Start Time: 8:51
The swim: I have been taking my swim for granted. When it comes time to train and if I have to miss a day because of scheduling problems, I always make it a swim for two reasons. 1) That is where my background is, and has always been my strength. 2) The swim counts for the smallest portion of race day. I have stayed in the pool, but definitely not as much as I should. Yesterday was a mile long swim, and I have to say, I was quite pleased with how it went. I kept thinking of my high school coach, focusing on my stroke and making it look as pretty as I could, and keeping myself as efficient as possible, thanks Coach Kristyn! Over a couple lanes was someone just a hair faster than I wanted to go. That motivation kept my head in the game. 1750 yards later (70 lengths), I popped out of the pool and hurried into the locker room.
Finish Time: 9:18 (swim time 27 minutes)
Transition Time: Technically only took me 10 minutes to get changed (not a very realistic transition since I had to change out of my suit, dry off, change and get out to my car) but all the same. On top of that, I then had to drive home and get on the bike. So not a perfect representation of a race, but close enough for what I needed to do.
End of T1: 9:45 (27 minute transition)
Bike: This part always amazes me. I am not a biker. I repeat, I am not a biker. I only started biking when I started Tri-ing 2 years ago. With this in mind, I am so happy with where my bike is at. I settled in, alternated resistances and positions on the bike, I kept my elbows bent and my neck relaxed. I jammed to a variety of music while Timmy watched the Olympics, only a short way into my ride, the USA Hockey game started, and while frustrating, it was nice to watch while I rode and ran. Before I knew it, my 24 mile ride was over.
End of Bike: 11:01 (1:19 hour ride- 18.2 mph)
Transition Time: This is also not a terribly accurate for a race as my trainer stands next to the treadmill, and all I had to do was put my shoes on and turn the treadmill on and get it up to speed.
End of T2: 11:02 (1 minute)
Run: Until I started heart rate training, this was a survival. Whatever I had left went into the run. Instead, by keeping my heartrate on the high side of Z2 and the low side of Z3 during the bike, I had plenty left for the run. I put myself on a run/walk cycle to keep my heartrate down. I ran for 8 minutes, walked for 2. And every time I got to the run, I went a little faster than the time before. In the last ten minutes, I gradually increased my pace with every 30 seconds that went by, enabling myself to sprint to the end. Good feeling!
End of Run : 12:15 (1:13 hour run 11:45 minute miles) Not too bad for run/walking
Total Time: 3:24
Overall was very happy with how the workout went. I slid my compression sleeves on (albeit sideways- thanks for pointing that out Carly :)) and went about my day. I felt wonderful the rest of the day. I love a good workout!
Today was all about the girls. A quick stretch and run this morning to get myself moving. Then off to one hell of a brunch! I ate well- kept it relatively healthy, and well, lets just say I jumpstarted my metabolism for the week. The good news is that I am sure we burned a few calories by laughing so hard :). Thank you ladies for that.
I ran errands and was productive for the balance of my day. By the time I made it home, brunch had well settled, and I was hydrated. It was time for my real workout. Onto the bike I went.
This was the first back to back workout I have done. I usually try to do different workouts in consecutive days, swim one day, run the next, bike the next, even on double workout days, I try not to repeat too soon. This was the first time that I did a bike followed by another bike. It made for a great workout, and a great time. I was able to build on my strength from yesterday and pump out an hour long ride, covering 20.5 miles. Very happy. How well the trainer simulates road speed, I don't really know. But for now, I'm feeling pretty good about where my training and heart rate is at.
I had a special kind of motivation tonight as I thought back on my day. Brunch with my lovely ladies reminded me of who I truly am underneath it all, and was incredibly inspiring. One incredible woman who balances everything, while putting herself on the back burner. I truly don't know how she does it, and now she is adding 5k's to her schedule! Can't wait to have our running dates! My other girlfriend is a rockstar, working on building a house, raises money to beat down cancer, and trains for a 200 mile ride this summer. My butt hurts just thinking about it. Consider donating to her cause, because lets be honest, cancer sucks! http://www2.pmc.org/profile/CS0302
On top of this, two like-minded crazies are keeping my motivation running by finding a 70.3 that (HOLY COW) actually fits all of our schedules! Maine Rev3 here we come. This is such an incredibly friendly and supportive sport, it doesn't matter if you don't know anyone there, you have plenty of support along the course. But I have to say, I look forward to tackling a course with these gals, and can't wait to see all of us succeed in meeting our dreams.
Also keeping my butt in the saddle is my weekly email from St. Jude. They highlight a patient or family who has reaped the benefits of this incredible organization. This week, among several stories, Auston's touched my heart. St. Jude, like many hospitals, has therapy dogs. Auston who has a form of brain tumor called medulloblastoma, had to leave the family dog behind when he went to St. Jude to undergo treatment. Now, because of their therapy dogs program, Auston and other children are able to seek the loving comfort of the pups. (Now you know this tugged hard on my heartstrings.) This boost in morale is yet another reason why I am racing for St. Jude. If you can, I would be so appreciative of your donation. http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/krisironmantexas
I have learned so much about myself because of this sport, and because of those around me. Thank you all, I cannot say enough good things about you! :)
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