Monday, August 21, 2006

Training update

Saturday afternoon:

So after the exceedingly uncomfortable run because of the stomach issues I was having, I decided to go for a bike ride. I was thinking of doing a 20-30 mile ride, just to get comfortable on the new bike. So I got the bike all ready. Put my bottle cages on the new rear seat bottle holder and was ready to go. Noticed it had just started drizzling. Less than desirable, but okay. I'm tough. Let's go (little voice inside my head saying- don't go. You've had a bad enough day already and aren't used to the bike yet, so don't go out by yourself in the rain, idiot. I ignored the little voice.

So I'm off. Within the first 1.5 miles I:

1. Got breezed by 3 cars getting way too close for comfort
2. Lost BOTH bottles from the rear bottle "launchers" (didn't even hit a bump!)
3. Tried to go retrieve bottle #2 and went down. Right on my bruises/road rash from last time!

The little voice in my head became a really big voice in my head "Okay stupid, you can't do this ride with no water, and you're spooked. And bleeding. Go home"

So I went home and let Cindy Crawford kick my ass via VHS

Sunday:

You read the race report. Later that day (9am)I went on a bike ride with some CTCers. It was a very fun group ride. Met a really nice guy from LA that Charlie picked up on the way and heard horror stories about century rides up mountains. Those are the stories that keep me up at night!

Stats for the ride:
30.28 miles in 2 hours (including stop lights and conversation, etc)
New max speed for the bike 35.4 mph (could have went WAY faster if I was comfortable in the new setup. The hill is killer.
Elevation climbed: 1820 feet
Avg heart rate 154 Max 183
Good time had by all!

Today:

Woke up at 5:45 intending to do a 4 mile tempo run. I really wanted to keep the miles under 8:20. Ate a banana (new for me. I really dislike them, but they saved me on the century ride so I'm giving them another try), put on the Garmin, and was off.

Does anyone else have problems going hard in the morning? I had such a hard time running this morning. I averaged about 20 seconds per mile slower than I had anticipated. This was not helped by the fact that the Garmin HRM strap is too big! I spent half the run messing with it- had to stop once to try to shove it into my sports bra, then gave up altogether and let it sit around my waist at the end of the run. I realize that they have to make it fit the "average American", and our larger population, but I'm really not that skinny. Anyway, enough of my rant (I figured out a way to make it fit today). My end run stats were 4 miles in 34:30 (8:40 pace). Then I took my bike to work for a 10 miler to top off the day. Not too bad.

So now I'm so sore! Open water swim tomorrow!

6 comments:

Wes said...

Excellent workout! Please don't fill me with horror stories about the bike before I put my feet in the peddles for the first time, LOL! Are you trying to scare me!

qcmier said...

What kind of cages do you have use for you bottle launchers? After a few attempts to reshape them I gave up on the old metal cages and spent a few bucks for better holders. The carbon bottle cages look really nice.

Anything done before 6:00 am is hard for me. I usually try to be conscious for at least an hour before a workout.

Trisaratops said...

I have to do a run before my first day of school Wednesday...it will be my first 5:30am weekday workout since June! Aghhhhhhh. Guess I can't complain too much though. :)

E-Speed said...

I've seen research saying its harder to run in the morning. It's beneficial though because thats when you will be racing :) I tend to do my speed and tempo workouts after work, and they are a bit easier. I think over time your morning and evening run paces will be closer.

Anyways yep you should have felt worn out, it's normal!

E-Speed said...

oh and if you get up REALLY early, we're talking before the sun, I tend to still be asleep so the run goes well :) In college Wed was fartlek morning at 6 AM. I would race through the workout so I could hop back in bed for 10 minutes before 8am Calc,lol, those were the days! I swear if my legs realized what I was going to do to them they would have refused, but half way through the workout I was usually still half asleep :)

Anonymous said...

About waking up early... try starting to wake up even earlier to get yourself moving in the morning. I know it's a pain to wake up at 5am, but if that's what you need to get your fluids moving for your runs, that may be what you need.

Either start all at once or do it gradually by 10-15 minutes every day... you don't have to TRAIN that early if you don't want to, but this will help wake you up for an efficient session.

Also, this may help: I can't do a training if I don't shower in the mornings, even if I'm training at 11am on a Saturday. You may consider taking a quick (and warm) 5-min shower but not wetting your hair, if that's a problem to dry. The warmth will help move your body and you can also stretch.... someone a long time ago told me that running water on your body "changes the magnetic field" and makes you feel different. refreshed. I'm not sure about this but a shower sure helps me!

Yes, this means you are taking several showers a day (morning, after training, etc), but perhaps it's worth your efficiency!