2016, Here We Go Again

Following the last 6 weeks of sleeping in, overeating, and avoiding anything cardio related, it's time to kick-off 2016 training!

I'll continue to focus on short-distance races (Sprint and Olympic) targeting major improvements with some ambitious goals which I'll outline once my 2016 race plan is done. I expect these major improvements across all 3 disciplines though primarily in the bike. I'm looking to join a road racing club to learn about proper biking (handling, pacing, full throttle-ing) which I think will start me on the path to where I want to be.

December is loosely structured, just looking to get back into the 6 day-a-week routine: 3 swims, 3 bikes, 2-3 runs, and 2 strength sessions. Weeks 1-3 will build a bit with week 4 (Christmas week) being a rest/get-in-what-I-can before setting a more serious course from the last week of Dec.

The last 6 weeks have been great, but man am I looking to get back at it. Structured training program, full race schedule and more to come. Stoked!


Side-note in case you haven't seen, here's a little video of Jan Frodeno and Daniela Ryf taking the Ironman World Champ titles back in Oct. Enjoy!

What a year!

Almost a year without posting. Crazy! Here's the latest.

1) First and most important, after almost a year of living apart, Natsuko finally got her green card and joined me in the US! It's been amazing to start building our life here in NYC :)

2) Second big relief, I passed the final CFA exam! After two failed attempts at level III, I took four years away from the exam, two of those out of finance and came back fired up to study and pass. Feels good :)

3) Number 2 means that I can now focus on number 3, athletics. Even with six months off training while I studied for CFA, I got four tri's, three running races and a tough mudder (see pic :) A (very quick) overview below

• Febapple Frozen 50 - February - trail run in NJ. Part of NJ trail series. I ran the 10mi. Was awesomely snowy, and I took 1st out of about 70 runners (my first win ever!)
• Escape the Cape - June - sprint tri in Cape May, NJ. Start by jumping off a ferry, which is pretty cool. Great race, not too big (maybe 3,000 combined for sprint and olympic), well organized, will def do again. It was the weekend after CFA, so I was out there to enjoy, and enjoy I did. Already signed up for June 2016.
• NJ State Tri - July - good tri not too far from Princeton, NJ. My buddy and I did the sprint on the Saturday (he crushed it!) and another buddy joined us on the Sunday for an olympic relay. We won the relay (YAY!) and will be back in 2016 to defend.
• Westchester Tri - September - another good tri, small enough (about 2,000) and well run, in Rye, NY (on the border with CT). Olympic distance on Sunday. I had finally had a good few months of training so was really pumped. Swim was great at around 21min, bike left a lot to be desired (but was a tough course) at 1.16.37 but I finished up with a good run just over 40min. This is a qualifier for Escape from Alcatraz tri, so I'll def be back in much better shape in 2016.
• Paine to Pain Half Marathon - September - awesome race! My interests have been gravitating to smaller, off-road races, and this fits the bill. Small race, great people, well organized. Can't ask for much more. I pushed myself hard in this one, running 1.33 for a trail half marathon and was stoked with that.
• Brooklyn Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon - October - not a great race. Too many people (maybe 15,000?), organized but with that many people, it's just a zoo. Course wasn't great, I think they could have used Prospect Park a lot more. And, unlike the name indicates, there was little to no rock n roll out on the course (though have to shout out that Nate Reuss of Fun. (one of our favorite bands!) headlined the show after the race). I actually ran really well, 1.27.58 (including a 1min bathroom break), which is a PB. I was able to push myself pretty hard, so happy with that. I won't be doing this race again.
• Tough Mudder - October - 10mi obstacle course run. Ran the race near Philly with a good friend and got super muddy. That was the point. It was awesome. I'd do it again, but only if friends are also doing it.

That's been my year. Work is great. I've been reading a ton, so hoping to post on that later. Also working on race schedule and goals for 2016. Lots more to come.