MANAGING BUSINESS AND FITNESS vol. 4
A series of journal entries for non-professional triathletes seeking to compete at a high level while balancing the demands of being an entrepreneur.
written by Urmas Peiker
A “Snowbird” is a North American term for a person who moves from the higher latitudes and colder climates of the northern United States and Canada and migrates southward in winter to warmer locales. — Wikipedia
Tucson, Arizona
- Elevation: 728 meters
- Population: 530,000
As Estonians migrating to Arizona, we were the Arctic Tern of snowbirds. As we left Phoenix for Tuscon, it’s important to emphasize that Tucson can be hot in early September — Their average low temperature is above 19C! That’s scorching for us Estonians who are accustomed to an average temperature of +5C for the year. Because of this heat, I was constantly hydrating during my first week there and my weight went up because it was storing so much fluid.
Eventually setting up our base for the next few weeks near the US/Mexican border, we rented a nice two-bedroom house at a golf club. There was a 25-yard swimming pool (about 23 meters) with a simple gym nearby. Most of our swimming sessions and gym work took place there. For more elaborate strength training sessions, we used the University of Arizona’s recreation center in downtown Tucson.
In addition to having a tolerance for low temperatures, as an Estonian, I am accustomed to running on relatively flat surfaces. However, if you want to run on flat ground in Tucson, you’re out of luck. It’s either up or down. In addition, while trail running, watch out for snakes, scorpions, and spiders. These venomous critters didn’t get the memo on clearing the trail for the approaching runners and bikers.
Like any true American, the local wildlife in Arizona knew their rights and preferred to roam free. So, I recommend you use your eyes and ears (for headphones, turn down the volume). Paved roads tend to be safer and calmer, though the more volatile, mechanical wildlife roam there: cars and trucks.
However, on the bike, you can actually pass mountains and have some flat-ish sections for speed and interval training. When planning longer bike rides in the US near the Mexican border, always carry your Passport/ID as there are permanent border patrols on some roads. Additionally, the quality of rideable highways and paved roads in Tucson ranges from poor to worse. There are heat cracks everywhere, leading to a ride quality reminiscent of Soviet railways back in the 1980’s. So, I recommend you check your bike every few rides to spot loosened bolts. Safety first!
As previously mentioned, during this time I would be burning the candle at both ends. Arizona is a full ten hours behind Estonia! In order to stay on top of growing a business and manage this intense training, I would wake up at 4:00 a.m. every day for conference calls. By 5:30 a.m., I wrapped up calls then I or Marko would prepare breakfast. Typically, this meal would consist of oatmeal porridge with peanut butter and maple syrup, boiled or fried eggs with bacon, bagel with cheese, a small yoghurt, and tea or coffee. I am not a coffee drinker, but sometimes before long rides (and competitions), I force it down with a mixture of milk and coconut oil or butter.
Then by 6:00 a.m. we would begin our first bike ride or swim session. If swimming was the first sport then I would eat breakfast after this session and before the bike ride.
On most days, temperatures would rise past 40C by lunchtime!
Refuelling after our hard and hot morning training sessions would commonly include a light smoothie of frozen vegetables, berries, protein powder, almond milk, coconut water, and some juice. If we were still hungry, we’d add a banana, bagel, or yoghurt. Lunch was followed by a 30–40-minute nap. Marko was always able to sleep. Me, not so much. I typically used this time to read and respond to emails. Afternoon sessions started after 3:00 p.m. and by 6:00 p.m. we were done. Then of course dinner, more emails, and a cheap DVD from Walmart would conclude most of our evenings. By 9:00–10:00 p.m., I would be in bed.
Once we tried to cycle in the middle of the day. I repeat, once. This was one of the hardest things we did during camp and what Marko considers to be the most extreme training experience during his 20-year professional career. Temperatures reached 42C, and the Sun was burning your skin through your clothing. During this session, we had to make two additional pit stops to drink over three litres of soda (each!) to cool ourselves. But relief was temporary. Fifteen minutes later, thirst hit us again, even though our stomachs were already stretched to their limit. It was brutal!
During our third week in Arizona, I had to fly to Tokyo for a couple of days because of work. Fortunately, this cut the time difference with Estonia from 10 to 7 hours, except now I was ahead of Estonia. Flying between continents also leads to a swollen body and extends recovery time. Upon my return to Arizona four days later, my time travel led me to skip some core bike sessions.
This made my ride up Mount Lemon the day after my return from Tokyo, extremely difficult. After an hour I was spent but somehow I managed to pedal all the way up (well behind Marko). Coming down wasn’t much easier and in the end, my body had taken a proper beating. Fortunately, I was able to recover for our longest ride (200km), on the following day.
For my daily recovery routine, I would sit or lie down with my legs in Normatec compression boots. I first tried these in April while in Mallorca and I noticed that they really sped up my recovery time. They are expensive but unless you have access to a massage every other day, it’s an expense I can justify. There are also cheaper options like Air Relax which will do the job. We also had our friend, Helvis Trääder from Fysiopark join us and he is a professional masseuse (key!), physio, chef, driver, and a slew of other things.
See more photos and links to the other posts in this series below:
Previous editions:
If you want to learn from a professional like Marko, why not learn from him directly. He is actively training triathletes and shares information regularly online. You can follow or reach him on: Instagram, Facebook, or his website.
For the other professionals trying to balance their work and training schedule, I’d be interested to hear how and why you started competing?
Comment below or reach out via Twitter, LinkedIn, or train with me on Strava.
