Progress Report

I almost wrote TPS Report.

So.....yeah. This week has not turned out the way I'd hoped. The simple fact is that I have been e.x.h.a.u.s.t.e.d. Normally I am humming with energy, even on tired days, and always look forward to a good workout. This week I have barely been able to get through the day *without* exercise. Attempting exercise just deepens the hole of fatigue.

As a result, I have taken a great deal of rest this week in the hopes that, by doing so now, I would be raring to go on race day (next weekend). I'm still hoping that will be the case.

I feel like I'm back in school and dreading taking a test I haven't prepared for. I'm just trying to have faith that the training I've done up to this point will get me through the distance and that speed will happen via race day adrenaline and pure gritty will (An elite amateur triathlete whose blog I like to follow said you have to be sort of gritty to cross the finish line of a triathlon.).






















We'll see.

In the meantime, here's how this week has shaped up:

Tuesday - I didn't go to swim practice either. Nope, no exercise. It was a busy day and by the time I got home it was all I could do to collapse on the couch. D was lucky to get dinner.

Wednesday - 30 min. weights, 2 mile slow run. I got through the weights pretty well, although a bit more slowly than usual. The run was pretty torturous in that I simply didn't have the drive to put one foot in front of the other for two whole miles. I did eventually get through them.

Thursday - No exercise. Very long, very busy day after which I again just wanted to collapse.

Friday - Finally woke up feeling more like my normally upbeat self. Got through the day well enough. Planned to try out my new trainer tonight so I skipped weights to give my joints a break. However, it's late and I'm worn to the bone. Grant is set up; I'll try to take him for a spin tomorrow morning before the wedding. At least my legs don't ache anymore - that is the one good thing about all of this rest!

Saturday - Tomorrow is another wedding. It's the last one of the year so let's take it out with a bang (in the form of sparklers)!

Sunday - JDRF's Walk To Cure Diabetes. This is my second year working behind the scenes and I love it.

Tuesday

Monday - My legs were fairly sore from Sunday's run so I took it easy and just did 30 min. lifting at the gym. I got lightheaded while working out even though I'd eaten a cup of yogurt + almond butter + farmer's market granola + flax seeds + banana beforehand (and had steadily snacked before that). I think my body was still recovering from the six miles on Sunday (my longest so far) and needed more fuel than usual.

Tuesday - My left thigh has been slightly achy around the IT band off and on for a few weeks so I've been keeping an eye on it. It's still a tad sore today and my back is also sort of achy so I'm going to push my easy 2 miler to tomorrow.

Probably being overly cautious but the last thing I want to do is ignore pre-injury signs and then get an injury right before my last two races of the season. I'm going to err on the side of too much rest over the next few weeks and will probably need to relax my race performance expectations. It's all good, though.

However, I'm still hitting up swim practice tonight!

Thursday - Rest day

Friday - 30 min. lifting, 1 mile run. Decided to save my 6 miles for Sunday and just did a quick mile to burn some energy.

Saturday - 13 hour day working a wedding, about 11 hours of it on my feet vs. sitting & driving

Sunday - easy 6 miles with a 1 min. walk break after reach mile. Building that base!

Mile 1 - 10:22
Mile 2 - 10:31
Mile 3 - 10:49
Mile 4 - 11:05
Mile 5 - 10:51
Mile 6 - 10:39
Avg. pace - 10:43, 4 seconds off goal pace of 10:47

Plugging along

Monday's 2 mile run after 30 min. lifting went fabulously.

Tuesday's 2750 yard swim went pretty well:

Warm-up
400 swim
2 * 200 on 3:10, kick/swim/drill/swim by 50

Main Set
2 * 300 pull on 4:10 - arms felt really good and solid
4 * 200 on 2:45, descend 1-4 - No descending on my part. Basically just worked my ass off to keep up.
6 * 100 on 1:25 hold all at moderate-fast pace

Cool Down
200 easy - I did 100.

Total: 3,000 yards....I miscounted once, sat out a couple of 50's, and only did 100 cool down to get to the meeting afterward in time so my overall distance was 2,750 yards.

I paced with M in the next lane over. She is a grad student and former swimmer for William & Mary. She's currently a member of our tri club and coaches the swim practices. She has a relaxed stroke, lightning flip turns, and a really good underwater pushoff every time. I managed to more or less keep up on most of the sets but took a couple of breathers to recharge and get back in the game. She complimented me several times on my pace so that felt good. I've never been a huge fan of freestyle and it's never been my strongest stroke relatively speaking (although given how infrequently I do the other strokes now maybe it is at the moment) but I'm working it out. I'm sure it would also help if I swam more than once a week!

Wednesday - My 10K plan says I was supposed to do a five mile tempo run last Wed. and a speedwork session this Wed. Because I skipped my main two runs last week due to back issues, I decided to be good to my legs and ease back in this week. Therefore, I skipped speedwork and instead did five easy miles yesterday. Four miles before it got dark and one mile after 30 min. strength-training on the indoor track. My legs were generally achy during and afterward, but after a solid sleep last night I am feeling fab today.

Thursday - I had originally planned to swim tonight as they're removing the lane lines to simulate an OWS, but I think I'm going to give my body a break and take the day off from exercise. I've got 6 miles and lifting to do tomorrow, a 12+ hour day on my feet at a wedding on Saturday, plus a bunch lined up for next week, so tonight I'm going to meet up with the girls for dinner and call it a day.

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Update on my bike trainer - The CycleOps Mag trainer from Craigslist didn't work out, but I found an even better deal on a Kurt Kinetic trainer that a friend of mine is picking up for me tomorrow. I should get it mid next week. I'm excited as this brand is supposed to be top quality/performance and I'm getting it at a fantastic price. This time next week I should be all set up and hopefully cranking out the miles!

Three Weeks Out

I'm three weeks out from my second triathlon. Yay! Tentative schedule for this week barring sore body parts:

Monday - 30 min. weights, 2 mile easy run

Tuesday - 2500-3000 yard swim practice

Wednesday - 5 mile run (either easy or tempo), 30 min. weights

Thursday - probably rest as it's Girls' Night

Friday - 30 min. weights, easy 6 mile run

Saturday - wedding, on my feet for 12+ hours

Sunday - rest or easy bike ride; quick run-through of transitions at home


The weather for this tri will probably be remarkably cooler than the last one. Need to look into this and figure out what to wear.

I was looking at the girls in my age group signed up for this tri and some of them are FAST. Holy crap. Like regional leaders fast. I think my original "realistic" goal of placing in the top 15 of my age group is still reasonable. My "preferred" goal of placing in the top 7 of my age group is probably a little unreasonable. I will be happy to get top 10. My "holy crap" goal of top 3 is still that - holy crap and highly unlikely. But it's all good. It should be a cool experience to meet such fast girls and see how they race.

Garage, meet Dining Room Table.

I bought a gently used bike trainer on Craigslist. It's a CycleOps Mag Trainer plus climbing riser block and training DVD. I haven't gotten it yet but I'm excited about using it and building quads of steel.















Because I live in a small townhouse, my lovely dining room table, which I never use, will be relocating to the garage. That way I can do my riding in view of the TV and annoy D while he's playing video games. Home decor takes one for the team.

I really wanted a Kurt Kinetic Road Machine but those things are crazy! pricey so this will do for now. Maybe it'll be an option one day once I've proven to be a dedicated little triathlete.

It's been 4.5 days since I last exercised (with the exception of some WWS - walking while shopping) due to my back. I've handled it pretty well aside from eating a lot of pizza and dessert. The back is feeling much better now although my right leg still feels a bit off. We'll see how it does tomorrow. I'm not really sure how to ease back into my running training plan after missing one tempo run and one long run? I guess I'll try an easy 2 miles tomorrow and upper body weights at the gym and go from there. Tuesday will be swimming, which shouldn't be a problem.

Swim Workout

Great-looking swim workout from Team Whimsy:


"From USMS Swimmer Magazine, September/October Vol. 5, No. 5

Warm-up
500 Free breathe every 3/5 by 5, long push-offs on each turn
200 kick- no board streamline (50 on your side/50 on your back, repeat)
100 drill of choice

IM Set
1x300 IM
4x50 fly 1:05 swim strong with relaxed face
1x200 IM
4x50 back 1:05
1x100 IM

Freestyle Set
4x (3 x100 Free) swim each round at the same pace- no breaks. Keep focus on the black line and relax your back and shoulders. The challenge is, as the interval decreases , to maintain the pace without starting too slow.

Round 1: 1:40
Round 2: 1:35
Round 3: 1:30
Round 4: 1:25

Easy 100 Free

Hypoxic Set
12 Doughboy 25s-no breath- with 20 seconds rest. Breath control with relaxation. (The Yogis say fall down seven times, get up 8, so if you need to take a breath just start again)

4x50s easy"

Checking in

I wasn't on fire last night at swim practice. Maybe that's what I get for not having swum in two weeks. I had some really nice, fluid moments but I also found myself fighting against the current for a lot of it. It's been a while since I shared a lane with more than four people or so and we were all going at a good clip and sloshing up the pool. It was a struggle to keep up and I even had some muscle fatigue. Kind of weird since I didn't have that at the last practice, which was harder. Oh well, it happens!

Warm-up
100 free
200 - 50 kick, 50 swim, 50 kick, 50 swim
150 free pull

Main Sets
2 * 100 free working on stroke count - I can't remember ever doing stroke counts in 12 years of swimming (maybe once or twice many years ago?) so I was surprised to learn something new! My comfortable stroke per length count was about 17-18. If I really stretched it out I was at 15-16.
2 * 150 working on stroke count - I was able to reduce stroke count on each 50 of the first 150 but struggled to stretch out enough while maintaining speed to reduce on the second 150. I've always had a slightly fast turnover.

2 * 200 free
5 * 150 free, last 50 easy....I sat out a 50
4 * 75 - 25 drill, 25 swim, 25 sprint

Cool Down
150 swim

Total swum: 2500 yards
Total comments on my suit: 2

Gotta say, the cut of the sushi suit leaves a bit to be desired. In the future I will stick with Dolfin Uglies as I find the cut to be generous and comfortable. This ClubSwim suit goes a bit high on the legs in the front and definitely shows some butt in the back. It also comes a bit low in the chest (not a huge issue for me as I don't have a lot there) and cuts in on the chest sides as well. The lower back cut is very flattering and the straps are comfortable but I did find myself pulling and tugging on the rest of the suit.

...

This morning I went to the gym for 30 min. strength training. I don't think I'm a morning weights person. I can do morning cardio and perform acceptably and feel good afterward but I felt like I lacked strength this morning. Evenings seem to be my ideal lifting period. I've had time to build up glycogen stores throughout the day and at that point I'm looking to seriously decompress after work. Lesson learned!

I also had my body fat % measured this morning. I do that every once in a while to basically make sure I'm not eating too much chocolate along with my veggies. I was down quite a bit in the three different areas measured (upper arm, abs, thigh), especially abs. In May I was measured at 23%. Today I was down to about 20.5%. Wow! I weigh the same as I did then and simply didn't expect such a drastic change. Must be all of my swimbikerun. I am officially (barely) in athletic range. W00t! I am happy at my current weight and I really don't work out to lose fat anymore (although additional firming up and muscle definition is always welcome and is basically the result of lost fat). However, it is a nice side effect of my efforts. :)

Looking forward to my tempo run tonight!

Tuesday Bruiseday

I just liked the way that sounds. I don't actually plan to cruise for a bruise today. That's tomorrow. Tonight's workout will be swim practice with the always-entertaining tri team followed by a meeting during which the coordinator has promised to make himself look awkward. Fun will be had by all!

Yesterday - 30 min. weights, easy 2 mile run, once again having trouble staying on pace:

Mile 1 - 10:03
Mile 2 - 10:51
Avg: 10:27, 20 seconds off goal pace of 10:47.

Avg. heart rate was perfectly consistent, though - 153 BPM. I like how my 150 bpm HR puts me at a 10-something pace while the pros can maintain a 150 HR and win an Ironman. :)

Today - 1 hr. swim practice feeling delicious in my sushi suit

Tomorrow - 30 min. heavy lower body weights, 5 mile tempo run...aka it's leg-killin' time

Thursday - Rest


...


I leave you with a haiku:

itchy red spot --
it appears mosquitoes like
evening bike rides too


...

Hello, hello.

Training for the last week and a half (note: all runs include a 1 min. walk break after each mile):

Friday, 9/4 - 30 min. strength training

Saturday, 9/5 - easy 4 mile run... Not going to lie, this was rough. I did a poor job of hydrating/fueling beforehand, didn't bring anything with me, and went out during the heat of the day so by the time I was done, I felt light-headed and kind of sick. Went home and slowly rehydrated and ate. I kept a 10:46 avg. pace, right around the 10:53 my plan called for.

Splits:
Mile 1 - 10:21
Mile 2 - 10:53
Mile 3 - 10:50
Mile 4 - 10:59

Sunday, 9/6 - Rest

Monday, 9/7 - easy 2 mile run in the morning, 30 min. strength training

Mile 1 - 10:11
Mile 2 - 10:55
Avg. pace - 10:33

Tuesday, 9/8 - Rest - The plan was to join up with the local tri team for swim practice but that afternoon I suddenly started feeling really nauseous, headachey, dehydrated, tired. So I skipped and took a nap. I'm thinking it may have been exhaustion even though I don't feel like my workouts are enough to wear me out so much. Bodies have a funny way of communicating with you.

Wednesday, 9/9 - 3 mile easy run in the morning (I needed the endorphins to get me through a lunchtime dentist appointment!), 30 min. strength training

Mile 1 - 10:21
Mile 2 - 1o:55
Mile 3 - 10:53
Avg. pace - 10:43

Thursday, 9/10 - Rest - Met with my event planning partner and a bride with an upcoming wedding to go over last-minute details. No time to work out. After Tuesday's episode, I decided extra rest this week was probably a good thing. I'm all for HTFU and was a card-carrying member as a teenage athlete but I'm trying to break that mindset now. I keep reading articles and books that emphasize a healthy balance of rest and easy training along with hard workouts in order to maximize results so I'm trying it out.

Friday, 9/11 - 30 min. strength training, 10 miles on the stationary bike. I've been feeling bad about how much I'm neglecting my bike. It was dark out so that's better than nothing, right? Holy crap, talk about sore sit bones.

Saturday, 9/12 -easy 5 mile run. This time I was sufficiently fueled and waited until the early evening to do my run so the weather was just perfect for running. I felt so good that I had a hard time holding back to keep the 10:53 pace my plan calls for. I felt like I could have gone a lot faster. I know it's important to build my aerobic fitness but I'm pumped that next week marks the beginning of faster paced runs!

Nutrition: I ate normally beforehand and had a GU (carbs) immediately afterward, then some sips of Powerade (carbs) when I got home followed by a meal replacement shake (some carbs, lot of protein). I was trying to reach a 2:1 ratio of carbs to proteins for post-workout recovery fuel. I'm out of my favorite powdered recovery shake but have reordered and it's on the way.

Mile 1 - 10:33
Mile 2 - 9:58
Mile 3 - 10:50
Mile 4 - 10:33
Mile 5 - 11:01
Avg. pace - 10:35

Sunday, 9/13 - 15.5 miles biked trying to keep an aerobic HR so my avg. speed was pretty low. Nutrition: low sugar granola bar & water during the ride as I felt my blood sugar dipping, then a mixture of carbs and protein via whatever I had on hand at home.

...

On an equipment front, my new sushi swimsuit arrived and it's pretty sweet. I can tell the quality of the suit (ClubSwim - mostly nylon) is a bit lower than the Dolfin Uglies suit I have, which is mostly polyester. However, for a super fun $21 practice suit, it's totally worth it! I can't wait to wear it this week.

My Xterra sale wetsuit also arrived and I really like it. I'm a little concerned about the neck tightness but I keep hearing that all wetsuits are like that and that it will ease up a bit in the water. I need to test this. In the meantime, I feel like a plastic superhero!






























...

In biking news, I'm struggling a bit. Reasons:

- I am scared of cars.
- I suck at changing gears although I'm a little better after the short tutorial my friend gave me.
- I am not very fast - I don't think I have adequate leg power.
- I don't know what I don't know and I don't have anyone around on a regular basis to guide me. Most of my cycling friends are either WAY above me or have completely packed schedules.

Basically, I have no confidence in myself because I feel sort of like I'm floundering. I *hate* this feeling so I dread riding my bike. It shouldn't be that way.

I talked to D about it and came up with a couple of temporary solutions:

- I am going to buy a bike trainer for the winter. The #1 thing that stands in my way between riding and not riding is my fear of cars. The #2 thing is daylight/weather. I will be much more likely to ride my bike if I remove these two hurdles. I'm going to try to find a good used one.
- I will try to start attending one or two spinning classes per week at the gym after my races are over.
- I may hire a temporary cycling coach to give me some pointers and feedback on where I'm doing well and where I'm falling short.

As I get stronger and more comfortable on my bike, my confidence should increase. As my confidence grows, I will probably be more likely to seek out group rides and road riding again. I know a trainer is not a perfect substitute for road riding but, seriously, right now I think this is the best way to get me on the bike more often.

I realized today that the way I feel about biking is probably similar to how a lot of triathletes feel about swimming. I read about their struggles and breakdowns and fears and constant working, working, working to improve. This is how I feel about the bike right now. I am afraid I won't conquer it enough to get me to where I want to be.

However, on a positive note, my running is coming along really well. That 5 mile run I did yesterday was the farthest I've gone in 10 years. How about that! :) My fitness and breathing felt so good yesterday. I'm becoming better acquainted with the subtle signals my body gives when my HR reaches the high 160's. I'm learning how to tackle hills. The best part? My knees continue to feel awesome! I get a little bit of achiness in the last mile of these long Saturday runs but once I finish and walk they're fine. I keep hearing my physical therapist's words, "As long as the pain is at a 4 or less, go ahead and keep doing what you're doing." I'd say the pain is a 1, maybe a 2 max in that last half mile. I stretch and ice afterward and they're golden. LOVES IT!

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On the racing front, I have officially signed up for the Richmond Sprint Tri. W00t! Can't wait. I finally bit the bullet after attempting to sign up for the Marine Corps Marathon 10K on Friday only to be denied. AGH. I was soo disappointed because I'd decided that would be the perfect venue for my first 10K. I'd been on the site the day before and it was open. Anyway, that lit the fire under me and I immediately got my spot at the tri before that sold out, too.

Crossing my fingers that a spot in the MCM 10K will open up soon. I would really, really like to run it. Otherwise I'll have to find another 10K that weekend.

...

I'm leaving you with this pretty souvenir from my 11 mile ride last week. Eat it up, roadies!

Exercisin'

Sunday - 14 mile bike ride. I was not feeling it at all so the ride was long, hard, and weary. My average speed was sad.

Monday - 2 miles easy run in the morning, 30 min. weights in the evening

Tuesday - 2900 yards swimming - first practice of the year with the tri club and it was awesome! Love the pool we have access to, so nice. Followed that up with a tri club meeting and ice cream eating contest (although I had to leave before it ended).

300 warm-up
2 * 300...150 pull, 50 kick, 50 swim, 25 under water, 25 build
2 * 300 at a 1:30ish pace...I think we miscounted and only did 550
5 * 200 even speed at about 2:00
4 * 100 on 1:30....fast, slow, fast, slow
50 cool down, had to get to the meeting afterward

Total: 2900 yards, about an hour

Wednesday - Did my first ride ever with someone else and it was SO much better than riding alone. Holy crap. I learned so much more in less than an hour of riding with my friend than I have in weeks of riding on my own. Plus, we went faster. 11 miles total. Also 30 min. weights at the gym.

Thursday - 3 miles easy run on the track with D

I am sold on group rides now. It was so much easier and less scary to crank out a ride with someone else than it is alone.

...

People aren't kidding when they say triathlon is an expensive sport. I realize I don't *need* a lot of these toys but most of them really do help. And apparently roadies find it very important to look good even if you don't "ride good."

Current wish list:
clipless pedals & shoes
bike trainer
wetsuit (in process, still waiting to get the right size and 100% convince myself I'll use it)
bike jersey
running/biking tights for cold weather
compression socks
tri suit
sweatproof/shatterproof/slipproof sunglasses for riding and running
bike rack for car
bike stand for home

Ramping back up.

Over the last couple of weeks since my last two races I have been doing a much lower volume of training. I don't think of it as slacking necessarily because I think it was partially needed for the sake of continuing to heal. I also think it was good to revisit what I used to do before I started training. I realize in the realm of race training I am an extreme n00b but what they say is true for anyone preparing for a race. It becomes your life to a degree.

Well, I'm back and ready for more. I already mentioned that I have a 10k in mind for late October. Now I've got a sprint tri in mind for mid-October two weeks before the 10k. I'm comfortable with the swim (400 m. in a 50-meter pool - hallelujah for no 16-length snake swim) and the run (5k). I just need to work on my bike (20k).

This week's workout continued:

Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - 30 min. weights, 1.5 mile easy run
Thursday - rest
Friday - 30 min. weights, 6 mile bike
Saturday - 2 mile easy run

Really simple like I said, although I have been slowly increasing my weekly run distance over the last few weeks so that's something.

One thing I'm finding really difficult these days is locating training partners. Sure, I've been getting in on the tri club thing but they're all college students. That means they do a lot of their training during my work hours. I've missed probably five group rides in the last week and a half for this reason alone. I tried to meet up with some of them today and that didn't work out either.

My other friends are all in different places and on different schedules as well. I can handle running alone and sort of solve the swimming issue through attending coached practices, but biking alone is becoming a problem for me. I NEED a mentor, someone to show me what I'm doing right or wrong. I've been biking 100% alone since the beginning several months ago and at this point I feel like I've improved about as much as I can on my own. I need to learn from others now. However, for one reason or another I can't seem to find anyone to join up with who I won't slow down to a horrible degree. So I'm off for another lone bike ride tomorrow morning. It will be pretty and I'll enjoy the alone time but ultimately I'll wish I had a buddy.

Workouts

Saturday: The open water swim didn't happen. It rained that morning so when I showed up to the meeting point, only one other person showed - the guy who organized it. He was running a fever and had an ironman in a week so we agreed that the best thing was for him to go back to bed. I'd do an OWS another time. Instead, I ran an easy 2 miles and called it a day.

Sunday: I was planning to do a long bike ride but I'd been reading a Jeff Galloway book in which he repeatedly recommends lots of rest, building slowly, etc., so I decided to take a rest day instead.

Monday: The tri club I've been hoping to join met for their first group recovery run of the season yesterday morning so I tagged along. Recovery run my ass! I spent much of the 4.5 miles at (my) race pace. My knees and hips were not impressed but at least now I know I can do a 5k at around 26:30. Also did 30 min. upper body weights in the evening.

Tuesday: Rest day or easy bike ride to help my legs recover from Monday's run.

This week's workouts

I've been trying to decide all week what my next step will be in terms of racing. In the meantime, here is what I've done this week:

Monday - 30 min. weights, 2 mile run
Tuesday - Rest
Wednesday - 3 mile bike (wanted to do more but ran out of time), 30 min. weights
Thursday - 3 miles track speedwork and 750 yds. swim with some friends. I also bought my first wetsuit. W00t! Thank you, Xterra sale.
Friday - Today will be 30 min. weights and something. Not sure what.

This weekend I'm hoping to do a long bike ride, get some boxing in, and I just got an email invite from the local college tri club for an OWS tomorrow morning. I am seriously considering joining them for the first time. I also need to clean my house and get some quality husband time in this weekend.

Four Days Out

I did W4D2 of the C25K program on Monday - yes, the day after my 11.6 mile bike and 2 mile run. If you'd told me to do that two months ago with the state my knees were in I would have laughed and cried. But this week I did it. And it didn't hurt even though I forgot to ice afterward. And it still doesn't hurt. I really am healing.

Yesterday was a 2300 yd. swim practice. I did a 100 Tarzan drill, an oldie but goodie, and I am totally feeling it in my neck today.

Today is a rest day and a going away BBQ for one of our good friends who is moving but shouldn't be >:-O !

My Garmin was supposed to arrive on Monday but it arrived yesterday instead. Yay! I used it in today's workout. Since I was well-rested and feeling good, I did a bike/run brick instead of just a bike.

Bike: 11.65 miles
T2
Run: 2.04 miles

My bike pace was pretty bad due to lots of slowing and stops for pedestrians and cars, but I made it through a 20% grade climb that got me last week so that was a plus. Did fine without bike shorts and gloves, but was too chicken to try moving dismounts. The full stop & dismount will have to do for this race.

T2- 1:14, included loading my bike into my car

My run went really well. I didn't feel the need to stop for my knees and my pace was 9:44/mi. including walk breaks with a peak speed in the low 7's/mi. I was trying to restrain myself and go pretty easy. I drafted off another jogger for the second half of the first mile and that was nice.

I think I'm going to skip lifting this week and focus on moderate cardio. Picked up a race belt yesterday and also replaced my sketchy helmet after hearing about a triathlete who was clipped by a car this week and had his helmet to thank for not being a lot worse off.


This week's plan:

Monday: W4D2 C25K plan or Rest
Tuesday: Easier swim practice, W4D2 C25K plan or easy bike
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: Easy bike 15 min., easy run 15 min.
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Light bike & walk of the course
Sunday: Race Day

One Week Out

One week out. Mentally I'm ready and excited. :) Physically I'm most unsure about the run at this point. I'm ready for the swim. With the bike I don't really know what I don't know so I'll do my best and get through it. I have a small past in running from a couple of years in high school track and general running in sports but haven't done much in a while and not a lot for this race due to my knees. I'm up to W4D1 of the C25K plan. It's going as well as it can for someone running slowly and comfortably. Just don't know how I'll pace against people who are probably strong in the run. I know, it's my first tri so I shouldn't worry about it but I'm just treating this like any other competition where I hope to do well.

Anyway, it should be fun. Looking forward to meeting new people, getting my splits, and having something to work with for future training (in what, who knows).

After several failed attempts at finding a suitable, cheaper alternative to a Garmin, I finally bit the bullet and ordered a 305 this week. It should arrive on Monday. It won't be much help for this race but oh well. :)

Tomorrow I'm co-coordinating a wedding so I'll be on my feet all day. Sunday I still plan to do my long bike ride. I'll take it easy. Just want to get some distance in there and practice riding without padded bike shorts or gloves and work on moving dismounts.

This week's workouts were pretty close to plan:

Monday: 2400 yd. swim
Tuesday: W3D3 C25K run with girlfriend
Wednesday: 30 min. weights, 2 mile bike, 1 mile run.....intended to do 4-5 miles of bike sprints but it started pouring so I put my bike away and did a quick run/walk in the rain
Thursday: Rest
Friday: 30 min. weights, W4D1 C25K run (approx. 2 miles not including WU/CD)
Saturday: Wedding tomorrow, tons of walking
Sunday: Long, easy bike ride planned


Reminder to self: Get a race belt unless they're providing one?

Two Weeks Out

Last week's exercise ended up being close to plan:

Sun: Rest
Mon: 2200 yard swim at Masters practice followed by approx. 1.5 mile hard run
Tues: Rest
Wed: 30 min. full body weights, 30 min. bike sprints (approx. 4 miles)
Thurs: Rest - Girls' Night, w00t
Fri: 30 min. full body weights
Sat: 600 swim, T1, 12 mile bike, T2, 2 mile run/walk
Sunday: Rest

The mock tri on Saturday went really well despite some serious hills on the bike. My run felt fantastic, especially after a walk break early on. Loving the elastic laces. Need to work on speed and play with nutrition a bit but otherwise I feel good for the race.

This week's plan:

Monday: 2400 yard swim, fast sets at practice
Tuesday: C25K run/walk
Wednesday: 30 min. full body weights, 30 min. bike sprints
Thursday: Rest or C25K run/walk
Friday: 30 min. full body weights
Saturday: Rest (Doing a wedding)
Sunday: Long bike ride

Three Weeks Out

I'm three weeks out from the race. I sent in my check and registration last week. I've practiced T1 and T2 in my head a couple of times so while I haven't done it physically, I have a better idea of what I will and won't need. I bought elastic laces on Friday and laced myself up today so I will practice biking and running in these over the next couple of weeks.

My tentative exercise plan for this next week is below. My knees are feeling 90% good but I want them feeling 100% good before I work them hard this week. Therefore, I'm starting off with a swim or bike:

Saturday (yesterday) - Rest

Sunday (today) - Rest

Monday - I'll either do a bike ride or the advanced swim practice avoiding extensive breaststroke for a hard but low-impact workout. If knees are feeling good, I will do a timed fast 2 mile run afterward to get an idea of where I stand pace-wise (walking for 30 seconds every 3 or 5 minutes if necessary). It should also simulate running at the end of a hard race. If the knees are not feeling excellent, skip run.

Tuesday - Fast 2 mile run (walking for 30 sec. every 3 or 5 minutes if necessary) if I didn't run Monday. Otherwise rest.

Wednesday - Whole-body weights followed by intervals on bike.

Thursday - C25K run/walk easy pace. If knees are feeling good, do speed intervals instead. It's Girls' Night, though, so I may end up taking this evening off. If so, push run to Friday.

Friday - Whole-body weights, run if I didn't run Thursday.

Saturday - Simulated race using equipment I plan to use race day. Emphasis will be on the bike ride - Brief swim, T1, 10-14 mile bike ride, T2, brief run. Practice using sports drink on the bike. Also practice changing a flat tire after the ride in case I screw something up.

Sunday - Rest


Equipment-wise, I don't think I will need anything for the race other than what I have now. I will wear a swim suit underneath everything. I'll add shorts and a tank top during T1. I'll wear sunglasses for the bike but not for the run. May add a hat for the run. I'd ideally like to use only sports drinks during the bike so I won't have to deal with packaging, digestion, or getting nutrition during T2. I should have something available at T2, though, just in case I don't use the drink on the bike. I'm pretty sure I will need some sort of fuel between the bike and run.

T1: Pull off goggles and cap, pat down dry including feet, shorts on, top on, socks on, shoes on, sunglasses on, helmet on, go.

T2: Rack bike, helmet off, sunglasses off, hat on?, nutrition?, go.

Exercise this week.

My exercise this week:

Monday: Biked 14 miles pushing it pretty hard in some spots.

Tuesday: Swim practice with J. 1 hr, approx. 1500 m.

Wednesday: Week 3, Day 2 of the C25K program outside, 30 min. weights

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Week 3, Day 3 inside track, 30 min. weights

Saturday & Sunday: Resting my knees.