One Week to Halfmax

Another week of solid training in the books.     Here are some highlights from last week’s training:

Tues:

I stayed with the A group on the IOS ride all the way to the berry patch.  Then I turned around and rode back, and B did not catch me until the turn into the hilly neighborhood (that is where the easier cool down starts).  I did that last Thursday too.  Staying with A was a great confidence booster.   I followed those rides up with a 4 mile tempo run.

Thurs:

I had looked up my workouts prior to last year’s Duke half, and I had done a certain treadmill tempo workout.  I decided to do that again this day, and see how my running fitness compared.   I was looking forward all day to getting home and doing that.

I got home from work, and first made dinner for my family.   I didn’t eat anything myself, because I can’t run on a full stomach.  I went up to my treadmill and got everything set up.    I started the warm up, and the belt was slipping and I was lurching all over the place.    FML, my treadmill is broken.  I actually started to cry – that’s how disappointed I was not to be able to do that workout.

By then it was dark outside, so I headed outside with flashlight in hand.  It was very hard to focus on running while holding a flashlight and trying not to trip.  No way to really get a into a good solid groove.   The run sucked, and was not the confidence boost I was looking for.

Saturday:

I repeated last week’s Bike/Swim/Bike workout, riding 22 miles down to Jordan lake Ebeneezer Swim area.  On the ride to the lake, some idiot car passed me, and then immediately made a right turn in front of me.   I stopped and tweeted “dear blue prius who passed me then immediately turned ritght onto whitherspoon…f*** you asshole.”

I swam five laps just like last week.  It was a bit choppy, there was  a current, and it felt very hard. Especially when heading back on each loop.      It took me 1:10, only 1 minute slower than last week.  I was surprised by that because it was harder and choppier.    I felt drained, and thought “I am screwed if Halfmax is not wetsuit legal.”

The 36 mile ride back home was awful.  I had no fire in my legs and felt like crap.  And it felt like the wind was against me the whole way, no matter which direction I turned.  I kept thinking I felt bad because that choppy swim took so much out of me.

I was also thirsty and hot, so I stopped at a convenient store to buy some Gatorade.    Ahhhh, it was very refreshing!    While sitting on the bench drinking my Gatorade, I heard a really obnoxious ringtone.  I looked around and nobody was nearby.   Then I realized it was coming from my jersey pocket.  I fished my cell phone out and it stopped ringing, but the screen said “Emergency” on it.  WTF?   Then it started ringing again, with that awful tone.   I answered it.

The voice on the other end said “We received several 911 calls from this mobile phone.   The police are en route.  Are you at such and such gas station on Manns Chapel Road?”.    OMG, apparently, I had butt dialed 911.    I told the operator that I was fine, and that my phone had been in my pocket, and so I must have accidentally dialed.   Just as I was saying that, the police officer arrived.    I apologized emphatically for bothering him…He was very nice, and said that they get a lot of butt dials, and most cell phones have a single key programmed for emergency.  I had no idea!      It is quite  comforting to know that the GPS locator emergency system works!

Later that evening, I saw on the WRAL website that the temperature had been 98 degrees today, a record high.   No wonder I felt like crap on that bike ride.   And no wonder that Gatorade tasted soooo good.

Given the high temperatures we have been having, I am not hopeful for a wetsuit legal Halfmax race. 🙁

One Week to go

Here is my training plan for the week…

• Monday 27-Sep off
• Tuesday 28-Sep run 30 min, easy steady. Lunch or pm.
• Wednesday 29-Sep swim 30 min ride 1 hour: 30 (ez/20 Z2-Z3/10 ez)
• Thursday 30-Sep ride 40 min, ending with 3 minutes pretty hard.  Immediately have a 300-400 calorie recovery drink. Do this before travel.
• Friday 1-Oct run 15 min, 2-3 short comfortably fast strides
• Saturday 2-Oct HALFMAX race