• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Fitness Fatale

Fitness Fatale

Conquering Fitness Goals One at a Time

  • About
    • Press
  • Blog
    • Archives
    • Workout Program Options
      • 21 Day Fix Resources
      • P90X Resources
    • PRs & Race Reports
    • Pregnancy
      • Twin Pregnancy
    • Recipes
  • Coach Business Mentorship For Runners
  • Beachbody Accountability Groups For Runners
  • Show Search
Hide Search

Lessons Learned at Oceanside 70.3

Now that I’ve had some time to reflect on my first Half Ironman, I have answered some of my questions about long course racing as well as learned some lessons about what I need to work on going forward. The race was everything I could have hoped for and I achieved my main two goals which were to 1) have fun and 2) learn something about long course racing that I can use in my full Ironman.
In my pre-race strategy post, I gave myself some more specific goals for Oceanside. Let’s see how my race stacked up!
1. Confirmation that my self-created training plan is working – or confirmation that it needs to be tweaked.
I really think that my self coaching is working! Although I don’t have anything to compare it to, I had a great first race and I think that I was very well prepared and also well rested for this race.
2.  An idea as to whether or not my current race nutrition plan will work for the full Ironman
Nutrition went well on this race. I actually consumed MORE calories than I planned yet it all went down just fine and I had absolutely no stomach issues. I did, however, really not feel like taking my 4th Gu on the run course, so I’m not sure  how I will feel about taking more fuel on the run at the full Ironman. However, my fueling strategy on the bike will be slightly different at the full IM and my race intensity will be less so hopefully I can handle it.
I had a full peanut butter banana sandwich for breakfast about 1 1/2 hours before my wave start and then a Gu about 20 minutes before the race. I had planned to take in 250 calories/hour on the bike (I think I accidentally wrote 200/hour on my pre-race strategy post) and I ended up taking in about 300/hour. I had my concentrated bottle of 600 calories of Carbopro (and 1 1/2 Nuun tablets) and I ate 320 calories worth of Stinger Waffles. As soon as I started the run I had 1 Gu and ended up having a total of 4 Gus, for 200 calories/hour on the run. Including the pre-race Gu, I had 1,420 calories during the race over the course of roughly 6 hours, which is 236 calories/hour
3. An assessment of how my open water swimming is and how I deal with swimming in very cold water
Well the cold water part went ok except for the fact that my calves cramped toward the end of the race. As for the open water swimming part, I learned I’m not very good at it! Prior to this race, I did some open water swims in the ocean with no buoys. I felt like I was veering back and forth while I swam but since there were no buoys there was no way to really tell or practice. I need to get to some open water swim practices that have buoys ASAP! My sighting was absolutely miserable and I kept veering off track. Unfortunately at Oceanside the buoys are to the left and I breath to my right and also the race course is not straight, so it’s even more difficult. In my previous two races as well as various practice races and aquathons I’ve done, I didn’t have much problem with swimming too far off course because the course was straight. Luckily at CdA the course will be straight so that will definitely help!
It was recommended to me to get in a few 2.4 mile open water swims before the race.  I think this will help a lot. I’m also going to try to attend a few of the Thursday night open water interval workouts in Mission Bay put on by the same coach who did my swim stroke analysis. Not only do I hope to practice open water swimming, I’m hoping Jim will give me some feedback on whether or not my stroke has improved since our original meeting.
4. Knowledge of any areas of weakness that need to be improved upon
Happy Despite a Hand Warmer Stuffed In My Shoe
Well my primary weaknesses at the race were definitely my open water swimming, my transitions, and my in ability to fix things on my bike. I already covered open water swimming above, so I won’t go into that anymore. My transitions were both on the slow side (although everyone has a long T1 at this race due to a pretty long run from the swim to T1) mostly because I wanted to be as comfortable as possible. I think I’m ok with my slow transition time if it means that i will have a more comfortable experience during the race (ie putting on clean, dry pants for the run, spraying sunscreen, putting on my top in T1 so that I’m not riding in a wet tri top). However, during T1 I was a bit frazzled and did things in a funny order (i.e. one arm warmer than put on my helmet, then top, etc) AND I made the mistake of trying something new on race day – I put hand warmers (the ones that get warm when you take them out of the package and you use when  you go skiing or camping) in my cycling shoes to keep them warm and then apparently didn’t take one of them out in T1. I rode the ENTIRE 56 miles with a hand warmer in my shoe without knowing it due to the fact that my feet and toes were frozen from the cold water!!! I didn’t even figure it out until I got my cycling shoes on the following week for an easy spin and found it in there! No wonder I had a blister the size of Atlantis on my foot!
As for the bike, I rode the whole bike course with my brake rubbing against my wheel, slowing me down. I know how to fix a tire, but I don’t know how to fix anything else on my bike! Little did I know that I could have just gotten off my  bike and moved the brake a bit to fix the problem. I also learned the valuable lesson that it’s crucial to have someone else look at your bike prior to an event. If you can’t afford a tune up, at least check it out yourself!
Besides that, my bike time overall and within my age group was my weakest of the three sports. This was expected since it is the newest sport to me and it just reconfirmed my need to prioritize time on the bike. I know this is my largest area of weakness but I like to think of it as the area I can most improve in.
5. A better idea of how well I run long distances off the bike
I felt REALLY good coming off the bike. My legs didn’t feel heavy at all. After all my weekend rides I run a short brick, usually 3-5 miles. My legs always start off heavy but I always finish the run with a lower than usual average pace. I was very pleased with my half marathon time coming off the bike – it was actually my 2nd fastest half marathon time ever! I haven’t run an open half marathon since last August so I’m not sure how my Half Ironman half would compare to my current open half marathon however. I read before the race that if you pace and fuel yourself correctly on the bike, you should be able to maintain your marathon pace on the run for a half Ironman. I ran a full marathon in February at a 8:46 min/mile pace and I ran this race at a 8:44 min/mile.
Part of me wonders if I paced myself a little too well on the bike and I held back a little too much. As I mentioned in my race report, I was holding back in anticipation of the hills and the headwind in the last 10 miles. The hills were easier than I thought and the headwind was present but very manageable. I picked up the effort for the last 10 miles but I think I definitely had a lot left in the tank. Since my  next race is a full Ironman, I don’t think I should increase the intensity at all for that race, but I don’t think I should decrease it much.
Last Thoughts
A couple more lessons learned during this race:
1) Don’t let your ego take over and race people who are faster to you to the finish so  you get a crappy finish photo like this one:
2) Tell your friends and family what you will be wearing and try to wear something bright or distinct. My Dad repeatedly told me this (although they did see me several times) and my cousin drove an hour to get there, looked for parking for an hour, waited around for over two hours and then didn’t see me at all until I was coming down the finish chute!
3) Do the expo early. Don’t wait until 4 p.m. the afternoon before the race.
4) Don’t put hand warmers in your cycling shoes to warm them up. Not only do they not warm your shoes up, you could ride 56 miles with one in your shoe.
5) SMILE for the camera! I was glad I did.

Overall this was a great race! I exceeded my expectations in many ways, mostly on the bike and on the run. I was disappointed with my swim time, but I learned a valuable lesson in the process (and if there is any leg to be disappointed in, it might as well be the shortest one). I had so much fun racing and I definitely can’t wait to see how I improve at this distance the next time I race it. But that’s for a different year – for now, it’s time to focus on covering 140.6 miles on June 24 at Coeur D’Alene (did you know it’s only 74 days away!?).
Have you ever learned a lesson at a race the hard way? What did you learn? If you could give someone 1 piece of advice for racing an Ironman what would you tell them?

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

April 12, 2012 By fitnessfatale 6 Comments

Filed Under: Triathlons, Uncategorized Tagged With: advice for first half ironman, ironman CDA, lessons learned at half ironman, race report oceanside 70.3

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Page

    April 12, 2012 at 1:38 am

    There are so many things I want to comment on here, but I’ll keep it brief! First, I can’t believe you had a hand warmer in your shoe?!?!?!?!?!?!!

    Question for you: where did you learn the most about race day nutrition? I’d need to keep learning! Also, do you use your aero bottle first and then go for the cage (stupid Q, but I’m learning). And finally, and good resources for learning to change a tire?

    I could go on all day, but overall, this race is just going to make you that much stronger for CdA. I’m so excited to watch you dominate and I can’t believe it’s so close!

    Good luck in the final stretch!

    Reply
    • FitnessFatale

      April 12, 2012 at 2:01 am

      I learned a lot about race nutrition from the section in The Triathlete’s Training bible and also by reading other people’s blogs and online articles and asking people for advice (ie everyone I meet that says they have done Ironman). Pretty much the main piece of advice I got from every person who has done IM is to practice your nutrition and to write it down so you know what works best for you. I’ve been training with the concentrated water bottle of CarboPro and the Stinger Waffles for a couple months now and it works for me.

      I actually drank both my water bottles throughout. The aero bottle was just water and the other water bottle was full of a concentrated calories/electrolytes that is to be drank over the course of the entire race. At the full IM I will have a 2nd bottle in my Special Needs. I got this tip from a blog I read – the only risk is that if you drop your water bottle you are out of calories! I refilled my front aero bottle twice during the half IM even though it wasn’t empty yet.

      Mike taught me to change a tire…so I can’t help you there! But I bet you can find videos on YouTube! Best bet is to have someone who knows how to do it help you!

      Ask any more questions you want!

      Reply
  2. Monika (@monikool)

    April 12, 2012 at 7:31 am

    Your posts make me want to do a 70.3 even more! Again, I think you had a great race! You finished smiling, most people didnt. I know, I handed all of those sad people their bags.:)

    Reply
    • FitnessFatale

      April 12, 2012 at 10:41 pm

      Thank you! You definitely should do one! It’s such a fun challenge!

      Reply
  3. Change of Pace

    April 13, 2012 at 5:54 am

    It sounds like a fabulous race. I can’t believe you had a hand warmer in your bike shoe!
    Although not qualified to do so, my one piece of advice is not to think you’re not doing enough. It’s easy to compare your workouts to other bloggers, friends, etc. and worry about the quantity you are doing. Believe in your training and don’t worry about anyone else!

    Reply
  4. katie

    April 20, 2012 at 1:29 am

    sounds like you got a LOT of great information from this race!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Let’s Get Stronger, Healthier & Faster Together!

I am specialize in working with runners to help them incorporate strength training & nutrition into their running routines.

I am passionate about mindset and love to help people find more joy and success in their running by breaking through mental barriers.

While weight loss is a result of our programs, women in my groups often find that they are running faster, are less injury prone, and have more energy and confidence!

I am the founder of Team Run the World, a group of BODi coaches who love running! I provide mentorship, support and training for women who want to start their own coaching business from home and work flexible hours.

I would love to help support you in reaching your goals!

Archives

  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011

Footer

Copyright © 2023 · Fitness Fatale

 

Loading Comments...