Monthly Review: July

July was the first month really triathlon training, and for the most part it was a great four weeks. Let's look at some data!

Week 1 (7/01 - 7/07)
Swim: 6,000m
Bike: 56.88 miles
Run: 0 miles
Time: 5 hours, 50 minutes


Week 2 (7/08 - 7/14)
Swim: 5,450m
Bike: 46.48 miles
Run: 9.33 miles
Time: 6 hours, 29 minutes


Week 3 (7/15 - 7/21)
Swim: 6,900m
Bike: 55.16 miles
Run: 11.11 miles
Time: 7 hours, 53 minutes


Week 4 (7/22 - 7/28)
Swim: 4,650m
Bike: 48.05 miles
Run: 21.11 miles
Time: 8 hours, 31 minutes

Monthly Total
Swim: 23,000m
Bike: 206.57 miles
Run: 60.55 miles
Time: 29 hours, 9 minutes

Longest Swim: 2400m
Longest Bike: 34.38 miles
Longest Run: 19.00 miles

The monthly total includes a long run from 7/29 that isn't included in any of the weeks (I'm changing my workout schedule spreadsheet to start on Monday instead of Sunday, so that Sunday falls through the cracks). Altogether it averages out to about an hour a day of training, which is mostly due to the long bike and long run I do on the weekends. The swim was lower than planned in Week 2 and 4 because of rain, and the same weeks are low for biking due to poorly-timed flats. Hopefully August will be a little more consistent there.

My average weekly weight is starting to drop too:

• Week 1: 192.45
• Week 2: 192.36
• Week 3: 192.05
• Week 4: 190.72

Some of that probably has to do with water, since I've been struggling to stay adequately hydrated in this heat. I'm interested to see how far my weight dips by the end of August. I've remained on leangains since training, but if my weight drops too much I may have to scrap that and start eating breakfast. Either that or increase my calories. I'm a big fan of the GOMAD diet for getting calories.

Here's my August plan (oh yeah check out that sweet spreadsheet):

The exercise distances in blue are interval training. Fridays are my rest day, with the exception of the 24th, which I have off work and will be doing my Half-Ironman bike distance. I'd like to find a way to fit some weight lifting in once a week in there, but it's not looking too easy right now. I'm hoping that once my body gets used to swimming I'll be able to lift more without it negatively affecting my swims.

Another Long Training Weekend

Went swimming after work Friday, and got almost all of my workout in before it started raining. 2250m total, and it was a tough workout: I struggled more in the 300m long swim than I did on Wednesday, though everything else after that was pretty easy.

Friday night I went to the store to grab groceries, and they had a ton of energy gels and other stuff on sale. So I loaded up on a few of each:

Saturday morning I woke up around 6:00 to go for a 35+ mile ride, but Olympic cycling was on TV so I watched that for an hour before heading up to Yorktown. I brought two bottles with me, one with water and the other with gatorade, along with one of the strawberry-banana energy gels. After 20 miles I stopped to pop the gel pack and snap a picture:

I was feeling fantastic, and had plenty of water left, so I decided to push it to 40 or 50 miles. So of course my front tire goes flat 4 miles later, punctured by a very small, sharp rock. Ugh! I was still 4 miles away from my car so I called a friend that lives nearby and had him drive me back to my car. The back tire is new and stronger, but the front is still the stock ones that came with the bike, so I'll probably end up replacing that with some gatorskins in the next few days. I went to Bike Beat to grab some spare tubes, along with a case that straps underneath my saddle, so I can take spare tubes and tire levers with me next time. I also sat down and learned how to replace the tube myself, and was pleased with how easy it was. 

A few hours later I got back on the bike and road another 10 miles in my neighborhood, ending up at 34.38 for the day. It was a much tougher ride than earlier that morning: the wind was strong, it was hotter, and my saddle sores were really bothering me. I'll tackle 40+ miles next weekend, hopefully without a flat. One thing that was recommended was lowering my PSI a bit on the battlefield trail, since it's a little bumpier than a paved road. 

Sunday morning I headed back to Yorktown for my long run. Last weekend I ran 18 miles (which was a PR for distance, not counting the Shamrock marathon I ran in March), and that was with only one bottle of water with me. This time I was more prepared: I brought 3 bottles of water/gatorade, some Gatorade Prime, and a gel pack. It ended up not being enough, but it was better than last week and I put 19 miles on my legs. 

Ran the 9 mile loop once, made a pit stop at my car to drink some Gatorade Prime and refill my water bottle, then did the 5 mile loop twice with another pit stop in between. I was still dehydrated by the end, so I may need to avoid the 9 mile loop altogether in the future in order to keep drinking fluid regularly.

The first two miles as a warm-up were at 11:03/mile pace, and my heart rate was surprisingly low, in the 140s. I pushed myself a bit to stay around 155, and ended up with an average pace of 10:30 for the next 13 miles. My average pace for the day was 10:45/mile, which I'm very pleased with for such a long run. Heart rate training gives a level of precision that is invaluable, as perceived effort can vary greatly. Next week I plan on doing my long run at a slightly higher heart rate; Zone 2 is 151-158, so I'll keep it up near the high end of that. 

My knees were pretty shot by the time I got home, and my feet were pruny from some of the water on the trail:

I had planned on swimming Sunday as well, but that sure as hell wasn't happening after this run. I'll continue my normal schedule of Tue-Thur-Sat this week, though one workout behind schedule. I spent the rest of the day vegged out on the couch, and gorged myself on 8 scrambled eggs and 6 thick-cut slices of bacon that night: 

It's been a good first "real" training month, and I'll be writing up a monthly review in the next day or two. 

Swimming: Week 3

It POURED all afternoon on Tuesday, so I pushed all my workouts back a day. Wednesday was beautiful and I went to the pool for my first Week 3 workout:

-500m warm-up (4x25, 2x50, 2x75, 2x50, 2x25)

-300m long

-6x100

-10x50

-20x25

Having three rest days in between swims made a huge difference, and I felt pretty energized for most of the swim. The 300m long swim was a bit tough, but I fell into a nice groove about halfway through. The first two 100m sets were a breeze. It's obvious that my endurance is improving. My right shoulder (which was sore last week) started hurting a bit during the 25m sets, but it wasn't horrible. 

I found a recipe that claims to be what Chic Fil A uses for their sandwiches, so I grilled up 8 lbs of chicken breasts in that style for dinner. It wasn't identical, but it was pretty close! Especially since I used olive oil instead of peanut oil. You can find the recipe and instructions here. 

While the weather was beautiful on Wednesday, it was NOT on Thursday. Heat index of 108, air like steam. I mowed the lawn first-thing after work before going out to run intervals:

Look at the pretty speed interval peaks!

5 intervals, 1:00 each. After the second interval it became difficult to keep my heart rate down, and even when I slowed down it stayed in the high 170s. My face was beet red for two hours after I finished. Mowing the lawn prior to running was a bad idea, as I could tell I was somewhat dehydrated. By the time I was done with the run I felt like my brain was boiling.

More swimming on Friday, if I'm able to; my left eye has been bothering me a bit, and I haven't been able to put contacts in. I may just put my right contact in and swim cyclops-style. 

Intervals Make You A MAN

My legs were nice and sore all day Monday after the weekend's super-run. But did that stop me from doing bike intervals that afternoon? YOU BET YOUR SWEET ASS IT DIDN'T.

Unfortunately I hit the one stop light in the loop (between the 3 and 13 mile markers on the map) all four times I passed it, so the speed chart doesn't show nice even peaks and valleys the way it should. As someone who is OCD about data/statistics, this makes my eye twitch.

I did 5 intervals: 2:00 each with a heart rate around 170 with about 2:00 rest in between. 10 minutes warm-up and cool-down as well. My legs were aching after the first interval, and it was painful keeping my heart rate up, but I mustered up some HTFU and powered through. Average speed of 17.51 is my best yet, and I haven't truly pushed myself in a time trial type of ride yet. I'm tempted to do that before my tri in September, just to get a feel for how fast I can bike 12 miles. We'll see, I might do that instead of intervals one Monday in August.

A LONG weekend

I didn't do anything on Friday. And it was wonderful.

It rained all Friday night and into Saturday morning, and stopped raining right as I was getting up at 7:00. I jumped on the opportunity and got on the bike, squeezing in my 30 mile long ride. It was very easy keeping my heart rate in the 140s, until the last 20 minutes or so when it kept creeping up into the 150s. I was pleasantly surprised to see my overall pace was a PR as well, even though I felt like I was going slow. That gives me hope that I'll be able to sustain a 20mph pace in the sprint triathlon in 7 weeks. And I think I'm finally starting to build up a callus, because my saddle sores were hardly bad at all afterwards.

Taking advantage of the break in the rain, I changed into my swim trunks and went straight to the pool afterwards, even though I could tell I was a bit dehydrated and hungry. Had another good swim, still struggling a bit on my form on the long 200m long swim but overall I can tell that I'm improving. I pushed myself too hard on the 25m sprints and my shoulder was sore for the rest of the weekend, so much so that I woke up Sunday night and took some painkillers. I think it's just muscle soreness and not a deeper injury, but I'll still take it easy from now on while doing the faster swim sets.

Sunday morning I didn't get to the park for my long run until 9:00, but the weather was wonderful: 75 degrees, cloudy, and raining just enough to make things nice and cool. Ran the battlefield loop once (~9 miles), refilled my water bottle at my car, and then decided to take a detour and cut over to the Newport News Park loop. In the end I ran 18 miles, the longest distance I've ever ran aside from the Shamrock marathon.

My heart rate stayed very low for most of the run, except for the last 4 miles or so where it stayed around 160. But it was still very satisfying to run at my normal long run pace and see that I'm right where I need to be, heart-rate-wise. It was also good to see that I can still crank out a hardcore long run when I want to, despite lowering my weekly running mileage to make room for the biking/swimming.

When I was done I had a killer craving for oranges, like an "if I don't get some goddamn oranges right now I'm going to die" type of craving. And I don't usually like oranges! Bought a bunch, chowed down when I got home:

I'm going to start doing bike intervals on Mondays, so hopefully my legs will have enough strength in them tomorrow. I'm planning on starting off doing 5 sets, each 2 minutes long, in Z4, with a few minutes of cool-down in between. Depending on how that feels I'll adjust accordingly. 

I Love Swimming Even MORE!

I had a great swim workout on Tuesday, and Thursday was even better. I stayed home from work and went to the pool when they opened at 11:00 and got my second Week 2 workout in. I was really focusing on "not fighting the water" and letting myself glide through, and especially with twisting my body to push my hands as far forward as possible. My 200m long swim felt wonderful endurance-wise, and I felt like I could have done more. I'm still struggling a bit with my kicking, but I noticed something: I only struggle when I swim slowly. On my 25m sets I swam significantly faster than on the longer sets, and the kick timing came perfectly natural. It makes me wonder if I should try a 4 or 6 beat kick while doing longer distances, and if that will feel more natural. The problem is that this is generally not recommended for triathletes since they need to conserve their legs as much as possible for the bike/run.

Went for a bike ride in the afternoon, and blew my rear tire after 4 miles. Took it back to Bike Beat, and had the guy recommend me a slightly larger tire. Apparently the stock tires that came with the bike are for people up to 180 lbs. Having a heavier person (I weigh 192) ride on them is doable, but it increases the risk of punctures. $52 later and I have a new tire, tube, and patch kit. He recommended I keep my old tire and use it during the winter if I bike indoors on a trainer, which sounds like a good idea. He was the "tri guy" at the shop and I had a great time picking his brain

Also, I went ahead and signed up for the Patriot Sprint Tri for September 9! It's official, no backing out now.

Though it's BS that they charge $5.52 shipping/handling for an event registration, since nothing is getting shipped to me.


Thursday Lunch:
-2 PB&J sandwiches
-2 glasses of milk
-3 bottles of gatorade (one after the swim, one during the bike, one after the bike)

Thursday Dinner:
-Bowl of Mac & Cheese
-LOTS of homemade nachos
-Sugar cookie dough (I know, shut up)
-3 glasses of milk
-1 protein shake with creatine

Heart Rate Test: Run

Wednesday was an awful day to test my run max heart rate; 95 degrees in the afternoon with 70% humidity. I gave it a try anyways though, with the goal of sustaining a sprint-like pace for 15-20 minutes. However I only lasted 9 minutes at a high pace, reaching a max heart rate of 194. My average heart rate for those 9 minutes was 178, which should give me an idea what my lactate threshold is. Based on the information here regarding training zones:

Zone 1: Recovery

Also known as: Overdistance
Intensity: Very Low
% Lactate Threshold: 65%-84%
% VO2 Max: 55%-65%
% Max Heart Rate: 60%-70%
RPE Scale: 6-9

Used for: These are the easiest workouts, used to promote recovery after harder workouts. It is also generally the intensity level used during the recovery period of interval work and long slow distance (LSD) runs.

Zone 2: Endurance

Also known as: Extensive Endurance
Intensity: Moderate
% Lactate Threshold: 85%-91%
% VO2 Max: 66%-75%
% Max Heart Rate: 71%-75%
RPE Scale: 10-12

Used for: Used for long, endurance workouts and easy speed workout; builds and maintains aerobic endurance.

Zone 3: Lactate Threshold

Also known as: Intensive Endurance
Intensity: Moderate Plus
% Lactate Threshold: 92%-95%
% VO2 Max: 76%-80%
% Max Heart Rate: 76%-80%
RPE Scale: 13-14

Used for: Used for Tempo workouts, training in Zone 3 is usually done in the preparation and base phases. Generally, in the later phases you want to bump up to Zone 4.

Zone 4: VO2 Max Intervals

Also known as: Anaerobic Threshold, Race/Pace
Intensity: Race/Pace
% Lactate Threshold: 96%-100%
% VO2 Max: 81%-90%
% Max Heart Rate: 81%-90%
RPE Scale: 15-16

Used for: Intervals, hill work, and tempo work. Intervals in this zone generally have work-to-rest ratio of 3:1 or 4:1. Training at or slightly below your Lactate Threshold (a.k.a. Anaerobic Threshold) helps your body lean to "recycle" the lactic acid during high intensity work.

There's a Zone 5 as well, but for training purposes I'll never be in it. So based on the above, comparing lactate threshold to max heart rate:

Zone 1
LT: 116 - 150
MHR: 136 - 151

Zone 2
LT: 150 - 162
MHR: 151 - 158

Zone 3
LT: 162 - 169
MHR: 158 - 165

Zone 4
LT: 169 - 178
MHR: 165 - 180

It's nice to see that the two tests are reasonably close, with a few exceptions (like the min heart rate for Zone 1, which are very different). Kudos to Irina Souiki for recommending I find my lactate threshold, head over to http://ririnette.blogspot.com/ and wish her luck in the Toronto Triathlon this weekend! With the above in mind I'll revisit the test for the Bike next week or so.

I Love Swimming

Yesterday was the first day in Week 2 of my swimming routine, and I was a little nervous because it included my first long swim:

-500m warm-up (4x25, 2x50, 2x75, 2x50, 2x25)

-200m long-swim

-5x100m

-12x50m

-20x25m

2300m total

It was challenging, but 200m was doable. The 100m sets were still tough, but after that the 50s and 25s were a cinch. I can definitely feel my endurance improving. 2300m was also the longest session I've had yet, and I drove home feeling fantastic. Hans likes to lick the sweaty chlorine off me when I get home:

One thing that I realized yesterday is how important form is. During my 25m splits I had been averaging about 24 seconds while swimming easily. On my last 25m I swam as fast as I could... and did it in 24 seconds. Simply moving "faster" means absolutely nothing if the form isn't right. With this in mind, on Thursday I'm going to start counting how many strokes I take to go 25m, to gauge how efficient my stroke is. 

I did some weight lifting after swimming, and it was NOT easy:

-Bench: 3x12x135 (did 10 on the second set, and 8 on the third)

-Curls: 3x12x20 (dumbbells)

-Pull-ups: I wanted to do 3 sets of 8, but I did 4 in the first set and said "NOPE" and went to eat dinner instead. 

Tuesday Lunch:

-Two bowls of frosted mini wheats

-1 glasses of milk

Tuesday Dinner:

-Two bowls of fried rice (chicken, carrots and zucchini)

-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)

-Some sugar cookie dough

-Gatorade (post swim)

Heart Rate Max: Bike

Yesterday was the big heart rate test for the bike, and it was actually a lot of fun. The test went like this: start with a 10-15 minute warm-up. Then, while keeping a cadence around 90-100, start on a low chain, pedal for 60 seconds. Then shift to the next hardest gear and pedal for another 60 seconds. Continue doing this, which increases your speed and heart rate, until you reach your top gear. Pedal on that until you're ready to throw up, and see what your heart rate peaks at. Here's my speed chart for the 10.40 mile ride:

The part inside the red box is the test, peaking at 26.8 mph. About 10 seconds after shifting to the final gear (right at mile 5 on the map), I reached a part on my neighborhood loop where it turns onto a major road for about half a mile. There was a car sitting in the turn lane yielding to traffic (despite having a full turn lane to use), so I had to slow down prematurely. I was at 189 bmp when I slowed down, and I had maybe 15-20 seconds left in me before I felt like I was going to throw up, so I'm estimating that my max heart rate would have been between 192-194. This means my training zones are:

Z1: 122 - 151 (recovery)
Z2: 151 - 165 (endurance)
Z3: 165 - 180 (anaerobic)
Z4: 180 - 194 (red line)

Most of my training will be done in Z2, though once a week I will do intervals in Z3. I'll pretty much never go into Z4.

I'll probably test it again in a few months, but for now that's good enough for me. I also did mile #4 in 2:33, which gives me a good idea as to how fast I can go. After the test I finished the loop and did one more as a cool down, and was tempted to do a 4th loop, but decided not to push it and went home. I'm glad I chose to do that, because I had crazy bad saddle sores on the inside of my thigh and nether-regions. These go away eventually, right? Right?

The next morning my thighs were crazy sore, more than they've ever been. Glad I stopped at three loops. I'll be testing my max heart rate for running on Wednesday, so it will be interesting to see how it compares. I'm guessing it's up over 200.

Monday Lunch:
-Leftover broccoli and beef stir fry
-4 oz colby jack cheese
-Black bean and quinoa infused chips
-2 glasses of milk
-4 peanut butter cookies

Monday Dinner:
-Black bean and quinoa quesadillas
-2 glasses of milk
-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)
-A handful of peanut butter M&Ms (THESE ARE BAD TO HAVE IN THE HOUSE)

Rounding out the week

Very shitty Saturday, as far as workouts go. My planned 28 mile bike ride (3 loops at battlefield) was cut short at 18 miles because of a flat rear tire. Luckily it only became noticeable as I was finishing my second loop, so I didn't have to go very far with low air. If I had known I would only be doing 2 loops I wouldn't have stopped for a 30 second breather to snap this photo:

So I sucked it up and headed to the pool for my final swim workout of the week:

-500m warm-up: 4x25, 2x50, 2x75, 2x50, 2x25
-1500m main workout: 4x100, 12x50, 20x25

However, on the second-to-last set of 50s there was a clap of thunder, and they had to close the pool. The good thing is that the sets of 25s aren't the meat of the workout, so if I have to miss anything those are the ones. It's still pretty demotivating to wake up pumped-up for two workouts, and to have them both cut short. I guess that's part of the game. I'll make up the mileage by biking 30 miles on Wednesday, since we're out of town next Saturday.

Lunch Saturday:
-3 open-faced fried egg and cheese sandwiches
-3 cups of coffee
-1 bottle of gatorade
-2 glasses of milk
-1 protein shake

Dinner Saturday:
-Double bacon cheeseburger from Five Guys
-Lots of french fries
-Coke
-1 protein shake with creatine
-Peanut butter M&Ms

Did another brick on Sunday morning: biked three loops in Kiln Creek, practiced my transition (only 90 seconds!) and then ran 8 miles. My running heart rate is still pretty high, and I had to slow myself down just to keep it around 165. I had 13.1 miles originally planned, but the heat was taking it out of me and I was completely drenched, so I went home early. This was a good decision, because I lost 4 lbs of water weight despite drinking 6 bottles of gatorade/water during the exercise. I was so drenched with sweat that my toes were wrinkly from the wet socks. Yikes.

It was a beautiful day despite the heat though:

The brick really drained me energy-wise, so I spent the rest of the day relaxing.

Lunch Sunday:
-Large hot dog with ketchup
-Large slurpee
-M&M cookie
-Small bag of kettle chips
-2 bottles of gatorade
-2 glasses of milk

Dinner Sunday:
-3 egg omelete with ham and colby jack cheese
-Bowl of salad with cheese and ranch dressing
-1 glass of milk
-Protein shake with creatine
-Peanut butter M&Ms (it's a bad idea to have these in the house at any given time)

I'll be spending tomorrow testing my heart rate max for the bike and the run, which will be nice because I have a sneaking suspicion the "220-age" formula isn't accurate with my. I'm guessing my running heart rate max is closer to 200 instead of 194. No idea what my bike max is.

Easy Friday

Friday was some easy weight lifting:

Overhead Press: 3x12x75
Incline Press: 3x12x115
T-bar Rows: 3x12x160

Friday Lunch:
-Bowl of frosted mini wheats
-Protein shake
-Bottle of mountain dew
-Bag of chips

Friday Dinner:
-Half an extra-large pizza with pepperoni
-Half a pitcher of bud light
-Protein shake with creatine
-A bunch of peanut butter M&M's

Swim all the things

My Thursday lunch:

Two peanut butter sandwiches, and 6 pieces of buttered toast. OM NOM NOM.

Second day swimming with the new routine. Same as Tuesday:

• 500m warm-up (4x25, 2x50, 2x75, 2x50, 2x25)
• 1500m main workout: 4x100, 12x50, 20x25

The first 100m set hurt, but by the fourth one I felt pretty good. I really struggled with my leg kick form for most of the day, but sometime during the 25m sets I think I figured it out. I remembered what I read from one training website: "Picture yourself in a narrow cylinder, and move as if you have to keep your arms/legs in that cylinder". Once I focused on that it became easier to do the two-beat kick, and I felt much better about myself by the end.

I also used my polar HRM watch while swimming; even though I can't use the heart rate chest strap, the watch is still waterproof. My typical times:

100m: 1:50

50m: 0:50

25m: 0:25

I was glad that my 50m and 25m times are the same pace, it shows that I'm not going too fast. I pushed myself on the last few 25m sets, and my fastest was 0:22. 

Thursday Lunch:

-2 peanut butter sandwiches

-6 pieces of buttered toast

-2 glasses of milk

Thursday Dinner:

-Grilled chicken with BBQ sauce

-Colby jack cheese

-2 glasses of milk

-1 protein shake with creatine

-Small piece of chocolate cake

Mid-week

Lots of toys in the mail!

• New toe-socks
• Sleeveless cycling jersey
• Bike water bottles and mounting brackets
• Polar heart rate monitor

Originally I was planning on just running, but I was eager to try some of this out so I biked 10.37 miles first. I love the new jersey, though my only complaint is that it's not as long as my other one, so it sometimes shows a patch of skin on my lower back when I'm hunched over the bike. The water bottles are easy to pull out of the bracket, and kept my water very cold. 

I took the opportunity to practice my transition as well. It took me almost 2:00 exactly to park my bike, switch shoes and socks, and put some loose-fitting shorts on over my tri shorts. However, I forgot to turn runkeeper off for the bike, so by the time I had done that and changed it over to "Run" it was more like 2:30. Running a 5K immediately afterwards was a breeze; I felt great from the get-go, and had to slow myself down to keep from running too fast. I could have done more, but stopped at 3.11 miles because I didn't want to push it.

Using the heart rate monitor was great. It automatically calculated my max heart rate, and I set it to keep me in a range of 70-80% of my max. That worked well for the bike, as I was consistently in the high 70s and only occasionally went above that. However, my running heart rate is a good deal higher. When I started the run my heart rate was exactly 70%, but quickly jumped to 85% after maybe 30 seconds of running. I slowed down a bit, but it still stayed around 82-83 while running slowly. I'll chalk this up to my running heart rate being a little higher than my biking one, and try to keep it below 85. 

I also noticed that keeping an eye on my heart rate helped take my mind of the biking/running. I bet it will work extremely well for long runs, whereas before I would pace myself based on how I felt, which REQUIRES you to think about your body.

Wednesday Lunch:

-Leftover linguine carbonara

-Slice of cookie dough

-2 glasses of milk

-1 can of mountain dew

Wednesday Dinner:

-Pasta shells stuffed with cheese

-Cinnamon roll cake

-Slice of cookie dough

-2 glasses of milk

-Protein shake with creatine

Structured Swim Routine

Now that I've been swimming for a month I decided to start a swim routine structured around building endurance. It involves a warm-up, and then doing sets of 100m, then sets of 50m, then sets of 25m, with specific amounts of rest in between. Yesterday was the first day (2000m total):

Warm-up: 4x25, 2x50, 2x75, 2x50, 2x25 (8 breaths in between each set)

Main workout:

• 4x100 (16 breaths rest)
• 12x50 (12 breaths rest)
• 20x25 (8 breaths rest)

It was definitely challenging, which is what I needed. By the end my arms were like jelly, and my form wasn't perfect, but that's alright for now. The program is designed for 3xa week, upping the number of 100m sets each week, and adding a long swim at the beginning as well. So the next two weeks will look like this:

Week 2: 

• Warm-up
• 200m long swim
• 5x100
• 12x50
• 20x25

Week 3:

• Warm-up
• 300m long swim
• 6x100
• 12x50
• 20x25

Etc. It's an 8-week plan, which should get me up to 800m long distance in time for my sprint triathlon on September 9. 

Biking wasn't on the training schedule for yesterday, but after swimming I had too much pent-up energy so I hopped on and did a quick 7.08 miles. I was planning on it being slow and easy, but another biker passed me and I pushed myself to keep up with him. Got a PR for mile 6 (3:10), and my average speed was close to a PR, despite hitting a red light twice. 

Tuesday Lunch:

-Leftover chicken

-Leftover burger

-2 glasses of milk

Tuesday Dinner:

-2 glasses of chocolate milk

-1 glass of gatorade

-Beef & broccoli stir fry

-1 protein shake with creatine

-2 glasses of milk

Sprinting

Lifted weights at lunch yesterday:

Bench Press: 3x12x145
Dumbbell Curls: 3x12x20
Pull-ups: 4 sets, 34 total

Hopped on the bike to try and beat the rain, and got 10.19 miles in the saddle. I had to stop about 5 times because of red lights and traffic, but despite this I was only 0.06 mph off my PR. In order to get back up to speed quickly after one red light I sprinted (standing up on the bike while pedaling), and got up to 28.9mph on flat ground. It helps that the tornado sirens were going off to warn golfers to leave the golf course, which gave me a greater sense of urgency.

I bought a bunch of new goodies yesterday: a heart rate monitor, some bike water bottles/holders, new toe socks, and a second cycling jersey. I'm excited to start using the heart rate monitor to train in specific zones.

Monday Lunch:
-Bowl of frosted mini wheats
-PB&J sandwich
-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)

Monday Dinner:
-2 glasses of chocolate milk
-2 glasses of milk
-3 beef tacos with cheese
-Cinnamon roll cake

This heat is bullshit.

Went to Yorktown to bike on Saturday, and the wife came along and brought the dogs. Can you tell they're excited?

Biked 20.52 miles in the heat, and felt FANTASTIC afterwards. If not for the wife/dogs I probably could have done another loop, though it's probably best to avoid pushing myself too hard. The only blemish on the ride was a squirrel that ran in front of me during one of my hill descents and ruined my momentum, but it wasn't a big deal. I stopped around the 13 mile mark for a 30 second breather and to snap a photo of one of the signs along the battlefield trail:

Got home, relaxed for a few hours and then went to the pool and swam 2000m. Crowded as hell, and the water was warm, but a good workout nonetheless. It may be my imagination but I think I can feel my pool endurance increasing.

Saturday Breakfast:

-3 slices of French toast

-4 cups of coffee

-2 cups of milk

Saturday Lunch:

-3 carnitas tacos from Chipotle

-3 glasses of mountain dew

Saturday Dinner:

-Turkey burger

-Peanut butter sandwich

-1 bottle of beer

-1 protein shake with creatine

Sunday we got a late start on our run, but I still managed to squeak out a 10K. Ankles were very sore during the first few miles, but I settled into a nice groove and felt pretty good by the end. The problem is that I started "bartering" with myself around mile 3: "Okay, you're not going to be able to do a half-marathon in this heat, so just do a 10K", so even though I could have done more I was mentally done. Having said that, it's probably for the best since the heat was so terrible. I ran the second half shirtless, and it felt much better than having a drenched shirt on. I may have to start doing that more often. 

Sunday Lunch:

-Gatorade

-Bacon/Egg/Cheese sandwich

-3 cups of coffee

-2 glasses of milk

-1 glass of mountain dew

Sunday Dinner:

-Linguine carbonara

-2 glasses of milk

-Huge cinnamon role cake

Hmmmm

Swam 2000m yesterday (50m splits of freestyle with some rest in between), and then biked 10.36 miles. The swim was good, aside from stupid kids: 4 of them jumped into my lane and swam 2-abreast, and since I didn't see them I hit my hand on one of their heads. Left middle finger is sprained, not terribly but definitely in some pain. On the bike I got passed by a few other cyclists, one who stared at me as he passed me (probably because I'm not wearing expensive cycling shoes), and one friendly guy who made a joke about the first guy making us look bad. My dinner wasn't very good, mostly because I was so goddamn thirsty after the workout:

Thursday Lunch:
-2.5 peanut butter sandwiches
-2 glasses of milk
-4 oz cheddar cheese

Thursday Dinner:
-3 glasses of gatorade
-2 glasses of chocolate milk
-1 protein shake with creatine
-6 oz cheddar cheese
-Quinoa and blackbean infused chips

Lifted weights at lunch on Friday:

Overhead Press: 3x12x75
Incline Press: 3x12x115
T-Bar Rows: 3x12x150

Glad I switched to higher reps, it's making it easier on my wrist. I was plateauing on my 3x5 routine, so switching to higher reps for a few months might be a good change.

Friday Lunch:
-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)
-Leftover bacon cheddar mac & cheese

Friday Dinner:
-5 slices of pizza
-2 beers
-Some Twizzlers

Happy Holiday

Biked 15.61 miles after work with Uri on Tuesday during the hottest part of the day. The great thing about cycling is that you hardly feel the heat at all... until you stop. We did one full loop at the battlefield trail and stopped for water, and standing around for 30 seconds felt horrible. It was a good ride though... Uri was on a mountain bike so I went a bit slower at first, which is probably better for me because I usually want to go flying right out of the gate. Now that my distance is stretching out I really should take it easy for the first loop as a warm-up.

Tuesday Lunch:
-2.5 peanut butter sandwiches
-2 glasses of milk
-3 glasses of gatorade (one before riding, one during, one after)

Tuesday Dinner:
-1.5 kobe burgers with cheese
-4 beers (shock top, leinenkugel, midas touch)
-A few brownies
-Protein shake with creatine

I wanted to get up and run yesterday morning, but I had a headache that bothered me for most of the day so I skipped it. Did some bench press at 195 lbs, but my left wrist had a little bit of pain so I lowered the weight to 165. I'm wondering if cycling is putting too much stress on my wrists. One thing I noticed is that the battlefield trail feels fine when I'm on it, but when I transition to a normal road (which I have to do for 2 miles of the loop) I can really tell how much smoother a normal road is.

I did some pull-ups after the bench, but that was pretty much it. I didn't feel like doing much, and then felt lazy for it afterwards. I also think I'm going to switch from my 3x5 lifting routine to something with more reps, like 3x12.

Wednesday Lunch:
-Protein pancake with syrup
-2 fried eggs
-4 cups of coffee
-1 cup of milk

Wednesday Dinner:
-Grilled chicken skewers
-Bacon cheddar mac & cheese
-Brownies
-2 glasses of milk
-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)

I'm not looking forward to the weather over the next few days:

Also, I forgot to post my total distances for June:

• SWIM: 8.8 miles (14200m)
• BIKE: 112.8 miles
• RUN: 51.2 miles

MONDAY MONDAY MONDAY

I had too many chores to do yesterday, so my original plan of swimming and running got cut to just swimming. 50m freestyle sets, x40 with maybe 20-30 seconds of rest in between. I stopped timing myself and started focusing on only doing freestyle, even if it means resting between sets, and I think it's absolutely worth it. I really felt like I was making progress. Afterwards my arms were too sore to start the lawnmower. #FirstWorldFitnessProblems

Helped my wife remove a tree stump from the side of our house too, which took about 20 minutes and was exhausting. Here she is posing victoriously with her prize:

Doing a long bike ride this afternoon with a coworker since we got off work at noon, then beer/burgers afterwards. Monday's food:

Lunch:

-2 PB&J sandwiches

-2 glasses of milk

Dinner:

-Triple-layer grilled cheese sandwich

-2 protein shakes (one with creatine)

-3 glasses of green juice (post swim)

Weekend!

Lifts from Friday:

Press: 3x5x125

Incline: 3x5x160

Rows: 3x12x145

Started the press off at 135, and got all 5 reps, but pulled something in my neck/shoulder so I lowered the weight a bit. It hurt for the rest of the day but is fine now. 

Friday lunch:

-Leftover chicken fried rice

-Two protein shakes, one with creatine

-Can of mountain dew

-4 pieces of bread

Friday dinner:

-6 large slices of pizza

-4 glasses of beer

-Sweet frogs frozen yogurt

Woke up early Saturday and went for my long bike ride at the battlefield trail, but it was a pretty poor ride for a lot of reasons. First of all, the gears were still grinding despite my tweaks. Apparently they don't grind when I spin them in the garage, but do when there's weight on the bike. Secondly, there were lots of limbs/twigs on the path because of a storm we had Friday night, so it was like biking in an obstacle course. And third: there are two big hills to bike down on that path, and at the bottom of each of them was a fallen tree blocking the path. So both times I had to stop, walk my bike around it, and then start again, killing my momentum. I'm shocked I still managed an average speed close to 15 mph. I ended up with ~13 miles because I didn't want to do the whole loop a second time. 

Went swimming after that, and had a lot of exhaustion in my arms/shoulders from the workout the day before. I did 50m freestyle drills with 30 seconds rest in between, and by the end of it my arms were extremely sore. Watching some of the other swimmers, I could tell that my form needs a lot of work. 

Saturday breakfast:

-6 pieces of buttered toast

-2 pieces of peanut butter toast

-2 glasses of milk

-1 glass of gatorade

Saturday lunch: 

-Firehouse beef brisket sub

-Lots of soda

Saturday dinner:

-Eggplant curry

-Brown rice

-Protein shake with creatine

It was still storming Sunday morning so I didn't go running. Spent most of the day doing chores and being lazy, until I went biking after dinner. I tinkered with the front derailleur some more and it looks like I've solved the problem, as the ride was very smooth. And I'm very pleased with my average speed (16.78), though it helps that the loop around my neighborhood is relatively flat. Biking is such a wonderful alternative to running when the temperature is in the 90s. 

Sunday breakfast:

-2 cups of coffee

-4 pieces of french toast

-2 glasses of milk

Sunday lunch:

-5 scrambled eggs

-1 glass of green juice

Sunday dinner:

-24 boneless wings (BWW) with celery and ranch dressing

-2 glasses of milk

-4 glasses of green juice (after biking)

-Protein shake with creatine (after biking)

Since Independence Day is this week I'm switching my routine up a bit: skipping my Monday lifts and going for a swim/run instead. I'll figure out the rest of the week as I go.