11 mile run to NYC Marathon Expo

I figured running to the NYC Marathon Expo would be the most appropriate mode of transportation, right?


So instead of traveling "The American Way", I traveled "The Kenyan Way". It's not going to make me run like a Kenyan, but hey, sometimes it's good to know that I'm one of few Americans who can get around long distances with his feet.

The route was almost all running, except for the Ferry part. And yes this is a legitimate excuse. If I was Jesus Christ and have the ability to walk on water, then you can fire away. ;-)

Some running at Staten Island plus some running in Manhattan turned into about an 11 mile run total. It was not easy, especially after doing a 10 mile run yesterday, and my legs felt torched after the run. So I'm resting easy tomorrow as I watch the NYC Marathon.

The expo was very interesting. People from all nations are there, either registering for the race or hawking their marathons in other countries. Some of these marathons sound intriguing:

Among others:

The Dublin Marathon.
The Miami Marathon
The Rock and Roll Marathon Series
The Rio De Janiero Marathon
The 13.1 Marathon Series

Not bad. If I had a lot of money, I'd go to some of these places, just to say I've been there.

The products were expensive as hell, so except for some Gu shots I didn't have the desire to plunk down money on running clothing, knowing that I can pobably get the clothing at half-price at some mail-order place on the internet.

But overall, I'm glad I came. I wish all the runners in the NYC marathon the best of luck tomorrow.

Off to the NYC Marathon Expo

I'm off to the NYC Expo. I will come back with some pics and will post them shortly. On the way to the expo I'll be running over the Bayonne Bridge, through JFK Blvd, and onto Journal Square for 10 miles. From there I'll be taking the PATH train over to NYC and walk it over to the Jacob Javits Center and meet some friends. I'll be probably the only one over there with a white Tilley hat. If you see me, don't be afraid to say hi. :-)

Lost Week - Found the Weekend!

Wow, this cold kicked like a mule!

There's nothing like being incapacitated for the entire week due to a cold virus. Sniffles and sore throat are nothing when it comes to having no energy even to get up out of bed.


I actually had to cancel a couple of coaching sessions (I'm very mindful of my athletes catching what I have, and I don't want them to suffer the same fate) and stay in bed Tuesday and Wednesday to kick this thing. Ahhh, but the Raman Soups and Tea did me well and boy, do they hit the spot when I'm ill!

So yesterday I felt better and decided that today (Friday), I was finally well enough to get back into training again. I chose to do a nice 10 mile run across the Bayonne Bridge and wound up finishing the thing with a time of 1:29:30 (almost 9 min/mile). To my amaxement I felt real loose!

So maybe I can salvage the weekend after all. :-)

If everything goes well I'll be doing a bike this afternoon on my Computrainer.

Tomorrow is NYC Marathon Expo Day, so I'll be running 10 miles across the Bayonne Bridge, but instead of coming back, will run straight to Journal Square in Jersey City and take the Path Train to the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan.

And of course, Sunday is the NYC Marathon. I'll give you the details on that tomorrow.

Under the weather - that time of year again

I must have picked something up after that hike on Sunday, because it seems like all went to hell soon after. The cold pretty much knocked me out on Monday and yesterday. I had no energy whatsoever, a sore throat, and lots of congestion. Today I'm a little better, so maybe I'll try a small run or ride today.

Colds are a fact of life, and I strongly suggest that you adjust your training schedule to work around things like these, because I've always found out the hard way that if I train through a rough illness such as this, I'll just make it worse.

The bottom line is to just listen to your body.

Hike up Bear Mountain - And Oktoberfest - Woohoo!!!

A very interesting thing on the way back from my hike...someone just happened to put an Oktoberfest fair at the Bear Mountain Inn when I came back. To cut to the chase, I finished off a nice hard hike up bear mountain with a nice big stein of Spaten Oktoberfest beer. I couldn't resist.

But lets get back to the start. Today was a PERFECT day for a hike. The temps were in the 50s, no wind, very clear day, and it was just GREAT to be outside. Bear Mountain was as imposing as ever, but I was eager to get to the top of the bad boy. I strapped my Camelbak on and walked over to the Major Welch Trail to start the climb.

There are two ways to the top of Bear Mountain. One was the Appalachian Trail, a roundabout and less steep way up, and the other was the Major Welch Trail, which is a hard, direct slog up the north face of the mountain. Here is the map of the route:



If you are fit enough to make it up the rough, steep rock face of the Major Welch Trail, the scenery of the Hudson River is well worth it. Absolutely beautiful! I'll post the photos here soon once I get the time to download them from my camera.

The fall foliage just adds to the beauty of this park. Getting to the top of the mountain is strenuous activity, but it took me about 50 minutes to get to Perkins Tower at the top of the mountain.

After snapping some pics it was time to come down via the Appalachian Trail. Although there are some tricky sections down this part of the Appalacian Trail, it was such a pleasant trip down I could've run most of it (boy I was tempted, but I stood patient so that I can soak in the scenery as I went). It took me about 1.5 hours to get back down to the parking lot.

Getting close to the bottom however I started to hear some music across the lake coming from the Bear Mountain Motel. And wouldn'cha know it! It was Oktoberfest!




The stein of beer just hit the spot, especially after a nice hard hike.

Overall, the end of a pretty good week. One more week to go in this "getting back to training" 4 week mesocycle. So far so good.

Real Man Workouts for the Ultra Athlete: 15 x 2 Mile Intervals on the Track

I've done some interesting things in training in the past. Some of these challenges that I actually did are not for the faint of heart. But I always challenge myself in unusual ways. I always try to consider the unthinkable and try to do them.

What I'm going to do is to post some of the things I actually did 10-15 years ago, and things that I might try to do again next year. This will be an ongoing series, and this will be the first. Care to try your luck on this one?

ON THE TRACK: 15 x 2 Mile Intervals every 18 minutes. 30 miles total. This one took me less than 5 hours to pull off. Heck, it's only 120 laps on a 400 meter track, right?

WHAT DROVE ME TO DO THIS?: I was part of a running club that was practicing for a half-marathon. I was training for a 50 mile ultra and decided to show some people up. I am one arrogant SOB when it comes to distance, so I entertained this thought and brought it up to the runners a week before. One of them challenged me and bet me 3 beers that I couldn't do it. Weelllllll, when beer is brought into the equation, how can I resist!

I started with the group who were *only* doing mile intervals (what a bunch of wimps, right? ;-). They finished their "puny" workouts by the time I started my 4rd interval; most of them hung around and made an event of this as I finished interval after interval. At around the 10th interval, I was really feeling stiff, but the luring taste of beer was enough motivation to move on. I hit a major surge on the last 2 intervals and finished quite strong.

Let's just say the beer tasted very good!

Tues October 20 - Mesocycle 1, Week 3 of 4

Drop everything you're doing and ride! It's too gorgeous a day to stay indoors!

After training through that cold snap, nature rewarded us here in the Northeast with a great day. And I had to take advantage of it! Even when I'm busy, there are some days where I have to put down the phone, turn off the computer and TV, put the business aside, and just escape into the unknown.

This was one of those days.

After doing an easy swim in the morning, as I was getting my errands done with the "cash flow" side of my business, I decided to put down my pen, ready my trusty mount (my bike), and head on out for a nice ride in Great Kills Park.


And I was not alone either! There must have been at least 10 other cyclists out there in that park. I grouped up with several of them, exited the park, and went toward South Beach. The roads on Staten Island are quite busy, but we cyclists know the back-roads that wind our way over to Father Capodanno Blvd., perhaps one of only few places on Staten Island where you can cruise along without stopping at a traffic light every 2 minutes.

It's interesting...every athlete I know or coach has a fascinating story to tell; a reason why they are passionate about what they do. I will tell a few generalized stories about some of them in the near future since they are all quite fascinating to hear.

Anyway, that is it for today. Tomorrow is going to be another gorgeous day. You know where I'll be. To summarize the training for today:

Swim - 2000m - easy drills with fins and paddles, no structured sets yet.

Bike - 15 miles along Great Kills Park and South Beach. Total time 58:32. Easy Level 1 pace (easy).

Your Friendly Neighborhood Endurance Coach

Triathlon Ain't Cheap! But training for one can be!

Just getting the equipment for a triathlon can be mind-boggling. A $3000 bike, a $500 wetsuit, $50 - $500 entry fees for races, etc. So how can you afford a $300 per month endurance coach after all is spent?

I think people are starting to understand getting more value for their buck these days. Especially with endurance coaching. That is where I come in:

1) Customized coaching plans at $50 per 4 week block.

2) One-on-one sessions from 1 hour on up at $30 per hour for those who purchase the coaching plan, $50 for those who do not.

3) I'm currently training for a busy 2010 season myself. Just give me an excuse to come on down to your neighborhood and train with you and it'll only set you back $15.

That's about it. I set no formal payment standards like other coaches and personally want to see you succeed. I also take it upon myself to try to get over to see you in your races to see the fruits of your labor. For free, of course; your payment to me in this situation is to see you smile as you cross that finish line, maybe with a personal best time!

I specialize in triathlon, marathon, and ultramarathon. Beginners and veterans accepted.

You can e-mail me at coachjoegold@gmail.com or call me at 347-996-0885. I'll come on over for a free initial consultation and can quickly start you on your way to a great season next year!

Monday October 19 - Mesocycle 1, Week 3

It's time to establish some consistency with my everyday training this week.

It was time to run to the Staten Island Mall and back. Why? Because it's there!



Seriously though, Richmond Avenue, one of the main roads of Staten Island, offers these nice wide lanes to run safely in. And if the road gets too busy I can easily get onto the nice, wide sidewalks that accompany the road.

Temps went down into the 30s today, but the stiff wind that was blowing yesterday was non-existent today, so it was quite a pleasant experience.

To keep it short, here is the data on the run...

Run: 6 miles to Staten Island Mall and back. Time is 53:46 (8:58 min/mile pace). Target heart rate zone is level 1 (easy pace). I love it when I start enjoying my training!

Sunday October 18 - Mesocycle 1, Week 2

Character building days can be quite invigorating!

A good looking run over the Bayonne Bridge!


The second nor'easter in 3 days has swept into the NY Metro area with a stiff north wind, chilly temps, and lots of rain. I guess it was not a bad thing that the hike was cancelled. But hey, the run was on, no matter what.

One thing I learned while training for 20 years in the northeast; if you are clothed right, you can have an excellent run no matter what the elements. I dressed in 2 light layers on top with nice tights on the bottom for the 40 degree raw weather and wind. This was topped off with gloves and a wool hat. I couldn't have asked for a better choice. Going onto the Bayonne Bridge with a stiff north wind buffeted me, but I never really got too cold as I ventured into NJ. It turned into the nicest run of the week, despite the elements.

Here is the data for the run.

10 miles over Bayonne Bridge to JFK Blvd in NJ and back.
Time is 1:28:12 (8:49 min/mile pace).

Weather is supposed to clear up for tomorrow. Week 2 done, 2 weeks left in the 1st 4 week mesocycle and I'm looking pretty good getting back into the swing of things.

October 17 - Mesocycle 1, Week 2

This one is for bike safety. Always use top quality parts. Your life may depend on it.

One raw day yesterday. Another today. And yet another tomorrow. I'm rolling with the punches though. The hike is cancelled for tomorrow, so I'll be running agin. For today's workouts, we have a 5 mile run and a 4 mile bike.

A 4 mile bike? What is this?

Well, seems like the cable housing that serves the rear gears in the back decided to fray. This cable housing was installed last year. What gives? Well, the new cable now had this plastic farrel at the end of it. These farrels used to be metal, and I took a quick note of this when I installed the cable housing last year.

Well, it doesn't hold up well, when I shifted to a smaller gear, the cable actually ate through the farrel and sliced through the housing, screwing up the tension in the cable. No tension in the cable means I'm stuck with a huge gear without the ability to adjust.

Is it me or do I really start seeing the quality of EVERYTHING going to #$%@? This is a major concern for me when it comes to my bike, because I want to know that I am getting top quality parts for my bike for safety's sake, right down to the little farrels.

My advice to you today, always check on the quality of parts when you order parts to maintain your bike. On busy roads, you'll definitely need to count on them not to fail because your life can literally depend on it. Trust me.

As for the workouts, the 5 mile run was done on a flat and fast road course (South Ave) for a total of 44:34. The 4 mile bike? 13:02.

Tomorrow will be a 10 mile run over the Bayonne Bridge into New Jersey in lieu of the hike that was cancelled. Wish me luck.

It's the offseason! Let's Try the Type B Attitude

Most triathletes and runners I know are Type A personalities. They are very meticulous in their planning of their workouts, and make sure they get their workout in, rain or shine, regardless of circumstances.

This works very well in the pre-season and the season itself, but I'm not so sure it works when the triathlon and running season is over. You see, the typical type A personality tends to forget that they are human, and need to unwind from the rigorous schedule for a month or two to allow their bodies, and especially minds, to recover. It is this part of the season where you need to kick back and ENJOY the fitness you worked hard for. This is CRITICAL for some people before they start their pre-season training again. The bottom line is that if you're not totally refreshed in body and mind and eager to go when you start your build for the next race season, you didn't recover fully. This might lead to mental burnout and/or injury when you need your body the most, and could compromise the upcoming season.

One of the prevailing personalities I saw while thru-hiking on the Appalachian Trail was the Type B personality.


The spontaneous and laid back attitudes of some of these hikers simply amazed me; I cannot for the life of me start the day off without it being planned the day before. Yet these people will do things "when they feel like it". If they didn't hike at all that day, it was fine by them. But one of the redeeming qualities I saw in the Type B personalities is that they enjoyed life every minute of their day. I envied them for that and wanted to see if I can incorporate that into my off-seasons, even if just a little bit.

The goal for off-season training is the ENJOYMENT of your training sessions. Forget the target heart rates, the pacing, the target time of doing X amount of miles, etc. Sometimes you just got to leave that stopwatch at home, run or cycle at a leisurely pace and enjoy that the day brings. Make enjoyment your goal for some of your workouts, not time or pace.

Secondly, now is the time to explore new variants of your endurance training. If you're up north with an abundance of snow, maybe you should do some cross-country skiing in lieu of a bike. How about trail running or even hiking instead of your normal road running. The mountain bike is great in the autumn as well. Aside from the overall enjoyment, you can gain huge strength climbing those steep trails for the next season. The sky is the limit, and as long as you remain active, you'll definitely be mentally and physically prepared for the vigourous training that is ahead.


Infuse a little Type B Personality into your fitness life this offseason. You won't regret it!

Oct 16: 8 mile run - Staten Island Boardwalk

Week 2 - Mesocycle 1 - Friday 10/7

This was a morning run on a completely raw, rainy morning. Temp was 40F with a fierce north wind. The course is 2 loops out and back along Fr. Capodanno and the boardwalk, essentially the Staten Island Advance Memorial Day Run course. Tailwind out, fierce head wind going back. A great character builder. ;-)

All joking aside, this turned out to be a very strong run as I thoroughly enjoyed the second loop. Total time for the run is 1:14:02.

More rain tomorrow and Sunday. Sunday I'm supposed to hike at Bear Mountain with my brothers. We'll be going to the Oktoberfest there afterwards. I'll be ready to go rain or shine, but it depends on whether my brothers would back out or not (I'll call them wimps if they do!). If the hike is cancelled, I'll be running to make up for the hike.

Food for...champions?

Life is never dull.

While we ultra-fit athletes preach a lifestyle of super health, exercise, and good nutrition, some people on the opposite side of the spectrum have also been active. Take a look at these concoctions:

Deep Fried Butter

How about this - the Craz-E Burger:

Yes, that is a donut serving as a bun for the burger. That is 1500 calories of pure artery clogging goodness guaranteed to shorten your lifespan by 5 years.

So what will the creaters come up with next? Inquiring minds want to know.

Try these before your next race. I guarantee that it'll be an adventure!

Training Oct 6 - Mesocycle 1, Week 1, Day 1

4 Week Mesocycle - Base Building 1

Goal: Lower Weight, establish weakly goals of 30-40 miles running, 75-100 miles cycling, 5000-7500 meters swimming

Week 1 Day 2 - 5 mile trail run in 49:30 (9:54 pace). Temperature 53F. Course: Yellow/Green/Blue trail loop in Cheesequake State Park. Beautiful day to hit the trails. Cheesequake offered a challenging course. Legs were tired, but I finished strong.

20 mile bike in 102:40 (19.1MPH). Temp 62F Course: 4 loops of Johnson Park. A little bit windy today with some construction to navigate. Nice solid ride.

Training Oct 5 - Mesocycle 1, Week 1, Day 1

4 Week Mesocycle - Base Building 1

Goal: Lower Weight, establish weakly goals of 30-40 miles running, 75-100 miles cycling, 5000-7500 meters swimming

Week 1 Day 1 - 5 mile easy run at 44:55 (almost 9 min/mile). Temperature 59F. Course: South Avenue Route.

This run is the first of the 2010 training season. 9 minutes per mile is a little bit faster than comfortable, so I know I have some work to do. Still, it's a start and did well with it.

Daily Workouts will be posted for 2010

This is going to be interesting.

Most of the time, my training journals consisted of a one-line entry about what I did that day. I'm a pretty busy guy, so the most I ever spent was about 2 minutes on a journal entry.

Well, I'm going to see if I can post my journal entries on this blog as well. There is a calendar on the right here that will be used to link the workout I did that day.

The reason I'm doing this is because I want people to see how an organized, structured training regimen works. I'm a firm believer in periodicity, as it allows a smart triathlete to build needed rest and recovery into his/her program. In terms of time, I use 4-week periodicity blocks with a certain goal in mind. The following 4-week block would then depend on whether or not I achieved that goal in the current 4-week block.

I'm a coach, so this does come natural to me. To a beginner athlete, the daunting aspect of training for 3 disciplines can make him/her lose focus on the 4 week and long term goals. A significant portion of my coaching time is spent in trying to keep my athletes focused on these goals every 4 weeks.

For me, this is the off-season, so my goal here is to establish a good base and lose some weight by November. Base is important, and I'll be posting here why it is so critical to establish a base before you can build your speed and endurance as the triathlon season approaches.

So what is in the base period? Enjoyment! Basically, all workouts are low-intensity workouts. My basic goal here is to establish a volume for each discipline REGARDLESS OF TIME. This means I can go as slow as I want on the bike or run, and will allow me to practice on my stroke in the swim. I do not EVER go fast in this period. My weekly totals will vary a little, but I hope to establish 30-40 miles of running, 75-100 miles of riding, and 5000-7000 meters of swimming per week in October.

Hopefully, by November, I'll be used to that volume.

My 2010 season

In the 1990s, I was a full fledged triathlete, competing almost every week during the spring and summer. I loved training and racing, and did extremely wekk in the process. In 2000 I trended away from the sport, instead concentraing on my coaching and education of the sport. The bottom line is that I was so emotionally burned out that I needed to mentally recover from the years of training and restore some balance in other aspects of my life.

Now that I'm 40 years old I feel that I'm ready to come back into the arena again, but in a more "enhanced" way. During the last 5 years I received my taste of ultramarathons, doing the 50 mile Mountain Masochist and the 50k Jay Ultramarathon. So, in addition to several triathlons and an Ironman race, I'll be attempting my first 100 mile ultra, hopefully the Vermont 100 Miler, in 2010.

So, here is the lowdown for 2010:

An Ironman race, maybe in Arizona.

A 100 mile ultra, maybe the Vermont 100 Miler.

A half-Ironman race during the summer. I can pick from several in my area (NY).

Two 50 mile ultras, 1 in Spring (maybe the North Face) and one in the fall (Mountain Masochist).

A bunch of regional sprint triathlons in the area. These should help me to get faster.

All confirmations to these races will be updated on this blog as soon as I pay the entry fees. Stay tuned.

My Ultra-endurance resume

OK, now to my history. Here is the low-down:

6 Ironman Finishes - Best time a tad over 10 hours.

About 30 Half-Ironman Finishes - Best Time around 4 hours and 20 minutes.

12 Marathon Finishes - Best Time around 3 hours 15 minutes.

4 Ultramarathon Finishes. Best 50 mile finish is the Mountain Masochist at 10 hours.

One 100 mile Finish - around 27 hours.

Won 2 triathlons outright, several 2nd and 3rd place awards, and numerous age group awards.


This is 20 years of experience of ultraendurance here and I am not done yet. Next year will be an interesting year in terms of what I'll be doing. I'll be posting that schedule soon when I confirm the races within it.

An Intro to Myself

OK, so you found me amongst the millions of blogs out there somehow. Maybe through Twitter or Facebook, or maybe even a general search and you have a couple of questions about my website. Who am I and what makes me think this blog will stand out above the others out there? Basically, what makes me so special?

First off, I am an enabler. This means I always have an attitude that nothing is impossible and will strive to work even outside my comfort zone to achieve the so-called "impossible". I strongly believe that a person who empowers himself is a person who is destined for greatness. On the other hand, if a person lets his fears and doubts place limits on him or herself, he or she will only live in obscurity and will never be successful.

The foundation for my self-empowerment has been through endurance events. If I can do what few others have done on this stage, then I can easily do that in all aspects of my life. This blog will focus on my ultra-endurance racing foundation and how you can break through your self-imposed limits to achieve greatness.

My second blog will show my decorated ultra-endurance history and what I might try to achieve in the future.

Until tomorrow, stay strong!