Week Eight: Ironman Training Week October 10th- 16th , 2011

What I hope to document here is my 13 Week Journey to my first Ironman Race. I’m not sure exactly how I’m going to do this. I may do it in a quick journal format with my random thoughts…which may be more for me than anyone else and not to exciting to read, but if your ever considering doing an Ironman or even just a triathlon…then you can read about what goes through my mind in the training process. Highs, lows, emotions, fears, rants, etc., etc. Enjoy!  PS: forgive any spelling mistakes as I’m sure I just happy to get it written down…chalk it up to fatigue from lots of training J

Monday- Wow! Week EIGHT! EIGHT!! Spent most of the day thinking about this, and started to get just a bit nervous and also excited cause it feels like there is finally and end in sight. I am going to be racing my first IRONMAN Race in 6 weeks!!  HOW FRICKEN COOL IS THAT!!!  I was then a bit nervous about my work out tonight as it was my longest for a Monday:  1:15 hr swim and then 1:15 hr run. This of course would be nothing if it was my Sat workout, so I really shouldn’t have been nervous about it. Scheduled for# 6 workout today for swim, that was 10-15 x 200 yds with a :20 RI and then 1:00 RI; 10-15 50yds with :15 RI. I warmed up with 200 yds, then got to work and got in 12 x  200 yds avg. right around 4 min per 200 yds. Was super excited to see that I was at 45 min at 2000 yds. Very happy with that, almost didn’t believe it as I counted it out with my rest breaks. But it’s right, then I got in 12 x 50 yds at a one min mark, used the pull every other 200 and then for over half of 50s only because my shoulder was getting a bit sore. Cooled down with another 200 yds. So total distance for swim tonight was 200 +2400 +600 + 200 =3400 yds. MY BEST TO DATE!!!  I used Ironman Perform and sipped on that throughout my swim, and I felt really good going into my run. Of course a week of Recovery could also be a part of that too! J 

Run- I took a Energy Power bar Gel in Berry Blast which was actually pretty good, just out of the swim, changed clothing and sipped more Ironman Perform. Hit the treadmill and did 1:15 hr/min with 4 x 10:00 at Z3 pace with a 3:00 RI. I got up to an 8:32 pace in some of my last minutes of each time, and still had to push to get into Zone 3, Very NICE!!! I liked it; I walked my 3 min recovery for heart rate and sipped more Perform. Felt really good.  Finished with 6.2 miles .

 First time trying out my new Brooks Trance 10 shoes. I LOVE THEM!!!  They felt like I was running on clouds.  So comfortable, just found a new running shoe I think. But I have to go up a size to 10.5 to make them fit right. Small sacrifice for a shoe that fits well and feels good. Nutrition seemed good today. I always can drink more water, but I felt well, no GI issues, and again was fresh, due to coming off a recovery week, but man that’s such a great feeling to have and go at a 10:00 pace and still be in Zone 2. SWEET!!!  My hard work is starting to pay off, will be peaking for race day for sure!

Tuesday- Oh lovely Tuesday… I spent an hour on the bike trainer and well…it was uneventful. I don’t like riding on a trainer. It was off too. Finally when I got it fixed….I was over ½ way through so I only got 11 miles on it. BUT…I got my time in.

Wednesday-   I’m feeling surprisingly decent today, don’t feel tired. Kind of feel like it’s a recovery week. But I know it’s not. Got out of work and headed straight to the Y. Got in my 30 min run before my swim so I could get home a bit earlier. I did 2.12 miles in the treadmill. Then headed over to swim for an hour. Got in most of my workout in before I almost ran in to a three teenage boys decided my lap lane was perfect to frolic around in. Thank god I didn’t hit the one in front of me head on, that would not have been good. So I switched to another lane after I kinda yelled at him and finished out my workout. Wasn’t that great, as I got sidetracked and then difficult to focus after my almost head on collision.  Got in 2100 yds, and my shoulder was sore. But it’s also due to doing an increase in distance from Monday of 3400 yds.  I’m not getting bored with swimming, but I’m’ having trouble focusing and keeping my mind on the training and mentally wrapping my brain around an open water swim, so I feel like I need to get more in. If only I could do the SOMA race, I’d get a chance to swim in Tempe Town Lake before my Ironman.

Thursday- Day off today. Was going to do Yoga, but instead got a great couch from a generous therapist from work. It’s SUPER COMFY!  And I almost immediately fell asleep on it when it was all in place. And a big thanks to the help from Cathy and Nic for taking time out of their busy schedule to help me. Nice to know you have someone you can count on when you are alone.  What’s also nice is I now have my futon in the spare bedroom for anyone who needs a place to crash.  Good to have a relaxing night. 

Friday- Today super tired now!  And I had a lot of trouble getting on the trainer, so I went for an hour of yoga instead to stretch out. I needed it. And it felt good when I was done. Need to do more abs, just having trouble finding time. I seem to be walking around in a fatigue haze, which may mean I’m overtraining, but of course, it’s par for course with training over 15 hours a week on top of work 40 + hours.

Saturday- Enjoyed sleeping in today, only felt slightly guilty, BUT much less than usual. I think it’s more from just wanting to have a day off and sleep in and veg out  at my place all day, But I know there is an end in sight, so I can keep pushing knowing that I will have it soon.   I was in the pool by 8:30 am and got in a good 2500 yds. Most swimming for the week for me: 3400, 2100 and 2500. Deb tapped my shoulder on Thursday, and it still felt good today, but had to take it off by the end of the swim. She had me try something different and it still felt pretty good. I kept a pretty steady pace, even got in my first 1000 yds in 25 min.  that is exciting, I of course did 500 yds with the pull buoy, but again, I will have that feeling with the wetsuit. J          Next up I stopped off quick at the bike shop, my shoe cleats are stripping and sliding. I may have gotten it fixed; they did their bike magic and told me to try it out for tomorrow. We will see how it goes. Then I was off to the Peavine Trail for my 3 hour run. Longest run to date. Doing my usual 10/2 Run/Walk pace. And I kept my heart rate pretty good. But because I needed more water, I decided to run 2 hours, then another 1 hr so I could re-fuel back at the car. Temps were in Mid 80s by mid morning. That was too hot for me L I made my first 6 miles okay, but once again had to walk. My other issue? I DID NOT HYDRATE!!! Yesterday or today. That made it hard to keep a good pace. I took in a Salt Stick tablet every 35-40 min, but didn’t have enough water to wash it down with, so I wonder if by the time I got back to my Escape that I was over “salted”.  I drank a good 22 oz of water, and put my feet up and took in ½ a Coke. I felt much better after 15 min and went back out to finish out my last 4 miles feeling better. Drank all the water I had with my two flasks. Kept away from anymore salt.  I still layed down and elevated my legs for a bit when I got back. BUT, I ran 14 miles total with a 150 bpm HR. Wanted it to be a bit lower, but I’ll take it. Will need to work on that more. So…to rehydrate and be ready for tomorrow. I’m already over  60 oz of water and still thirsty and I will keep at it.   Knees…really hurt after the run. More so then hips. Always does over 10 miles with my body mechanics. So spent 15 mins in a nice COLD ice bath. I feel much better, but still just sore. The few times I attempted to lay down and just take a nap and rest, I got back up to get chores done, just feeling  like I’m behind. And got most of my stuff prepped and ready to go for tomorrow’s workout.  Going to drive up to Flag and do my 5:30 hr workout. Plan to be there at 7:30 at Lake Mary and ride for about 3 hours before my training partner joins me to finish out the last 2:30 hours.  Ready for the foam roller and bed.

Sunday-  Wow….true test of my mental training today!  I woke up at 6 am, and out the door by 6:15 to drive up to Flagstaff. The plan: to get in 3 hrs of riding before my training partner got there and do another 2 ½ hour ride. I was still pretty tired from yesterday. And quite honestly, I just  am feeling burned out! I wanted so badly to sleep in today, just skip the ride entirely, take a day off. But I got up, dressed and out the door. I made it up to Lake Mary around 7:45 and got on the road by 8:15 am. I realized right away that my body just didn’t want to cooperate with me. I was slow and tired and mentally not in a good place. So I  decided to just make it a fun day and not let myself get stressed  out with the training, I’d focus on getting some fall shots of the weather, video of my training, etc.  I actually had some beautiful shots. I made it the 10 miles to the start of  Mormon Lake Rd. I then started on my loop ride, and began cursing everything, mainly the bumps in the road, talk about an uncomfortable ride.  I did get some great shots of the morning sun on the fall leaves and was feeling better. But still I was a bit frustrated with not feeling like I was getting in a good workout.  So, The mental game began:  Just stop, you don’t need this, Why are you doing this anyway, Your tired, just call it for the day, go home and sleep.  These are the thoughts that possessed my mind. Along with the insecurity of not feeling like I’d be ready for the race.  As I rode past the turn around, I was actually happy I had in 2 hours and thinking that I’d take 45 to get back to the Escape. HA…apparently I rode faster then I thought, and zipped back by 30 min. So I only had 2:30 hr/min in. I rode some down the other direction, and then Stacy called. We chatted, figured out her ETA. I had another 30 min. I was tired, I rehydrated, and decided to do another 30 min down the road while I waited to get more time in. Yeah…here is where things fell apart. I was already feeling the stress…of fatigue, exhaustion, insecurity, not having any time off, still having to drive back home.  By the time I got back to the Escape, I worked myself up in to a mini panic attack, I had to put my legs in the air cause they were like lead! I even tried to call stacy to tell her I was done, don’t come, I wasn’t doing anymore.   I thought about my race, and how I would have these moments during my Ironman, and what key phrases I would use. I didn’t get very far, I just shut down and breathed.  Then I began to Freeze, then I was having trouble focusing. Clearly I was heading south. So I tried to focus on what I could control. DRINK WATER, Eat Something, BREATH!!! By the time Stacy got there I was a bit better, but told her how I was feeling.  I was tired, my legs were sore, I was on the verge of tears, and I just wanted to quit.  I told her to give me a few minutes, and I’ll do the best I can, but I couldn’t promise anything, I was okay with taking some photos, but I was just spent, the run yesterday did me in and I was mentally and physically exhausted. Can we say OVER TRAINING?

So I used the fact that I wanted some photos, and make it a “leisure” ride to push me to try. I wanted to try and see if I could get out of it. We rode slow, got in a few photos. I got out all my frustrations of the week with training to Stacy. Clearly, I needed to vent, and Ironman training makes it hard to do that when you spend 90% of your time alone, training.  I had decided before we started to just go 10 more miles, then turn around. The last hill up kicked my ass. But as I coasted to the bottom, I was feeling a bit better and willing to try to go farther. We started the loop with no expectations, got a few more fun photos and after wavering a bit, just decided to go the whole way around. We stopped at Mormon Lake Country Store, I got a Coke and chugged it down. That was a life saver, quick energy and I was able to get my butt moving to make it back and my mood considerably lifted as did my speed on the bike. As we got closer to the vehicles, I realized that I needed 2 more miles and I”d do 85 miles today. WOW!! Even with a nasty bonk during the middle of the ride, I was able to come back and push through it and persevere. Knowing that I didn’t do my best, but I was able to get through the worst of it. Thanks to lots of Swearing, Motivation by Stacy and just pedaling. I was able to accomplish 6 hrs and get in my time.  I then, busted out, got food and a drink, and thank goodness. Because by the time I hit Camp Verde, we were stopped dead from a car accident. So for the next 1 ½ hours and 4 miles, I crawled along the road. But Ironically, I realized it’s the most downtime I’ve had in a while. So I cranked up the music, ate my dinner, and sang out loud and ….chilled. Didn’t get home until after 7 pm.  Hot shower, not sure if there is any water left by the time I was done LOL!  Ate a little bit more food. I don’t feel sore until I move, mainly in my legs,  so I know  tomorrow is going to hurt. Biggest issue right now? Nausea and dizziness started around 9 pm, and I am currently fighting not throwing up. GRRRR... But it doesn’t feel like GI distress. Maybe something I ate?   Hopefully it passes and I just need sleep Time to lay down.