Racing Season is Coming!

Racing season starts in just one week and I have very mixed emotions regarding my progress. In the negative category, I managed to gain 2 or 3 lbs since the Christmas holiday. In the positive category, I’ve set a few PRs for the following exercises: practice staircase intervals, step machine, & tabata leg presses. Additionally, my pull-up & push-up counts continue to increase and I’m getting faster at the 4000 meter row (Concept2 erg rower). I know I’m in the best shape of my life, but I can’t help think that the extra weight is going to slow me down in the longer races.

My first race will be at One Penn Plaza in NYC on January 21^st. The race will cover 55 flights (in a 57 story building) so the race itself will cover a little bit less than 229 meters (the height of the building). Based on that information, I’m guessing my time will be anywhere between 6:30 to 7:30. I’m hoping for a first place finish, but since the race will be held in NYC, the race could potentially have hundreds of competitors and attract some fierce competition.

To get ready for racing season, I’ve added the Concept2 indoor rowing machine to my exercise plan. Paul Teti, the record holder at the John Hancock Tower in Boston is a former Olympic rower, so I figured that rowing would be a good exercise to add to my repertoire. At first I thought the machine was pretty easy. After rowing for about 15 minutes at a reasonable pace, my butt would be sore (from sitting) but I’d otherwise feel pretty good. Since then, I’ve been consistently increasing my pace from week to week. Right now, my workout consists of a 4000 meters done at a just under 15 minutes (excluding time spent warming-up). In my opinion, the rowing machine is a great cross-training workout since it builds up cardio endurance and is relatively easy on the joints. I find it a perfect exercise for the day leading up to a heavy stair climbing workout since rowing won’t kill the legs (compared to heavy cycling or lifting weights).

In other news, I received a tiny clip-on metronome for Christmas and I’m dying to try it out at a race. I’m planning to set it to my expected pace to prevent going out too quickly. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to use it until the Empire State Building Run-up since I haven’t a clue how many stairs are at One Penn Plaza!