Week ending: 1/27/08

Well... this week was a pretty good one from a training perspective. I stuck to the workout calendar that I set a couple of weeks ago and it felt pretty good.

I got a couple of new pieces of gear, rain gear that is... it's been pretty nasty here all week and will be most of next week as well. Funny part about it is that even though when I woke up on Saturday morning and it wasn't raining, I put on the neoprene shoe covers and the rain jacket just the same. It was cloudy and I didn't want to get caught in a down pour without the gear. Let's just say my strategy will be a little different next time... by mile 6 I was sweatin my ass off but my brief attempt at taking off the rain jacket (full of moisture) made me quickly realize that my arm warmers were soaked and I'd rather be warm and wet than cold and wet. Easy decision.

The highlights for the week where:

• My Bike / Run Brick on Saturday (regardless of the rain jacket thing)


• It was a great ride (here or you can just look at the picture below). Funny thing about this ride though... Loren said... "you need to do FLAT. High rpm's and flat." So I thought... I'll go ride out toward the beach that's flat. Just about the time that I was thinking of taking off the rain jacket... I was also coming to realize "hmmm flat... Yeah, Like I'll get that in San Francisco!"


• The run was interesting too... I only did a short 4 mile run. I was shocked at mile 1 when I looked down and saw that I was running 7:45 pace. And not really straining at all after the bike. I kept this up for most of the run w/ exception of the small hill getting back to my house.


• A good swim session early in the week... nice easy pace, but my lungs felt great


• and to top it all off on Sunday I took my first Spin class at the gym (I really didn't feel like riding in the rain). Yeah, I know I just got the gear but it was pissing pretty hard and I just didn't feel like it.
  
  
  
  • The spin class however, was Awesome! I was shocked at how good a workout I got and I was dripping w/ sweat and my legs were burnin. I'll definitely go back.

The lowlights were:

• A crappy swim on Friday. I just couldn't get into it.


• The leg workout I did at the gym on Thursday made my Ass hurt so bad I could barely walk. Squat Lunges are great for you, but they'll make you pay for days.

All in all, I think it was a good week and I'm looking forward to my swim in the morning.

Weekend :: Bike, Swim (Brick) / Run

This weekend is the first that I've been able to get out and ride... mainly because it's the first full weekend that I've had my bike (Kestrel Talon SL). I was pretty pumped up to do a 20 plus ride to the Marin Headlands and then cap that with a .75 mile swim at the Rossi Pool. I got up around 6am and started to hydrate and get some oatmeal in my system, it was going to be a fairly tough workout day.


My plan was to get out of the house a little before 7am, but as it turns out the sun wasn't set to rise until 7:25am... so I waited a little and read a little. Finally the time came for me to get going, here's a look at my ride...



As you can see from the elevation chart I got from mapping at MapMyTri.com, the ride has a few pretty steep elevation changes, a little more than I expected, but it felt great to be out riding.

Almost at the end of the ride, I did my swim, it was at a fairly relaxed pace; .75 miles in 23 minutes. Although I really don't like the city pools on the weekend, they are way overcrowded. Before I left I powered down a gel and a clif bar, I needed them. I got back on the bike and continued home (3 miles).


On Sunday, I took it pretty easy... I did a 6.2 mile run at a really slow pace (which is killing me) but by going slow and build up endurance I'll be able to go much faster on race day.



This going slow things has been tough to buy into but, it's been working so far and my endurance, heart rate and pace have gotten better in the short time I've been training.

I really like this run, it's along Crissy Field to the Golden Gate Bridge and then back to Fort Mason where I park the car. The scenery on this run definitely keeps me going, although running into the wind is a pain in the ass (but good for something I'm sure)


I have a long way to go in my training, but I'm definitely making progress every week. One of the main things I have to concentrate on is hydration and post workout eating. But with every Triathlete Magazine article I read, I learn a little more.

1st post / Training Schedule...

So, today is the first of many posts about my Triathlon training as well as other rants and raves that I can squeeze in here. I doubt I'll be a diligent as "Coach" a.k.a. "The Lorpedo" a.k.a Loren who somehow finds time to write almost daily.

Today, we came up with my training schedule for the next month or so:



I've got a bunch of new gear and I've been geekin on it, so I'm sure I'll have plenty of fodder for upcoming posts.