Gainesville
With the long swim coming up Monday, I wanted to get a training day in before jumping right back in to Iron-distance training days. The Recovery week has a short bike and short swim scheduled for one of the days, so that looked like the perfect day to transition from rest into the final phase of real training. I felt better Sunday. Not 100 percent, but a lot better. And the weather has cooled off. A lot. So I actually had to bust out the long spandex.
Bike - 90 minutes
2 Lipodrene
As I said before, it was fucking cold Sunday. Maybe 70 degrees, which meant this was the first time I'd have to train in cold all cycle. And, after seeing the brutality of the wind on the PCB course, I decided that my rides from here on out need to be windy. I fucking hate wind, but what am I accomplishing by avoiding it during training? So I opted to head down 441 to Cafe Risque, my favorite 90-minute ride.
I knew I was in for some shit when I found myself doing a blissful 24 through Alligator Alley, and not really dropping below 22 the whole ride down to the Cafe. I mean, I thoroughly enjoyed the tailwind but at the same time, I knew that trip back was going to suck. Made it to the parking lot (pulled in the same time as one of the dancers. I hope she's into spandex) at 41:20, and figured if I made it back in under 90 minutes, good for me for going so fast.
Yeah, notsomuch.
The wind on the way back was brutal, and my speedometer, once again, decided to be sporadic. Like I would be going 17, then 12, then 7, then 19. It felt like 19 in most of those spots, but I'm starting to get massively frustrated at my computer doing this shit after every time I clean the bike (which I did before the PCB ride) and this time it didn't help my speed at all. The wind was tough, and cold, and I fought it with little effort. I've realized this is going to have to be my strategy on the Ironman course, as I can't just fight it hard the whole time. If it slows my speed, it slows my speed, but I need to finish and killing my legs to maintain 18 in a headwind is not going to help that.
I made it back in 1:33, taking me almost 7 minutes longer to get back than get down. My average speed ended up at 16.8, not exactly blazing. Yeah, the wind kicks my ass. But this is why I'm training in it. Hopefully I can improve it a little before the race. But thus far avoiding wind I think has been my major misstep in training.
Swim - 4x300 (300 easy, 300 kick, 300 easy, 300 kick)
1 Lipodrene
I wasn't feeling super energetic after the bike, but I had planned to separate the workouts anyway. I ended up passing out for about half an hour, then headed out to GHFC at about 7:30. The swim felt good, and I think mentally I'll be able to do the 2x2000. My muscles felt ok, but the long kick sessions were not fun. I think I even said out loud at one point "This is fucking ridiculous!" 12 laps of kick?! I mean, ok, I did it and it's a good training value, but while my swim times have gotten better, my kickboard times have not and as such I spent 2/3 of the time on that. But I felt ok in the pool, and when I got out. Agian, didn't crush the swim but it was good for a first day back.
All in all, a decent first day back, but I need to get back into that ultra-distance mode. Monday's swim will be telling, as will the Century ride Saturday. I have a lot of dual workout days this week as well, which will be tough to fit in given my scheudle. Seriously, no idea how anyone with a real life does this stuff.
Showing posts with label rest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rest. Show all posts
Monday, October 19, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
T96 - Listeneing to my Body, For Once - Run
Gainesville
So I am officially sick. I'm admitting it. Something is definitely wrong here as I've started to feel myself getting winded going from my bedroom into the kitchen. Not exactly what one should feel like 4 weeks before an Ironman, yeah? And while I'm definitely not one to puss out on a workout, I have also been asking a lot from my body these past 4 months. And for the most part it's given it to me. So now I feel like my body is asking something of me: Some significant rest time before the final three weeks. So I am giving that to it in exchange for an all out effort for the rest of this cycle.
I came to this realization during my run on Tuesday. Was supposed to be a nice little 90-minute trot to keep myself in shape. But it was not what I had hoped.
Run: 90 minutes. Remember when 90 minutes was the hard long run?!
2 Lipodrene
This was the quote from the training card. And yes, I do remember that. Sadly, Tuesday's run felt more like some shit from before I ever ran more than three miles. I did the usual Campus Loop Plus Stadium trip for this, and during the loop, I just felt like I was plodding the whole time. Like I was able to go, but my body just wouldn't respond to do anything faster than what felt like a slow plod. Judging by where I was in the music on the iPod, I was only about 45 second to a minute slower by the time I got to the turn up the hill on 2nd Ave., and only about 2 minutes slower for the whole loop. Not a good sign, but not as awful as I'd thought. But the whole loop I just would try and go a little faster, and my body wouldn't respond. It just didn't have the energy.
The stadium trip wasn't a whole lop better, as the trip out felt labored until I got to the flat ground in front of campus. By the end I was chopping steps and begging for the end. I was just dizzy and tired the whole time, and every time I had to stop for a light or whatever I seriously considered just stopping altogether. I did not, but this lack of energy is very concerning.
As I struggled upstairs, feeling just tired and sluggish after the run, I realized I need some rest. Like this is recovery week, and while I'm a fan of active recovery, my body needs more rest than that right now. I'm going to use my last 2 extra days this week, and skip a workout or two to get myself beck to where I need to be. Saddle sores gone. Energy back. I think continuing to push it during a week with no significant workouts will be counter productive in this state. My immune system can handle it. I may opt to do one or two workouts this weekend, depending on how I'm feeling. But if I feel dizzy or overheated during the day, I'm taking the day off.
Next Monday it's back to training with a 2x2000 swim. From there it's balls out to a century ride on Saturday, then another week of maintenance until tapering on race week. I just hope I haven't peaked too early, and this illness, or whatever it is, has subsided by race day.
So I am officially sick. I'm admitting it. Something is definitely wrong here as I've started to feel myself getting winded going from my bedroom into the kitchen. Not exactly what one should feel like 4 weeks before an Ironman, yeah? And while I'm definitely not one to puss out on a workout, I have also been asking a lot from my body these past 4 months. And for the most part it's given it to me. So now I feel like my body is asking something of me: Some significant rest time before the final three weeks. So I am giving that to it in exchange for an all out effort for the rest of this cycle.
I came to this realization during my run on Tuesday. Was supposed to be a nice little 90-minute trot to keep myself in shape. But it was not what I had hoped.
Run: 90 minutes. Remember when 90 minutes was the hard long run?!
2 Lipodrene
This was the quote from the training card. And yes, I do remember that. Sadly, Tuesday's run felt more like some shit from before I ever ran more than three miles. I did the usual Campus Loop Plus Stadium trip for this, and during the loop, I just felt like I was plodding the whole time. Like I was able to go, but my body just wouldn't respond to do anything faster than what felt like a slow plod. Judging by where I was in the music on the iPod, I was only about 45 second to a minute slower by the time I got to the turn up the hill on 2nd Ave., and only about 2 minutes slower for the whole loop. Not a good sign, but not as awful as I'd thought. But the whole loop I just would try and go a little faster, and my body wouldn't respond. It just didn't have the energy.
The stadium trip wasn't a whole lop better, as the trip out felt labored until I got to the flat ground in front of campus. By the end I was chopping steps and begging for the end. I was just dizzy and tired the whole time, and every time I had to stop for a light or whatever I seriously considered just stopping altogether. I did not, but this lack of energy is very concerning.
As I struggled upstairs, feeling just tired and sluggish after the run, I realized I need some rest. Like this is recovery week, and while I'm a fan of active recovery, my body needs more rest than that right now. I'm going to use my last 2 extra days this week, and skip a workout or two to get myself beck to where I need to be. Saddle sores gone. Energy back. I think continuing to push it during a week with no significant workouts will be counter productive in this state. My immune system can handle it. I may opt to do one or two workouts this weekend, depending on how I'm feeling. But if I feel dizzy or overheated during the day, I'm taking the day off.
Next Monday it's back to training with a 2x2000 swim. From there it's balls out to a century ride on Saturday, then another week of maintenance until tapering on race week. I just hope I haven't peaked too early, and this illness, or whatever it is, has subsided by race day.
Monday, September 28, 2009
T86 - Long Effort, then Some Rest - Run
Gainesville
No, I have not been neglecting the training blog. I just have a lot of extra days in my training schedule before the Ironman, and given my recent run of shitty workouts and my right forearm still missing some skin, I thought this would be a good time to use a bunch of them. Also didn't hurt I had the opportunity to go to the UM-Virginia Tech game in Blacksburg, which is a 10 hour drive from here. And I wasn't about to do my longest run ever on some strange course in the middle of nowhere where it was cold and they had hills. So I opted to do my long run Thursday before I left, and save the long bike for the day after Yom Kippur.
Run - 3 Hours
2 Lipodrene
1 Salt Tab
I know at some point I'm going to have to do a long run without the iPod, but today was not to be that day. I even made a new playlist called "Final Ironman Training Mix" that basically combines all the songs I don't skip on my other playlists. At any rate, I ran the campus loop in just over an hour. It was hot, but it was nice to see that even though I was feeling a little sub-par, the heat is still a source of energy, rather than kicking my ass as it had early on in training. First loop, went well, although I chopped steps up the hill. I still felt strong through most of it. I wasn't bounding, but again I realized this was going to be at least 18 miles, so I needed to pace myself.
Then I started the first of 3 and a half down-and-backs to the stadium. Some might think this gets a bit monotonous, but I vastly prefer it to being far away from an aid station, and it breaks the run up nicely. The first one I flew, getting it done in about 28 minutes. This was a faster pace than I was running on the loop, which I found encouraging. Although there are also no hills, which may have played a part. I got back to the Saturn aid station the second time, took another salt tab and another Lipodrene, downed some Gatorade and hit round 2.
My stomach was starting to hurt from all the gels and sugar in the sports drinks, but it went away within about a mile of each lap. I also think this is something I'm going to have to get used to, as I feel like a 12-hour day whose dies consists of only Cliff Bars, Gels, Powerade and Water may lead to some stomach discomfort. At any rate, lap 2 went a little slower, but I still felt like I could run more. I was taking my gels every 45 minutes, and wasn't lacking for energy.
Took my 3rd salt tab here. By round 3, my legs were starting to tire. I realized that this was a much shorter run than the Ironman run (I would have been at about the halfway point here) and I hadn't even biked. But I also realized that the race will be a different mental condition too. I still felt as if I could run, and really only got tired when I stopped. By iPod froze just before round 3 too, which I didn't even notice. Like I got pissed when it froze (2 hours seems to be all it can do without fucking up) but the last 5 miles went by fine without it. This was also encouraging, since I can't use it in the race.
At the end, my legs were tired, I was tired, but I wasn't flat out done. Partly because I started the run at 4, so by the time I hit about 2 hours the sun was going down and it had cooled off (also not unlike race day) but also because I paced myself. By my calculations I did about 18 miles in 3 hours, which is the pace I want to run. God knows if I'll do that race day (doubtful) but I was happy with the effort on this run. I didn't exactly crush it, but it didn't crush me either. I wasn't exactly up for more at the end, but I didn't collapse in a heap either.
After this run, I took 4 days off. I'm sitting here Monday and I feel basically 100%. So the 5.5 hour bike ride tomorrow should be a good test. The arm is healed up for the most part, and I'm ready to go for a solid final month.
No, I have not been neglecting the training blog. I just have a lot of extra days in my training schedule before the Ironman, and given my recent run of shitty workouts and my right forearm still missing some skin, I thought this would be a good time to use a bunch of them. Also didn't hurt I had the opportunity to go to the UM-Virginia Tech game in Blacksburg, which is a 10 hour drive from here. And I wasn't about to do my longest run ever on some strange course in the middle of nowhere where it was cold and they had hills. So I opted to do my long run Thursday before I left, and save the long bike for the day after Yom Kippur.
Run - 3 Hours
2 Lipodrene
1 Salt Tab
I know at some point I'm going to have to do a long run without the iPod, but today was not to be that day. I even made a new playlist called "Final Ironman Training Mix" that basically combines all the songs I don't skip on my other playlists. At any rate, I ran the campus loop in just over an hour. It was hot, but it was nice to see that even though I was feeling a little sub-par, the heat is still a source of energy, rather than kicking my ass as it had early on in training. First loop, went well, although I chopped steps up the hill. I still felt strong through most of it. I wasn't bounding, but again I realized this was going to be at least 18 miles, so I needed to pace myself.
Then I started the first of 3 and a half down-and-backs to the stadium. Some might think this gets a bit monotonous, but I vastly prefer it to being far away from an aid station, and it breaks the run up nicely. The first one I flew, getting it done in about 28 minutes. This was a faster pace than I was running on the loop, which I found encouraging. Although there are also no hills, which may have played a part. I got back to the Saturn aid station the second time, took another salt tab and another Lipodrene, downed some Gatorade and hit round 2.
My stomach was starting to hurt from all the gels and sugar in the sports drinks, but it went away within about a mile of each lap. I also think this is something I'm going to have to get used to, as I feel like a 12-hour day whose dies consists of only Cliff Bars, Gels, Powerade and Water may lead to some stomach discomfort. At any rate, lap 2 went a little slower, but I still felt like I could run more. I was taking my gels every 45 minutes, and wasn't lacking for energy.
Took my 3rd salt tab here. By round 3, my legs were starting to tire. I realized that this was a much shorter run than the Ironman run (I would have been at about the halfway point here) and I hadn't even biked. But I also realized that the race will be a different mental condition too. I still felt as if I could run, and really only got tired when I stopped. By iPod froze just before round 3 too, which I didn't even notice. Like I got pissed when it froze (2 hours seems to be all it can do without fucking up) but the last 5 miles went by fine without it. This was also encouraging, since I can't use it in the race.
At the end, my legs were tired, I was tired, but I wasn't flat out done. Partly because I started the run at 4, so by the time I hit about 2 hours the sun was going down and it had cooled off (also not unlike race day) but also because I paced myself. By my calculations I did about 18 miles in 3 hours, which is the pace I want to run. God knows if I'll do that race day (doubtful) but I was happy with the effort on this run. I didn't exactly crush it, but it didn't crush me either. I wasn't exactly up for more at the end, but I didn't collapse in a heap either.
After this run, I took 4 days off. I'm sitting here Monday and I feel basically 100%. So the 5.5 hour bike ride tomorrow should be a good test. The arm is healed up for the most part, and I'm ready to go for a solid final month.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
T75 - Cruisin'...On a Sunday Afternoon - Swim
Gainesville
The school year has presented a whole new set of challenges. This week has gotten totally fucked by 1) Having to get up early on Monday and Wednesday to teach, 2) Various social invitations that for some reason are harder to turn down in Fall than in Summer and 3) The Football Games. Now, I am no big Gator fan, but it seems as though if you are in Gainesville, and have access to a ticket, you should go. So I do, and this of course involves standing for at least 2 hours, which is not the best thing when your legs need to recover from a 13-mile run. Yes, a full night of drinking followed b a football game (I only drank water at the tailgate, though) does not really make for ideal recovery time.
So I decided to take a 3rd rest day this week (Saturday) leading into a long swim Sunday and the long bike Monday. I still have ten extra days to spend in the next 2 months, so it's not a huge deal, and with the holiday Monday this makes some sense. But I am going to need to figure out what I'm doing with Mondays and Wednesdays as both require and early morning and a full day of work. Meaning, of course, I didn't train on either day this week, and really won't be able to do bikes on either of those days at all. Fucking Fall, I don't know what I was thinking saying I would teach early classes. At any rate, Sundays are still free and clear, and I took today's to do a nice, long swim.
Swim: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 2 x 1200, RPE 3 , even pace on both
1 Gel
2 Lipodrene
I took the gel early because of how ridiculously hungry I'd gotten on the last swim I did with only breakfast in my stomach. I took it on the way to GHFC, then got in the pool for the long workout. I really do like these long warmups because by the time you hit that second set of 200 meters, it's almost full speed ahead. Today was no different.
I kept my stroke pretty consistent today, as instructed, and just felt like I was cruising the whole time. The swim was not overly difficult, nor did I feel like I was going slow. I was just cruising along at a nice clip, and kept the effort strong through both sets. I took a chocolate gel and even took a little bathroom break between the two swim sets, so the long rest may have helped that. But it was nice to give my legs a little break while still getting in a solid long workout day.
Tomorrow is going to be my longest bike ride ever, and my longest training day thus far. So I am glad I am pretty rested up.
The school year has presented a whole new set of challenges. This week has gotten totally fucked by 1) Having to get up early on Monday and Wednesday to teach, 2) Various social invitations that for some reason are harder to turn down in Fall than in Summer and 3) The Football Games. Now, I am no big Gator fan, but it seems as though if you are in Gainesville, and have access to a ticket, you should go. So I do, and this of course involves standing for at least 2 hours, which is not the best thing when your legs need to recover from a 13-mile run. Yes, a full night of drinking followed b a football game (I only drank water at the tailgate, though) does not really make for ideal recovery time.
So I decided to take a 3rd rest day this week (Saturday) leading into a long swim Sunday and the long bike Monday. I still have ten extra days to spend in the next 2 months, so it's not a huge deal, and with the holiday Monday this makes some sense. But I am going to need to figure out what I'm doing with Mondays and Wednesdays as both require and early morning and a full day of work. Meaning, of course, I didn't train on either day this week, and really won't be able to do bikes on either of those days at all. Fucking Fall, I don't know what I was thinking saying I would teach early classes. At any rate, Sundays are still free and clear, and I took today's to do a nice, long swim.
Swim: long day
wu: 200swim, 200kick, 200pull, 200swim
main: 2 x 1200, RPE 3 , even pace on both
1 Gel
2 Lipodrene
I took the gel early because of how ridiculously hungry I'd gotten on the last swim I did with only breakfast in my stomach. I took it on the way to GHFC, then got in the pool for the long workout. I really do like these long warmups because by the time you hit that second set of 200 meters, it's almost full speed ahead. Today was no different.
I kept my stroke pretty consistent today, as instructed, and just felt like I was cruising the whole time. The swim was not overly difficult, nor did I feel like I was going slow. I was just cruising along at a nice clip, and kept the effort strong through both sets. I took a chocolate gel and even took a little bathroom break between the two swim sets, so the long rest may have helped that. But it was nice to give my legs a little break while still getting in a solid long workout day.
Tomorrow is going to be my longest bike ride ever, and my longest training day thus far. So I am glad I am pretty rested up.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
T33 - Rest is Good! - Swim/Run
Gainesville
I opted to take my first non-scheduled rest day on Friday. I have about 20 extra days in this cycle, most of which will likely be used for travel in Hawaii and the East Coast Road Trip, but Friday I was just done. Again, I chose to prioritize sex over training and after the long brick I had Thursday then thought an hour of fucking on every surface in my apartment (and the balcony) would be a good idea. Which it was, but it left me thoroughly dehydrated and more or less wiped out until 2 p.m. the next day. Point being, all night sex marathons are fun, but aren't very conducive to doign a long workout the next day. So I got to Friday night and was like "You know, doing anything tonight would just be a bad training day. I'm going to take tonight off and go back to it Saturday." And I did. I took 3 Tylenol PM and was asleep by 12:30. Didn't wake up until about noon.
Swim: speed day--tough!
wu: 300 continuous- (alternate 25 swim, 25 kick)
main: 20 x 75 hold constant pace for each-so judge pace in the first few,
RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
This was a workout that went a lot better than I thought. The warmup was a bit short for the workout that it was, since my shoulders were getting sore around 75 number 3. But I kept the solid pace like it says, and pushed it to keep it up. I was very proud of myself for keeping the harder pace, although I did not go balls out. I have learned that there is a ground between all out and half-assed, and that's where I need to do sprints. I still lack the capacity to do sprints for that long, but these feltt good. I remember 9 and 12 being a bit slow, but otherwise, a solid swim. Very pleased with the effort.
Run: 100 minute long run combined with tempo effort.
75minutes at RPE3, last 25 minutes at RPE5
1 Lipodrene
I took about 3 hours in between and had a turkey sandwich from Jimmy Johns. I usually do workouts like this on the treadmill, since it involves increased speed, but I figured, nah, lets keep pushing it today. Sooooo glad I took that rest day. I did the campus loop without music, which I"m starting to get used to. The loop was a good pace, but still slower than the hour I aimed for it to be. Then I ran down to just before the law school, and strided it out at a faster pace pretty consistently on the way back. Like every time I felt myself slowing, I consciously picked up the pace, and was able to hold it. I took a gel with me and had it at around the 45 minute mark, then took another on the return trip after the campus loop. I never used it though. This run felt great and I really think taking that day off was key. I can't be afraid to do this in the future. But I also need to start prioritizing a little better. After July, when the Cosmo article and the project are done, I think training is going to go into another gear.
I opted to take my first non-scheduled rest day on Friday. I have about 20 extra days in this cycle, most of which will likely be used for travel in Hawaii and the East Coast Road Trip, but Friday I was just done. Again, I chose to prioritize sex over training and after the long brick I had Thursday then thought an hour of fucking on every surface in my apartment (and the balcony) would be a good idea. Which it was, but it left me thoroughly dehydrated and more or less wiped out until 2 p.m. the next day. Point being, all night sex marathons are fun, but aren't very conducive to doign a long workout the next day. So I got to Friday night and was like "You know, doing anything tonight would just be a bad training day. I'm going to take tonight off and go back to it Saturday." And I did. I took 3 Tylenol PM and was asleep by 12:30. Didn't wake up until about noon.
Swim: speed day--tough!
wu: 300 continuous- (alternate 25 swim, 25 kick)
main: 20 x 75 hold constant pace for each-so judge pace in the first few,
RPE 5
2 Lipodrene
This was a workout that went a lot better than I thought. The warmup was a bit short for the workout that it was, since my shoulders were getting sore around 75 number 3. But I kept the solid pace like it says, and pushed it to keep it up. I was very proud of myself for keeping the harder pace, although I did not go balls out. I have learned that there is a ground between all out and half-assed, and that's where I need to do sprints. I still lack the capacity to do sprints for that long, but these feltt good. I remember 9 and 12 being a bit slow, but otherwise, a solid swim. Very pleased with the effort.
Run: 100 minute long run combined with tempo effort.
75minutes at RPE3, last 25 minutes at RPE5
1 Lipodrene
I took about 3 hours in between and had a turkey sandwich from Jimmy Johns. I usually do workouts like this on the treadmill, since it involves increased speed, but I figured, nah, lets keep pushing it today. Sooooo glad I took that rest day. I did the campus loop without music, which I"m starting to get used to. The loop was a good pace, but still slower than the hour I aimed for it to be. Then I ran down to just before the law school, and strided it out at a faster pace pretty consistently on the way back. Like every time I felt myself slowing, I consciously picked up the pace, and was able to hold it. I took a gel with me and had it at around the 45 minute mark, then took another on the return trip after the campus loop. I never used it though. This run felt great and I really think taking that day off was key. I can't be afraid to do this in the future. But I also need to start prioritizing a little better. After July, when the Cosmo article and the project are done, I think training is going to go into another gear.
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