Pre-race day

Crossfit WOD (with Saturday Tribe)

3 rounds of:
10 burpees
20 lunges
30 squats
[7:07]
Added a little running to warm up my legs

Swim 1700yd with 10x100
[100s- 1:21,1:23, 1:25,1:25,1:25, 1:27,1:27, 1:26,1:25,1:26]


Thursday I got a massage and yesterday was a complete rest day. I felt super fresh today and am really ready to go have a fun race tomorrow. It feels great to be in good form and injury free going into a race. Coach Bonita told me that I should skip my run today and replace it with a crossfit workout to wake up my legs, and then stretch it out with a swim. Initially I was nervous to not run, but the workouts I did today worked my body in similar ways while keeping my run muscles as fresh as possible. The times on those swim repeats show that I am fresh.

I took a 3 1/2 hour nap this afternoon, had a good dinner (turkey, broccoli, sweet potato, avocado, raspberries), and have all my stuff laid out for the morning. I am going to dream about running a perfect race.

sweet spot

My off-season culminates with the Austin Half Marathon tomorrow, then I begin to transition into the triathlon season. I am looking forward to a fun year ahead and go into it with a renewed positive attitude. Here's what's new this year:

1. Nutrition: Primarily vegetables, fruit, meat, and nuts, but laid back about also eating grains and beans if I want to. I take a balanced approach so I enjoy my food and never feel restricted. All meats are on the menu.

2. Fish oil. This has made a huge and unbelievable difference in reducing post-workout inflammation and helping recovery.

3.  Reduce sports foods. As much as possible, I am replacing gels and bars with real foods like raisins, dried fruits, dates, nuts, bananas, pb+j.

4. No more workout volume just for the sake of it. Weekly volume will be kept down and all workouts will have some component of intensity. Slogging out miles puts needless wear and tear on the body.

5. Keep up regular Crossfit workouts throughout Ironman training. Lower endurance volume should allow me more space for this.

6. No time goals and huge expectations placed on myself. I am going to train as hard as I can and see where I can get. It doesn't matter to me what other people are doing because I know that all this trial and error has led me to a sweet spot in my training (and in life). I will focus on making each workout the best it can possibly be and I will always make sure I keep it fun.


Endurance Nation coaches say that the best part of all this training is that it allows you to do cool stuff with your high level of fitness. Right on! I am looking forward to going on new rides, seeing new places, lifting more than I ever thought possible, and pushing myself beyond my limits in the weeks and months to come.

embrace it

Bike 2:30 with 3 x 8 min hard (4 min rec), 2 x 12 min hard (6 min rec)
[HR averages for the intervals: 144, 145, 144, 142, 144]

Massage 60 minutes of lower body

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It was cold and rainy today and since I am running on Sunday, I needed to get my long ride of the week in today. No choice but to take this inside to Pure Austin. I joined a spin class as a warmup, then hit the intervals on my own. It took at least 30 minutes for my legs to get moving. There was a lot of junk built up in them. The intervals were all supposed to be zone 4, which I usually consider to be in the mid 150's. Obviously I was quite a bit below that... even though my legs were burning. I had trouble pushing big gears today since my legs are tired and ended up spinning easier gears at a high enough cadence so that I was still working hard. Based on perceived exertion I'd say I worked hard enough. Nevermind the mental challenge of being on a trainer the whole time!

These workouts are a mental challenge every day. It is constant practice of learning to break down and work through hard moments. I am embracing it because it takes discomfort to have growth.

@lululemon said today:  Remember, race results stay in Google forever. Can you push yourself a little hard?

extra lean ground beef

 Run 45 minutes with 2x1 mile hard
[miles@7:14,7:11]
I ran in shorts and it was in the 30s. I could hardly feel my legs. I was fatigued (but not sore) in my lower back from yesterday's crossfit and that was a factor today.

Swim 1800m
[about 37 minutes]
I forgot to write down the planned workout before getting to the pool. I guess I'm still working on the life organization aspect of the Ironman training. It was freeeezing to swim outside today. There was so much steam coming off the water I couldn't even see halfway to the other side. Not the most pleasant swim but I made it. My upper body was tight to start but once I got going I felt like I had a little extra muscle to put behind each stroke. It's been almost a month since I have been in the pool.

Pushups
[challenge week 1/day2= 6-8-6-6-7]

Today I bought red meat for the first time EVER. I haven't eaten red meat since high school and at that time my mom was making the dinner choices and doing the shopping.  I wanted to get bison but they were out so I settled for extra lean ground beef. It feels like I have crossed over a big bad line with this. I have mixed feelings but I'm just giving it a try. Here's the evidence. This stuff better go straight to my muscles and iron stores.

randy and red meat

Bike 2 hours (always pushing, zones 3-4)
[1:41, avg HR 123]
I did this ride outside at 7am. It was cold and windy and I could not get my heart rate up. My max heart rate for the whole ride was 140, even with pushing up hills into wind. I'm not sure what was going on. Part of it may have been that I had trouble getting my mind around grinding hard for that long, and part of it might have been tired quads or dehydration. Even though I was happy with myself for getting it done early before work, I need to do better if I want to ride faster.

Crossfit Randy
75 snatches
[15:45, 30lb bar]
I had fun with this workout. It sounds dirty, huh? I thought I would hate this workout but I actually liked it. The infamous snatches. They are hard for me because I am just not flexible to get low into an overhead squat position...yet.  Bonita and I worked on form first using PVC. The goal is to keep the bar close to the body the whole time, shrug and transition at the perfect moment, and not let the bar go forward from your body. It's supposed to scrape your quads, hit you in the pelvic bone, and then scrape your stomach on the way up. I took this workout at a steady pace and did 3 sets of 25. My form started to degenerate around #65 and my shoulder started to hurt. I freaked out. Then I calmed down and ripped off the last 10 with my best form of the day. I like snatches now. Just gotta practice more so I don't forget that.

And...
I ate bison meat for the first time today and liked it. Bison in spaghetti sauce with spinach pasta. Could red meat help my performance? Stay tuned.

Day 1

Brick Workout
-Bike 1 hour with 3 x (8 minutes hard/2 min recovery)
[I did this inside on the trainer. Interval heart rates: 157, 154, 154]

-Run 30 minutes as 15 min easy/15 min mod
[1.6 miles/1.8 miles]

Strength, etc.
Day 1 of Hundred Pushups Challenge (hundredpushups.com): 6-6-4-4-5
1-rep max power clean: 45, 55, 65, 70, 75 (fail)
Farmer's walk: 3 x 20 steps with 40 lb kettlebell in each hand - grip workout
20 burpees

This was the first day on the Endurance Nation Ironman training plan. Nice brick there. Taking the pace down in the last 15 minutes of the run was challenging and UNcomfortable.

This was also the first day of the Hundred Pushups Challenge. The 5 sets were pretty easy to crank out. I could have done more sets but not more reps within each set. That was fun.

half marathon preview run

Run 8 miles, hilly on Austin Half Marathon course, with last 2 miles at half marathon effort
[1:03 w/ last 2 around 7 min pace]

I had springs in my legs today, which was a complete surprise after yesterday's 250 air squats. The hills flew by and I had no trouble cranking out those last two miles at a hard pace. Amazing!

Next Sunday is the Austin Half Marathon and it will be my key race of the "off season".  I would like to set a new PR or at least tie my old one (1:37). All systems are ready, now a week of taper, a pre-race massage and I should be set.