Remembering Louie Bonpua

Date: 1/24/2010
Time: 9 am
Workout: Louie Bonpua Tri
Notes: I'll post a little more about Louie in the future, but for now please watch this short video about this amazing IronTeam member and honoree. We should all strive to be as brave and determined as him in the face of adversity.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v700/shinjukuboy/?action=view&current=LouieTribute2.flv

Dear Louie,

Although I never had the privilege of meeting you and being your teammate, I want you to know that your story and your determination is an inspiration for us all. During moments of weakness, we can all find strength in remembering the miraculous journey you led in becoming an Ironman. We had a wonderful triathlon on Sunday. Although we are a new team, the thoughts shared by those who knew you and the support of your sister and her family made us feel like you were there racing alongside the IronTeam. We know you were smiling down on us, and we hope we made you proud.

Sincerely, Kristin Pham
IronTeam 2010

P.S. Your sister makes AMAZING egg rolls!

Today was an amazing day. We swam 1500 yds, biked 27.1 miles, and ran 5.3 miles. It's not quite the same as an Olympic Distance, but pretty close. We were joined by the South Bay IronTeam as well as the Lavaman Team for the Louie Bonpua Triathlon at Pleasant Hill.


Swim: The swim was in a wonderfully heated pool. It was a total of 60 laps which I did at a slower pace than I would have liked. I finished in about 30 minutes and would like to be able to do that same swim in about 25 min. My flip turns were horrible and got worse as I tired, but alas there will be no flip turns in the Ohio River.

Transition: The transition was a little on the slow side. I did kind of take my time to make sure I was dry, warm, and hydrated for the bike ride. I'll have to speed this up a little for the next event.

Bike: I have a lot of work to do on the bike. However, this was my second time doing the same bike route, and it already went better than the first! The dreaded Pig Farm Hill won the first battle, but I kicked it's butt during the tri. (When I say "kicked it's butt," that just means I didn't have to get off my bike and walk up the rest of the hill. It doesn't mean I did it gracefully.) After Pig Farm, the rest of the ride is a cake walk. While I'm not a great cyclist, I hope I will continue to see improvements on every ride.

Run: My legs started off pretty dead - hence the definition of a "brick"- for about the first 3 miles. It started raining at the beginning of the run, but I was just grateful that the rain held off until after I completed my bike ride. After that I was able to pick up the pace, and I finished a little too strong. I guess I should take this to mean that I didn't leave enough energy out on the course. I also went away from the run with a giant blister on my foot thanks to the expensive new insoles I was trying out for the first time. Those things are getting returned this week!

Support: There are many people who deserved to be thanked for this wonderful day. First I want to thank my husband, David, for taking time on his day off to drive to Pleasant Hill at 6:45 am with me and stayed until 2 pm so that we could listen to the closing speeches. I can't tell you how blessed I feel to have such a wonderful husband. Thank you to all the coaches and volunteers who helped make this race a success. I really appreciate everyone for braving the weather to support us! Also, thanks to Chipotle for the burritos and Louie's sister for the wonderful egg rolls. Louie's sis also donated a generous $1000 to the IronTeam and offered her support during the whole race. That hit the spot after the 3 1/2 hours of exercise! Finally, thank you Louie for providing all of us with the inspiration to make it through this day.

Swimming to Recover

Date: 1/18/2010
Time: 1:30 PM
Workout: Group 2 Ladder Swim Workout
Notes: While I might be silly for working out the day after a marathon, I think swimming helped me workout the soreness. I first stretched in the hot tub and then did the swim workout scheduled for Jan 19th. However, I did Group 2 instead of Group 3 and didn't exactly put my best effort into it. However, I got in the laps and felt better afterwords, especially after stretching in the hot tub at the end of the workout.

Chevron Houston Marathon

Date: 1/17/2010
Time: 7:10 AM
Workout: HOUSTON MARATHON
Weather: Perfect- beautiful and sunny
Finishing Time: 4:19
Race Notes: I ran with my brother Eric for his 2nd marathon and my 5th. While the Arctic Blast had Houston freezing the week before, it warmed up and stopped raining just in time to make Houston beautiful on Sunday morning. We left the house at 5:45 AM and made it there just in time to check our bag, use the restroom, and stretch a little before heading to the starting line. Neither of us had really been marathon training for the previous month, and I hadn't had a long run since the Marine Corps Marathon in October. The two of us stayed together and enjoyed the race for the first 15 miles and had 2 bathroom stops. We were averaging around a 10:30 min/mile pace at that point. After the second bathroom break, Eric's IT band was giving him problems and prevented him from running the whole time, so I went ahead. For the first time in a marathon, I was feeling pretty good and picked up the pace to finish the race with a negative split. I averaged less than a 9 minute mile for the rest of the race and finished the last mile strong with the help of a corps guy from A&M pushing me to run faster.

I want to give a special thanks to everyone that came out and supported us in the race. I was delighted to see some friendly faces from my TNT Nation's Triathlon team at Mile 7 cheering us on. It was such a great boost to see everyone and got me wanting to run a little quicker after stopping to give hugs. Eric and I didn't think our parents were going to get out to see us, but they surprised us and were there with their dog, Princess, at the half marathon mark to cheer us on. I was so excited that they made it out. They also met us at Memorial Park at Mile 20 to catch us again, although I felt bad for Princess not getting to run with us. Finally, they were able to make it to the finish line in order to watch Eric finish the race. It really kept me going knowing they were going to be at Memorial Park to see us again. Also, I'd like to thank Chip Deeds, a friend of David's family, for running with me a little bit after handing me water at Mile 21. Of course I couldn't escape seeing Chip without him getting some up close pictures of me running. Taryn and Andy were also there at Mile 23 after they completed the half marathon, and Katy Carrico was nice enough to wait around and watch me cross the finish line!

Eric was able to put the pain aside and run through the finish line for a 5:24 finish time! Way to go Eric! He has had IT band problems in both marathons he's finished. His new goal is to complete a marathon without getting hurt! I am a little jealous that he got to shake Pres. George Bush Sr's hand though and I didn't get to see him. Too bad we didn't get a picture of that!

Thank you to Team In Training, my family, and friends for all of your support! I could have never done it without you! Maybe next time I can pick up the pace and qualify for Boston!

Gearing up for H-Town!

Date: 1/13/2010
Time: 12:30 pm
Location: Golden Gate Park
Workout: Running - 10 min warm-up and 2 x 20 min tempo run
Notes: So the scheduled workout for today was run and strength. The plan was to do yesterday's swim along with run and strength. However, after running with Duke I got started working and never made it to the gym. :( Since I am leaving early tomorrow for Houston, I think I'm going to count my losses and miss the rest of my planned workout to hangout with my wonderful husband and Duke. I also must say I went against the coach's advice (Simon), and ran outside at Golden Gate Park instead of at the gym on a treadmill. Sorry Simon - I can't resist Duke's puppy dog eyes when he thinks I'm about to go running without him. Anyway - the first tempo run went well and then Duke started slacking about 5 min through the 2nd tempo run. Guess Duke needs more interval training :) Off to Houston for the Houston Marathon on Sunday and some good ole Texas BBQ and Tex-Mex! Hopefully I'll get a couple more workouts in between now and Sunday!

Group Spin

Day: 1/12/2010
Time: 6:45 PM
Location: Sports Basement (Bryant)
Workout: Spin - 60 min hills
Notes: This was a great workout. Thank you Coach Doug for arranging a spin in San Francisco so us city folks can make it :) Sports Basement was wonderful for letting us use their space, and we will be going back every Tuesday! I probably should have pushed myself harder than I did, but I was still dripping sweat none-the-less.

Running with My Favorite Partner

Date: 1/11/2010
Time: 11:15 am
Workout: Run
Location: Golden Gate Park
Distance: 7 miles (70 min)
Notes: Foggy San Francisco turned out to be pretty for today's run. Monday is supposed to be our day off, but since I slept in yesterday, I took my pup Duke out for a run through Golden Gate Park to make up for it. This was a pretty easy jog. I didn't really push myself except for the extra strength it took to pull Duke away from the gopher holes. :) I'm starting to get excited for the Houston marathon this weekend! It's now less than a week away!

2nd Coached Workout of 2010 - Go TEAM!

Date: 1/09/2010
Time: 8 am
Location: Pleasant Hill, CA
Workout:
Bike - 27 miles - 2 hours
Swim - 2825 yds

• 400 Warm-UP
• 3 x 75 (kick, catch-up, build)
• Main set x 2
• 3 x 50 build
• 1 x 150 L7
• 400
• 3 x 50 build
• 150 L7
• 200 Cool Down

Notes: Today was humbling. I struggled through the hills on the bike ride and was defeated by the massive "Hill of Doom" on the way back to Pleasant Hill. I rode up about 1/3 of it and then had to get off and walk my bike because I couldn't keep my pedals moving on the lowest gear. My new goal in life is to conquer the hill! We will be doing this ride many times throughout the season so I'm hoping I can make it all the way up the next time. My awesome teammate Jane helped get me through a lot of the ride since we were both kind of in the middle of the pack.

The swim was a little humbling as well. I swam in Group 3 today, which is the more advanced group, and learned that I am the slowest person in the group. I am out of shape and could not muster up the energy to do flip turns on every lap. I did get some great pointers from one of our coaches and hope I will improve soon!

We also had a quick transition clinic and a core workout courtesy of Coach Mike after the swimming. I didn't go to lunch with the team since it's David's day off today, but I'm having a lot of fun getting to know them a little at a time. Go TEAM!

Interval Training - How I love Thee

Date: 1/08/2010
Time: 1:45 PM
Location: Club One
Workout: Running (treadmill)

• 10 min warm-up
• 8 x 800 at threshold pace (slow jog 400 in between)
• 3 min walking cool down
• Total Miles: 7

Workout 2: Strength and core (30 min)
Notes: My threshold pace was about 7.5 mph for one lap and I slowly progressed up to 8 mph for the 2nd lap. I felt like I should be able to go much faster than this for just 800 m, but I was getting tired pretty easily today. It also didn't help that I was drinking too much water during the 400 easy jog in between. And of course Coach Dough can't let us go without getting in that strength/core workout. I need it though.

Swimmin Fool

Date: 1/07/2010
Time: 8:15 AM
Location: Club One
Workout: Swim - 2900 yds (1 hr)

• 400 WU
• 4 x 50 (25 kick on back/25 free)
• 4 x 50 (25 catch-up/25 free)
• 4 x 50 (25 skull/25 free)
• 300 DPT (best stroke count was 13 - averaged was 15-16)
• 300 breath every 3 strokes, L4
  
• 300 (build every 100), L3-L5
  
• 300 breaths every 3 strokes, L4
  
• 300 (build every 100), L4-L6
  
• 300 breats every 3 strokes, L4
  
• 100 CD

Notes: I didn't do many flip turns. I could have pushed myself harder throughout the workout. Average RPE was 5 or 6.

Workout 2: 30 min EFX (moderate-light workout)

Spin, Spin, Spin

Date: 1/6/2010
Time: 10 pm
Workout: 60 min spin
Avg pace: 14-15 mph
Notes: I did a late workout today since I was feeling bad this morning. I need to learn to hydrate because now I feel horrible again after drinking too much water while spinning. It's hot spinning in the apartment so I had to open a window. I probably won't be exercising this late anymore while David's home since the noise from the trainer kept him from sleeping :( Sorry Honey! Needless to say I have a lot of work to do on the bike before I'm anywhere near Ironman shape.

No Turning Back

With $6810 left to raise and a little over 8 months of training to go, I have officially registered for IRONMAN Louisville. Team In Training does not cover the entry fee for the official IRONMAN races, so I finally bit the bullet and shelled over the money this morning after hearing that the race was over 90% full. I'm in it for the long haul so please give me a hand if you're able to and donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society at http://pages.teamintraining.org/sf/louisir10/kpham5. If you can't afford to donate right now, please support me and help cheer me on through the next 8 months. I can't do it without you!

Date: 1/05/2010
Time: 9:15 am
Location: Club One
Warm-Up: 15 min on EFX
Strength workout: 20 min
Swim workout: 2650 yds
Notes: I felt like I could have done more on the strength workout. I tried to work on improving my stroke during the swim. My smallest stroke count was 15/25 yds. However, I also have a lot of conditioning work to do. I was too tired to do flip turns about half way through the workout.

"Day Off"

Date: 1/04/2010
Time: 4:45 PM
Weather: 51 degrees
Distance: 6 miles (60 min)
Notes: This is scheduled to be a day off after yesterday's intense training, but my running partner (my dog - Duke) wasn't going to hear of it. Unfortunately I gave into his whining right after eating some eggplant parmesan - mistake number 1. Today Duke and I just did a light 60 min jog through Golden Gate Park that was slightly interrupted by stop lights and his occasional desire to stick his head in the gopher holes.

First workouts 2010 - Markers and First Coached Workout

Swim Marker: 12/31/09
Location: Club One
Distance: 1000 m
Time: 19:20
Coach's Comments: As you can see your average 100 yard pace is 1:56. If this pace were held for 2.4 miles it would extrapolate to a predicted 2.4 mile time of 1 hour and 22 minutes.
This is a very solid time and will allow you to not only come out of the water in good standing, but also come out ready to attack the bike!

Bike Marker: 1/02/10
Location: Orinda BART
Weather: Cold and drizzling
Total Distance: 14 miles
Marker Distance: 5 miles
Marker Time: 21:40
Notes: These are the first markers in swimming and biking I have completed. I have a long way to go in both sports. I need a lot of improvement in leg strength, as I have a hard time biking on even a small incline. I was kind of down on my time but I guess that just leaves more room for improvement.
Coach's Comments: Great job on your bike marker on Saturday. You averaged 13.84 mph, which is definitely a good speed for this early in the season. Keep up the consistency of your workouts, and you should have a great IM.

First Coached Workout of 2010: 1/03/10
Location: San Ramon, CA
Weather: Clear and Sunny
Swim: ~ 1 mile
Bike: 19 miles
Run: 30 min (~3 miles)
Core exercises: 20 min
Notes: It was a beautiful day with beautiful scenery and beautiful faces. The pool was outside and luckily it was heated. When I say heated, I mean like 80 degrees with steam coming up from it! It was WONDERFUL! Coach Mike gave me some great tips for improving my stroke, and we got in a great workout. Transitions between each set of exercises were a little long, but the weather was nice to us this time an stayed clear and warm through the rolling hills. As for the run, I could tell I hadn't done a brick workout in a long time, but I made it through. After more core exercises, we went the Chevy's for a late lunch and some great company. GO TEAM!

New Years Resolution - IRONMAN!

Team In Training IronTeam - IRONMAN Louisville 2010

Last year (2009) was a whirlwind with lots of amazing events occuring in our lives. I completed my 3rd marathon at the Houston Marathon in January. My now husband, David, was accepted to UCSF's residency program, one of the best internal medicine programs in the country, in March. He came out to San Francisco on May 1st to find us a place to live while I was enjoying my bachelorette party with wonderful friends. He graduated from medical school on May 9th. We got married on May 24th, went on a wonderful honeymoon in Mexico, and moved to San Francisco at the beginning of June. I finally graduated with my master's degree in exercise and sports nutrition in August, and I joined Team In Training's IronTeam in October to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society! In addition, I completed my 4th marathon at the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. alongside both of my brothers, Mike and Eric Helton.

As part of my new year's resolution to dedicate myself to training and fundraising, I've decided to document my journey on my first ever blog. I completed my first ever olympic distance triathlon at the Nation's Triathlon in Washington, D.C. with Team In Training. An IRONMAN, however, is 4 times that distance and requires much more training and fundraising. The official event, IRONMAN Louisville is on August 29th, 2010. I have 8 months and $6810 out of my $7900 fundraising minimum left to go. I have a feeling that 2010 is going to be a great year!