Monday was interval day on the bike, and I felt surprisingly good despite running 19 miles the day before. 10.38 miles total on the bike, 5x2:00 intervals at >170 heart rate. When I did my first bike interval workout last week I was struggling by the end. This time it felt much better, and if it weren't so windy I probably would have done more. But it was windy, so I stopped at 5 intervals and did a very short 4 minute cool-down before heading home. It's good to know that my enormous thighs are good for something!
However, I had some pretty bad saddle sores during the ride. I'm wondering if this had anything to do with Saturday's ride. I felt fine during the first 24 miles before getting a flat tire, but hurt that afternoon when I went back out for another 10. I wore my tri pants in the 4 hour period in between rides, which may have been a bad idea. Regardless, I think I need to buy some real cycling pants for training.
Tuesday had a 100% chance of rain forecast from 4:00-6:00, confirmed by the huge blob of green on the radar, so I delayed instead of going straight to the pool after work. Around 5:00 the radar showed the rain directly on top of us... but there was no rain outside. After 10 minutes of this I said "Fuck it", ran over to the pool, and swam my workout. It sprinkled a little bit while I was there, but there was never any thunder that required everyone to leave the pool. I'm glad I didn't play it safe by staying home. It was my final Week 3 workout, and it went pretty well: the 300m long swim was a little tough, and I had to resort to breathing every stroke to my left, but I got it done in 5:50, a 1:56/100m pace. Not great, but right now I'm just trying to get the distance down.
The rest of the workout was easy, but a bit monotonous. The 100m sets are easier every time, and the 50s are now a piece of cake. My biggest struggle is still getting winded too soon. Focusing on swimming slow is key, because when I start getting winded I speed up in order to breath more frequently, which of course exhausts me even quicker. Thursday is my first Week 4 plan swim, and I'm going to do my best to concentrate on slow, easy strokes.
When I first started running in 2010, I could go for maybe half a mile before getting winded, and I would stop and walk for 20 seconds before running again. I would run/walk like this for long distances, but could never just run endlessly. It wasn't until I ran with my wife, which forced me to go at a slower pace, that I found my "groove" and could suddenly run continuously at the right sustainable pace. It was a breakthrough for me, and running became extremely easy afterwards. I'm hoping for the same sort of breakthrough in swimming, and feel as if I'm only a few weeks away from that.
However, I had some pretty bad saddle sores during the ride. I'm wondering if this had anything to do with Saturday's ride. I felt fine during the first 24 miles before getting a flat tire, but hurt that afternoon when I went back out for another 10. I wore my tri pants in the 4 hour period in between rides, which may have been a bad idea. Regardless, I think I need to buy some real cycling pants for training.
Tuesday had a 100% chance of rain forecast from 4:00-6:00, confirmed by the huge blob of green on the radar, so I delayed instead of going straight to the pool after work. Around 5:00 the radar showed the rain directly on top of us... but there was no rain outside. After 10 minutes of this I said "Fuck it", ran over to the pool, and swam my workout. It sprinkled a little bit while I was there, but there was never any thunder that required everyone to leave the pool. I'm glad I didn't play it safe by staying home. It was my final Week 3 workout, and it went pretty well: the 300m long swim was a little tough, and I had to resort to breathing every stroke to my left, but I got it done in 5:50, a 1:56/100m pace. Not great, but right now I'm just trying to get the distance down.
The rest of the workout was easy, but a bit monotonous. The 100m sets are easier every time, and the 50s are now a piece of cake. My biggest struggle is still getting winded too soon. Focusing on swimming slow is key, because when I start getting winded I speed up in order to breath more frequently, which of course exhausts me even quicker. Thursday is my first Week 4 plan swim, and I'm going to do my best to concentrate on slow, easy strokes.
When I first started running in 2010, I could go for maybe half a mile before getting winded, and I would stop and walk for 20 seconds before running again. I would run/walk like this for long distances, but could never just run endlessly. It wasn't until I ran with my wife, which forced me to go at a slower pace, that I found my "groove" and could suddenly run continuously at the right sustainable pace. It was a breakthrough for me, and running became extremely easy afterwards. I'm hoping for the same sort of breakthrough in swimming, and feel as if I'm only a few weeks away from that.
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