If it's Tuesday

This must be... um... wait... I know this one..... Belgium! Well, since I don't see Suzanne Pleshette around maybe that's not right this time.

Ok, so here's the deal; my workout schedule is pretty random. I used to know day to day what I'd be doing because I did the same disciplines on the same days every week. With this 20 week intermediate IM plan, not so much. Today I ran at lunch and I have a swim after work. I swam yesterday too, but that was because I moved my Sunday swim to Monday. I've biked 3 days in a row and have a bike tomorrow too. Guess what I have in my gym bag. Better stated, guess what I don't have. Swim jammers. Once again (this is the third time since starting this plan) I will be swimming in running shorts. Good times!

100 mile weekend

Saturday found me running a local 5 mile race in the pouring rain. What fun! I have done this race 3 years in a row now since moving into our house. How can I not; it goes right down our street! This year though, I was determined to make it a Zone1 - Zone2 heart rate run since my plan called for that anyway. It was hard to not "race" but I was s a bit sore from the race the weekend before and the added bike volume following the race, plus I had about 6 hours of cycling over the weekend staring me in the face. I did pretty well managin the HR. Crept up a bit on the hills, and I hammered the last few hundred yards to the finish. I was keeping pace with a female runner and she kept looking over her shoulder at me and speeding up. When we rounded the last turn she glanced over at me again and started her kick. Well, that was all I needed. I dropped her like a bad habit. I really didn't care one way or another at first but she kept looking at me and speeding up. Guess she didn't want to get beat by the old guy. Oh well.

After the race I recovered a bit and then bundled up (it was rainy and chilly) for a 2:20 ride. I took the Specialized since it was really wet out and I figured I'd be on the hoods for handling purposes much of the ride. Besides, I didn't want to drown The Mistress. Got in 37.72 miles in 2:25:07 for a 15.9 mph avg. A bit slow, but it was wet and I did seek out some hills.

Yesterday was the polar opposite weather; sunny and beautiful and I went way out past Phoenixville. Next time I go out that way I'll get on Rt 23 instead of staying on 724. Too much traffic and a horrible shoulder. Totals for the day were 3:32:30, 60.95 miles, and a 17.2 average. Ended up with a farmers tan on my arms and a white band on my ankle from my Road ID.

So, 5 mile road race, 37 mile ride, and a 60 mile ride equals 102 miles.

Hey, half of 100 is 50, and then the 2. 52!

Ninety in ninety

Here we are, 90 days out from Lake Placid, and I've decided to do 90 blogs posts in 90 days. That's one a day essentially but it may happen that I'll miss a day and then double up. Or I'll double up anyway if I have extra goodness to share, 'cause, you know, I blog so much as it is.

Today was Eastern, and Max's birthday so we had some family over for dinner and that was nice. Good food, good company; always nice. Got in a 60 mile ride in the beautiful sunshine but had to put off a swim until tomorrow. Took some time this morning to work through some angst on the home front, but it's all for the good. I love my family :)

Hey, how's it going?

Yup, it's been a while. So much for regular blogging. Of course once or twice a month is a form of regular, right? Good stuff going on around here; losing weight each week, training is picking up and I'm getting in some nice workouts. Snow is happening again, which is not so good as it puts a cramp in my style. For instance, today I am scheduled for a 75 minute run. It is snowing and raining and yucky out. I could do it on the treadmill, but that is like torture to me. Factor in work, the commute in the snow, etc. and I don't know when I'll get it in. I did get up early and went to the gym for a long swim so that's good. I have a couple of things to get done here, then may head home early and see what the conditions are like for an outdoor run. I'd rather do it here in NJ 'cause it's flatter, but we'll have to see how it goes.

Headed in the right direction

Did I mention I am trying to drop some weight? I'd like to get down to 150 by the time I start my 20 week IM plan. I realize that's just a number, but based on my body composition and my current weight I think it's a good target. Tuesday is my weigh in day, and after 1 week of no change, one week of adding .4 lbs, this morning I registered a .8 lb loss at 164.0. This was after my largest training volume week in months, and only slightly reducing caloric intake. I haven't been counting calories at all, just focusing on smarter choices and not over eating. I may start the counting but we'll see how I do in the next couple of weeks. I was a bit disappointed that the third digit was still a 4 but I am headed in the right direction.

The Weather Outside is Frightful

Ok, maybe not frightful, but it's snowing and cold and windy. I'm scheduled to do a FTP running test today and I don't think I'll be able to do it outdoors. Poop! I'd really hate to have to do it on a treadmill. Not even sure I could do it accurately that way, though if you are getting VO2 Max or lactate threshold testing done professionally that is done on a treadmill, but under supervised conditions.

What's an FTP test you ask? This is:

After 10 minute warm up, you are going to run for 30 minutes as hard as you can for the entire 30 minutes. After starting the run, hit your 'Lap' button so you record the average HR over the last 20 minutes. This can be run on track or measured course (flat). Record the time and get a 10 minute cool down.

It's designed to help you calculate heart rate zones for running workouts. It can also be done on the bike. When done right, it's no fun at all :) I did it in the spring but my plan calls for it today. I would like to see where I stand since the last test.

The rest of it

Today is the first day of my 8 Week Run Focused Winter Maintenance plan from BeginnerTriathlete.com. Day 1 is a rest day. Woo hoo!!!