2012 - what a year of learning for me it was.  i did fine in the Hurley Cup (came first in age group) but still felt as though i have a lot of room for improvement.  working with a mate of mine who is knowledgeable about energy system development has been a real eye opener.  for marathon, clearly i need to pump out the kms to develop my aerobic base.  last season i focused way too much on my lactic system.  more to follow...

OK so we are coming up to the end of the year and i haven't made an entry since March.  Well, i have been kayaking but just have been getting the info in my blog.

as far as kayaking goes it was a very good year.  I learned a lot about flat water paddling, met a lot of good paddlers and managed to win the Chris Hurley Cup for my class (K1 Vet, 35+).

The next big thing in kayaking for me is the Qld state champs.  I am hoping to do a lot better than last time and possibly even make the state team.  To prepare i am working my way through a phased training program which has me in the boat four days a week, running twice a week and at the gym twice a week.  i'll get my program up soon...

Another thing is that i have set some weight goals with a friend who is doing the NZ coast to coast.  difficult time of the year to me trying to achieve weight goals i know but i am committed (or should be).  Once i work out how to put a chart up on the left of the page i will do so and update with progress.

18 March 2012:  The Plan for next week.

On Sunday 25 March the Maroochy Marathon is being run so my plan for the week needs to take this into consideration.  This, plus the fact that I have to travel and stay up at Toowoomba on Wed night make the week a bit unusual.  So the plan for now will look like this:

Monday: 8km run with dog

Tuesday: Speed and endurance (I think)

-          1km warm-up

-          3 x 200m sprint followed by no rest but maintain quick pace

-          2 x 300m sprint as above

-          3 X 200m sprint as above

-          1km warm-down

Wednesday: 8km run with dog  

Thursday: stuck up at Toowoomba.   Find a pool go for a swim

Friday: hopefully climbingat Kangaroo point if the weather is fine

Saturday: Start practice

-          2km warm-up

-          5 x 200m standing starts

-          Wash riding practice if I can find a suitable victim for the morning

-          Cruise with others

-          Back to club house total about 9 relaxed km…

Sunday: race day.

Get nutrition right.  At the State champs I had no brecky and my water bladder pipe got squashed at about the 10km point.  After about 12km I just fell to pieces and had no energy.  Worse still my balance went out the door and I had to spend most of my time just staying upright and crawling home.  Since then I have had quite a few longer sessions and got smart about nutrition.  On the day ill start with a bowl of cereal cup of coffee and tea and plenty of water.  I’ll have a banana just before the race and will have my water bladder sorted properly with 2l of water mixed with Endura. 

Sat 17/3/2012, 5.30am Brisbane river at West End.

Paddled to Oxley Creek - around the bridge pilon 18.3km.  Time 1:36!...av heart rate 145. av cadence 88.

was a great run.  gave Jeff a 5 min head start in his TK1 and tried to catch him.  got to within 50m 2km from the finish but Jeff put the power down and i couldnt close the cap any more.   bettered my previous time for this run by more than 10mins!

conditions were good with the Bris river at high tide.  i was trying a Jantex Gamma medium paddle.  quite liked it but was a bit slippery in the water - mainly due to my not being used to it i think.  the shaft is a bit thinner than i'm used to as well.  fingers on my rights hand got lock jaw.

Taking a break from paddling tomorrow but will go for a jog with the dog.   Going for a long paddle on Sat (18+km aiming to get under 1:45 as the conditions are good).   looking at the Maroochy Marathon  on the 25 March...

Well it was an awesome morning session; really pushed it.  went out with one occy strap band around the boat paddling with a mate.  8 x 90 stroke sprints over 9 km.

just got a foot pad for my garmin 405cx.  will be interesting to see cadence...