Basically a loyalty program from Ironman … but proud that I received the Gold (Top 2%) AWA Status for 2023.
2023 Ironman All World Athlete
Author: paschmann
hDrop – Wearable Hydration Monitor
I *just* received my order of the hDrop gen 2 wearable hydration monitor, and used it for a short 45 min easy Zone 2 run. Based on my interest of sweat analysis, I was curious to compare my results to other tests I have done in the past. I plan to continue to use it for more sessions, and it will be interesting to see how the results fluctuate with the seasons.
| Metric | Previous Value | Per hDrop | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg Sweat Rate | 37Oz/h | 16.4Oz/h | My previous values were cycling, temps were relatively cool |
| Avg Sodium Concentration | 716mg/L – 1023mg/L | 901.1mg/L | Range of 5 tests, last 3 were all at 1000mg/L +- 50. |
After my first quick and dirty test, the unit is probably quite accurate on the sodium concentration, but I am unsure about the sweat rate. My past sweat tests were done based on weight loss during the exercise, cycling (not running) and majority were indoors. Based on the effort and ambient temp, I think around a 500ml sweat loss seems correct.
Export Apple Photos to the Filesystem – Apple Script
I have never really used Apple Script, but recently had the desire to backup all my Apple Photos to my local NAS. I currently have all my photos organized in a Folder -> Album structure so pulled this Apple Script together together to get this done. Create a new Apple Script (*.scpt) and select the source Photos Folder and a location to save the files on your filesystem. Note: Slashes in the name case folders to be created 🙁
https://gist.github.com/paschmann/536def178ea9dd96c22c2143cc2b212c
Endurance Racing – Sweat Analysis
Sweat, and specifically Sodium, is one of the three “levers” for endurance athletes when it comes to hydration and nutrition (fueling) and subsequently your performance. The other two key elements or levers are Carbohydrates and Fluids.
The most important part about sodium/sweat is that everyone has a unique sweat loss rate, and a unique sodium content ratio in their sweat. So while a more generalized approach can be defined for consuming carbohydrates, the same is not true for electrolyte loss. This is why having a sweat test is critical for athletes wanting to perform, understand and take advantage of their data to understand their personal needs and requirements.
3D Printing Project – Bottle Holder v3
Design: Autodesk Fusion 360
Printer: Prusa Mk2
Material: PLA
Print Time: 3 Hours
Bookmark: Neal.fun – Internet Artifacts
Just a reminder …
“The majority is always wrong. The minority is rarely right.”
Henrik Ibsen
Situational Leadership – Dr. Paul Hersey
I once took an interview for a role that was well above my skills, experience and background level, during one of the rounds, the interviewer gave me some constructive criticism and suggested I read this book. To this day it sits on my shelf, and think back to at the lessons I learned from it, and the experience it has now given me to manage teams and people more effectively.
If you have or don’t have a leadership role, looking to advance your career or simply understand a workforce better, I would highly encourage giving this a quick read.
2023 – Ironman 70.3 – North Carolina
A small improvement from 2022 and a (13.1 – Half Marathon) Run PR which I am pretty happy about.
Race Notes
| Plan | Actual | Learnings |
| Race Morning | 4:45AM StartBreakfast was Oats and Half BagelSmall coffee+- 500ml of Water with NuunsDrop off at T1 around 5:30amShould have arrived 20 mins earlier, got on the bus around 6:15am which felt a little rushedStood around at Swim start, ate gel. | |
| Swim | ~ 0:27:00 | 0:33:35 (7:12AM) – 59th in 40 – 44 🙁 |
| Planning to swim around 1:25 “pool” pace – 80%Probably going to be wetsuit legal (not guaranteed)Hydration/Nutrition15 min before Swim Start:Gel | Hopped in the water, pushed a couple hundred yards to get going and felt good, but after 300 – 400 yards already started having tired/sore traps. Not sure why, I felt my technique was good, sighting was no problem. Just not sure why my arms/upper body were tired. Didnt feel this the day before at the warm up swim (I didnt push the warm up swim at all). No leaking goggles for the first race ever! Yes! | Took a while to get in the water from the timing mat? +- 2 mins, does that count?Maybe I need to warm up my arms/traps before the swim – maybe use a band? Need to try this in some work outs. Maybe I didn’t put my wetsuit on properly? Usually I pull up my sleeves a lot, maybe I got distracted and didn’t do this? |
| T1 | ~ 0:05:00 | 4:44 |
| Went OK, got a thorn in my foot on the grass, was hoping it would dislodge, but had to stop and take it out. Decided to wear arm sleeves to keep me warm. Took a couple seconds to put them on, but think it was worth it being chilly. Elastics on shoes worked fine, but took a second or two to get my feet in and locked down. | ||
| Bike | ~ 02:16:00 | 02:24:06 |
| Ride @ ~ 245WHydration/NutritionHour 0 – 1:15 of bike:1 x 950ml bottle120g of carbs1000mg SodiumHour 1:15 – 2:30 of bike:1 x 950ml bottle110g of carbs1000mg SodiumBackup:Water from courseSodium from salt chews on bike (20 chews = 1000mg!)Take in Sodium Gel 20 mins before end of bike | Avg Power – 214WNormalized – 224WCDA – 0.2817FYI: 2022 – 0:02:26 – Avg – 202, Norm – 211W, CDA – 0.246Drank around 850ml Liquid + 750mg SodiumDidnt even touch my 2nd bottle, temps were cool and was not sweating much, I didnt get a single drop of sweat in my helmet visor. So this might have been enough. Also didnt feel thirsty.Did not like the Precision Hydration Sodium packs on this day.Consumed +- 220g of Carbs from Aero bottle which had around 100mg SodiumSince I was not pushing the targeted power, I think this was OKDecided not to take a gel toward the end, felt I had enough from my carb bottleUsed bottle with water in chestChallenge 1: In terms of power, was using the 240 – 245W as a target on the bike, but after around 30 minutes started getting some muscle stiffness/pain/cramping in only my left VMO? (Oblique?) in my prepping a couple days before, I noticed I had a loose cleat, adjusted it slightly and tightned them down and almost instantly knew this was the cause. I just managed the effort, and again didnt really ride to my full target power as much as a wanted to.Challenge 2: Sorry if this is TMI!!! Around Mile 30 was getting uncomfortable needing to take a bio break, and spent at least 20 mins trying to go at any downhill opportunity but its such a flat course, that didnt really happen, eventually got it down and felt great again! I think next time if it is a flat course I might just actually use a port a jon, I think I lost a lot of time free wheeling and it may have been quicker to actually just stop. It took a long time to catch back up to the folks I was riding around (Mike Roberts was one of them). Coasting was 6 minutes. Probably more than half was for this process. So maybe stopping would have been quicker. | Need new sodium source, nuun maybe? Might be easier to burp🙂Why is my cadence high? Is there a discrepancy between my trainer and bike?I feel like I can hit the needed Watts at a higher cadence. It does come with a higher HR, but I perceive it as slightly easier.Maybe I need to focus on strength this off-season. |
| T2 | ~ 0:02:00 | 0:02:40 |
| Was a little slow on the uphill dismountWas a little slow putting on my hat, glasses and run beltWindy so some of my stuff blew around and needed to put it into the bags. | ||
| Run | ~ 01:29:00 | 01:28:24 |
| 6:30 -> 6:50 PaceHydration/NutritionWater every stationGel from run bottle – 1 big sip every 3 or so miles = 25g CHO + 125mg Sodium – Need to drink at least 125ml waterBackup: Salt Tabs in Suit = 50mg Sodium – Take 2 every 3 miles + 1 Gel + at least 100ml water | Had water from most aid stationsdrank gel from flask every 2 or so milesProbably had around 60g of carbs, 250mg sodium+ 3 sodium chews = 150mg Probably the best part of this race for me. Finally hit a target/goal which I was aiming for.Just tried to stick around 6:50 avg min/mile paceMy oblique was a little tight from the ride as mentioned | |
| Total Time | ~ 04:23:00 | 04:33:28 |
| Overall, was happy with the outcome. Didnt hit my goal time again, and it seems like the biggest contributor to that was my swim ( + 4 or 5 mins) and my bike ( + 6 – 8 mins). 5th place in my AG and my goal was to try to get 3rd, that would have required another 8 mins and much closer to my goal time.A good thing: I decided to ride to power, and run to pace and effort vs worrying about my HR. First race I have done this after some feedback from you after Texas. I think this took me to a new level of trust in my fitness which is a small but important win going forward.I did get a roll down slot to NZ which was my one of my goals for this race, although I was 4 seconds in front of 6th! so got lucky 🙂 |
3D Printing Project – *Another* Bike Storage Box
My 3D design skills and understanding of modeling around a physical object have come a long way since my first bike storage box, this one fits my 2022 Canyon Speedmax CF (Medium). The reason for designing and printing these is that while the bike has built in storage, it’s seldomly enough to be self sufficient during long rides. For full distance Ironman events, I take the following: (After mishaps, trial and error) 2 x Tubolito spare tubes, 2 x CO2 Cartridges, 1 x Dart puncture tool, 1 x Mini Pump, a Multi Tool and a Chain link.
Design: Autodesk Fusion 360
Printer: Prusa Mk2
Material: PLA
Print Time: 12 Hours
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