DO WORK

This week was really good. I was able to get quit a few key sessions in the book and the weather co-operated for the most part. That's a pretty good thing for this part of the country.

If you've been reading lately...You'll notice the weekly entries to be getting quit long. Well, there's a couple reason's. The first is to share my experience while preparing for this race. The seconds is for my own personal development. The detail and records an athlete keeps during each season...especially when training becomes intense, is probably one of the single best resources you, the athlete can fall back on.

So...sit back...grab another PowerBar....maybe 2 Red Bulls...and read on. I logged each day after each workout....saving the blog as a draft during the week. This was good as it allowed me to capture how I felt each day...after each workout....

Monday:

(Swim) Easy Swim (mentally strong today but physically tired). Didn't feel like pushing the swim. Took it easy and closed things down after 2500 yards.

(Bike) Easy - Steady Bike. First 20 miles nice and easy. Next 20...opened up the legs a bit a enjoyed the weather. Nothing fast, just a pep in my step. Probably had something to do with the weather and the sun. Beautiful day. Temperature was 70 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. Total time was 2:12 or 41.3 miles

Ride was out to Texas Stadium by way of the rollers along side Highway 114. Rode around Valley Ranch afterwards. Felt really strong today on the bike.

Planning a track workout tomorrow. We'll see how my body and legs feel when I wake up. Should be interesting after Sunday's long run.

Tuesday:

(Run) Continuous run with Vo2 Intervals in the middle.

Structure was 8.2 miles as 2.5 miles warmup....straight into 6x800 meters with/400m jog at 8:00min/mile pace or 2 mins per quarter....follow straight into a 1.5 mile cool-down. Data from intervals listed below as well as heart rate averages....

1. 3:02 / hr = 167avg/176max
2. 2:56 / hr = 172avg/180max
3. 2:55 / hr = 173avg/183max
4. 2:54 / hr = 176avg/184max
5. 2:54 / hr = 177avg/185max
6. 3:02 / hr = 175avg/184max

Last 800 was a little slower as I was starting to feel a bit fatigued. Probably should have cut the workout to 5x800 on this one. Oh well...no biggy. I really love the active recovery between intervals. Little rest but not too much....just the ticket. Immediately after the workout I opted for a .5 mile walk and 20 minutes worth of stretching. Nice way to end the workout. Total workout was done on the track for a total of 8.2 miles or 1 hr even. I don't include stretching or walking into my volume totals as I don't consider these workouts.

I rode over to the track today on my bike and was pretty nice. I like the easy spin before and after. Made for a more relaxed workout once I got to the track and a nice bit of recover post.

(Bike) Easy, Easy, Easy around Valley Ranch. Just an easy ride to stretch out the legs. Looking for a solid bike/run brick tomorrow. Should be an interesting day.....

Wednesday:

(Bike) Awesome day today. Rode on straight PE. No heart rate monitor...no speed checking. Tempo sets were done on feel and not time. Structure was easy pace...build to steady for the first hour. Followed by sets IM+ pace for about 10 minutes (estimate) with just enough time to relax...maybe a couple minutes or so, and then right back into Tempo. Ended the ride right when I was getting really strong. Need to save something for the rest of the week. Idea is to light one match every so often and then blow it out...not burn the entire matchbook! Total time was 3:35 or 71.5 miles.

I'm starting to get more and more comfortable in an upright position. Probably has something to do with the volume I'm at right now. In any case...it's an awesome feeling and I think I'm on a solid track. Speaking of track. Headed to the track for an easy run. My shoes are blown out right now and running on concrete just sucks. Therefore....easy run on the track tonight...

(Run) Easy run on the track. Exactly what the Dr. ordered after the ride today. I was so wound up after the ride....I just needed to get out for an easy cool-down. Just something to bring the hr down....

Thursday:

(Swim) Best day in the pool this year. Felt really strong. Might have had something to do with not being in the water for the past couple days. All I know is I felt really good....strong and fluid.

(Core) I did some core, a few pull-ups and a few push-ups with a medicine ball immediately following the swim. Solid effort and my core is getting nice and strong.

(Bike) Immediately after the swim and core....I jumped on the bike for an easy spin out to Flower Mound. Today's ride was nice and easy. Hair dryer was set on medium today and temp was just perfect. It was nice to spin it out for about 80 minutes after yesterday's ride. Important to get those easy rides in. Can't go hard if that's all you do. That goes triple for all disciplines.

Was planning my big day tomorrow but it's supposed to rain. Therefore, I'll take it easy and save my energy for Saturday! I think I'll pick up some new shoes!

Friday:

(Swim) Structured set today. Very nice swim. Still feeling powerful in the water. Kept it somewhat short today. Hoping to save a bit of energy for tomorrow. Next time in the water will be Sunday....

Drove out to Lukes Locker in Dallas to buy new shoes. 2 Pairs of DS Trainer's. Lunch at Eatzies afterwords....the best sandwiches in Texas!

(Run) Oh how nice it is to have new shoes. I could have run all afternoon. Beautiful day...80 degrees with a nice breeze out of the WSW. Kept the run short @ 56 minutes. Looking for a strong day tomorrow. Will kick my feet up tonight and rest...

Saturday:

Workout was a solo 112 mile ride on road bike with bouts of IM / HIM paced riding followed by a 4 + mile transition run. Temperature was a beautiful 81 degrees and the winds were nice for these parts...around 8mph.

(Bike) Structure was as followed:

• Easy ride for an hour.
• At 1 hour, spend the next 1.5 hours building to Ironman pace. Take it slow..enjoy!
• At 2.5 hours...hold Ironman pace to 3.5 hours.
• At 3.5 hours...build to HIM pace and hold to 4 hours.
• At 4 hours....back down to Ironman pace for 45 minutes.
• At 4:45 build back to HIM and hold till the end.

Nutrition on the bike: Gatorade Endurance...1000 Calories / 5 PowerBar Gels...550 Calories / 1 Coke...140 Calories. Total: 1690 Calories

Transition was a quick 3 minutes to grab my gear from the truck...change out of my cycling clothes over to running shorts and shoes. Fumble through a cooler of nutrition for water bottle and Gel, and I was off.

(Run) Transition Run was awesome. Held it pretty steady and tried to find a zone to run in. I went out to fast and spent the majority of the run trying to slow down and hold back. It will take some practice and some discipline to stay in control the first 10k during the race...but it's extremely necessary. Mile 1: 7:19 (hr - 157 avg / 164 max) Mile 2: 7:34 (hr - 158 avg / 164 max) Mile 3: 7:42 (hr - 156 avg / 159 max) Mile 4: 7:48 (hr - 155 avg / 158 max)

Nutrition on the run: PowerBar Endurance (1 bottle)...210 Calories / 1 PowerBar Gel...110 Calories. Total: 330 Calories.

Sunday:

Workout was an easy 2+ hour ride with 9 mile transition run. Day was beautiful. Temperature at 75, winds out of the SSE at 18-20 mph.

(Bike) Very easy bike. Had a really nice tailwind on my way out to Flower Mound. Rode out close to Argyle and turned around. Pretty stiff on the way back but kept it easy and relaxed. Heart Rate Avg was 125 for the entire ride. Legs felt really good but could tell my heart rate was a little low....drift! On the way back...I pushed the pace a little bit to get my heart rate up for the run.

Nutrition on the bike: Gatorade Endurance...300 Calories / 2 PowerBar Gels...220 Calories. Total: 520 Calories

Transition was 4 minutes. Enough time to change into running attire and drink a bottle of PowerBar Endurance...140 Calories.

(Run) The run was awesome. I left the house and took the extended route to the track through some pretty awesome hills. Total distance to the track was 5 miles. Once at the track...tried to lock in a steady heart rate and settle in. 4 miles on the track and then turned it off. No need to burn any unnecessary matches. Details from the run below...with heart rate and speed.

• Mile 1-5: 37:52 (hr avg 147 / max 159) (Extended loop to the track..rolling hills)
• Mile 6: 7:28 (hr avg 154 / max 157)
• Mile 7: 7:34 (hr avg 152 / max 157)
• Mile 8: 7:34 (hr avg 152 / max 157)
• Mile 9: 7:36 (hr avg 153 / max 157)

Nutrition on the Run: PowerBar Endurance before run...140 Calories / 1 Coke...140 Calories / 1 PowerBar Gel...110 Calories / Gatorade Endurance...150 Calories. Total Calories: 540

Run was completely in control and total relaxed...steady state running. I enjoyed this workout the most. I had more fun today and yesterday than I've had all winter. I guess that's a good thing.

I tried to find a nice PE and simulate a race pace environment today. At Mile 8, I turned around on the track to run the opposite direction and fumbled with two water bottle's Julie handed off to me. May account for the change in pace and heart rate. I'm pretty picky about my training right now and watching any and all variations with my PE, Heart Rate, Pace, Nutrition....Everything!

Gonna grab a bit of food and head to the pool for any easy cool-down to the week.

(Swim) Nice and easy after today's brick. Felt really powerful and fluid in the water! I really just tried to enjoy the swim. It was nice to have an easy, care-free set after the past couple days.....

Until next week...

Mg