Training Week in Review

I think this is the peak week for my half ironman. Looking forward to decreasing the milage, tapering and building up my anticipation for Augusta 70.3. Skipped swim practice again because the legs just aren't fully recovered to get the maximum workout in the pool. Even Tuesday's run was a recovery run. Legs weren't feeling good again until Wednesday. I decided not to do the spin class and focus on an endurance swim to make up for missing Monday night. Started with 400 meters for warmup and then got some drills in. Using a kick board, I worked on my legs. I really feel this is an area that needs a lot of improvement and I can gain some significant speed if I had a strong and fast kick. Also used a pool buoy and worked on my arms. Afterwards, I just swam straight doing about 1800 meters. Felt good and at a consistent pace.

Scheduled called for a 5 hour ride on Saturday. At my pace, that's about an 80 mile ride and that's a bit too much with an 18 mile run the next day. Last week I rode 80 and had a slow 16 mile run. This week I rode 58 and had a really great 18 mile run on Sunday. The pace was fast. I held an 8:11 average over the entire run. Granted, it was cloudy and below 80º, but I don't think I've ever held that kind of pace for anything over 5 miles unless it was all downhill. Very happy with the run. Although I must say, mentally, it takes a lot to run that kind of distance. I question why I run that much and wonder if I'll even attempt a full marathon. I think after Augusta I'll feel differently as I'll probably cut my cycling by half, allowing me to experience my full potential on long runs.

Made it to the open water swim. Water was choppy. Since it was Labor Day weekend, there were lots of boats and jet skis on the lake. I felt really slow and the waves did not help. I choked on some water, but was able to regain my composure and then continue. I'm looking forward to using a wetsuit again for Augusta.

Date	Day	Activity
08/29/11	Monday	Rest
08/30/11	Tuesday	Run - 7 Miles
08/31/11	Wednesday	Swim - 2500 Meters
09/01/11	Thursday	Run - 7 Miles
09/02/11	Friday	Rest
09/03/11	Saturday	Bike - 58 Miles
09/04/11	Sunday	Run - 18 Miles Swim - 1500 Meters OWS