THE HEAT IS ON!

The wildflowers are drying up in Arizona and the temperatures are rising.  My biological clock is converting to early bird hours and the training for Vineman 70.3 is on.  It is hard to believe that this race is only 11 weeks away.  I still feel a long way from my Ironman Fitness level, but I am finally starting to see some changes in my body and yet identifying many areas of weakness.  First let me recap this training week.  Monday was a total rest and recovery day from my San Diego Weekend.  My body needed more rest on Tuesday, so I waited until night time and worked on some spinning drills, interval work and technique on my bike on the trainer.  Wednesday it was time to get back to work and my swim coach thinks he knows what's best (they all do!) and played a game called "KILL THE TRIATHLETES" or better known in other sports as SUICIDES.  He had us do 8 sets of kick 25, 5 full body push ups on edge (you had to lower all the way back into the water after each push up), 25 free, 5 push ups, and 25 free, 5 push ups.  I had to cheat and walk my way up the wall a few steps to initiate the push ups (NEED:  Increased upper body strength).  I followed this deadly workout with a 30 minute run including 3 hill repeats.  On Thursday, I met with my bicyclologist, Jeff for a 2 hour training session.  It was very windy, so he taught me about drafting and we continued working on cadence-gear ration, energy conservation, climbing and standing technique.  I am always amazed at how my skill level is so much higher when I work with him and then I have trouble retrieving those patterns on my own without his words.  I keep asking my gurus to come with me on all my rides and swims so I can hear their voices or to make me a recording.  Jeff said that would get pretty expensive for me to have him on all my rides (point taken).  (NEED:  increased anaerobic capacity to stand on bike, increased calf strength for cycling, increased coordination and timing for shifting). Friday was open water swim day and I drove out to Bartlett Lake with a few friends from ONE.  These drives are always interesting because it is like being at a triathlon clinic with discussions on a variety of topics.  This weeks topic was nutrition and the importance of timing for endurance athletes.  It just so happens our driver (Valerie) is a registered dietician and she does presentations on the topic so she shared information with us.  The ONE Multisport Club is filled with such a diverse groups of athletes and professionals it feels like a sharing pool and it is great to be surrounded by so much knowledge.  The water was choppy again so I suppose it is good practice for rougher conditions, but the water level was a lot lower when I swam to shore because I drank half of the lake.  I also came home and did an hour run with a 30 seconds sprint every 10 minutes.  I told my friend that they were more like pick ups then sprints and that I felt sick when I tried to increase my speed on my bike or run, so we renamed them PUKE UPS!  Saturday was the famous 9 mile hill loop around the McDowell Mountains in Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Rio Verde for a 50 mile loop.  I decided to start with the ONE group to go see if there were any other turtles to ride with, but it did not turn out that way, so I was on my own.  My legs were rebelling early on and I muscled my way through the ride on the verge of overheating.  Welcome 90s. (soon to be 100).  When I did this loop about a month ago, I had a great ride, but that was not the case.  I find myself having either  a good ride or a bad ride with very little in between.  (NEED:  maybe better nutrition and hydration, rest, not sure????).  And finally Sunday when my body is crying stop....I got up and went out for a 2 hour run on tired legs...remember that is how we trained for the marathon in Ironman.  Teach your body to go when it just wants to sleep.  The good, the bad, and the ugly all wrapped up in one week.  I guess I am on my way to Vineman.

This week I had muscles screaming at me and the others who inflicted pain on me (and you know who you are).  I know this is part of the process breaking the body down to build the body up, challenging the mind to see how hard it will let you push to get to the next level.  As much as I want to quit, I want to push forward.  What part of your mind will win this battle.  Having a goal helps you keep the finish line in view and helps you make the decision to move forward.  When you don't perform as well as you would like is what fuels the desire to try again and maybe do it better next time.  If I have to have a bad ride to get to the good one, I will continue.  If I need to take an extra day of rest to come to that conclusion, so be it.  Vineman is 11 weeks away, so THE HEAT IT ON!