May - By the Numbers

I think I'm officially a multi-sport athlete after this month. I also think that my mileage may be unnecessary for an Oly distance tri in July. Would it be terrible if I confessed to fantasizing about a HIM in September???


Swim 32,200 yards, 10 hours
Bike 29 hours 8 minutes - all indoors
Run  93.5 miles, 13 hours 45 minutes
Other - 4 hours, miscellaneous elliptical, weights, core, walking

I'm quite pleased with both my swimming and cycling totals for this month. If I am able to continue with this amount of both, I'd be thrilled. In the coming month, after moving to Boston at the end of the week, I hope to take my cycling "to the streets" and start logging a lot of those hours outdoors. Then I'll have distances not just durations for my rides. I'm eager to see where I'm at in terms of speed given that I had done so much indoor riding over the past few months but have only been out on a real bike one time. I'm also pleased with my swimming. I think after the last few swims I have finally come around to wanting to get some pointers from a swim coach. I had been telling myself that I'm a natural swimmer; it comes easily to me; I can go for a long time without fatigue; I'm confident that my form is actually good; and my pace seems on par with the beginner triathletes' blogs I read...but after a few swims when I've watched "real" swimmers swim, its clear to me that there is a whole other speed at which swimming can happen and I'm not there. I'd like to see what I can do. I'm not a huge fan (or a fan at all) of drills (or strokes other than freestyle) but think I'd be willing to give it a few months to see if I have any untapped potential in the water. What do you think -- should I do this now or wait until the "off-season" to try to work on my speed/power.

My running has actually been relatively good this month. Was hoping to cross that 100 mile mark for the first time but I missed 2 runs which made it impossible. 93 miles is a new high for me anyway, so I'll take it. My posterior tibialis has been grumpy but no big problems (knock on wood). I had a distance PR this month of 14 miles and another solid 10.5 mile run this past weekend (both faster than my HM PR pace). I've had three days of swim-bike-run (one was swim-bike-hike, but I think that counts) and each one was more awesome than the last.

Overall, I'm really digging this HARDCORE. Cannot wait to race this July and make an honest triathlete out of myself.

rockin' the triathlon training

I've gotta say...I'm loving triathlon (-style) training. This week had rocked so far. On Monday I started the day with P90X Chest and Back lifting workout in the morning, followed by Ab Ripper X (and it does truly rip up your abs - often even causing strange digestive phenomena). I then went about my normal day. I cut out of work at 4 and went to a spinning class for an hour before returning refreshed to work for another few hours in the evening. On Tuesday I had my first run without significant pain since the half marathon in the beginning of december. I kept my pace pretty slow and switched over to run/walk combo after mile 3 when my post.tib. started barking a little. I had only planned to do 2 miles so I nixed my tentatively planned Plyo workout and just enjoyed my nice day at work. I almost went to the pool when I finished up with my last patient at 6pm but got sidetracked and didn't leave the department until after 7 and then it was a little late for me. In addition, my upper back, shoulders, and chest were pretty rocked from the combo of heavy lifting and spinning the day before. Yesterday I woke up still significantly sore through the shoulders but diligently dragged myself to the gym at 6am to do P90X Shoulders and Arms workout. I only made it through half of Ab Ripper before calling it quits, vowing to do more core later. Made it back to the gym to spin (solo) around 5pm. Kept the cadence high and resistance low. It was just what my legs needed after that first run back. Today I knew what I had to do. I had to put Dissertation before Training. I have a tendency to do whatever I do between 7am and 12pm really well. And take great pleasure in it. But then the pleasant sense of accomplishment tends to facilitate this weird and frustrating stagnation in the afternoon. Today it was more important that I actually make some headway with my dissertation analyses than getting in a double workout (despite have a run and a swim on the calendar). Miraculously and finally (and I do mean finally - like 6 months finally) I got down to business. After 3 hours of up and downs, fits and starts, frustration and elation I actually got through the step of my data analysis that I have been stuck on (read: avoiding and paralyzed by) since August. And it was only noon. You know what that means? I drove to the commuter lot, parked, and ran over to the Natatorium pool just in time for lap swim. Every lane had someone in it, most were already doubled up. A young man (cute, with a slightly stocky swimmers build) offered to share his lane. As I did my first few hundred meters of warm up, he repeated flew by me. So much for a pleasant and non-competitive swim :-)  I told myself that dealing with his wake would be good practice for open water swim (not the same, i know). Then I realized what was going on. He was doing very short drills. 50m, rest, repeat. Also, he was doing flip-turns. I was not. So I let it go. After about ten minutes we fell into a pattern. I was swimming continuously and he was doing 50m's on the :00's. It actually ended up being great for the next 20 minutes and I swam :57 50's through 1600m. He left the pool around my 1500 mark. Too bad though, as the pool emptied out and after I took a 1 minute breather after 1600m my pace fell markedly. I mean seriously, I don't know what happened. how does :57 turn into 1:03-1:05. I decided not to worry and just plugged along until 2400m. By this point the pool was empty and I was able to even practice my flipturns a bit before toweling off and running back to my car. I probably only ran 1.5miles. Can't decided whether I should make it a true double and get back out there after my afternoon meetings. I guess I'll decided after some lunch. I need some serious fuel right now.

ok, so this isn't me swimming. but my swim was awesome and this picture is awesome. amazing what you find when you google image search something as simple as "swimming"...

2000m in just under 40 minutes. had to actively not get competitive with the very fast and trim woman in the lane over from me. but the water is so soothing that i was able to let most of that stuff go, most of the time.

tri plans are on. i only wish i didn't live on a grad student stipend so i could afford a new bathing suit and a pair of padding cycling shorts. i guess thats what birthdays are for...

an actual run

for the first time since January 1 i actually got out for a run. in order to be extra kind to my ailing foot/posterior tibialis i drove over to the Toftrees Trail and did the whole things on the soft macadam and mud. it was the slowest run i've been on since september but i was a run. 5 miles, just under 50 minutes (with a stretching break at the turnaround at miles 2.5). truth be told i didn't have a ton of pain. more like a nagging sensation and some increasing tightness in my left arch. the biggest thing, which i was somewhat aware of while running then acutely aware of when i finished and did a nice walk cool down was the degree of hypervigilance and fear i was experiencing the whole time. not exactly a relaxing way to run ;-)   

but it was a run. and i was glad to be out there in the 40 degree drizzle. i'm also a big fan of mud crusted sneakers...

i seemed to have missed the boat on 2010 resolutions but i have been slowly devising a plan for the coming year... in part all of my life decisions (including training possibilities and races) are having to wait until february 22 when i will find out where i will be working/living next year so there is no real use in trying to make plans until then. but, just between you and me -- i have my sights set on a triathlon. went on an awesome swim a few weeks ago and am planning to hit the psu pool this afternoon or evening. if i enjoy this swim as much as the last one (or even half as much) then i think i am going to set the wheels in motion. i have a training plan all mapped out in  my head. if the swim goes well, i'll post it here tomorrow.