A three sport day

ugh.

Thanks to yesterday's cold and windy weather, I shuffled around my workouts so I could do the brick today. Unfortunately, it wasn't really that much warmer. And since I couldn't squeeze in a trip to the pool yesterday, I had to make today a three sporter.

The pool was EMPTY, which was totally awesome. I love not having to share a lane, especially on my long days. However, I will never understand why the Nat can't make the water just a little bit warmer. I definitely stand on the pool deck for a few extra minutes, dreading the coldness I am about to plunge into. Today's workout:

250 yds warm up
1800 yds main set
250 yds cool down

Main set took 29:50, meaning I am still maintaining a 1:40 pace for the 100s as the swims get longer. I'm pretty satisfied with that and I felt like i probably could have pushed myself a little harder today, but since I had been dreading the pool workout, and since I still had a brick ahead of me, I didn't push to exhaustion.

brick:
bike 1hr, 16 miles.
run 23 minutes.

The wind was okay...not great, but I was able to maintain speed most of the time. I also have gained back a lot of confidence staying in aero. I nearly hit a bunny rabbit who dashed out onto the bike path. Thankfully, I avoided him...and the lady that was riding slightly in front of me. I would have felt pretty dumb if I had caused both of us to crash, in order to avoid hitting a rabbit. silly rabbit.

The run felt terrible and I never really hit a groove until I was about three blocks from home. Around the 11 min mark, I almost started to cry. I mean, in 9 weeks, I have to put this all together, and finish 70.3 miles. I feel so far from ready right now I can't imagine how I'm going to get there.

And, I may be suffering from a little bit of overtraining. I'm dreading workout, frustrated with my performance and feel kind of down. Today, I even picked a fight with Dear Husband because he stayed at the lake later than he had said....even though it didn't affect me directly. Tomorrow is a day off--both physcially and mentally, as I am taking a day off of work too. I hope that Tuesday I return with a renewed enthusiasm that will push me through the next 9 weeks.

5/8 and 5/9

5/8/09: a Double.

Swim:
300 m warm up
6x50 m drill
3x200 m threshold, 45 s rest
6x50 m sprint, 20 s rest
6x50 m kick, 15 sec
300 m cool down

Note: i only did 4 50s of the kick set and 100 m of the cool down. Dear Husband showed up at the pool--and the worrier in me expected the worst. Turns out I just needed to sign some house contract papers and he wanted to get me to do it as soon as possible.

Bike: 1 hr, 30 min.
I plotted a route out to Sun Prairie, 24 miles RT. The ride was BORING, pretty flat, roads were really bumpy and the traffic was steady. So, I'm not sure I'll do that route again. Dear Husband and I enjoyed the warm weather, and he even commented that I am looking stronger on the bike! I did feel really strong on the bike for the first time in a while. We got home, stretched and then it down poured. I'm relieved it waited.

5/09:
Run: 9.2 miles, 1 hr, 22 min (again...the 9 minute pace!! argh.)
I was actually supposed to do a brick today, but the weather sucked here. Cold, windy and damp from rain all night, more or less the recipe for a miserable ride. So, I did a run today (much longer than what I am slated to do tomorrow) and went long so I could start to build my confidence for the 1/2 marathon in three weeks. I felt okay--and really any struggles I felt were toward the second half of the run when I was a little dehydrated. I think I need to start wearing the hydration belt again for runs over 1 hr. I had hoped a GU would be enough...but I wasn't so lucky. I definitely felt a little a little crampy by the end. I think I'll shoot for 11.5 miles next weekend so I'll nearly have run the mileage of the race. I should be fine...since my cardiovascular health is good....but, I'd sure love to come in under 1:55 (last year's time).

the long journey

It's been 10 weeks since my last post...and much has happened! A brief synopsis:

1. I decided to stop blogging because I was boring even myself! Training, training, training.... But now, I kind of what to record (even if it is just for me) the training process...so if at any time I think that a FULL Ironman is a good idea, I'll be able to look back and remind myself why it is a BAD idea!

2. Dear Husband got a faculty job, and the university put together a part time position for me. His position is great and he's super excited about it. My position is a little murky, but has a lot of potential.

3. We bought a house...which is totally crazy. it's an older house and needs a little bit of work--mostly cosmetic: things like removing wall paper from every single wall in the house, removing nasty old carpet (to reveal beautiful hardwood floors) and regrading the backyard. The mortage process is crazy. Just yesterday, we had the appraisal come back. Bad news was the house appraised at 150K....which is 30K less than our mortgage. Good news is that the seller's dropped the price to 150K!!! holy crap.

4. We've nearly figured out the moving details: when we're moving, how we're doing it, etc.

5. Training is going okay. I am exhausted most days and feel discouraged at how slowly my run times are, even when I feel like I am going fast! argh. But, I suppose it will all come together on race day. I've got ten more weeks till the race--and I am only in week 2 of the big, 6 week build phase. I also think I am going to increase some of my run mileage to build my confidence. My goal time is still 6.5 hours. I think it's possible...but really, I think that finishing will be pretty awesome. I'm also looking forward to being back in upstate NY and drinking a little wine. Since the race is only three weeks after our 3rd anniversary, and the bike course goes by the Buttonwood Grove (where we got married), I particularly excited.

In a nutshell, that's what's up. And for good measure:
Workout, 5/7/09: 45 minute run, 5 miles. 6x20 s sprints with 40 s active recovery. The run was a struggle. I was tired and not well hydrated. The first mile I struggled to catch my breath (sign of overtraining?) but by the 3rd mile felt okay.