Barb's Race Training Week #11

These posts keep getting longer and longer. At least there are pictures!



Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Lunch Swim + Track Workout + Yoga
Swim was good. I couldn’t get out of bed for a morning swim so I did a quick 2000 yds/38:02 over lunch. I printed a workout from the internet since I knew there wasn’t time for a long workout from the book. The work was pretty much sets of 300’s---lots of different stroke work, which I rarely do anymore.


I haven’t been to the track in ages. After Tuesday’s workout I remember why---track workouts HURT. I ran down to the track near my work (it’s almost exactly one mile). It’s also downhill so it skewed my warm up a bit. Then I set out to tackle 4 x 800 (with 400 recovery). Well, I made it 3 x 800 and cooled down for a total of 4 miles. Jen and Amy were also there. Jen and I were trying to time it so that she could run her recoveries during my 800’s, it sort of worked. Let’s just say this workout was TOUGH.


Warm up mile – 10:15 (downhill)
800 #1 –8:55 (probably too fast)/400 recovery @ 11:01
800 #2 –8:57 (again, probably too fast)/400 recovery @ 11:40
800 #3 –8:48 (definitely too fast)/400 recovery @ 13:00 (pretty much walked all of this one)
Cool down .75 – 11:30


Yin Yoga at Yoga Pearl with Jen and Amy. I really love this class. It was great for me to do yoga after a track workout since I am admittedly a bad stretcher. My two week pass runs out soon and next week I have night meetings Tuesday/Wednesday so I’m not sure how much yoga’ing I’ll be doing next week but I would really like to keep it in the schedule, it’s been really good for me.


Wednesday: AM Trainer Ride + ab workout/PM OWS at klineline
Weather was crap Wednesday so I got on the trainer for an hour in the morning. I did my usual trainer workout where I spend 3 minutes in each gear and sprint 1 minute in the hardest gear (when I get to it).


Post-trainer ride I did a good ab workout, approx 15 minutes. I decided I need to start strengthening my core. My back gets sore on the bike and I’m thinking it might be from a weak core.


Klineline swim solo. Amy decided to hit the pool so I trekked to Vancouver solo. I knew the tri club would be out there at some point but I also knew there was a chance I’d be swimming alone. This is a HUGE no-no! To compensate I texted a couple of people so someone would know where I was. Swimming alone was a little scary at first but I got used to it rather quickly and finished my 3 loops, approx 1800 yds/37:10.


Got home Wednesday evening and took the dog for a nice long walk. The skies had cleared a bit and the first half of the walk was really pleasant THEN it POURED. We were both SOAKED by the time we got back.


Thursday: Lunch Swim + PM Ride with Jen + 2 mi Brick
Again, couldn’t get up in the morning to swim so I went to work early and swam at lunch. I did a modified version of one of the book workouts. It was actually an awesome workout. 3 x [200 swim (:15)/200 kick (:10)] + 3 x [200 pull (:20)/4 x 50 all out (:20)] + cool down 100 yds. By the time I got to that last 50 all out I was TIRED. 2500 yds/48:10


Jen and I texted a few times throughout the day about the weather and decided that “f-it we’re going” even when it started to sprinkle around 4:00 pm. I raced home from work took the dog for a 25 minute walk, stuff the bike in the car and headed to Jen’s. It was gray and the skies looked threatening but no rain (yet). We headed out on the trail and just cruised along and chatted. I honestly love these rides because having a riding partner makes the miles fly by. We definitely got out speed up along the way but since it is a trail and there is a section through a neighborhood, there were several times when we had to slow way down and sometimes stop. Regardless it was a great ride. On the way back into town, we saw Marya and J, I saw a woman from my weights class (that I haven’t been to in ages) and then we saw this guy who was pointing a camera at us. At first I was like WTF, then, I realized hey it’s Zach! He got some great photos too. All in all a great ride. 1:31/21 mi/14 MPH

Spotting Zach on the trail

Riding up the ramp

Posing for photo (I look like I'm 5 and Jen is stretching to be taller)

Gray ominous clouds

Being silly as I'm trying to clip in

Trying to smile and not fall over

Riding into the distance

Post ride, I borrowed a Garmin


Friday: Unscheduled Rest Day
I left work early, at 1pm to go get my hair done.  I was meeting Amy for happy hour at 4pm and we went back and forth about running prior to happy hour.  However, it was raining and I had just gotten my hair done so I said "screw it" I might make up a few miles on Monday but I have a race next weekend so we'll see how I feel.  Instead of running I had an awesome happy hour with Amy and Jen.

Saturday: Long Ride with Jen 
You know you have an awesome friend when they are willing to not only ride with you but also pick the route and pick you up.  This was a great ride.  Jen took me out to one of her "stand by" ironman training routes west of Portland.  We chatted away and enjoyed the beautiful rolling farmland scenery.  There were definitely some climbs and one scary decent (ironically not the one that she had warned me about).  It was so great to be on a new route with such variety and to have an awesome friend to ride with! Unlike last weekend, the rain held off!  We got to enjoy lots of spring wild flowers and lots of what we think is yellow mustard.

  Purrrty yellow mustard.

 Holding steady and strong.

Up and down hills, quick rest.

Another thing we saw lots of were BARNS! 

Jen and a barn...

Alisa and a barn

I can't say enough how nice it is to have a friends willing to do some of my training with me.  And let me just digress into how amazing Jen is as an athlete.  This was her farther ride since the IM in November and I'm pretty sure I got tired before she did.  She is seriously amazing.

We both ended the ride strong! Yay! 49 miles/3:34/13.7 AP

 And, we're DONE!  

Some notes to self:  Drink more water.  Ditch the gatorade (it made my tummy feel funny).  Eat more! I had a Cliff mojo bar cut into pieces and I ate all of that.  I also have a regular Cliff bar cut into pieces and I only ate half of that one.  I liked the mojo bar better than the straight Cliff bar however, it could have been the flavor of Cliff bar.  The mojo bar was peanut butter pretzel--delicious. Couple of fun facts, I was able to open/close my bento box and eat while riding.  I successfully grabbed my water twice and drank while riding (both times on flat areas).

Sunday: Long Run 
Let's preface this by a quick recap of the previous night.  It was The Architect's birthday, also known as Amy's husband.  Amy threw one hell of a party for him at her house complete with super tasty food and even tastier drinks.  Readers of this blog know that I go to bed ridiculously early but what you may or may not know is that I'm a one drink kinda girl (aka a cheap date).  Well, Amy's mojitos and homemade vanilla infused vodka were so tasty I had 3 maybe 4 drinks.  While that may not seem like a lot that is a TON for me. Let's just say, the party rocked, getting up to run this morning did not!

 Infused vodka's

 Food!  (all extremely tasty and since I know Amy is always worried people will go away hungry let's--Amy, I was STUFFED)

Happy Alisa

Birthday Cake with the hostess and birthday boy!

Okay so the run.  A few of us last night thought running in the morning would be a good idea.  We decided to meet downtown around 10:30-45ish.  Nice and late as to enjoy sleeping in.  Since Mr. Pi was helping a friend move and we are a one car household, I told the group I would run downtown and then do a short loop around the waterfront with them.  I woke up hungover and sore from my bike ride.  Awesome!  I downed some coffee and water and felt slightly better.

Soon enough it was time for me to run the 5-6 miles to downtown and meet up with the group.  I took off and immediately decided to walk up the first hill.  I needed a bit of a warmup and I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to barf.  I walked slowly up the first hill and then got into a bit of groove.  I suffered through the rolling hills of terwilliger pretty well actually.  However, by the time I got to the waterfront I wasn't feeling great.

Lisa, Sarah and I took off around the bridge loop and just went at a leisurely pace and stopped for a photo op and for a rest break.

Me, Lisa and Sarah on the Steel Bridge

I survived the 8.3 miles only because they were there to help!  Thanks girls!  8.35 miles/1:35/11:23

To recap the whole week...I got through this week because I have the most awesome husband and friends in the world.  I am so lucky to have you guys.  

Mr. Pi:  Thank you Mr. Pi for putting up with my going to bed at 9:00 pm, hanging my wetsuit and bathing suits in the bathroom.  I am so lucky to have someone who motivates me to be a better athlete and who is so supportive and loving.

Jen:  Thank you for being my biking partner this week--I couldn't have done those rides without ya.  Also, thanks for getting me to the track and to yoga, both have been great mentally and physically.  

Amy:  Thank you for for being an awesome, supportive training partner---for knowing when to tell me to get my act together and when to give in to saying "screw running let's go to happy hour."

Sarah/Lisa:  You guys got me through my long run this week, thanks bunches. 

I honestly have so many positive, supportive and caring friends/family in my life.  I am really lucky!

Weekly totals:

Bike: 84 miles (70 outdoor miles + 1 trainer ride) = 6:04

Swim: 6300 yards (1 OWS 1800 yds) = 2:03

Run: 14:45 miles = 2:37

Total Time: 10 hours and 44 minutes (+ 1:15 yin yoga)

 

Can you meet me halfway...

I'm halfway through my training plan.  I actually can't believe that I'm halfway.  During the next couple of weeks, things are going to start ramping up.  I haven't checked recently but I think I'll max out at 14 or 15 hours in a week.  I've been holding steady right around 11-12 hours.  I thought it'd be fun to track my stats for the first half of my training, so, since March 15th, 2010:

Swim--40,487 yds (that's 23 miles! Peak yardage week 6600/Low yardage week 2000)

Bike--516.2 miles (some of these were approx miles on the trainer. Peak miles 87.50/Low miles 14)

Spin class-- 8 hours 45 minutes

Run--157.69 miles (peak miles 20/low miles 12)

Awesome things that have happened:
-My brick runs have gotten faster.  In fact, my brick runs are often my fastest miles of the week (granted also the shortest but still!)
-I've been able to get in 4 open water swims already, one at race distance--being in the PacNW this is HUGE
-My bike times have improved
-My biking endurance has improved
-I feel strong

Things I need to work on/continue to do:
-Lengthening my brick runs a little each week (hoping to get up to 4-5 miles of brick during the week)
-Continue with at least one OWS per week
-Nutrition on the bike (So far, what's been the best is cutting up cliff bars and luna bars and putting them in my bento box.  I still prefer water to any sports drink, but I'm thinking maybe one water and one sports drink--yet to be determined.)
-Increasing endurance and speed on the bike (I'd like to have a few weeks of 100+ miles on the bike.)
-Couple of brick runs after long rides
-Healthy eating habits (It's not that I'm eating unheathly now but I need to keep my sweet tooth in check.  Now that I'm hungry all the time, I need to be sure to pack enough healthy snacks for the workday.)
-Holding steady with my long runs for the week.  Increasing long run mileage up to 10 miles and holding that for a few weeks before going up to peak at 13.

There you have it.  Halfway through and I feel on track and strong.

Barb's Race Training Week 10--Part 2

This post should be titled something like The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. (The Good = completing the swim; The Bad = Cold/Wet conditions; The Ugly = failed bike ride + long ass trainer session)

Friday: Unscheduled Rest Day
It was pouring and I was tired and I really didn't want to run in the monsoon.  Instead Mr. Pi and I tidied up, went grocery shopping and spent the evening just hanging out (a rarity around here).

Saturday: 8 miles
My GPS  was having issues so I used app for the iPhone called RunMeter.  It's a GPS program that tracks pretty much the same stuff that the Garmin tracks.  Sadly, since it was on the phone and the phone was on my arm, I didn't pause for stoplights or tying my shoe or stretching at the half way point.  Oh well.  Time was better than last week but still pretty slow, I'm definitely feeling some of the volume.  8 miles/1:35/11:52 AP

Late afternoon Kristen arrived, yay!  She's just as fun and outgoing as she seems on the blog.  We went to a fun dinner at a local brew pub and came home and just chatted away.  I was actually surprised I didn't have a sore throat from all the talking on Sunday morning.


Sunday: Swim, Bike, Run ?
We got up and starting packing our stuff pretty early as we were going out to Hagg Lake for our open water swim.  

 We kept laughing about how small her bike looked next to mine.

The clouds looked pretty threatening but we loaded up the bikes too.  When we got out to Hagg, we were both surprised at the amount of people doing the swim.  It was crazy!

 Brrr, this is the "what were we thinking" moment

We picked up our caps and got marked, went to the bathroom and put on our wetsuits.  The 800 group had just left so we waited around a little while before getting in to warm up.  If you remember, I swam briefly in the lake last week and found it quite refreshing.  What I had forgotten was that the outside temperature was well into the 70's and I had been biking for nearly 4 hours.  Not so much this morning.  It was windy, cold, with bursts of rain and I it was NOT warm.  I figured it might make me swim faster right?


Not too much longer we were off.  We started mid-back of the pack.  I need to figure this out because I spent the first two buoys in a cluster.  So much so that I'd get freaked out, swallow water and stop to cough.  It wasn't until the third buoy where things started to spread out and I had some open water.  I stayed pretty far wide to ensure I'd be alone which probably meant that I swam extra but whatever I don't care.  When I rounded the last buoy on the "out" portion, I knew I could kick it up a notch.  Another thing I need to figure out is how much to push myself--I was somewhere in between a super easy peasy pace and a cruise pace.  Anyway on the stretch back to shore, I passed a bunch of people.  I kicked it up because I still had lots of energy and everyone else was slowing down or stopping.  Anyway, I exited the water in about 40 minutes.  This is by no means fast but it was such a confidence boost to know I can go the distance and not come in last.  (Kristen came in right behind me.)

 Damn it was COLD!

At this point we were freezing.  I literally couldn't feel my feet or my fingers.  We took off our wet stuff put on towels and sat in the car blasting the heater.

Trying to get warm.

It started pouring and Kristen so aptly said "I'm out."  Meaning no hilly bike ride in the POURING rain.  I agreed and we decided to have a trainer party instead.  We stopped for coffee in Hillsboro and the sun was actually out so we said what the hay let's give it a go.  Seriously not 2 miles in, it POURED!  Pour Kristen ended up with really bad stomach cramps about 5 miles in so we stopped for a short break in the rain.  It wasn't getting better for her so I hauled ass back to the car to rescue her.  Literally, I racked the bike and drove back to her in my bike shoes and helmet.

We got back to my place, I gave her some meds and she took off for home.  I felt horrible for her and was hoping she got back okay (SHE DID).

I had to then decide what I wanted to do.  I decided to bite the bullet and ride the trainer.  We'd gone about 7 miles already so I decided 2:30 on the trainer would bring me to about 35 miles (guestimating a 14 MPH pace) and adding the 7 we had already done, that would be over 40 and I'd call it good.  I put on a DVD and just rode.  I tried to count my cadence every 10 minutes to see where I was and I alternated between the big chain and small chain every 20 minutes.  It was brutal but it got done.  (Portland weather please improve I CANNOT do anymore long ass trainer rides, I just can't!)

I texted Jen about my day and she asked if I wanted to go to Yoga.  I said sure so at 7:00 pm I got my zen on and stretched out my tired muscles.

All in all, it wasn't the weekend I wanted but I survived and a new confidence in open water swimming, I learned some lessons and have a few things I need to work on.

I am officially half way through my training plan and I definitely feel stronger.  The next 10 weeks are going to be hard but I'm ready to face them!

Week Totals:

Running: 13.1 (pathetic) --2:29 minutes

Biking: approx 82 miles (all trainer, except 7 rainy miles)--5:48 miles

Swimming: 6587 yards (2 open water, 1 pool)--2:15

Approximately 10 hours 30 minutes

-missed one run of 5 miles

-added 2:30 of yoga (Tuesday and Sunday)

Barb's Race Training Week #10 Part I

Since I know I have a big weekend ahead with my timed OWS (with Amy and Kristen) and another hilly long ride out at Hagg Lake I thought I’d do the week recap now and save a whole post just for the weekend. Exciting, I know!


Monday: Rest


Tuesday: 3ish mi Run + 1:15 Yin Yoga

Amy, Jen, Deana and were meeting up at Jen’s. Amy and I arrived and text Jen and we didn’t get any response, weird! We saw Deana stroll by on her bike about 10 minutes later but she went by too fast for us to say anything to her. At that point, we were going to be cutting our run short already to make it to yoga on time. Since we hadn’t heard from Jen, I thought maybe she wasn’t going to run after all. I texted her to let her know we were going to take off. Amy and I started down the road toward the waterfront loop and got to the intersection where there are train tracks and, crap, there was already a train! It wasn’t just a small train either. So we turned back and decided to run through the neighborhood of NW. Basically this means there is no way we’d see Jen and Deana if they were running since we were in uncharted territory. We also had no Garmin or stopwatch so we were guesstimating pace and distance. Anyway, we went up enough blocks to a point where we thought we had been running about 1.5 miles-ish and turned around. Then, not three blocks later we saw Deana and Jen. Awesome! They’d seen the train and did the same thing we decided to do. We ran the rest of the way with them. Jen says they were going about 9:44 on their first mile and about 9:57 on their second mile and 10:00ish on their third mile---we joined somewhere in the middle.

After running, Amy, Jen and I headed up to Yoga Pearl for a Yin yoga class. If you read Jen’s blog she’s getting to be quite the yogi. I go through fits and starts with yoga but with all the tri training some deeper/more dedicated stretching and frankly, some zen-ness is welcomed. Anyway, I had no idea what to expect from this class. Within the first couple of minutes, I actually thought I might bail. It was apparent right away that this was going to be more of a meditation/stretching class than an active yoga (aka get sweaty) class. Those that have been to yoga with me know that “final savasana” during most yoga classes is when I bail. I just can’t lie there and be still. Even after the “voicing of the breath into sound” (which I have to say I held back my laughter) I decided to stick it out. Let’s just say I’m so glad that I did. I haven’t felt that relaxed and devoid of thoughts in a really long time! I will be back for Yin next week and instead of fighting back laughter, I’ll be belting out my “ohmmmms.”

Wednesday: AM 1:15 Trainer Ride/PM OWS at Klineline
Wednesday morning I forced myself out of bed. The weather forecast was RAIN, RAIN and some hail. However, it was actually a nice morning and I wished that I had ridden outside, oh well. I got through 1:15 on the trainer watching Netflix instant play. I concentrated on 3 minute intervals. 3 minutes of “steep climbing” aka my bikes hardest gear and then 3 minutes of fast speed (big chain ring in the front gears and about mid-gearing in the back). I did some abs after, showered and went to work.


Post-work, Amy and I trekked back out to Klineline in Vancouver. It was super duper windy and really quite cold. The rain was coming in fits and starts. I convinced Amy that maybe the water would feel warm since it was wet and windy outside. We got there and braved the pond. I swam one loop around while Amy acclimated. Loop #2 we did together with another woman and Amy was a spectacular swimmer fish! Loop #3 I tried to push my pace a little but still kept it pretty comfortable. In total, 3 loops, approximately 1800 yards. (PS We were right, the worst part of the whole adventure was getting OUT of the water—brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!)


Thursday: AM Swim/PM 1:30 Trainer Ride + 2 mi Brick
Thursday morning, I slowly dragged myself out of bed and hit the pool. I didn’t quite make it all the way through my endurance workout in the Book but almost. 2600 yards I’ll take it. (The total workout was supposed to be 2850.)

Again, the weather was schizo and really quite chilly! Does Mother Nature know it’s freakin’ May?! I debated all afternoon whether I wanted to brave getting caught in a downpour or if I wanted to ride the trainer—yet again. As I was leaving work it was HAILING and I saw this:

and this...

Seriously, darkest clouds EVER!

Trainer it is. When I got home it had briefly stopped raining so I took the dog for a walk since it was my night and I knew I didn’t want to take her on my brick run.  It was chilly, the high yesterday was something like 49 or 50.  I was glad I had decided to ride the trainer.

I popped in a movie. I actually find watching documentaries or movies about sports/food especially motivating on the trainer. On Wednesday morning I watched some of Blue Planet which is an awesome series about the ocean, last night I watched Supersize Me. Let’s just say, watching that movie while exercising is like the only way to get through it. The movie was definitely interesting, if you haven’t seen it, it’s definitely worth watching. My 1:30 on the trainer flew by. I kept it on the big chain in the front (aka the hard chain) and again did ladder intervals (where I went through all the gears 3 minutes each) but this time I kept my cadence steady through the hard gears (instead of trying to sprint the hard gears) until I got to the hardest gear, then I’d sprint for one minute of the 3 minute segment, then I went back down the ladder to the easiest gear 3 minutes on each gear.

Immediately after my ride, I changed shoes, grabbed a long sleeve, my Garmin and headed out the door. Luckily, it wasn’t raining but the sky was still SUPER dark. I actually thought I’d get soaked. Maybe that was motivation or maybe I just felt good but I was flying on my brick. My legs didn’t even feel heavy at all. My first mile clocked in at 9:45 (not fast by most of your standards but that’s FAST for me). I was so happy with my 2 mile brick at the end I took a really blurry picture of Garmin:

That's right 10:10 avg for my brick!  Mile 2 was definitely slower but it also had a hill.

When I got home I felt just a little badass, it was great. What was also great was I didn’t get soaked. However, not more than 5 minutes after getting home it POURED. I tried to get a picture but this doesn’t even come close. I’ve never seen rain like that. What’s weird, is that the sky was actually brighter and the sun was shining a little in the distance when it POURED.

This is why things stay green up here, right?

Well, that’s all I got. It’s gray and rainy out today--AGAIN. BLAH! I’ve got a run scheduled for later this afternoon, I hope the weather clears. I might try to get to a yoga class tonight too but we’ll see how I’m feeling.

Happy Friday!

Barb's Race Training Week #9 (Long post be warned)

It was a week of firsts, my first melt down moment, my first (and second) open water swim(s) of the season, my first flat tire and my first hilly ride.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 4.5 miles with Jen and Amy

I wanted to do a tempo run and Jen is the best pacer for these since she's significantly faster than Amy and I she can easily pace us for tempo.  During our warm-up I was feeling great, my legs were a little heavy but I really felt like I could nail a tempo.  Mile 1-10:40ish  Our first tempo mile clocked in at 9:57 and I was starting to feel a little like a fat whale, there you have it, no sugar coating, I felt yucky.  Tempo mile #2 9:44 and I was really feeling crappy.  We were going to go for another tempo mile but I just couldn't, we slowed down and about a half mile later I just lost it.  I started crying right there in the middle of the trail.  I am so grateful to have the most awesome friends in the world who totally put up with my mini meltdown.  Thanks guys you're the best!  Anyway, I pulled myself together and finished that run strong.  Our last mile was slower but not all that slow because our avg ended up being 10:17.  I never wear my watch when I run with Jen, I just let her keep track so I don't have exact figures.

Wednesday: 17 mile bike with Jen + Flat tire + OWS with Amy

I met Jen at her place and we headed out for a ride.  I gotta say, this girl is still super strong on the bike!  She might have taken some time off from biking post-IM but she still has it.  We easily got up our average cookin' once we got past the stop lights and  people dodging section of the trail.  At one point, my bike started to feel kinda funny, I thought maybe my brakes were rubbing because it was getting so hard to pedal.  Turns out I had a flat.  Thanks to Jen, we fixed it up and were on our way in no time.  If I'd been alone I would have been looking up how-to videos on Utube and calling husband to come and rescue me!  Here's Jen working away:

 And, DONE!

After the tire incident we pushed it back to her place, actually racing a train in the process--bit of tempo work there with speeds of 20 MPH+.  We ended the ride through downtown which put the kibosh on our awesome average as we were stopping every block.  17 miles/1:12/14 MPH avg

Jen took off for yoga, I met up with Amy and we made the trek across state lines to Klineline Pond in Vancouver.  Along the way we considered just going to Emily's and seeing what she was doing but instead we sucked it up and went to the pond.  My tri club swims there now on Wednesday's so there were several swimmers already in the water when we arrived.  We put on our wetsuits and ventured in.  It was cold but not unbearable.  We started our first loop around and actually encountered some rude fisherman who yelled at us to get out of the way.  Whatever.  Amy decided she'd had enough after the first loop but I trekked back around with a really nice woman who is training for IMCDA.  I didn't bring my watch but two loops is approx 1200 yards.  Not a lot considering most of my swims are 2000+ but for my first OWS of the year and my first time in many years swimming in a wetsuit I was pretty happy.  I'll be back next week.

Thursday: Endurance 10 in the Book 2700 yards +1 hour trainer + 1.5 brick run + 40 minutes walking the dog

I headed to the pool bright and early for a swim.  I did the endurance 10 in my favorite swim book.  About halfway through the swim I wanted to stop.  I was tired and I felt like I was moving at snail pace but I gutted through and finished 2700 yards in 58 minutes.  After a long exhausting day at work I knew I still had an bike + brick to finish.  I thought about spin class but it was a bit too late by the time I got home from work to go.  It was a beautiful day out so I really wanted to ride outside but it was also rush hour and I'm still scared to ride in heavy traffic.  So, I opened our patio door and set the training up right next to the door, popped in a DVD and hit it.  5 min warm up, 10 minutes of "hills," 5 minute sprint --repeat!

After my ride, I grabbed the dog and headed out for my brick.  My legs definitely felt very heavy but I did my best to hold an even pace.  1.5 miles/11:00 avg

Since it was such a beautiful evening I stayed out for another 40-45 minutes just walking the dog around the neighborhood.  It was glorious.  I love being able to go out in shorts and a tank and not be cold.  I don't usually count walking the dog in my exercise log but since it was after my brick run, I figure that's more time on my feet post-biking, right?

Friday: 4ish mile run to happy hour 


I took off from work and ran to downtown and crossed over one of the waterfront bridges to the east side to meet several friends for happy hour.  My Garmin never got satellite so I really don't know my pace or distance.  However, I google mapped my route and it was approximately 4 miles, so I'm going to call it 4ish.  Happy hour was great.  Post-happy hour Mr. Pi and I walked around the neighborhood with the doggie and looked at a house that we are interested in.  It's a little rundown and would need some work BUT the location, the price and the space is great.


Saturday: 52 mile bike ride + 800ish yard swim


Here's where things got hard!  Mr. Pi and some friends dropped me off west of the city and I was going to ride out to Hagg Lake and meet them and Jen for some loops around the lake.  I took a couple of wrong turns getting out to the lake and ended up tacking on a few extra miles but nothing major.  I actually saw Jen on my ride out.  I was at a stop light looking at directions and I heard some honking--it was Jen!


I made it out to the lake and was feeling really good.  I'd gone almost 30 miles, 29 something at a 15.6 avg pace.  Hagg Lake is where several people (including Jen and Zach) have gone to hill train on the bike.  The elevation is nothing too significant but there aren't any flat stretches except the dam.  I met up with Jen and we started out on our first loop around the lake.  Along the way we saw Mr. Pi and company and they turned around to ride the loop with us.  When we hit the first hill I clicked into my granny gear and just pedaled through.  I've biked once before at Hagg on a mountain bike and actually had to walk up the first hill.  No walking this time.  In fact, Jen really helped coach me up the hills and gave me good pointers on hill training.  I even made it up the hill aptly called the "mother shitter" without any issues.  (Note: Jen and I named some of the other hills too, "papa shitter" and "son of shitter.")  Having people to ride with and push me along made all the difference.  Also, allowing myself some "stopsies" was also smart.  I know I can't do those during my races but for now, mentally, pitstops do help.  All in all, I went 52.01 miles with a total average of 13.3 MPH and a new max speed of 30 MPH.


Things I learned:
-Riding with people is WAY better than riding alone.
-If I can only have company for part of a ride, I'll take it at the end.
-Hills are hard.
-Granny gear can be fun.
-I need more solid foods while riding.  (I'll be trying out Cliff Bars next week.)
-I can go faster downhills when I know I have an uphill ahead.

Coming up "papa shitter"

Almost there.

A lake view along the route.

Short "stopsie" for a photo op.

Kind of a horrible picture of me and Mr. Pi's eyes are closed but we rarely get pictures of us together when we're out riding or running so I'm posting it.  (Sorry honey, it's not the most flattering of either of us.)

 This pic is better of me at least.  Me and Jen, DONE with the ride.

After riding Jen and I decided to get in the lake for a quick swim.  I have a timed open water swim out there next weekend (that Amy and Kristen are doing too).  I got my wetsuit on noting that it is a lot harder to get on when you're grimey and sweaty from riding.  The water wasn't too bad.  A little merky at the shoreline but the temperature wasn't bad, Jen went sans wetsuit.  I'm not really sure how far we swam but it wasn't very far.  I'm guestimating I did maybe 800 yards total but that could be a total lie.

Swimming!

We are out there somewhere.

Our bright caps don't look so bright here.

And DONE!

Sunday: 7.5 miles on Leif Erikson Trail

Slowest run I've had in a LONG time.  This trail is joked about being uphill both ways.  The first 1.5 miles is a steady uphill and then it rolls along once you're past that point.  It's a nice wide trail but definitely a trail with some rock and branch obstacles.  That first mile was slow and I even had to walk for a minute at about .75.  After that I got my legs under me and just slowly trekked along.  I definitely felt the ride the day before!  But I got the run done and had a great brunch with the crew (minus Amy--we missed you).  7.5 miles/1:33/12:30 AP (told ya it was SLOW).

Epic week totals:

Running: 17.5 miles (~3:23)

Biking: 83 miles (6:07)

Swimming: ~4700 yds, two open water swims sans watch (guestimate: 1:45)

Total Time: 11 hours 15 minutes

Barb's Race Training Week #8

Three things from my last post I said I was going to try to re-vamp the workouts:

1) New workout clothes.--Check!  I went to the Nike Employee store and came back with a loot.

2) Workout buddies.--Check!  Amy did part of my EPIC ride with me on Saturday.  THANKS!  Plus, I already have a couple of running/biking/swimming dates next week.

3) New routes.---Check!  My bike ride was almost a completely new route and Mr. Pi and I went out to one of our favorite trails to run.

The highlight of the week was BIKING.  I rode my farthest ride to date (51 miles), complete with some hills near the end, great weather and excellent company for the middle miles.  Between Saturday's ride and my two trainer rides (which I have to estimate distance) I think I rode about 87 or 88 miles and was on the bike (either on the trainer or outside) for close to 6 hours this week.  I definitely think all the time I've spent on the bike has been paying off.  I feel stronger and I'm getting faster.  After riding 51 miles I'm pretty sure I could tack on another 5 miles for the 56 of the HIM.  However, the thought of running a half marathon after that is another story.

Onto the re-cap:

Monday: REST

Tuesday:  1:15 trainer ride + 15 minutes strength training

Not much to say here, crappy, crappy weather forced Amy and I to cancel our run.  Instead of hitting the treadmill I opted for the trainer. (I also had a night meeting from 7:00 - 8:30 pm that evening which always makes squeezing in a workout difficult.)

Wednesday: 1:10 on the trainer + 2.5 mi brick run with Zoey

I hit the trainer hard.  Partly because I didn't have the best day at work and partly because I was feeling the need for speed.  Weather was being totally schzio, one second downpour/hail, next second sunshine.  The sun was out (but it was COLD like 40 something) but I decided to brave my brick run with the doggie.  We headed out on our normal route and about a mile into the run, the sky turned VERY VERY dark, then, the hail came, then the rain.  It pelted us like pebbles--I really was uncomfortable.  But 2.5 miles later we were back at the apt and rushed immediately into the shower.  Zoey got a bath and I quickly showered before night meeting #2 (7:00 - 9:30 pm).

Thursday:  3.5 miles + 15 minutes of abs and pushups

This was supposed to be my first OWS of the year (open water swim) but I had a work "retreat"---read: mentally exhausting afternoon of sharing your opinions and feelings with the big bosses---and Mr. Pi wasn't feeling well so I decided it'd be best if I just went home.  I considered making this a rest day I was soooooo drained .  But instead I leashed up the dog and went for a run.  Of course, this did make me feel better, though I felt guilty for not swimming since I skipped my Wednesday swim too.  Whatever right?  Move on.

Friday: 4.5 glorious sunshiney morning miles + 1800 yd swim

I took the morning off from work since I'd been at those late meetings earlier in the week.  I got in a great morning run.  The sun was out and I got to internally laugh at all the suckers on their way to work.  After running I got in a quick swim.  I actually violated my normal policy which is no swims under 2000 yds but I was running late to meet the girls at the Nike store.  Can't be late for shopping!

Friday evening I met up with all the girls for a girls night, which we all decided we need to do more often.  I didn't take any pics but Amy did!

Saturday: EPIC 51 miles of riding

I woke up nervous as I usually am before biking, especially rides that involve hills or riding in traffic--this one had both.  I geared up and hit the roads.  I road 12 miles to Amy's house on the other side of Portland.  I stopped at the waterfront to take a couple of pictures, I couldn't resist it was gorgeous.

After getting to Amy's I took my first Gu. I Gu'd approx every 12 miles which I think was perfect and I drank an entire bottle of Gatorade + almost a whole water bottle.  I tried Jet Blackberry for the first time and LOVED it, tasty.  However, I think my favorite is still Hammer Vanilla.

On my way to Amy's I spotted Lori running and yelled a hello to her which I'm pretty sure thoroughly confused her since she's not used to seeing me all the way over in her neighborhood, especially on a bike. 

Amy took me on an awesome 25ish mile loop from her house which involved a couple of street crossings but was mostly on paths culminating in the Marine Drive path which is right alongside the river with an awesome vantage point of the airport.

PDX airport the runways

Random shack thing along the mighty Columbia

Yay cycling! Yay cycling buddies!  (I need sunglasses)

Marine Drive bike path

 Amy!

I left Amy back at her place and took off on my journey home.  I knew the roads would be more crowded than they were in the morning and I also knew I had some fun hills to tackle in the last 5 miles of my ride.  I made it down to the waterfront without too much anxiety about riding in traffic.  I made a quick pit stop at the waterfront to gather myself for the 5 miles ahead.  I went from the waterfront through downtown (in a city with so many cyclists there are very few streets in the heart of downtown with bike lanes) up to Terwilliger. This is where things got a little ugly.  My average speed when I left the waterfront was about 14.1, a little slower than what it has been but there were several signals and road crossings along the bike path that we had to slow down for.  Terwilliger---oh Terwilliger.  I run Terwilliger often and while it is hilly it's really not THAT hilly.  I think the reason things got so ugly here is, I'd already ridden 45 miles.  There was lots of cursing and some motivational-speak.  I did stop once, when I got up to the Chart House, a restaurant situated along the route, I took a mini breather.  I was soooo close to home probably 1.5 miles, I knew I could do it but I was fading and I was getting angry.  I'd had such a good ride thus far and I wanted to end positively.  My average speed had already dropped to a 13.5 but I wasn't going to let it drop from there.  And I didn't!  When I got back to my apt, I grabbed the dog went down to the grass area and laid down.  It was great!  51 miles take that!

Sunday: 7 miles


Mr. Pi and I went out to the Banks-Vernonia trail to do our run. 

 Mr. Pi starting out.

Again, the weather was beautiful--sunny and warm.

 The cool trestle bridge.  So pretty in spring everything is GREEN.

One of my new Nike tops!

I started over with a new half marathon plan that I'm incorporating into my HIM plan a few weeks ago.  The running mileage definitely has decreased and will slowly build back up.  Today, I had 7 miles on the agenda.  My goal was to run .9/walk .1 and to average 11:30-ish.  I really had no idea how my legs would feel after the ride yesterday.  I started out conservatively but actually felt pretty great.  The BV trail runs slightly uphill on the way out and then downhill on the way back.  My first 3.5 miles came in right about 11:40, definitely on track.  I was consciously slowing myself down in a few spots because I really wanted to maintain an even/easy effort.  At the turn around, I said I was just going to let my legs go and see what happened.  Since it was downhill I was definitely making up time with the same easy effort.  I finished the run in 1:20:10 which is an 11:27 avg--right on target.

 The farmland section near the parking lot.

Almost done.

  
After I finished, I grabbed the dog and headed out for a nice cool down walk and waited for Mr. Pi to finish up his run.  We stopped by this yummy coffee shop/sandwich place out in Hillsboro and then took Zoey to the dog park.  Great Sunday!

This week had a rocky start but ended great!

Swimming: 1800 yards (pathetic)
Biking: ~87.50 miles (nearly 6 hours total)
Running: 17.50 miles (better)
Strength/abs: 30 minutes (need to work on this)