Iron News Man - October 12, 2009

By CHRIS SCHAUBLE

Updated 9:00 AM PST, Mon, Oct 12, 2009

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Ironman Arizona is still more than five weeks away and yet I find myself already starting to focus on it constantly. MAN! I hope this anxious feeling doesn’t last ‘til then… that’s nuts! Almost everything I do gets run through the, “How will this affect my Ironman?” filter.

One of the reasons I planned multiple races and triathlons before my trip to Tempe next month was to create distractions. With this weekend’s Long Beach Marathon Bike Tour now out of the way, I have only the Nike Human Race to occupy my brain before I tackle Ironman. Effectively, that means every time I train I’ll be thinking in the back of my mind, “You’re almost there… You’re almost there… push it… you need to be sharp!”

If I could compete in Ironman Arizona tomorrow, I would. Keeping track of Ironman Kona over the weekend and getting all the feedback from various triathletes on Twitter didn’t help either. It only heightened my intense desire! It’s good that I have a decent run planned for today along with a chest workout to pour my energy into.

Here’s my TrainingPeaks.com schedule from Triathlon Coach Jason Healey:

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Countdown to Ironman

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Ironman Journey

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Triathlon Training

Intermediate Run
Type: Run
Planned duration: 0:00
Planned distance: 0.0 miles
Run 11 miles on a mostly flat to rolling course. Do not run in the hills today. Run at race pace in zone 2: Medium to medium hard. Practice hydration and nutrition during this effort.

I’ll begin my run at the Santa Clarita Athletic Club and then weave my way on surface streets to the Santa Clarita Trail for most of the distance. It’s a proven winner for me and it’s never really gotten too boring.

After my run I’ll workout with trainer Jordan Yuam. He hates it when I do cardio before we hit the weights because it leaves my muscles glucosamine depleted and flat. However, Jordan also realizes my goal is to be the best triathlete I can be, not Mr. Universe. Really, my goal is to be an Ironman.

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-Chris

Why blog? To inspire others.

Simply put, two years ago I was overweight! At 6’1” I weighed 252, and wore size 40 pants. Few people really noticed, but I did. In pictures, on TV, I was not happy with my appearance. Covering the 2007 LA Marathon for NBC4 was the last straw. Every picture I was in highlighted just how out of shape I had become.

No more! Since that time, the guy who could barely run around the block has slowly built-up his endurance and completed the 2008 Long Beach International Marathon , 2009 Surf City Marathon in Huntington Beach, 2009 LA Marathon, and the 2009 Vineman Ironman 70.3.

However, something happened along the way. After my first marathon, I fell into a funk. I asked myself, “Why do you feel such a let-down after a marvelous achievement?” The answer I have since learned from my coaches, I failed to set the “goal beyond the goal”. Thus, my quest for Iron was born!

I’m registered to compete in the Ford Ironman Arizona on November 22nd, 2009. Along the way, I will compete in various road races and triathlons to fuel my passion and push my training along. The intense and at times brutal training will happen after my duties as 4 a.m. to 7a.m. anchor for NBC4 have finished. The sacrifices I will make will be substantial, and for that I thank my beautiful family and friends in advance.

I invite you to share this journey with me.