Let's get straight into it this week guys, as I'm on the clock once again. As well as the physical development this long-course work brings on, its also helping refine my time-management skills. Every minute is precious....
Last week really was a random mix of good, bad and definitely ugly.
Do you remember me saying how the week before last was one of my best ever?
How I hit every session as planned, and how great I was feeling?
Well, last week was none of the above!
The week started off slow, with a mixture of work & fatigue resulting in no training on Monday or Tuesday. However, I did have a great day in London on Tuesday, buzzing around the big smoke at 100mph. The combo of a super early start, long train journeys and the brain working overtime, really took its toll. I was shattered.
So, bring on Wednesday. A 3 hour BRICK was the plan. I hit the session, smack bang on plan. The numbers looked good, I felt strong and was really pleased with how well the session went. The two days off clearly helped.
I backed up this encouraging session with a strong swim on Thursday morning, knocking out a total of 4.1k, and feeling good about it. This did empty the tank, so with the fatigue, the torrential rain and working late I decided to miss Thursdays planned track session.
A 60 minute Friday night spin on the bike, set me up for what was going to be a big weekend. If only it would all go to plan....
Saturday morning saw me make my 2009 open water debut. I was super pleased with how this 30 minute continuous swim went. The wetsuit felt great, my technique decent and my pace was comfortably strong. One key take-out was the tiredness in my arms (due to the wettie) but I'm guessing more time in the suit will help overcome this.
So, off to good start....then came the beating!
The plan said 4.5 hours bike. I managed 3.5 hours of sheer hell. The skies emptied (several times!), the winds howled and there was even bloody hail stones!
I must admit that I really did not want to be out there. However, after much soul-searching I pushed on until I could literally go know more. Those 3.5 hours were far tougher than a lot of longer rides I have done.
There was a 50 min run off the bike planned but the lack of feeling in my feet, made me decide to bag this.
After the session, I wished to incorporate as many of the recovery points Alan Couzens (AC) made in a great article on recovery which I read during the week. So standing in a freezing lake, already freezing cold, I was really looking forward to Sundays 3 hour run, bike, run!
Once again, I was determined to hit the planned session but yet again the weather decided to take the piss. I hit the first run back on plan, a good balance of pace & effort. The legs felt like hell for the first 15 mins but grew stronger as the run went on.
So run out of the way, I jump straight onto the bike for 60 mins, only to be met by Hurricane Hughes! Stone me, it hammered it down! Torrential wind and rain were my opponents, and I'd like to call it a score-draw.
However, there was no way I was going back out for the second run. The fact that I couldn't stop shaking sort of made my mind up for me on this!
So, all in all a week & weekend in particular of mixed emotions but the over-arching emotion is frustration. Frustration in the sense that "should I have battled on even more regardless of the weather, am I am soft-ass for quitting?" and one of "if only the weather was better, because I'm performing really well".
Upon a lot of reflection, I feel pretty pleased that I got done what I got done. In years gone by, I would not have even got out of my front door. During both sessions, I really wanted to quit and didn't. Ok, I didn't get all of the session done but what I did get done was good quality and all things considered worth more than the equivalent in easy conditions.
I'm working hard on staying positive, so I am putting this down as improved mental fortitude. I know now that I am stronger not only physically but mentally.
This week sees some more key sessions, including a long mid-week bike and my first Olympic-distance tri on Saturday.
With a couple of new additions to my daily diet, sports nutrition and bike set-up I'm keen to see how things go in a race situation.
The new addition to my daily diet in colostrum. I've been to trial this out for ages, so was pleased to start including this protein source into my morning & evening smoothies. I've been using the neovite product, and early days but all seems good so far.
Sports nutrition-wise, I've finally found an on-bike drink that I'm happy with. I've started using the infinit long-course formula. Its got just under 300 cals per bottle which is perfect for what I wish to consume per hour.
Then the new additions to the bike are aero-bars & xlab behind-the-saddle bottle cages. I'm looking to get these fitted this week so will let you know how both of these go. I haven't been a fan of aero bars in the past but appreciate the advantage they can bring over the long-course distance, so will look to adjust to them over the next few weeks. I'll aim to execute well at Bala in mid-June, so the next couple of weeks will be about adopting the new position.
Well, theres heaps going on hey?!
Incidentally, have you guys seen the new Challenge race in Copenhagen? This is planned for 2010 and looks awesome. I'm a huge fan of the Challenge brand, and am looking forward to experience the Challenge atmosphere at Roth & Barcelona this year.
Copenhagen looks & sounds an amazing place to hold a long-course race, so I am already pencilling this one into the 2010 diary. I must admit the thought of all of those super-fit Danish chicks does add an extra element to the whole experience!
Hey, if you don't have a dream, then how are you going to have a dream come true!
See you seven dudes
Sparky
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