Monday, February 25, 2013

Week Eight: 2/18-2/24

Week eight was not good.

Monday, February 18: Off: tired
- Last week exhausted me. I now see why a lot of training plans have Mondays as off days.

Tuesday, February 19: Run: 2.9 mi in 29:02.72 - 10:01/mi
- BRC-DTC I love to run ... run
- vomity
- Was hoping to lift today too, but didn't happen. Hit a wall around 3, 3:30p; 3 days of opens will do that to me. Had to nap. Vomitness during run was probably due to crappy food choices this afternoon. Ugh.

Wednesday, February 20: Bike: 15.21 mi in 59:51; 84 avg cad; 15.25 mph
- 40.4 mph max
- Spinervals 27.0 - Threshold Test and Suffer Fest
- saddle tweaks helped
- least favorite Spinervals thus far
Swim: 600m in 13:45.22 - 2:17/100m
- 6x100m
- never really got going
- Shoulder (right) really bugged me throughout both workouts. Tried to work it out in the pool, but no dice. Must have slept on it wrong in the course of the 12! hours I got last night. Hoped to do 800m in the water, but decided to scale back so I can hopefully do 1200 tomorrow.

Thursday, February 21: Off: tired
- So I realized that we've pretty much taken two off days every week. Our bodies are still easing into this again. So when I get days like this where I'm so damn tired, I don't (well, I'm trying not to) feel guilty.

Friday, February 22: Lift: 40:00; Mark Allen phase two
- 2/12/60 lat pulldowns; 2/12/60 leg extensions; 2/12/60 leg curls; 2/12/45 bench press; 2/12 squats; 2/12/5 lat db raises; 2/12/15 calf raises; 2/12/5 db pullovers; 2/12 backward lunges; 2/12/20 bicep curls; 2/12/10 tricep extensions; 2/12/130 leg press
- little rough - can tell it's been almost a week between sessions
- Was hoping to do more, but with a guest in town, I'm happy I got *something* in.

Saturday, February 23: Off: guest
- Up late night before (and up early day prior) means not being able to wake up early for a workout. Then, needing to play tour guide doesn't really leave time for it. Someday we'll learn ... guests and working out don't mix unless the guests are athletically inclined.

Sunday, February 24: Off: tired/snow
- Blizzard hit Denver. Plus didn't have a large chance to even try that morning before I had to leave for work (early). Having a guest threw this week out of whack anyway, but was last week too big for us (right now)? Is that why we apparently needed the recovery?

The question I pose on Sunday is ultimately my wonder about what happened this week. We knew we had a guest coming in town and planned accordingly so we could get a week's worth of workouts in. I don't want to blame this week on our guest at all - it's not her fault. Due to the reason she came in (hockey games), we were up a lot later than our typical bedtime (i ended up being awake for ... 21? hours on friday) and lack of sleep and lack of a consistent sleep schedule really does screw with us I'm realizing.

Weekly Training Time: 2:22:39
Weekly Training Mileage: 18.48 mi
Yearly Training Time: 22:22:36
Yearly Training Mileage: 135.13 mi

Monday, February 18, 2013

Weekly Recap 2/11-2/17

After a down week, I rebounded nicely last week.  There's growth happening.

Here's the numbers:

- 43:30 minutes swimming.  2000 meters
- 1:50:28 minutes of cycling.  24.4 miles
- 43:03 minutes of running.  4.16 miles
- 1:07 minutes of strength training.

Earlier in the week, I attempted to cycle after lifting...however, my hamstring was a bit sore from lifting the day before, so I listened to my body.  As badly as I wanted to push, I didn't.  Smart move on my part.  Also, 1200 meters of swimming yesterday was not too difficult.  And lastly, and probably most importantly, I refound my groove after a down week the week before.

Consistency.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Week Seven: 2/11-2/17

Biggest week to date ... which is nice, after the slow start it had.

Monday, February 11: Off: lack of sleep
- Three, 3 1/2 hours of sleep the night before and up at 3:30 does not make me coherent enough to do really anything. Back at it tomorrow, I promise.

Tuesday, February 12: Bike: 7.1 mi in 32:52; avg cad 82, 12.96 mph
- 25.9 mph max, 169 max cad
- Spinervals 23.0 Time Saver I: workout A: technique
- had to talk myself (and had Brandon talk me) into getting on the bike. Bob and I are not getting along right now ...
- Ever since that failed over-unders set, I have dreaded getting on the bike. We had a discussion about the lack of (bike) motivation beforehand and we decided the best thing to do would be to just suck it up and get on the bike. Totally helped with Brandon being there.

Wednesday, February 13: Lift: 34:00, Mark Allen phase 2
- 2/12/60 lat pulldowns; 2/12/60 leg extensions; 2/12/60 leg curls; 2/12/45 bench press; 2/12 squats; 2/12/5 lat db raises; 2/12/15 calf raises; 2/12/5 db pullovers; 2/12 backward lunges; 2/12/20 bicep curls; 2/12/8 tricep extensions; 2/12/130 leg press
- struggled a little bit; evident I've been slacking on lifting a bit
- Did this early in hopes of swimming or something later, but gastro issues for both of us forced us to take the night off. And this is why we work out in the AM ...

Thursday, February 14: Off: snow
- Snow should not be an excuse. But when life was in theory supposed to be strapped for time and it's windy, cold and snowy ... Screw it. Just got in the preferred Valentine's Day workout, if you know what I mean.

Friday, February 15: Swim: 800m in 19:45.02 - 2:28/100m
- 2x100m, 400m, 2x100m
- almost puked near the end of this
- brownies before this? Were a baaad idea.
Lift: 25:00, Mark Allen phase 2
- 2/12/50 lat pulldowns; 2/12/60 leg extensions; 2/12/60 leg curls; 2/12/45 bench press; 2/12 squats; 2/12/5 lat db raises; 2/12/15 calf raises; 2/12/5 db pullovers; 2/12 backward lunges; 2/12/20 bicep curls; 2/12/8 tricep extensions; 2/12/130 leg press
- powered through this
- got pukey near the end
- Never, ever, EVER eating brownies before a workout again. So close to puking at so many points. Swimming was a horrible struggle. Definitely embraced the suck today ... a suck of my own creation.

Saturday, February 16: Run: 4 mi in 40:11.64 - 10:03/mi
- BRC-DTC Saturday (donut!) run from the store
- oh god the hills ... walked almost all of mile four
Bike: 25.08 mi in 1:51:17; avg cad 85, 13.52 mph
- 20 mph max
- Spinervals On the Road - Tempe training ride
- my bike seat is no longer comfortable
-The run went surprisingly well. The ride ... well, let's just say I'm glad IMAZ is 9 months away so I have a lot of time to get mentally tougher.

Sunday, February 17: Swim: 1400m in 32:40.64 - 2:19/100m
- 2x100m, 200m pb, 200m fins, 600m, 2x100m
- part of this felt really awesome ... after the first 500m, maybe?
Lift: 16:00, core
- 3/10/10 back extensions; 3/10 captain's chair; 3/15/12 med ball twists; 3/15 ball crunches; 3/10/6 bosu med ball tosses
- woo low blood sugar on the back extensions
- felt great
- Another great day. I am eating everything in sight. This can't be good. Still 170, btw, but I look better in the mirror.

Our friend Kris texted me today. "Sooooo ... what will YOU be doing 9 months from today? ;)" I texted back, "Crossing a finish line!" I almost typed in "hopefully crossing a finish line," but for me, there is no hopefully. I know I've said that my ultimate Ironman goal is to finish, but I'm thinking in positive terms. If I put in the work, I will finish. This week, I learned I have a long way to go ... not only in terms of the mental battle (although I did hear that the course isn't nearly as boring as the DVD makes it out to be) but also in the physical (my lady bits are soooore).

Weekly training time: 5:11:46
Weekly training mileage: 37.55 mi
Yearly training time: 19:59:57
Yearly training mileage: 116.65 mi

Building

Right now, we're in our base building phase.  Ironman training doesn't officially start until May 20th, so right now, we're just building our base.

It's funny how consistent working out can change your mindset and thinking.  The previous 4 weeks, we were shooting for about 4 hours a week.  This week, I will do about 4:30, and by the end of March, we'll be hitting about 6 hours.  The funny thing is, it hasn't been difficult, and I dare say I'm having fun!

Weird how the mind works, eh?

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Week Six: 2/4-2/10

Week six: otherwise known as the week of exhaustion ... wait, strike that, recovery. Let's go with recovery.

Monday, February 4: Off: tiiiiired
- My body wanted this ... particularly since I didn't get a lot of sleep the night before. I'm trying to be better at resting when I need it ...

Tuesday, February 5: Swim: 1200m in 28:34.56 - 2:22/100m
- 100 wu, 200 pb, 200 fins, 400m, 200m, 100 cd
- must have done something different with the pull buoy because my abs hurt a lot after that set!
Run: 4.26 mi in 40:00 - 9:23/mi
- MX12 treadmill set
- little tougher than last time
- Tired today. Sort of forced it, but it felt good. Really liking this swim/treadmill instead of the standard swim/lift. Subtle but great way to shake things up.

Wednesday, February 6: Lift: 41:00, Mark Allen phase 2
- 2/12/60 lat pulldowns; 2/12/61 leg extensions; 2/12/60 leg curls; 2/12/45 bench press; 2/12 squats; 2/12/5 lat db raises; 2/12/15 calf raises; 2/12/5 db pullovers; 2/12 backward lunges; 2/12/20 bicep curls; 2/12/8 tricep extensions; 2/12/130 leg press
- back es sore!
- Was going to trainer it today too, but decided to hang out with my mrrmrr instead. Plus, I don't have to work tomorrow so it'll be nice to double up on my off day. This soreness may be due to some solid training - sweet! Getting to the point of constant achiness! Love it!

Thursday, February 7: Bike: 2.74 mi in 9:54; avg cad 80; 16.61 mph
- 37.5 mph max
- aborted MX12 over-unders set
- couldn't breathe so stopped
- Was hoping to run as well to salvage the day, but ugh. This is totally ending up as a recovery week. Also thinking I must not have done the over-unders correctly the first time because good Jesus these hurts so much more.

Friday, February 8: Run: 2.39 mi in 24:38.08 - 10:18/mi
- neighborhood loop
- breezy!
- slight knee/shin pain in left leg.
- Original thought today was a swim/lift, but since today may be the last good weather day this week ... decided to get out and run. Tricky to do (ugh, tired), but glad I went.

Saturday, February 9: Off: ugh
- Woke up kinda late and was not with it. Tried talking myself into a workout but it just didn't happen.

Sunday, February 10: Off: don't even know.
- I had every single intention of getting on the trainer today. I had the time ... but I just couldn't do it. This ended up being a recovery week and I think I really needed it. Plus my sleep has been crap lately.

The overarching theme this week was "tired." I was physically exhausted most of this week. The technique work in the pool made my back and core sore for days. The failed over-unders set affected me greatly and I have barely even wanted to touch my bike since.

Weekly training time: 2:24:07
Weekly training mileage: 10.14 mi
Yearly training time: 14:48:11
Yearly training mileage: 79.10 mi

Monday, February 4, 2013

Week Five: 1/28-2/3

Another week, another week of growth.

Monday, January 28: Lift: 22:00
- 3/10/10 back extensions; 3/10 captain's chair; 3/15/10 med ball twists; 3/20 swiss ball crunches; 3/10/6 bosu medicine ball tosses; 3/40 bicycles
- back extensions? hurt.
- Essentially an off day with how little I did, but I needed to do this. It was a struggle to get out the door, but once at the gym, I was really happy I was there. Definitely need to add in more core work on a regular basis.

Tuesday, January 29: Off
- Just didn't feel right all day. Brandon insisted I take the day off and after much grumbling ... I did. I felt mostly fine, but I think I still have just enough edge of sickness in me to be annoying. Waking up in the middle of the night never helps either ...

Wednesday, January 30: Lift: 37:00, Mark Allen phase two
- 2/12/60 lat pulldowns; 2/12/60 leg extensions; 2/12/60 leg curls; 2/12/45 bench press; 2/12 squats; 2/12/5 lat db raises; 2/12/15 calf raises; 2/12/5 db pullovers; 2/12 backward lunges; 2/12/20 bicep curls; 2/12/8 tricep extensions; 2/12/130 leg press
- felt pretty good
Bike: 6.85 mi in 32:54; avg cad 81, 12.49 mph
- 24.1 mph max, 168 max cad
- 23.0 Time Saver I; workout A: technique
- legs felt AWESOME
- Had every intention of waking up early to swim this morning, but I could not force myself out of bed. But, all turned out okay because I pulled out the double today. Was super surprised at how awesome my legs felt. Great day!

Thursday, January 31: Off
- I really don't know what happened today. I had the time, I just had absolutely no energy whatsoever. So, I did the prudent thing and rested. No regrets. Plus, working out would have felt like a chore and I'm not cool with that right now.

Friday, February 1: Swim: 1200m in 28:45.52 - 2:23/100m
- 100 wu, 200 pb, 200 fins, 600m, 100 cd
- longest continuous swim set for me since August
- 1st time with "toys" since ... March?
Run: 4.26 mi in 40:00 - 9:23/mi
- MX12 treadmill set
- 1st two easy, third okay ... 4th felt like vomit
- Once again, I learned that Taco Bell is okay for me ... as long as I don't have the soda. I think yesterday's rest did me a world of good because today may be my best training day of the year thus far.

Saturday, February 2: Bike: 9.53 mi in 38:09; avg cad 88, 14.09 mph
- 34.8 mph max
- MX12 over unders set
- LOVED this set
- Was going to Coach Troy it, but am kinda sick of him (it's true). Figured since I paid for the MX12 sessions, I may as well use them. Chose a shorter one. Loved it. Will definitely do this again. Makes me excited to try the other trainer sessions!

Sunday, February 3: Run: 3.48 mi in 34:04.45 - 9:47/mi
- dayton addition
- felt good!
- Was hoping to lift as well, but with the Super Bowl and everything, didn't really happen. Still, a very satisfying run. Always have a fast run after that treadmill set.

Even though this week had two (essentially three) off days, the four days I got in solid workouts were AWESOME days. This was a fantastic early season week of training and I will draw on this week when training will undoubtedly get shitty.

Weekly training time: 3:52:53
Weekly training mileage: 24.87 mi
Yearly training time: 12:24:04
Yearly training mileage: 68.96 mi

Sunday, February 3, 2013

January Round Up

Like T said, our monthly roundups will be a little less detailed, if only because we're keeping you apprised with weekly recaps.  But in addition to numbers, I'd like to go into some lessons learned or anecdotes or what have you.

That being said, here's the numbers:

49 miles of cycling, most of it on the trainer, some of it outside
14 miles of running
5K of swimming (3.11 miles)
4:47 of strength training.

My running numbers are definitely down, not thrilled about that, but it's understandable as I was out for a week with illness.  Even so, I had some solid runs in January.  

I seem to be regaining my fitness pretty quickly which I'm quite happy about.  The lifting is definitely helping, and furthermore, I'm already noticing changes in the body.  Starting to look a bit better in terms of physical appearance.

February will be a good month as well.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

January Round-Up

The monthly round-ups this year won't be that horribly detailed because you have my progress in front of you, week by week. That being said, I'd still like to do these, because, well, I have been since the start of this blog. Works for me.

Anyway, January! January was kind of a disappointing month, mainly because I was sick for about half of it. Which sucks. After I got better, however, things picked up nicely.

Running: 8.26 mi
Swimming: 4500m (2.8 mi)
Cycling: 35.06 mi
Lifting: 9 sessions (3:53)
Other: 15 minutes of attempted ice skating, 30 minutes of walking (well, logged)

Running was the thing that hurt the most this month because when you're mucusy and coughing, running is kind of the last thing you want to do. Or at least the last thing I want to do. Lifting? Easy. Swimming? Not hard. Cycling? A little trickier, but still manageable. But running? Aw hell no.

That being said, given the sickness, I'll take the month. It had more rest than I wanted, but I have to keep reminding myself I'm in base-building. I can't go too crazy - or at least I shouldn't go too crazy, even if I want to.

I'm hoping to build on this and build on this well for February and I'm already off to a good start ... as you'll read about shortly when the Week Five recap gets posted.