Tri Training Recap

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever. That surrender, even the smallest act of giving up, stays with me. So when I feel like quitting, I ask myself, which would I rather live with?"- Lance Armstrong

I have been thinking about this quote a lot lately.  Next Sunday is Racine 1/2 Ironman.  I have been training for this thing for over 6 months.  It all comes down to this one day.  This is the only triathlon I signed up for this year. In all of the races that I have trained for, this one I have practiced the most.  My triathlon training group even went to Racine TWICE to train for the swim, bike and run.   I never did that for a marathon.  I usually experience the course on race day- it is part of the deal.  


All of the training is done.  Now is a taper.  As you know, I hate taper week.  I get neurotic.  I feel fat.  I start to doubt.  It's all part of the process.


Next week at this time, I am hoping will be submitting my first race report to you.  


Here is this past week's triathlon training log:


Monday: Yoga, 30-minute swim, 10-mile bike
Tuesday: 5-mile run
Wednesday: 75-minute run, 30-minute swim in Racine.  FYI- did you know that Racine has the largest 4th of July parade in the Midwest?  Now you know!
Thursday: Rest day- to darn hot to run.
Friday: 35-mile bike, yoga
Saturday: 6-mile run (death march) in the sweltering heat
Sunday: 50+ mile bike (my Map My Ride App on my iPhone died right at the end), yoga


Questions to you:
1) What is your race mantra?
Mine is: "Attitude, not Aptitude, will determine your Altitude."
2) What do you do during taper week to calm nerves?
I do a LOT of yoga.
3) What is your favorite pre-race dinner?
My favorite pre-race dinner is spagetti with turkey meatballs, side salad with oil and vinegar and a glass of red wine.  The wine helps calm the nerves and gets me sleepy.


Thank you to all of my friends who gave some very good advice regarding my yoga funk.  After Racine, I am going to completely rework my yoga and workout schedule.  I think I have just become bored with the same routine and need to experiment with some different types of yoga and try some new teachers.  


Three things I am grateful for today:
1) The heat is not so oppressive.
2) The husband passed his colonoscopy!  One less thing to worry about...
3) Puppy Kindergarten for Bakon.  

Tri Training Recap

"Swim like you're gonna drown, ride like you stole it, run like they're chasing you"- Unknown

This is the only time I will let myself be photographed in a wetsuit.  Notice the strategically placed noodles.  This was taken at last year's Danskin in Pleasant Prairie where I volunteered as a swim angel.

We are getting into the final weeks of training for 1/2 Ironman Racine.  This week I resumed training at my usual intensity after finishing up the antibiotic/steroid regimen to get rid of that nasty sinus infection.  Here is last week's recap of training:
Monday- Yoga (no biking because of high wind warning)
Tuesday- 5-mile run
Wednesday- 1-mile open water swim
Thursday- 5-mile run
Friday- 10-mile run, yoga
Saturday- 30-minute swim
Sunday- Racine dress rehearsal

Sunday, my 1/2 Ironman training buddies and I took a field trip to Racine to get a swim in Lake Michigan and bike part of the course.  We got in 30-miles on the bike.  The course is really nice and rural- the only thing that I am nervous about on the bike is the small hill you need to go up from transition.  After the bike, we took a quick dip in Lake Michigan to get a feel for the water.  And felt the water we did!  The water temperature was 58 degrees!  We attempted to 'swim' but our faces about froze off!  We are going to attempt to get another swim session in on July 4th in Racine.  It's funny; my biggest worry was the bike.  My biggest worry is always the bike.  It's never the swim.  The swim is my strongest leg of the race.  After Sunday, my biggest worry is the swim in Racine because of the water temperature.  I hope I don't freeze to death!

3 Questions:
1)  Why did you start doing triathlons?
I started to get bored with running.  I knew eventually I would injure or burn myself out because all I was doing was running all of the time.  I thought I would mix it up and try triathlons.

2) What distance of triathlons do you like?
Actually, I like all distances-sprints, Olympic and 1/2 Ironman.  I think each distance has something to offer- sort of like the varying distances of running.

3)  What is your favorite running distance?
I really do enjoy running marathons.  Mostly because of all of the crazy people you meet.  Everyone has an interesting story out on the course.  I like how the race reveals itself to you.  At the start you just never know what type of a day you are going to have.  One tiny thing can unravel into a big issue in a marathon- it is how you deal with it that determines what kind of race you are going to have.