I missed a blog entry 10 days ago, where I planned to write about my recent experiences swimming. Last week I would have written about struggling with a couple of workouts and what I learned from it. This week I wanted to write about my breakthrough brick. So, what do I do, what should I blog about? Maybe a bit of all three.
As I said, swimming is my least favorite workout. If I miss a workout, odds are it is a swim. And I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been swimming and thought to myself that I could drop the swim and just do duathlons and be much happier. Two weeks ago was no exception. But I got in the water and started my workout when something amazing happened. I found the zone! My body seemed to find the right position, my form was solid and I was flying with less effort. It only lasted for 100 meters, but it was a glorious feeling. Having found that, and wanting it again is enough to keep me coming back to the pool. Who knows when it will happen again since it took 2+ years this time, but I suspect I am getting closer to finding that sweet spot with regularity. And then, watch out USAT, I’ll be coming on strong!
Something happened last weekend, perhaps the change in the weather, I’m not sure. All I know is that Friday evening I was exhausted from my swim, more so than usual. Saturday, after my bike ride, I had a hard time with the run. It was so hot and I knew I hadn’t had enough to drink on the bike. Sunday’s run wasn’t pretty. Scheduled for an 11 miler, I started noticing pain in my hamstring around mile 4. I was going to quit but the pain went away before I finished the lap. I figured I would take one lap at a time. I was upset that this was happening now, and not going to risk doing any damage with my race right around the corner. Shortly into the next lap the pain resurfaced. I turned around and headed for home. Then I started getting a similar pain in my other leg, and then my lower back. I realized it wasn’t my old injury coming back, but probably cramping from dehydration. I hadn’t run that far yet was soaked with sweat and just hadn’t drunk that much to compensate, and probably was still behind from the day before. I backed off the pace, tried to drink extra fluids, and headed home – three miles short of the day’s goal. It was a great learning opportunity though, reminding me that I need to drink more as the temperature heats up.
Before my workouts this weekend I got an email from coach with an outline of what she thinks I can do at my next race. Needless to say her goal is MUCH faster than mine. I’d be tempted to dismiss it, except she was spot on for my last race. To top it off I read her blog about when her coach believed in her more than she believed in herself. I decided that Saturday I would really push myself to see what I was capable of doing. NOTE: I really need to start doing this more on my training rides every weekend.
Anyway, I took off at a fairly decent clip. I tried not to think about how fast I was going or how much power I was generating, just go. I tried to watch for wind signs so I’d know whether to expect a head/tail wind on the final leg, but it looked dead still. The ride was fairly uneventful until about the last 8 miles, where I passed a rider going up hill. A bit later I looked back and he had managed to grab on to my rear wheel and was drafting off me. He asked and I said I didn’t care, but made up my mind to drop him. At that point I really started pushing. I don’t think my pace ever dropped below 22 mph, even uphill, and my power hit the upper 200’s several times. No matter what I did, he hung on. I kept telling myself that this was a race and I needed to go. Funny thing though, my legs were burning and I was breathing hard, but I never got too tired or worn out. Next thing I knew it was time to get off my bike for a short run. Normally I ease off a bit towards the end of the bike so I have some legs to run with, but with my chaser I never got the chance. So I started running, and my legs felt no different than they do after any other ride. It was a short run of a couple of miles, and while I couldn’t have run 10 miles that quickly, it was a quick pace given the workout I’d just completed.
What a mental boost that workout was. Not only for the race coming up, but for future workouts where I now know I can push harder on the bike leg (which will only make me faster)!
I don’t know what will happen Sunday. I’ve had a lot of good workouts and feel very comfortable with my training level. I’ve got a time posted on the refrigerator door that I should easily beat. The question is, can I hit coach’s goal time. It’s party time if I beat either time, but if I am able to do as well as coach thinks, the part will be off the hook – probably two beers instead of one!
Thanks for reading!
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