Looking Back and Moving Forward - Part 2 : 2014

My last post was specifically geared to the year that was.  Everything that I learned, did, and accomplished.  It was kind of fun looking back at what all went down last year.  In a way, it kind of surprises me.  I sit here now, wondering how I did it.  How did I find the time to train 15-20+ hours a week for an Ironman?  Granted I did miss A LOT and specifically a lot of family time, which I do regret.  But, I was motivated like I have never been before.  So, now that I looked back at what all went down last year, it only makes sense to look ahead at 2014 - my goals, ambitions, aspirations, and plans.

I'll be honest, planning 2014 has been one of the most difficult years since I started racing and training.  Every year previous I had one clear goal, prepare myself for an Ironman.  Well, now with that crossed off the list, I'm left with that feeling of "now what?"  It took me a while to come up with some races and/or goals for 2014 and to be honest, even though I have a semi structured race calendar, I don't truthfully know if I have clear cut goals that I am as motivated to accomplish as I was with the Ironman.  But, none-the-less, I have brought one of my previously lower priority goals to the forefront this year.  In early 2014, I am focusing on running a sub 3 hour marathon.  I won't dive into this, as I recently did a post about my training plan and strategies for accomplishing this goal and why I want to do it in my post called, "Going Sub 3."

I was able to structure a decent race calendar with the Cellcom Green Bay Marathon being the race I hope to finish in under 3:00:00.  The marathon is on May 18th, so the bulk of my training will be in the colder months of January through March.  After the marathon, I will switch gears and start focusing more on my bike fitness and swim fitness, as I begin a 3 month triathlon specific phase.  During this period I will do no triathlon longer than an Olympic distance race.  My triathlon season will come to an end either late July or early August.  I have yet to decide if I will race the USA Triathlon National Championships in Milwaukee, WI or not.  First off, (and I'll discuss this more later) one of my goals this year is to put family before my races.  With that in mind, we scheduled a family vacation from Saturday August 2nd through August 9th.  The Olympic distance race is on the 9th, so that is now out of the question, and the Sprint distance is on that Sunday.  I was all for this race when I thought you had to qualify for this race.  But, I recently learned that you only need to qualify for the Olympic distance race and that anyone can register for the Sprint distance race.  Not to sound like I believe I am too good, or above doing this race, since anyone can do it.  But, if I am going to make this race work with my family and literally the very next day after a week of vacation, I want it to be a special race, not just another race.  For our vacation this year we are renting a cabin in northern Wisconsin, about 3-4 hours north of Milwaukee.  So to expect my family to pack up and drive home Saturday and then either drive to Milwaukee and rent a hotel room that night or leave super early on Sunday morning to get to the race seems like a little much to ask, especially considering everything I put them through last year.  Another option is to do the race without them, which is an option, but I enjoy doing these races with my wife and kids there...that's just me.  Yet another option, is to register for the Sprint distance and make it a goal to qualify for the World Championships in 2015, which you can only do at the National Championships.  So, we'll see if I register for that race.  The final aspect which will make or break doing the National Championship race is if I do it, I will not be able to fully relax while on vacation.  Yes, it will be a lower volume taper week, but that also means, no indulgences and no (or little) beer.  Where as, if I end my season on July 27, as my other option is, I could literally take a nice two week break and just kick back and relax on vacation.  

Regardless of what I choose, once we come back from vacation, I will be (most likely - not a definite) switching back to a run focus and training for my first every ultra marathon.  I am planning on running the Door County Fall 50, a 50 mile point-to-point 50 mile race along the shores of the Door County Peninsula on October 25th.  I am not fully committed to this race yet, because as I mentioned above, one of my goals or focuses this year is to not allow my training to directly impact my family negatively, as it did so often last year.  To accomplish this, I will get up earlier in the morning to get workouts in before the kids wake up and do more to help out around the house.  Basically, I do not want my wife to feel the stress of being a single parent because of my training.  It will take some sacrifices on my training volume, but I think in the end, both me and my wife will come out happier....and less stressed.

If interested, you can see a more detailed breakdown of my 2014 race schedule by clicking the "Race Schedule & Resume" tab above.  No matter how excited I may be about getting back to racing and to set my sights on new goals and new accomplishments, one thing that I am probably most excited about in 2014 is a new sponsorship for this upcoming year.  I accepted a sponsorship with Hammer Nutrition for 2014.  I have been a long time supporter and user of Hammer Nutrition products and have applied for sponsorships with them in the past, so to finally be offered a sponsorship with them, left me excited and honored.  Hammer Nutrition is an endurance nutrition company out of Montana who believes in a natural approach to fueling, both during competition and in everyday nutrition.  I was also asked to return as a TheTriShop.com Triathlon Team member, which I gladly accepted without hesitation.  It was just last year, I was thrilled to have one sponsorship and now here I sit with two sponsorships, and to be honest, I never imagined my race career being were it is today.  Truthfully, I am humbled and honored to be supported by two great companies to believe in "paying it forward" for the endurance community and I will do my best to support them throughout the year.  One thing I am planning on doing this year is to highlight a Hammer product each month in a blog post.  I want to highlight the uses of that product, its uses, how and when to use it, what's in it and why.  So stay tuned for that. 

2014 will also bring one huge addition to my life outside of my racing and training.  That being kid number 3.  I've posted on here a few months ago about finding out that we are having yet another girl, so if you are a regular to my website, you are already aware of that.  But in mid to late March, Sarah and I will officially be outnumbered.  As I have been told, we will have to switch to a zone defense from our usual man-to-man style.  It will be a huge change for us, but with Sarah being a super mom, I'm sure it will be just a bigger change for me, and she will be her usual self.  It will be fun to see how Maya and Delaney like having a little baby around the house, now that they are old enough to know the that we will be bringing home another sister.  Lately, they have been super excited about the entire idea.  They are especially excited to get their new bunk beds and share a room together.  I'm sure this will just lead to nights where they take forever to fall asleep, but that's probably what they are looking forward to.  

In brief, that's what I'm looking forward to this year.  I'd be lying though if I said, I didn't have any specific goals or things that I want to accomplish this year, so below is a quick run down of what my 2014 "to do" list looks like (in absolutely no particular order)....

1. Do 100 sit ups and 50 push ups every day (actually started this on December 1st)
2. Do not allow my training to negatively impact my family, like it did last year
3. Run 30 miles on my 30th birthday
4. Eat cleaner, avoid gluten, and increase amount of healthy fats and decrease amount of carbohydrates
1. Start with a full Whole30 cleanse (I'll do a post about this, but read more about it HERE)
5. Swim across Lake Poygan (North and South) (approx 3-4 miles across)
6. Run 2014 miles in 2014 (honestly probably won't happen, but we'll see - I ran just over 1,200 last year)
7. Swim 100 miles in 2014
8. Bike 1,200 miles in 2014
9. Stretch more frequently
10. Replace or repaint outdoor trim around the house - yup...even chores made the list :) 
11. Qualify for Olympic Distance USA Triathlon National Championships...even though I won't be able to participate
12. Run a sub 3 hour marathon

So there you have it....a comprehensive look ahead at 2014.  A lot to look forward to for sure!  It's going to be another busy yet enjoyable year!

Cheers!