06/20/2010 - 06/26/2010

06/20/2010 – 06/26/2010

Sunday, June 20th

Travel day to Appleton, WI for work. DAY OFF.

Monday, June 21st

Hello beautiful Appleton Wisconsin! I was afraid that the 94% humidity was going to put a “damper” on my training, but it was actually a nice change from the dryness of the desert. The day started off around 5:15AM (3:15AM Arizona time) with a nice mellow 11 mile run (my longest run to date!). Since I didn’t know the area, I didn’t have a planned route. Instead, I took my hand held Garmin GPS on a 5.5 mile out and back. Once I was off the main road, the scenery basically followed this pattern:

1) Farm
2) Farm
3) Dairy Farm
4) Farm
5) Farm

Hardly any traffic, relatively no pollution, new scenery, and a new adventure are all things that led this to be one of my most memorable runs to date. I’m not sure how long it took me, or what my pace was, but I really didn’t care. I just wanted to get some miles under my shoes and to enjoy the morning.

About an hour later, Brad met me at Todd’s house for a 60(ish) mile road ride to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. We were to meet up with Todd, who was racing stage 5 of the Tour of America’s Dairyland. It was a 50+ mile road race held on the historic Road America racetrack. The track is just over 4 miles long and has 14 turns. Brad and I set off around 8AM and headed south along Lake Winnebago. We ended up riding on part of a half Ironman course that was held the week before. While the ride was mostly flat to begin with, there were countless rollers towards the end that put our legs to task. There was one memorable hill that Brad said I needed to ride. It was straight down and ended in the lake. Since he just finished the Lumberjack 100 Mountain Bike Race (in 8:54:45) the day before, I didn’t give him too much trouble for not taking the climb with me. I pretty much rode the brakes the whole way down to the end. When I turned around, I could barely see Brad at the top. Only thing to do now was to get into the smallest gear and grind it out. What a great training tool! It was awesome. I had to get my picture taken by the warning sign after. Along the route, we safely out-sprinted a dog, moved out of the way of a huge John Deere tractor, and battled head winds the whole way. On the final road to the track, Brad recognized a teammate’s car as it passed us. We were able to get in the slipstream and motor pace for the next several miles. Ironically, this teammate ended up crashing, in his race, later in the day. Anyway, after entering the race track, we immediately put back two bottles of Powerade each, found Todd, ate some protein bars, and headed out on the track to give it a try. It was a fast track that ended with a HUGE climb to the finish. As the pros were lining up, the US National Pro Champion in Criterium, Rahsaan Bahati, came over by us and was making some small talk before taking off. About half way through Todd’s race (the pros were running at the same time), I was through my 2nd or 3rd beer and realized that I was sunburned! Imagine that, I come from Arizona and get burned in Wisconsin. Brad took extreme pleasure when I had to walk over to the medical tent to ask for sun block. Overall, it was a great day that included climbing, wind, intensity, team work, and fun. I was extremely satisfied with today’s workout. Total miles ridden were about 64.

Me, with Todd's bike, at the "Dangerous Hill" sign. The hill can be "seen" just off to my right:



Tuesday, June 22nd

Today only saw a 10 minute spin to Starbucks, for an iced something that Todd ordered, and a 10 minute spin back. I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting when I said, “Make it two”, but all I know is that I rode home with some coffee/chocolate concoction that had whipped cream coming out of the top. It was awesome.

Wednesday, June 23rd

I was able to get a ride to a nearby YMCA (in Greenbay), with a fellow Ironman (Wisconsin) trainee, Cheri. We were able to get in about an hour of pool time before it was back to work. In that hour, I did the following:

4x500 Swim (Mod/Fast) (1:30 RI)
Warm Down – 300 swim

The swim felt fast and smooth and I came away feeling satisfied with the workout.

Thursday, June 24th

Cheri indicated that she had a 6 mile run route planned if I’d like to join. Since I couldn’t ride (no bike and/or time) and I swam yesterday, a run fit in nicely. We ended up doing a mild 5.77 miles. There was no real effort and or “training” going on, rather, just more miles on the legs. That being said, I was relatively satisfied with the run.

After getting back to Appleton, I had access to Todd’s bike again and decided to try and get another ride in. Since Cheri lived close by, she said that she knows a nice 20 mile route. I ended up getting 4 miles in before she showed up, so my total ride was about 24. We didn’t really give it too much intensity and there weren’t any climbs. It was a nice flat moderate paced ride.

Friday, June 25th

Travel day back to Arizona. DAY OFF.

Saturday, June 26th

Our team was riding the Rio Verde loop in reverse and was leaving at 5:30. James, and I, rolled from his house around 5:00AM to try and meet up (we wanted to roll around 4:45, but were running late) We ended up meeting up with two others and set off. Again, at the top of 9 mile Hill, we decided that we needed to get some more miles in. Oh, and we also had to head that way to get home anyway! We ended up netting 82.5 miles that included some good climbs and some nice time trial intervals. I really liked this ride and was very satisfied when I got home.

06/13/2010 - 06/19/2010

06/13/2010 – 06/19/2010

Sunday, June 13th

Since I moved my long run to Saturday, I had my long ride scheduled for today. James, Kyle, and I rolled from our house at 5AM and wanted to get in 80 miles. From our house, we headed over to Rio Verde and down “9 Mile Hill”. Rio Verde is just finishing up construction to put in bike lanes, but have left out some temporary speed limit signs that can create some problems if you’re not paying attention. It’s not too difficult to see the huge sign and orange flags, but the legs that extend out into the bike lane are. Speeds can reach 40-45 miles per hour and, if you’re not paying attention, you can easily clip them and kick off a real bad chain of events. At any rate, we were able to safely dodge all obstacles and make it down in one piece. After a short flat part, it was time to climb back out of Rio Verde and into Fountain Hills….nothing too steep, or difficult, just a nice steady climb. The centerpiece of Fountain Hills is their huge fountain, which is one of the world’s tallest man-made fountains. It was built in 1970 and sprays every hour for about 15 minutes. The fountain is driven by 3 600 horsepower pumps and sprays water at a rate of 7,000 gallons per minute. Under ideal conditions, the water can reach 560 feet, but typically only gets to about 300. When built, it was the world’s tallest fountain and held that record for over a decade. At any rate, once we passed this landmark, Kyle quickly realized that he had to cut his ride short and head back home. While James decided to give him an escort, I decided to ride on. Just up the road is Highway 87 (AKA Beeline) which serves as a portion of the actual Ironman route. I hopped on and put the hammer down for about 11 miles before I came upon my turn around point (a convenience store wedged between Fountain Hills and Mesa, AZ.) I quickly found out that the 11 miles back was more of an “uphill” ride with the wind. After making my way back home, and using Map My Ride, I saw that I put in about 91.75 miles. Had I known I was only 8.25 miles away from a century, I probably would have kept on. Anyway, some quick math came up with an average of 18.98 miles per hour for this ride. Overall, I was very satisfied with this ride and the results.

Elevation for my ride:



Monday, June 14th

I scheduled my moderate swim for today, so I picked out another force workout that looked like this:

Warm Up – 300 swim, 100 kick, 4x50 swim, 300 pull

1x300 Pull (:20 RI)
6x50 Swim (Fast) (:15 RI)
1x300 Pull (:20 RI)
4x50 Swim (Fast) (:15 RI)
2x300 Pull N/S (:20 RI)
2x50 Swim (Fast)

Warm Down – 100 swim

Not too much to say here, except that the pull sets felt strong and the fast swims felt solid. I’d say that it was a satisfying workout. Total yards = 2800.

Tuesday, June 15th

Moderate ride is the flavor of the day today. Again, I have about 3 hours available to do what I please. Typically, I like to go for about 2 ½ hours (or 50 miles). Took my typical route and was able to get 47.76 miles in that 2 ½ hour window. That comes out to around a 19.1 mph average. There was nothing new, or unusual, to report about this ride. I felt strong and was satisfied with the workout.

Wednesday, June 16th

Speed run. Erik had me going two full laps “on” and one full lap “off.” Working on my turnover, breathing, intensity, and recovery while it’s 100+ degrees has me wondering if I’m crazy. After thinking about it for a bit, I came to the conclusion that I am and headed off to warm up. After 1 lap of walking and 2 more jogging, I was already soaked and headed for the water bottle. No side stitches, no walking, and pretty good intensity left me feeling satisfied with today’s workout. Total miles covered were about 5.

Thursday, June 17th

Double duty day. 5 mile run in the AM and speed swim in the afternoon. The 5 mile run was my typical loop and didn’t really offer anything new. I kept a steady, comfortable pace and came in the front door feeling good. It’s always nice getting in a workout before the sun is in full effect!

The swim workout looked as follows:

Warm up – 2x (200 swim, 200 pull, 200 kick)

12x25 Swim (:40 SI)
6x100 Desc 2-2-2 (:20RI)
4x75 Pull (B-3,4,5, x25)
4x100 Desc 2-2 (:15RI)
4x75 Pull (B-3) (:25 RI)
2x100 Swim (Fast) (:10 RI)

B-3,4,5 x25 = Breath every 3 strokes for the 1st 25, every 4 strokes for the 2nd 25, and breath every 5 strokes for the final 25.

This was a good swim that provided just enough intensity. I felt good and was satisfied with the workout.

Friday, June 18th

DAY OFF!

Saturday, June 19th

Our tri team was going to do the “7 Springs Ride” and was leaving the Village at 5:30AM. Since they were asking for canned goods donations (and I didn’t want to ride there with a bunch of canned goods) I drove there and started the ride from the club. As I was loading my bike onto our truck, I saw a car leaving our neighborhood. The car caught my eye because it had a nice bike sitting on its roof. I thought that it would be too funny if they were driving to the same place I was to ride. When I rolled into the parking lot at the Village, who comes in shortly after? Yup, that car. Turns out that the guy is my next door neighbor! What a small world. It’s awesome that there is yet another cyclist in our area. A last minute decision had us riding the Rio Verde Loop in reverse. When doing the ride in this fashion, you have to ride up “9 Mile Hill” before making a decision to head back to the start or continue up into Cave Creek. On our way to 9 Mile Hill, I was pushing at the front of the pack when I ran over a huge staple and got a flat. Some quick hocus pocus and the group was rolling again. After cresting 9 Mile, a couple of us decided that we needed some extra time in the saddle and headed out to the ranger station in Cave Creek. Ultimately, this ride provided the perfect blend of intensity, speed, and power. I was very satisfied with today’s workout. Total miles = 72.85.

06/06/2010 - 06/12/2010

Sunday, June 6th

Met James for an early morning trail run right from our front door. We start out with about a mile of pavement and then hit the desert behind our neighborhood. I’ve lived in this area for 6 years now, and have never made it back to this area. I’m amazed at just how much land is actually out there. We even passed a deserted rock quarry that James said must’ve just moved out recently. James also said that he’s actually seen campers out here too. At any rate, our tempo was real slow today. We stopped to go to the bathroom, admire the quarry remnants, take in some fluids, and check out “snake paths” that crossed the trail we were running on. There were literally hundreds of them. Holding true to form, we encountered another oddity….a grave for a dog. Well, at least that’s what James told me was in there. During our trek, we only encountered one other person, and he was riding through the cholla forest on a mountain bike. To give you an idea of just how slow the run was, James was wearing a Garmin, but when we were done, he just looked at it and didn’t really say much more. I didn’t ask either. He may have said something about our pace, but we pretty much chose to forget it ASAP. All in all, it was still a fun run and a nice change too. We put in 10 miles.

Monday, June 7th

Last week, my moderate swim was on Tuesday, but that was because we were coming back from vacation on Monday. After perusing the swim book, I came across a nice moderate length “force” workout that I wanted to do. The book describes a “force” workout out as a workout, “Often emphasizing using a pull buoy for a significant portion of the main set. The workouts are intended to improve swimming strength.” Here is the workout:

Warm Up – 300 swim & 300 kick

8x150 Pull (Desc 1-8) (:20 RI)
8x100 Pull (Desc 1-8) (:15 RI)
8x50 Pull (Desc 1-8) (:10 RI)

Warm Down – 100 swim

The workout felt great and so did my arms. It was this workout that made me determined to pick up a pair of swim paddles too. Overall, I was very pleased and felt strong. Total yards = 3100.

Desc – Descend the speed of each swim. For example, on a set of 8x100s, each 100 is faster than the previous one.

Tuesday, June 8th

A moderate bike ride was on the schedule for this morning. Rolled promptly at 5AM and had 3 hours available to get in as many miles as I wanted. Sometimes I’ll use the full 3 hours and see how many miles I can go, but today I just wanted to get in around 50. I figured that I could do my standard 40 mile route and add some side adventures on to it. I ended up going a bit further south, than normal, and then a bit further north at the typical turn-around point. I was able to keep a solid tempo and only sat up to grab some fluids or stretch the back a bit. The end result was a about a 45 mile ride in approximately 2 hours and 19 minutes. That comes out to a 19.6 mph average. Keep in mind that, since I don’t use an onboard computer, I calculate my results using Map My Ride, and the clock on my cell phone. Overall, I was very satisfied with this ride and the accompanying results.

Elevation for my ride:



Wednesday, June 9th

Since I had some time after work, before my speed workout, I decided to pick up some swim paddles. I ended up getting some Speedo Contoured paddles from a local sporting goods store. It seems as though paddles have come a long way since I used ‘em back in the day. I remember using Speedo’s, but they were simple rectangles with some rubber tubing over the middle finger to keep them on. The ones I bought create a nice contour, for proper stoke technique, and have holes in them that allow you to get a good feel for the water. I did get a kick out of one of the benefits listed on the website: Speedo® logo. Seriously!?! OK, back to the workout de jour, speed run. I arrived at 5:30 PM to warm up, but since it was 103 degrees, I was second guessing that. After some stretching, in the baking sun, I took off for 1 lap of walking followed by 2 jogging. After warming up, Erik wanted me to follow this schedule:

4x
1.5 laps fast
0.5 laps recover
0.25 lap sprint
0.25 lap recover
0.25 lap sprint
1.25 laps recover

The first two rotations through were marginal to good. I really didn’t have the speed for the 1.5 fast, but was able to find some for those sprints. It was hot enough to where I had to stop after every rotation to grab some water. Trouble set in promptly on rotation 3. Immediately after starting my 1.5 fast, I knew I didn’t have it. I ended up jogging the fast laps and walking the recover laps for the entire set. For the last rotation, I was able to muster some speed for the .25’s, but that’s about it. The entire workout is scheduled for 1 hour, but it ended up taking me 1.5 hours (warm-up to finish). As a result, I was finishing up alone. Overall, I was severely disappointed with my performance in today’s workout. Total miles covered was about 5.25.

Thursday, June 10th

I guess my quest for finding a weekly routine that doesn’t have me doing back to back disciplines isn’t working out so well. Today was going to be a split day with a moderate run in the morning and a long swim in the afternoon. Surprisingly, I felt no ill effects from yesterday’s demoralizing speed work, so the idea of a 5 mile run didn’t really bother me. With the stopwatch off, I headed out and completed my usual loop. I felt real good. My turnover seemed to be normal, I wasn’t breathing hard, and the legs weren’t sore. I would say that I was satisfied with today’s run.

Previously, my “long swims” consisted of me getting in the pool and churning out 5000 – 5600 yards with very little structure. Just grinding it out and building a base. Today, I picked out an “Endurance” workout from the swim book and it looked like this:

Warm Up – 200 swim & 2x200 [50 swim, 100 kick, 50 swim (:20RI)]

400, 300, 200, 100 Moderate (:20 RI)
300, 200, 100 N/S (:25 RI)
200 Fast (:30 RI)
100 Fast (:30 RI)
4x150 Pull (:20 RI)

Warm Down – 100 swim

Overall, I was moderately satisfied with my performance during this workout. I felt strong and had good rhythm. It was also the first time using my new paddles and I love them. The added power allows me to glide through the water with very few strokes. Total yards = 3200.

N/S – Negative split. The second half of the designated swim is faster than the first half of that swim.

Friday, June 11th

Another back to back day as a speed swim was on tap for this afternoon. First up, however, was a morning speed ride. The main road leading into our subdivision is exactly 1 mile long and has a nice, gradual, uphill pitch. I decided to use this for today’s training. Hammer up and recover down. Since I don’t use a heart rate monitor, a power meter, or a computer, I can’t tell you the scientific numbers, but I can tell you that my legs were burning and I was out of breath. My goal was to see how many times I could go fast in an hour. I ended up doing 8 (16 laps total). After calculating my warm up, and warm down, I ended up putting in around 18.5 miles. I would say that I was moderately satisfied with this workout.

Elevation for the speed portion of my workout:



The afternoon swim was a speed workout. I found an “Anaerobic Endurance” workout that looked pretty good:

Warm Up – 300 swim, 300 kick, 300 pull / 200 swim, 200 kick, 200 pull

4x50 Build (1:00 SI)
2x50 Fast (1:00 SI)
1x50 Easy (1:00 SI)
3X50 Fast (1:00 SI)
1X50 Easy (1:00 SI)
4X50 Fast (1:00 SI)

Warm Down – 300 swim.

I had to do my final 4x50 set while the lifeguards were putting a volley ball net across the lanes and then actually removing said lanes. I had to make sure my recovery stroke was low enough so as not to snag the net dangling just above. The final 3 50’s were done with no lane lines at all. With all that, I was able to keep all fast 50’s between 27 seconds and 30 seconds. Overall, I was very satisfied with today’s workout. When my arms are burning, my lungs are moving, and my legs are tired, it’s all good. Total yards = 2550.

Anaerobic Endurance – The intention is to swim very fast, faster than you thought possible. The main set may be quite short in yardage, but still take twenty to forty minutes to complete. The main goal is to swim fast – don’t conserve energy, go for it.

SI – Swim Interval. Leave on the designated schedule. For example, one of my 50’s above took me 27 seconds. On a 1:00 SI, I would have 33 seconds rest. If it took me 40 seconds, I would have had only 20 seconds rest.


Saturday, June 12th

I ended up switching my long bike ride to Sunday so that I could meet a high school friend for a nice 10 mile run along the canal. After showing up at 5AM, to warm-up and stretch, I met up with Cindy and a group of her running friends. Cindy is currently training for the PF Chang’s Seattle Marathon and needed to get in 14 miles today, so she picked us up after putting in 4 miles. Wow, what can I say, what a great run! It was great meeting up with an old friend and meeting new people too! We did a 5 mile out and back. While I don’t know what our overall average minutes per mile were, Cindy did say that our slowest pace was 8:45. Nice! Overall, I was very satisfied with today workout.

06/01/2010 - 06/05/2010

Tuesday, June 1st

This was the first time back in the pool since May 24th. I could definitely tell that it had been nine days as I felt sluggish during the 1st 2000 yards. I guess I could also chalk this up to just warming up too, but I’m usually good to go way before 2000 yards. This day has been slotted for my long swims (which have been hovering around 5000 – 5600 yards recently), but after 4000, I felt that I would close out with some sprints and a warm down. Net result was a 4500 yard workout. Even though the first 2K was sluggish, the main sets felt pretty good and I was satisfied with the workout when I was done. I was holding 29 and 30 seconds for those last 50’s.

Warm Up – 1000 swim (slow pace increasing to moderate)

2X – 400, 300, 200, 100 swim (:30 RI)

1000 pull (moderate pace)

4X50 fast (:15 RI)

Warm Down – 300 easy swim

RI = Rest Interval = Rest between each swim or repetition. In the examples above, I rested 30 seconds between the 400, the 300, 200, and 100. I rested 15 seconds between each 50.

Wednesday, June 2nd

Today was scheduled as a split day. Moderate ride in the AM and speed run in the PM. I was rolling @ 5AM and put in almost 41 miles. I think I was on the road for about 2 hours and 30 minutes. That comes out to around a 16 – 16.5 mph average. This ride is a very common route that I take in the mornings and has some decent uphill grades. I wouldn’t call it climbing, but it is an uphill ride to get to “2 mile hill” and then about another 2 miles uphill before coming home. Overall, I felt pretty good and was satisfied with the ride/results.



I’ve attended about 4 or 5 speed workouts, and during 2-3 of them, I get a real bad stitch just below my right rib cage. After doing some internet searching, it seems as though this is a common “cramp” that is also known as “Exercise Related Transient Abdominal Pain” (ETAP). It’s caused by stretching ligaments that extend from the diaphragm to the internal organs, particularly the liver. The jarring motion of running while breathing in and out stretches these ligaments. I also found that most people exhale as the left foot hits the ground, but some people exhale when the right foot hits the ground and it is this group that is more prone to ETAP. Guess which foot I exhale on? Exhaling when the right foot hits the ground causes greater force on the liver. So, just as the liver is dropping down, the diaphragm raises for the exhalation. It is believed this repeated stretching leads to spasms. The workout was scheduled from 6:30 – 7:30, but I had to start a bit early, so I was out there at 6. The perimeter of the two soccer fields we run around is about 0.3 miles. After some stretching, I walked one lap, and then jogged one before starting the workout. I would go at 80% for a full lap and would then jog a ½ lap to recover. I did 8 full speed laps. After learning what I did, about ETAP, I made a concentrated effort to exhale when my left foot hit the ground and didn’t have a problem. I felt the onset, but nothing really set in. This was also the first time I ran in my new shoes. They are the exact same as my existing pair, but the existing ones have 275 miles on them. They are now my “back-ups.” Overall, I was mildly satisfied with my speed work. I felt that I should have been able to go a bit faster and shouldn’t have been as fatigued.

Thursday, June 3rd

For the 1st time, since February, I decided to head up to Anthem for one of my favorite weekly rides, the Jim Stenholm Crit. It’s a 1 hour circuit type ride that is race pace and includes a nice uphill sprint. The ride is scheduled to start at 7PM and goes for 1 hour. I was able to head up there around 6:30 and got in a 10 mile warm-up. Since the bike of choice, for this ride, is a road bike, I really didn’t feel comfortable getting in the pace line with my tri bike. As a result, I tried to stay up front and provide as much pull as I could. The circuit is about 4 miles and the 1st half is downhill, so staying up front wasn’t a problem, but the backside is uphill and is where I would get passed. I’d just give as much room as possible and then grab the last wheel to the sprint finish. Great group (about 20), great competition, and a great training event. Overall, I was very satisfied with this ride and put in about 28 miles.

Friday, June 4th

Another split day scheduled with a moderate run in the AM and a speed swim in the PM. The morning started out with a nice low tempo 6 mile trail run with James. There’s something about a trail run that makes me enjoy running a bit more. It seems that every time we get out on the trails, we encounter something different. In the past, we’ve had a Gila monster hiss at us, a bobcat cross our path, and a 6’ rattlesnake make us stop until he decided to move off the path. This time, it was a dead cow. Overall, the run felt good, not too fast, and not too slow. Concentrating on the terrain also helps pass the time. One misstep and it could mean a twisted ankle on that rut you didn’t see. It could also mean finding a Cholla burr attaching itself to your calf. Good times.

For my speed swim, I decided to crack open the Swim Workouts for Triathletes book and take “Test 1.” Essentially, I want to find my “T1” pace for a 100 yard distance. The test calls for 3 x 300 with 30 seconds rest between each one. The goal is to swim each 300 at the highest average speed possible. The results are most accurate when the total time, for each 300, is within 15 seconds of each other. I need to get the average for all 3 300’s and then divide that by 3. This pace is used to approximate my lactate threshold pace and will be used to base workouts until my next test (in about a month). Anyway, here are my results:

1st 300 = 3:40
2nd 300 = 3:45
3rd 300 = 3:45

3:43 average

3:43 / 3 = 1:14 average per 100 yards.

Saturday, June 5th

Ah yes, my favorite workout day, the long bike ride. James and I mapped out a nice 80 mile loop that we’ve done in the past. Overall, it’s a great ride, but once we are out on Lake Pleasant Highway, things get a bit sketchy. There is no bike lane, there is lake traffic, and the asphalt is littered with debris. This is always my least favorite part of this particular route. We end up making our way into Anthem and over to the Daisy Mountain fire station to refill our water bottles. Total oz of liquid, consumed by me, was in the area of 100oz today. As we start heading home, we realize that we are going to come up short of 80 miles and decide to settle on 70. Overall, I felt that it was a good ride that included plenty of intensity when needed. I think it took us about 4 hours, which equates to about 17.5 mph (including bathroom breaks, a flat tire, and the stop at the fire station)

May 2010

May was another month where I was still trying to figure out a solid routine that encorporated speed workouts on Wednesday evenings (without repeating disciplines on consecutive days). Not quite sure why I’m so fixated on this type of routine, but I am. I will also be calling this month, “The month of excuses” because it seems as though every time I was scheduled to swim, something came up. Picking up sick kids from day care, staying home with kids (sitters kids were sick), getting sick myself, and a long vacation weekend were all reasons I stayed away from the pool. Another reason, for the low swim output, was that I wanted to concentrate on running more this month. In other words, a 2 hour swim day was scrapped in lieu of a 6 mile run. Not only did that increase my total run miles by about 20, it also freed up some personal time too.

While picking up my second pair of running shoes (they were 30% off!) I saw that GU came out with a new flavor…Jet Blackberry (has 2x caffeine!) I moved from Vanilla Bean to Just Plain last year and have recently become sick of it. Oh, I’ve tried the other flavors, but immediately rule out anything without caffeine (just a personal thing), and can’t take the rich chocolate or espresso flavor while riding. I can tell you, for me, Jet Blackberry is here to stay for a while…it’s that good!

I also picked up a new swimsuit. I have been using a pair of triathlon shorts, that James gave me, but have noticed that they are getting a bit “see through” in some areas that should absolutely remain covered. The new Speedo is knee length and is supposed to be made of “chlorine resistant materials”….we’ll see about that. While I did pick up this suit on sale, can somebody tell me when they started charging $40 for ‘em? Inconceivable!

TRAINING

SWIM - In my April blog, I erroneously indicated that the YMCA only allows 2 people per lane (for a maximum of 6 people swimming laps at a time). When inquiring about summer pool hours, I struck up a nice conversation with one of the swim instructors and she indicated that the maximum swimmers per lane are 6. The total people, allowed to swim laps, at one time, are 18! That would be fine if all 6 people were of the same skill set. Listen, I’m not saying that I’m Michael Phelps, but could you imagine trying to bang out a 5000 yard workout with the guy doing the side stroke, the lady doing the dog paddle, and the teenagers trying to see how many laps they can do completely underwater? So, I didn't like the 2 per lane and now I'm complaining about 6, I know. Hopefully, I won’t encounter this scenario, but as the days heat up, the pool becomes increasingly more popular. I only swam on 4 days with my longest workout being 4500 yards.

BIKE - Cycling starts promptly at 5:00 AM now. This is nice since it allows me to get in a 3 hour ride before work if needed. I’ve also started carrying 3 bottles of water and/or Accelerade on my rides (68 oz). Previously, one 20 oz. bottle of water only was fine, even for the longer rides. My longest ride was 87 miles, while my shortest was about 32. All miles were ridden on my tri bike.

RUN - My running seems to be coming along nicely. The biggest improvement, I can see, is in the soreness and fatigue areas. It seems as though I am recovering quicker, after my long runs, and am not as sore the next day. When I first started running, it was a chore just making it downstairs after my shower. I was surprised that I wasn’t out of breath more or more uncomfortable during my longer runs either. Some would say that I wasn’t running fast enough, but whatever. May was also the month that I decided to put away the stopwatch and “enjoy” running more. What I found out was that I didn’t dread heading out on that 10 miler as much and didn’t look at it as “work.” Up until now, I felt that I had to keep running, no matter what. Had to go to the bathroom at mile 5? Too bad, 5 more to go until I can go! Run not hurting enough? Pick up the tempo! Not going to make a personal best on a usual loop? Sprint the last 100 yards! While I was still using the stopwatch, however, I did notice my average times did come down a bit. On my 10.5 mile run, I averaged 8:52 minutes per mile (previous best was 9:05). My best 5 mile run was down to 8:05 minutes per mile (previous best was 8:34). I can honestly say that Erik’s speed workouts, on Wednesday, have really helped me with my run tempo. The last run of the month was about a 10.5 mile run in Alpine, AZ. The family cabin is almost 5 miles away from Luna Lake and provided me a nice “out and back” opportunity at altitude (about 8200 feet).

BRICKS – 0

MAY TOTALS

SWIM – 13,700 yards (7.78 miles)
BIKE – 477.25 miles (all tri)
RUN – 69.9 miles

Now that I’m current with my blog, I will attempt to give a more detailed report, on a more frequent basis, with a monthly “wrap-up.” We’ll see how it goes!