Saturday, March 31, 2007

¿"Training"? - No comprende

¡Buenos dias! Hola amigos y amigas. Just a short post to let you know that I'm still alive and well.

I had a great training plan outlined for this week which included swiming in the ocean (red flags are up, so that isn't happening), running around the resort grounds (it's too hot and humid), possibly running on the treadmill at the fitness center (just plain too lazy to do that), and swimming in the pool (BINGO!! - one outta four ain't bad!).

Kids have discovered Montezuma's revenge first hand after consuming some suspect strawberries. ¡Aye Chihuahua!

Other than that, life is good.

Pics and more will be forthcoming in the next few days. For now, I have a lounge chair under a palm tree with my name on it...

¡Hasta la vista!

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Stupid Human Tricks & Swimsuit Shopping

PART 1 - STUPID HUMAN TRICKS

Saturday morning weather didn’t cooperate for my planned 2-2.5 hr bike ride. Plan B – running in pursuit of 7miles or 85minutes whichever comes first

Mile 2, first look at my Garmin. Pace is good. I rock!! Maybe I'll even get in eight today.

Mile 3, I begin to feel... nauseous. I hope the feeling passes quickly. Hmmm...I didn’t drink as much water in the morning as I usually do. I also haven’t brought any with me. I reach into my pocket and grab a gel.

Mile 5, I thirsty and a little dizzy; this cannot be good. I remind myself that it me against the course. I win as long as I get from the starting point to the ending point on my own no matter how long it takes.

Mile 6, I reach in my pocket again, this time grabbing my cell phone. I contemplate calling husband to come retrieve me. I don’t want the course to beat me, but I also don’t want to end up in a really bad situation. I'm feeling lousy, but I'm still moving. I decide to take it one step at a time...

Mile 6.88(?), Home at last. Straight to kitchen, guzzle down 2 huge glasses of ice water.

Husband - “You were out for a long time; I was getting worried about you”

Me - “Yeah, me too…”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PART 2 - SWIMSUIT SHOPPING WITH TEENAGER

When my daughter got home from school on Friday, we headed out for some swimsuit shopping. She needs a new one for our trip to Cancuun because she has outgrown her old ones. I need something appropriate for a resort (sport top and DeSoto shorts that I wear to the gym won't cut it).

Like most women, I have body image issues. Choosing a swimsuit is a horrid experience; wearing one in public is worse. My 13 yr old daughter, on the other hand, has a cute figure and thinks this is great fun.

First mission, swimsuit for me. We settle on an appropriate tankini for a forty-something mom - modest, yet contemporary. Daughter gives it two thumbs up. Whew. I'm done.

Her turn. She models about ten suits in all. Some I veto because they are WAYYY too skimpy. My favorite is grey with pink and white polka dots and agree to buy that one. She likes a multi-colored stripe one too. I agree that she can have that one also if she will pay for it. Mission accomplished.

We're heading to the cashier when a smokin' hot red and black print bikini on the sale rack catches my eye. I decide to try it on thinking maybe it can replace the bikini I wear in our hot tub (in the privacy of our own backyard at night when nobody can see me). I cautiously step out of the dressing room and show my daughter.

"Oh, Mom, that looks nice! Get it!"

So there you have it, one of the intangible benefits of triathlon training. Smokin' hot bikini doesn't look half bad. Who knew?!?!

Friday, March 23, 2007

Week in Review

Workouts Mon-Fri:

  • Mon - 12 mi bike
  • Tuesday - 16x200 run intervals. These are my results (time per 200):
    00:59, 00:54, 00:54, 01:00,
    00:55, 01:00, 00:56, 01:01,
    00:58, 01:00, 01:05, 01:01,
    01:04, 00:56, 01:01, 01:00,
  • Wednesday - 45 mins Indoor cycling, short 500M swim
  • Thursday - 40min run, 30 min bike
  • Friday - 2400M swim

Other:

  • This week I discovered Teeccino (caffeine free herbal 'coffee') while browsing the tea aisle at a local natural food store. Brewed it in my 2cup plunger pot (makes one mug) and so far, I think it's pretty good. I really like how I am feeling since giving up coffee for lent, and am not sure I want to go back to my coffee addiction/habit come Easter.
  • Been busy closing loose ends at work, shopping, and doing errands because we're getting ready for spring break vacation!! WoooHooo!! Leaving on Monday...can't wait.
  • Despite my slow Sunday run, I'm pretty happy with how my training is going. This time last year I could not swim 2400, spent less time on the bike, and never would have made it through 16x200M run intervals or lasted on a run over 60min. Sometimes it is good to reflect back at where we've been to appreciate where we are. :)

Have a good weekend everyone. Hopefully I will have one more post before vacation.

Monday, March 19, 2007

Monday Miscellany

I was was all set Sunday morning to head out and run 7 miles or 85 minutes whichever came first. I figured even if I ran a 12min mile, that was plenty of time to get in seven.

Unfortunately, my legs were still screaming at me for what I put them through on Saturday. Apparently they were not as elated as I about the bike ride and were in no mood to be running. The run started off slow and got slower by the mile. When my time was up, I had only managed a disappointing 6.5 miles. Blah! However, If my legs think one slow Sunday morning is enough to make me throw in the towel, they've got another thing coming. I'll give it another go this upcoming weekend.

Husband & I also celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary yesterday. So what did I do? I went out and bought him two new pairs of running shoes, of course! At first, that may seem like a weird anniversary gift, but as I explained to him - my hope is that running keeps him healthy so that we'll have many more years together. :)

Today was a planned 12 mile bike ride which went well by my standards, and I even managed to enjoy it. Maybe there's hope for me yet...

Have a good week, all!!

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Make it happen (part 2)

Exhibit A


The bike is my weak link, and it has been frustrating me for some time. It's embarrassing, but I have a hard time keeping my speed over 14.5mph. I took off today ready to prove something to myself and shake that monkey off my back. I had 20miles scheduled (mostly flat, slight rolling hills) and was ready to make them count!

Did I succeed in my quest? I think so, and I'll tell you why.
  • Never before has 25% of my ride averaged over 16mph
  • Never before have I had a mile near 17mph !!
  • First time I've not recorded at least one mile below 12mph on a 20mile ride.
My short term goal is to be able to maintain an average speed of >=15.5mph over 20miles. I'm not there yet, but after today's ride, I think it's achievable. My strategy for the next month is to be more consistent by pushing harder during those sluggish periods. I'm going to try to make the second ten miles look more like that first ten. And if I can manage to maintain that for another ten miles on top of that, I'll be stoked.

So there you have it. I've set another goal. Now to make it happen!

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Making it happen

Training continues to go mostly according to plan. Slept in Wed morning, but got my swim in during the afternoon during what was scheduled to be a core/strength workout. Indoor cycling this morning, ran this evening. Tomorrow is swim (maybe add back the missed core/strength as well). Sat bike. Sun run. I think I can get it all in.

Bigger news for me is that I've started laying down some $$ for a upcoming events. As I sign up, I will add them to the sidebar.

I have a huge week planned in May. The Jay Benson Sprint Tri is on one weekend, followed by a half-oly training camp Thu-Sat, followed by my first Oly tri that Sunday. Which, by the way, will also be my first open water swim except for practice the day before at the training camp. May not sound like much to many of you, but it will be quite a challenge for me to maintain that kind of volume and intensity over just a week's time plus learn to swim in open water and immediately turn around and race in it.

I was debating not signing up for all this madness. I am fairly certain that I will be last or darn near last at that Oly especially immediately after a training camp that will likely kick my novice butt. Howver, I was given the following words of wisdom by trusted friend:

Q: What do you call the last person to cross the finish line at a triathlon?
A: A Triathlete


A Triathlete, indeed. BRING IT ON!!!

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Too fast for my own shoes!

Today I intended to warm up, do 8x400 intervals at an 8:30min/mi pace, cool down, stretch.

Let's discuss the intervals. Normally, I do these on the dreadmill so that I can set and maintain the pace. Today I decided to estimate 400m with .25miles per my Garmin and do these in the great outdoors. As it turns out, I overshot my pace repeatedly. The results (in min/mi)
  1. 7.04 Holy Smokes! Did I do that?!?!
  2. 7:40
  3. 7:41
  4. 10:42 Trail turned to sand. Yuck!
  5. 7:57
  6. 8:06
  7. 7:52
  8. missing - miscounted and only did seven!

Before anyone dares suggest that I'm a speed demon, let me tell you that I was totally ready to stop when my .25miles were up each time. The pace that I can maintain over distance is WAY slower. But that is why they call this speed work, right?

And yesterday, 55min outside on the bike, 12.5miles. Not bad for a Monday after work with other commitments.

Tomorrow, planned swim unless the sleep demons get to me...

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Coffee Beans

Mmmmmm...I can almost smell it.

Okay, so there there is a man somewhere in this picture. Can you find him?

Supposedly...

  • If you find the man in the coffee beans in 3 seconds, the right half of your brain is better developed than most people.
  • If you find the man between 3 seconds and 1 minute, the right half of your brain is developed normally.
  • If you find the man between 1 minute and 3 minutes, the right half of your brain is functioning slowly and you need to eat more protein.
  • If you still can't find him, keep looking; the man is really there! Once you find him, it will seem obvious.

Now for keeping me honest.

  • Yesterday I ran 6.3 miles. That's pretty good for me. I've decided that I'm going to start increasing my 'long runs'. I'll target 7 miles next weekend, then 8 the week after. We'll see how that goes and adjust from there.
  • Today I only managed to get in an 8.5 mile bike ride, though, and that is not so good. I was a little messed up this morning by daylight savings time. I also opted to do some over-due yard clean-up work this afternoon rather than go out again to reclaim the missed morning miles. Next weekend, I'll once again target a 20-30mile ride.

Friday, March 9, 2007

According to my notebook...

I keep pretty simple training records. Nothing more sophisticated than a few notes in a notebook. But it works for me, and it's telling me that March is off to a good start.

My daily training volume hasn't been as high as I woud like, but I haven't logged any missed days. That's huge. By this time last month I was already beginning to log the first of what turned into a long stream of zeros with the note "Sick." I've learned that (for me) doing something is always better than doing nothing, if for no other reason than to maintain a positive attitude.

Great suggestions about doing functional at the hotel. That was my plan B on Wednesday. Plan A was to get down to the gym at 5:50am and hope to be the first to show up for the treadmill. Plan A actually worked!

Got back home late Wed evening, so I didn't get up early yesterday to go for my scheduled swim, so I swapped it with a bike ride after work (which was on the schedule for today). So today I will swim... [update : and swim I did! My swim workout totalled 2650. Now my shoulder is a bit sore]

Weekend has longer running and biking sessions planned, and it looks like the weatherman is no longer holding a grudge against me. Highs around 70 are forcasted both days. Yesssssss!

March is off to a good start, indeed.

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Travel Exercise Woes

Travelling really hurts when trying to establish a routine. I have something to log to my training records, but it has been far from stellar, but at least SOMETHING to keep momentum going this month. I can't wait to be home.

Preface - Reading this, you may wonder why the exercise room is such a constraint on this trip: Husband was concerned about me running outside in an unknown area (safety, getting lost, etc) so I promised him I would stay inside.

Monday, I didn't have to show up at the office until 9am, so I went to the exercise room at 7am and found it empty. There are two treadmills (one functional and one not), an elliptical trainer, and some kind of cycling motion machine. There is also a weight machine crammed in the corner. The temp in this little room has been set at 72 deg and there is no fan. I hopped on the treadmill and lasted about 35mins until I felt like I was overheating. The hotel has a little pool, so I jumped in to cool down. I made it a point to stop by the front desk to ask them why there is no fan in there and could they please turn down the temp. They scrambled around like maybe they were going to do something, but I don't think they made any changes.

Okay, so the little exercise room officially opens at 6am. This morning, I had to be in the office at 8am, so I showed up to the exercise room at about 5:55am. All the machines were already occupied. D'oh! Apparently early bird gets the worm and the official start time isn't enforced. Plan B. I happened to have goggles in my suitcase, so I decided to try to do something in the little pool. That turned out to be nothing more than frustrating. I tried swimming diagonally in the pool to make it worth my effort, but it mostly felt like a waste of time. 30mins later, I gave up and went back to my room. Sigh.

I have one more morning here. At this point, I'm thinking that I'll just do some core work in my hotel room and bypass any expectations of using the exercise room.
And if anyone has tips/pointers about what works for them when they travel, I'd be happy to hear about it. As you can tell, the situation on this particular trip just hasn't worked for me...

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Have I angered the weather man?!?!?

The weather man is being so cruel to me!!

I'm leaving on a business trip tomorrow returning late Wed. Please note the difference between the current weather and the forcasted weather while I'm gone.

Not fair, is it?!?!?

Despite a cold windy start, the first two days of the Month have been okay from a training perspective. I ran 3.5miles on the 1st and then swam yesterday for the first time in weeks. Had been thinking about getting out on my bike today. However, looking at the weather it seems like that would be sooo much more enjoyable tomorrow. But, of course, I can't do it tomorrow because I'm heading to the airport right after church.

So...I'll wait a little longer until it warms up some and then make the decision to either get out on my bike, or head out for 5-6 mile run. If I make nice with the weather man, maybe he'll give me some ejoyable cycling conditions when I get back.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone!!