Training Review 9/17 - 9/23

A part of me wants to give up on the Week in Review-type posts.  But I want to be able to look back and see what I've done through the process, so I have to honestly put it out there. 

All-in-all, a monumental week in the whole experience.  I went from down in the dumps, to elated, to questioning, to physical therapy and encouraged, to tentative, back to elated.  It was emotionally exhausting!!!  I also opted to babysit some of my favorite little kiddos, making rides impossible on the usual Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  In the long run, so worth it.  Love those cuties!

Monday-
Swim: 2500m total, which was great!  My swimming buddy Glenn really pushed me during the 100's (18 x 100 @ 2 minute starts).  With warm-up and cool down, I managed to get the most meters in ever on a swim night.

Tuesday-
Tried out running for the first time in a couple weeks.  I got up early, but not too early to see how 2 miles would feel.  It felt GREAT.  With every step I was hesitant and expecting to feel the twinge of pain in the calf, and it never came.  Hallelujah, thank you Jesus!  I iced it when I got home, and had a better outlook.  Because of this better outlook, I posted the "Pushing the Pause Button" entry I actually wrote the week before.  I felt like I could approach the prospect of not being able to run the marathon leg of the Ironman like I wanted to in a more...mature way?  Sure, we'll go with mature.

Wednesday-
Back to swim, where I noticed my shoulder was hurting a little on the "pull" motion through the water.  I decided to take it easy after the intense swim on Monday.  I did a warm-up, the 16 x 50's that Rich gave us to do, then decided to just swim to a mile and go home.  Just what I need is another injury to keep me from a second of three sports in the Ironman!

Thursday-
Back to the asphalt to try another short run; again I only allowed enough time to do 2 miles...just in case I was tempted to do more.  Again, it was GREAT!  Again I iced my calf when I got home and the endorphines kicked in.  Oh, happiness!
While the kids were in school I was able to get my ride in, 33 flat, fast miles.  I am really enjoying the versatility of the cycling workouts and the intervals the manual calls for.  This one was:
Warm-up about 4 miles, then a gearing pyramid:
4:00 in easy gear @ 50%
6:00 in next harder gear @ 55-60%
6:00 in next harder gear @ 60-70%
4:00 up one more gear @ 75%
Main set:  3 x 6.2 miles:
#1 @ 75%, followed by 3:00 recovery spin
#2 @ 84-92%, followed by 10:00 recovery spin
#3 @ 84-92% - go straight into cool down

See what I mean?  Totally fun!!!

Friday-
Rest day, but I was hardly ever off my feet. 

I also went to the physical therapist for the first time.  If you are in the Fresno area and need a physical therapist, I would highly recommend Barrow's!  I was impressed at the thoroughness of the examination I received.  Not happy about why I am having trouble, but determined to do what I'm told and make it better!  He said that my core and upper body are weak and that my lower body is taking the extra strain.  He showed me how when I stand the normal way I stand, my legs are working harder than if I stand straighter.  Then the legs are more relaxed and not overworked.  He watched me run, had me stand on one leg, then the other, then with my eyes closed.  He ended up loosening the joints in both feet which was painfully delightful.  They felt better, and I could stand on one leg better, too.  I go in five more times in the next two weeks, and looking forward to it!

Saturday-
Pat was taking the day off to prepare for his Olympic distance triathlon on Sunday, so unavailable to ride 4 1/2 hours with me.  Never wanting to be "alone" for the long rides (because of safety, not because I want to draft...although that is nice), I was able to get a ride in with our fellow IMAZ participant, Steve.  We decided to do a ride/run brick and go for 4 hours on flatland.  The miles just ticked right passed, and before we knew it we had 68 miles done and were off to run.  Let it be known that Steve is amazingly fast on the bike, and when we had straight shots, he shot straight off.  Seriously, the man just pedaled out of view until I saw him at our meeting points. 

Then came the wild card...the run.  Sure, I could do 2 miles alright, but we were going to try 30 minutes.  Which then became aiming for an hour.  Thankfully we ended up doing just over 5 in 43 minutes, and it felt so great to be running again.  I mean, really, really running.  It was crazy hot outside, and we stopped a few times for water.  By the time we were almost finished, I was feeling pretty cooked.  My leg felt fine, but I noticed a slight tightening in the last mile.

After we finished I dashed off driving to try to make it to two of my kids' soccer games.  Ken was super-man and handled all four games the four kids had that morning (at three different sites).  What a guy!  I managed to watch my youngest daughter play in the last part of her game, and the entire game of my middle son.  They are just too cute in their little shin guards and uniforms!