The Leap
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I get emails and messages sometimes from other moms and dads who read my letters to you here on the blog. They often thank me for sharing my… Read More
Tag Archive: training
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3 Bugs in a Rug
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I woke up at 4:30 this morning and went for a swim. I’m starting what my coach calls a “transition week,” meaning I’m shifting from a week of… Read More
Meet Liz Lyles: mother of two, wife, and Ironman champion
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I want to introduce you to some awesome Moms and Dads as I write these letters to you. I’m doing my best to balance being a husband to… Read More
Spring Training products for triathletes
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, We’re beginning to see lasting signs that spring is here. After another long winter of slogging through miles in the cold and wet Tennessee winter, warm afternoon walks… Read More
The Last Long Run
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, As I approach the end of my 20 week training cycle I’ve been reflecting on the journey. Here’s a post I wrote for Rev3′s blog called “The Last… Read More
Tales from the dinner table: Simple prayers
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, It’s been awhile since I’ve shared one of our dinner conversations with you. We put a lot of importance on family dinner time. Mommy has been teaching swimming… Read More
Altra triathlon specific running shoe review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Triathletes are an adventurous bunch. That’s stating the obvious, I suppose. That sense of adventure often leads to early adoption of new technology in gear and gadgets related… Read More
Ahead of What?
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate I worked my way through it. The first big overdistance training weekend of my 20 week training cycle. I’ve done a few rides in excess of race distance… Read More
Clarity and Trust in the Texas hill country: part 1
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Carolyn Horton handed me a pistol. “It’s scatter shot,” she said. “So you don’t need to have good aim, just point and shoot.” She walked back up the… Read More
Rudy Project Gozen sunglasses review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I now own 3 pair of Rudy Project sunglasses. Yes, they’re that good. Along with my Zyon sailing and Noyz glasses I was lucky to also get my… Read More
Daddy, here’s a dollar
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, People don’t slow down often. I saw a guy cut across a median on the off ramp and slide 3 lanes over. That move motivated, I presume, because… Read More
Life is just a tire swing: Easter photos and potlucks
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, We had a great weekend! The sort of weekend that you hope for during the other five days of the week….filled with fun, love, and photo opps. It… Read More
Peaceful Easy Feeling
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Grandfather sent us this picture of you fishing beside the Pedernales River in Texas, Izzy. I stared at it for a long time. Different emotions overcame me as… Read More
Hoka One One Bondi Speed running shoe review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I get to try out a lot of different shoes. Lately that’s meant a number of minimalist shoes. It’s rare that I find something “completely different” on the… Read More
8 of my triathlon training essentials
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, It’s becoming more and more popular, but triathlon is still a “fringe sport.” For that reason I’m asked often what sorts of products I use regularly in training.… Read More
Sunshine on a cloudy day
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, The breezes helped me relax as I lay motionless, eyes closed, drifting back in time: a beach in Hawaii, a beach in South Carolina, Mexico, Duval Street, Bourbon… Read More
It feels so good feeling good again
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I wrote to you a few days ago about some of the struggles I’ve been having with my health. At first the doctors called it an ulcer. When… Read More
Changes in Attitude
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, The first 20 passed effortlessly. The first signs of spring allowed me to ride in bib shorts and a jersey rather than the layers I’ve been wrapping myself… Read More
Mizuno Wave Evo Cursoris Review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, The dinosaur stampede in the most recent version of King Cong; what’s so terrifying isn’t the lumbering big dinos, it’s the smaller FASTER, MORE VICIOUS little guys who… Read More
Saturday Ride: Pressing into the still life
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Another silent morning. Layered. Pressing into the still life. Sunrise held captive by the heaviness drifting across the horizon. Snow fell, mixed with thicker, less beautiful, ice. Into… Read More
Loneliness and the journey
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I started to feel it this weekend. That empty feeling I get. The loneliness that sets in as the miles build. I’ve written to you about how miles… Read More
Perspective in the dark
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, It was dark when I walked in. The oddity threw me off balance for a moment. I stopped, rubbed the morning stubble still on my face, as if… Read More
Peeking into the cave
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I had a rare Saturday with no training yesterday. Thanks to a quirk in my schedule I managed to get my workouts accomplished during the week, leaving me… Read More
Attitude is Everything
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I found this note in your “Izzy – Tall and Proud” envelope at home. It’s one of the many places you store your self-affirmations and life lessons that… Read More
It will come: Belief in the face of fear, doubt, and uncertainty
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, The deep ache set in somewhere around 30 miles. I ate another gel and began to slow. I’ve been on my bike diligently through the winter, but for… Read More
Swiftwick SUSTAIN sock review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I wrote to you about Swiftwick a while back. Someone commented on the letter to the effect of “how can you write about socks?” It’s easy. My socks… Read More
Healthy Life
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, We don’t need a life coach at our house. We have you, Izzy. I’m constantly finding your notes around the house ranging from “how to save the planet”… Read More
How Revolution Changes Everything
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I’ve changed. Sometimes you’ll hear that people don’t change; It’s just the circumstances around them. I’m not sure I believe that. Perhaps a little backstory is necessary if… Read More
Across the Threshold: 140.6
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Last night I found myself on my bike trainer at 9:30pm in our living room, listening to music, watching a basketball game, spinning my legs, my mind racing.… Read More
Monster Trucks, ear plugs, and the voice of God
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, When it started we were stunned. I wondered how loud it might really be, assuming that from our vantage point the noise would be manageable. It rattled our… Read More
The monsters in the dark: triathletes and 4:30am
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, It’s there every morning. It’s been there my entire life. Most mornings it pokes me, pinches me, pushes me until I’m out of bed, on my feet. Listening… Read More
Zoot thermoMegaHeat jacket and pants review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I prefer the outdoors to indoor training (although my coach is trying to teach me to love my bike trainer). Unless I’m equipped with the right gear it… Read More
Happy Saturday: Gettin’ down to Frankenreiter
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, We do a lot of kitchen dancing at our house. It brings laughter and joy into our home. When you’re grown with kids of your own I hope… Read More
The Family Friendly guide to planning your race season
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate I gather my things. I shuffle around the house in sweatpants looking for something to write with. Some years I find a pen, but I’ve used a crayon… Read More
Saturday morning ride: Breaking Belgian
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, My family moved to Belgium shortly after I was born. We lived there until I was your age, Max and Kate. There are only a few things I… Read More
The year of “OF COURSE”
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, We had a great Christmas. We’re fortunate to live close to family, so we make the rounds every year: Christmas Eve lunch at Aunt Lisa’s in White Bluff… Read More
Saturday morning run: alone in the dark
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, It was 23 degrees this morning. I put on layers: running tights, running pants over them, wool socks, a long sleeve shirt, a new running jacket, a thermal… Read More
Healthy eating for the entire family: A chat with RD and pro triathlete Kim Schwabenbauer
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I’m often asked about nutrition. I guess it’s because I’m a triathlete and that causes people to assume I also eat wisely. While I think I make good… Read More
Smartwool Phd HyFi arm and leg warmers review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I used to think of Smartwool as a sock company, but they do so much more than socks. Smartwool offers a full array of clothing to keep you… Read More
Saturday morning ride
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I rode through the country this morning. The first grey, damp ride of the new training season. I passed a field of cows, moving slowly in the half… Read More
Hydrapak Soquel hydration pack review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I’ve written to you before about the importance of staying hydrated while I’m out swimming, biking, and running. For years I relied upon a hydration belt. Recently though… Read More
Why I didn’t race: Part 2
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, CONTINUED FROM PART I Learning to be still played a big role in why I didn’t go. After 20 weeks of training I stayed home, and missed the… Read More
Newton Motion running shoe review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, The leader among the new breed of running shoe companies is Newton Running. In fact, you could make the case that Newton ushered in recent movement among running… Read More
6x World Champion Dave Scott on fatherhood, Kona, and the abyss
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Ironman is what it is today because of one man; Dave Scott. Although he didn’t create the race, he quickly became the most dominant figure in the sport… Read More
Can love save us from ourselves?
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Sometimes I imagine the room they found him in. The sheer linen shades pulled across the windows. The sun coming through them creating soft white light across the… Read More
Outrunning the Storm
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I decided to try something new in my training. For 10 plus years I’ve done my long ride on Saturday and my long run on Sunday. That’s standard… Read More
Live to Fight another day
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I had a decent training session on Saturday. I met my friends Daniel and Jeff at a country market near the house at 6am to start our ride. We… Read More
BASE Performance review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, After 12 years of training and racing I’ve used a lot of products. In fact, that’s probably the most common question I get from new or aspiring runners… Read More
Shut off the voice that says you can’t
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, Saturday I had a training breakthrough. Those are hard to come by at this stage of training and racing. I’ve been doing triathlons for a long time, so real… Read More
Peanut Butter Gu and Gu Roctane review
Dear Izzy, Max, and Kate, I’ve become a bit notorious for my shifting nutrition strategies during training and racing. Some have worked and some have been a disaster (see my long walk at… Read More
