothes. After the weigh in, I got my race bib, bike stickers, swim cap, and rules sheet. I then got the race SWAG, which is a nice back pack, license plate cover, and a poster - not too shabby at all. I also got my timing chip and double checked that the setting was correct. That was it, that completed the check-in. I then headed up the Ironman Store and picked up some goods. I bought an IronDad t-shirt (I couldn't pass it up), pint glass, coffee mug, a visor, and 2 M-Dot cow bells for Maya and Delaney. I then went through the expo to pass the time until the Mandatory Race Briefing. After the meeting I made my way to my brother-in-law's house in Milton until Saturday, when I will check-in my bike and my transition bags and then check into my hotel. Other than that, its just sit back, relax, focus, and stay off my feet as much as possible. I will prepare my gear bags and bike for race day, review my race plan, fueling plan, and hydration plans. I will try my best to stay as positive as possible. I will focus on things that are within my control. If you are interested in following my progress, or the progress of any other athlete racing on Sunday, follow this link: RACE DAY COVERAGE OF IRONMAN WISCONSIN - please note, you will have to enter either my last name or my bib number (Kohl, 1128).
The last couple days I have been posting several Facebook posts regarding the entire process of getting down to Madison in preparing for the race itself. I have received NUMEROUS comments regarding those posts from my followers and friends. The comments have left me completely speechless. I have never done endurance sports and races to show off or to draw attention to myself. Truthfully, that would be silly and often leads to people losing interest in the sport as that source of motivation rarely lasts more than a year. I have participated in these events for myself and to inspire others to choose to change their lifestyles to a more active one. Do I think everyone needs to go out and sign up for an Ironman or a marathon? Absolutely not! But, if I can help someone choose to buy more vegetables instead of processed foods while grocery shopping, I consider myself a success. If I can inspire someone to start taking family walks in the evening as opposed to watching late night sitcoms, I consider myself a success. Health and fitness is contagious. It does not require a complete lifestyle change, just some minor changes go so far. The responses I got the past few days have shown me that my goals have far exceeded my expectations. Hearing from people that I had no idea what type of impact (if any) I have had on their life, has given me a whole new source of motivation. It makes me slightly emotional thinking about, honestly. I have co-workers talking about traveling down to Madison on Sunday, just to watch me race. For what? I have never done anything for them or asked them to, but they are coming. I have members from TheTriShop.com Triathlon team telling me how much I have inspired them. Honestly, they have inspired me too. Specifically, Nancy Ovitt from Vermont, who completed Ironman Lake Placid last month has ingrained her mantra into my mind. "Do Epic Shit!" I can't even tell you how many times I have said that both in my head and out loud during tough workouts. Then there is Larry Coggins, from Florida, who is training to complete Ironman Florida in a couple months. Larry is a fellow Law Enforcement Officer who also has a passion for endurance sports. Larry also keeps a blog which you can read at http://www.tri-dad.webnode.com//. He left a message on one of my posts that really struck a nerve when I read it. After reading it I sent him a private message to explain to him how much his comment meant to me. Our conversation is below.
The last couple days I have been posting several Facebook posts regarding the entire process of getting down to Madison in preparing for the race itself. I have received NUMEROUS comments regarding those posts from my followers and friends. The comments have left me completely speechless. I have never done endurance sports and races to show off or to draw attention to myself. Truthfully, that would be silly and often leads to people losing interest in the sport as that source of motivation rarely lasts more than a year. I have participated in these events for myself and to inspire others to choose to change their lifestyles to a more active one. Do I think everyone needs to go out and sign up for an Ironman or a marathon? Absolutely not! But, if I can help someone choose to buy more vegetables instead of processed foods while grocery shopping, I consider myself a success. If I can inspire someone to start taking family walks in the evening as opposed to watching late night sitcoms, I consider myself a success. Health and fitness is contagious. It does not require a complete lifestyle change, just some minor changes go so far. The responses I got the past few days have shown me that my goals have far exceeded my expectations. Hearing from people that I had no idea what type of impact (if any) I have had on their life, has given me a whole new source of motivation. It makes me slightly emotional thinking about, honestly. I have co-workers talking about traveling down to Madison on Sunday, just to watch me race. For what? I have never done anything for them or asked them to, but they are coming. I have members from TheTriShop.com Triathlon team telling me how much I have inspired them. Honestly, they have inspired me too. Specifically, Nancy Ovitt from Vermont, who completed Ironman Lake Placid last month has ingrained her mantra into my mind. "Do Epic Shit!" I can't even tell you how many times I have said that both in my head and out loud during tough workouts. Then there is Larry Coggins, from Florida, who is training to complete Ironman Florida in a couple months. Larry is a fellow Law Enforcement Officer who also has a passion for endurance sports. Larry also keeps a blog which you can read at http://www.tri-dad.webnode.com//. He left a message on one of my posts that really struck a nerve when I read it. After reading it I sent him a private message to explain to him how much his comment meant to me. Our conversation is below.
Larry: "You have go this in the bag my brother! Your training and dedication to nutrition and fitness is contaious. It has been an absolute pleasure to follow your blog and see how much you have improved on this road to the finish line. I am not only honored and privileged to call you a brother in law-enforcement business, it's an honor and privilege for you to be part of our team. I have no doubt that your training and attention to detail in regards to nutrition and completing a task, will take you to the finish line faster than any of us imagined. Godspeed Matt, you've got this!"
Me: "Hey Larry - I just wanted to call you out privately and say thank you fro your "good luck" post yesterday. It was very meaningful and extremely motivating. It has been an amazing year for so many reasons, but definitely one of the best reasons has been getting to know so many new triathletes who share the same passion. I know you said it was privilege and an honor to be a teammate and a fellow law officer and that meant so much to me. I really appreciate it and will use that to carry me through the tough sections of the race this Sunday when I really need to dig deep for some motivation. Thank you so much and I look forward to cheer you on from Wisconsin for your Ironman in a few months.
Larry: "Thanks Matt! Your blog has been a motivation of mine and the recipes have been enjoyed by all in the house as well. When I get down out there on the course (usually in the water) I think about the Troopers, Deputies, and Officers I have worked with who were left in a vegetative state after being run over by a drunk driver, I think of the same guys that we buried at the hands of some dirt bag air theft, and then think of their wives and kids. When I whine on the course, I think how they would love to be there doing what I am doing and then I think about their loved ones who would give ANYTHING to be there cheering them on, instead they go visit them in an assisted living facility of graveyard. You know these guys too Matt, and that is a cops inspiration at the Ironman. This weekend think of our brothers and know that YOU GOT THIS!!How motivating is that?? Thank you so much Larry! It has been a true privilege to get to know you over the past year through the use of the internet and technology. And thank you to everyone else, for everything! All your support and motivation has not gone unnoticed!
Brief Recap
As I talked about above, I really didn't do much for training this past cycle. I did more swimming in comparison to the other sports. I my runs and bikes were all short and done at an easy pace. My last few workouts leading up to race weekend were my 10 mile bike/3 mile run on Thursday and then a half hour swim done on the swim course in Madison. After my swim I went and grabbed lunch at Milio's Sub right by the Terrace. Really other than that, with my minimal training, I really don't have much to talk about - training wise. All the work has been done. The hay is in the barn, so they say. I feel like my taper has gone well. I feel fresh, strong, efficient, and ready to race! Below is a video from my last swim workout. I used it to review my technique one final time before the big race.
Favorite Workout
My favorite workout this cycle was my very last workout of the training plan was my last workout of the 2013 training season...my swim on the race course. I have never swam in Lake Monona, so I had no idea what to expect as far as water quality, water clarity, or how deep the water was throughout the course. I drove back up to Madison after eating breakfast on Friday morning. I got down to the boat launch area, which is where the swim exit is and was pleased to see about 15-25 other swimmers doing the same thing I was - working off the rust a couple days before the race. After getting my wetsuit on I walked into the water and no more than 10-15 feet off the shore, the water was well over my head. I swam nice and easy to the infamous ski jump of the Ironman Wisconsin Swim. I hung out there for a minute or two to just float and tread water to see how taxing this was going to be in my wetsuit. I am happy to report, I was pretty much able to just do an effortless back float with my new Blue Seventy Reaction Wetsuit from www.TheTriShop.com. I then started my Garmin and started swimming Southwest along the shoreline. The water was pretty clear and just a slight chop to it. I was happy to see the limited waves considering the wind speed and direction, definitely the opposite from where I did my open water swims throughout training. The view of the Madison "skyline" from the lake is awesome. I wish I had brought my phone along to snap a picture or two of the Monona Terrace from the water. Instead a professional photo will have to suffice.
I swam a half mile along the shore line at a very relaxed pace, just to work out the kinks in my stroke and work on sighting on the course. I then turned around and headed back. I swam just over 1 mile in 28 minutes. A perfect workout for the Friday of race week! Here is a link to my Garmin data of the swim: 1 Mile Swim on the IMWI Swim Course- Details.
Moving Forward
With that being said, I won't discuss my future, specifically, my racing future until get a chance to truly enjoy the Ironman and take a break from training for it. I will save my 2014 race schedule for a future post. So, what now? I still have a day and a half until race day. Tonight, I am staying at my brother-in-laws again and I made a large pan of lasagna for his family and I. On Saturday I have the day pretty much planned out to the very last detail (imagine that!). I will be getting up double checking my bags and gear and then heading to Madison to check-in my bike and transition bags. I will be meeting up with my parents at the Terrace, where I will show them around the transition area. After that, I will be checking into my hotel and doing nothing but relaxing. I will take a relaxing bath, roll and stretch, and try to get to bed no later than 8pm, with a 4am wake up call. I have all my food intake planned out for Saturday...
0700 - Steel cut oats, with banana, chia seeds, raisins, walnuts, almond butter, and cinnamon
1000 - Pro Bar
1230 - Sweet potato, greek yogurt with muesli, Naked juice
1500 - Pro Bar
1800 - My pre-race dinner - Pasta with veggies and walnuts
After the race, depending on how the race goes, we will be crashing with my parents at their hotel for the night. My special request for my post-race meal is a deep dish Chicago style pizza, so we will be ordering in pizza. On Monday, we will go back to the Terrace to pick up my bike and bags and then Sarah and I will be bringing the girls to the Milwaukee Zoo. I'm just hoping that I'm able to walk, otherwise Sarah may need to push me in a wheel chair or pull me in a wagon. After spending some time at the zoo, we will check into our hotel in Milwaukee and fly out to Playa Del Carmen on Tuesday. We will stay in Mexico until Sunday. My plan is to eat, eat, relax, and eat. I also plan on enjoying time with my girls - probably more than anything. I look forward to just watching their faces experience a total new place for the first time. I want to see them experience the ocean for the first time, experience a tropical climate for the first time. It will be fun.
Below are pictures from the Athlete Check-In process.
As, always, now more than ever, BE FAST, BE STRONG, AND CARRY ON!
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| My wristband that gives me full access all weekend. |
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| The swim start and the Monona Terrace on the right. |
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| A sign just down the road from the finish line in downtown Madison. |
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| Race bib and stickers for my bike and gear bags. |
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| My new backpack, which will never leave my back. |
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