One week out (Chicago Tri Pics)

Here's some pics from the 2011 Chicago Triathlon. I'm starting to get excited for my race next weekend. It looked tough today in Chicago. The water was pretty choppy, and the wind was kick'n from the north, beating down all the athletes on the bike leg. The temperature was perfect though. Nice and cool.

I did my final peak week training workout yesterday and feel strong and ready to go. It is going to be kinda weird to take a couple of days off for the taper. I have to make sure to cut back my calories along with my training so I don't put on a bunch of lbs before race day.

Peak Week

  Almost through the week and feeling pretty good. I did my first mile swim in open water yesterday and did OK. I was starting to get really tired at the end and my form started to get sloppy, but I focused in and finished strong. It is nice feeling to know that I can get the full distance, now I just have to get a bit faster.
  There are still some decent workouts left this week and I have to keep pushing. I am just happy that I'm not feeling completely wiped out. That has to be a good sign.

3 Weeks Out

  It's been a little while since I updated the blog, but I got a little tired of writing out all the workouts and just did them instead. The training has been going really good. I am feeling confident with everything except the swim.
I have been getting two swims a week in the lake, but still have not done a full mile in open water. I only swam that distance once in a pool with some breaks, so the full distance in open water is just out of my reach at the moment. I still have a bit of time.
  Next week is scheduled as my peak week which means lots of miles. I am both looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. I know that I can get all the workouts in but I will be wiped. Just have to take it day by day.
  One interesting note to my training program is my food intake. I feel like all that I do is eat and I am hungry again in 20 minutes. You have to fuel the fun!

This weekend is the half marathon for my run group. I am going to pace the group to the finish line. This is a huge achievement for these runners all going from 3-4 miles a few months ago to 13.1 on Sunday. It just goes to show that you that you can do anything you set your mind to with a good plan and lots of hard work.

This weekend is the half marathon for my run club. I am excited to pace my group to the finish line. This is a huge achievement for these runners. I am proud to have coached them from 2-3 miles just a few months ago to 13.1 on Sunday. Just goes to show that you can do anything you set your mind to with a good plan and lots of hard work.

Week Five

Got all workouts done this week and feel really good. The highlight was the swim last friday. It was a short swim (about 20 min) but I kept a nice even pace the whole time with just a couple little breaks. After watching some of the tour de swiss bike race I was inspired to ride a bunch this weekend. I did 20mi on Sat the 30mi on Sun. Legs are feeling good and strong.

The pool schedule changes next week and the lap swim times are shorter so it might be open water..

Start of week four

Sunday ran 5.7 mi in 56 min. Nice easy run. Was feeling a little worn out from last week but just took it easy and got through it. This week is a recovery week so the mileage goes down. I've got to try hard to pull it back and not do too much.
Monday's swim 25min felt good. I am starting to feel good in the water. The hand entry is getting cleaner. I have tried a few differant styles of entry and the one that feels the best for me is going in thumb first with the palm facing the wall then rotating the hand into the pull. I have also been working on rotating my hips in the water. I really have to tell myself to rotate over or my body stays flat in the water. It is coming more natural.
I have also started breaking up my laps with differant strokes to be able to change mid water and catch my breath. I will do the crawl down and then doggie paddle/frog swim for half lap into crawl.

Week Three

This week's weather was all over the place. 90 and humid one day and 50s the next. Its hard to plan you training when you have no idea what to expect from the weather. I had to miss one run this week due to the extreme heat. Here is the break down for the week:
Sunday had a 10 mile run in 1hr 36min.
Monday 36 min swim and 16 mile bike
Tue day off
Wed 27 min swim
Thur 24 mile bike. Really windy avg 17mph
Fri 36 min swim
Sat 6 mi run with run group easy.

Week Two

Now they're cruising by...Good week overall. Wanted to get one more swim in then I did, but I just have to stay consistent and get at least two in each week.

Monday I worked a half day then decided to get a long bike ride in. I rode up to the North Branch Trail in the forest preserve north of Chicago and rode up until the trail was flooded out. Ended up doing 37 miles
in 2hr and 22 min. Average speed of 15mph. Had the wind at my back on the way up and in my face the way back. It felt ok because it was really hot, about 90. My legs felt good after but I was a little worn out from the sun.

Tuesday got a swim in about 30min easy pace. Wednesday took the day off. Thursday did a 5 mile run 47min HRZ 2 and a 25 min easy swim. Friday did some weights and core exercise.

Saturday was a 5.5 mi run HRZ 1 with the group. Really hot and sweaty run. I may have to start the group runs earlier to beat the heat.

Today finished up the week with a 10 mi run in 1:36 avg pace 9:31. Started slow and steady and was feeling a little stiff this morning but it was so nice and cool that I kept pushing through. Really hit my stride at miles 6-7 and pushed the pace for a while then brought it back down for the last couple.

Looking forward to next week...maybe I'll hit the open water.