70.3 training - The Good and the Ugly

I'm getting "down and dirty" with this half ironman training. I have to say so far it's very manageable and fun! I have to thank my work schedule of 4 10's, so that on my 3 days off -- I am able to get longer workouts in. #spoiled

I'm several weeks into this training, and here are a few observations. The Good and the Ugly:

The Good

One doesn't really get sick of a sport. You're balancing between running, biking, and swimming. So every day, I kind of get excited about which one I get to do!
Fun bonding time with training partners! Between Saturday-Sunday, we biked 73 miles. (Which is about 5 hours on the bike total). Talk about some serious catching up/bonding!

(here we are on our 34 mi bike/2 mi run Brick Saturday morning!)

Learning new sports. I'm really embracing my love of the water. This masters swim team is going to be hard for me to quit when I'm done training! Mondays & Fridays we do speed work and Wednesday's are about long distance! It's teaching me so much.
Lots of beautiful sunrises are enjoyed in this training.
These workouts are building some serious legs!
My joints are happy! I used to take 1 day of low impact/week. Now I only run 3-4 days/week. So I get 3-4 days of low impact swimming/biking. And, of course, a rest day.

The Ugly

My feet are scary. This Monday as I walked into the door to work, and looked down - I actually shrieked. And realized I shouldn't wear open-toed shoes for a while. Calluses, black toenail, missing toe nail.....eek!!!
My derrière is bruised. 3 hours on a bike seat = ouch. I don't like wearing those padded shorts either, but Sunday I put aside my insecurities and put them on. (I think they make me look like I'm wearing a diaper. I'd rather have a sore butt, than look like I'm incontinent. I know this is vain)
I'm so hungry that it's silly. Some mornings after my workout, I can't stop eating. I found the true meaning of br-unch. (meaning breakfast, snack, snack, lunch).
You can have pretty hair. You can be a triathlete. But you cannot be both. Chlorine. Helmet hair. Sun. *Crunch*
It is really hard to fit in weight training. But I try to fit it in twice weekly! It's not easy...

I have to say the good outweighs the ugly! I'm having so much fun with my training!

Here is last weeks training schedule: (last week was a good training week. I had a random Wednesday off, so got a bonus day in there!)

Monday: 5am: Masters Swim practice (1 hour of sprint drills). 6pm: chest & back wt training (30 min)

Tuesday: Run 7.5 miles

Wednesday: Swim/Bike brick -- Swim 1.5 miles, Bike 25 miles

Thursday: Run 8 miles

Friday: Rest Day

Saturday: Bike/run brick (34 miles bike/2 miles run)

Sunday: Bike 39.5 miles, arms wt training (30 minutes)

What is your color?

Green My favorite color ever! I have to control myself to not purchase too many green things. If I had no control, my house would be green. My kitchen would be lime-themed. With greenery everywhere. My bathrooms would be green. My bedroom would be green. You would all feel nauseated-green after entering my home. (So I don't have a green-themed home) Many things I love are green, such as: Spinach (I eat it a minimum twice a day usually) My weding color was green. (clover green) Limes (I have at least one time a day) Grass. I love the feel of grass, especially since I see it so rarely in AZ (except in my neighborhood that has amazing landscapers with grass-galore) Palm trees. Any tree. Christmas trees. I love Christmas Green Beer. I think the green beer on St. Patty's Day tastes better. My favorite color of eyes. When I was in 9th grade, I so badly wanted to get green contacts. But they made me keep my brown eyes. Diet Mountain Dew (my guilty pleasure) Granny Smith

8 Months

Well, I missed month 1-8. But it is never too late to begin, right? Here is a recap of Maddy at 8 months. (I'm totally stealing this idea from my sister, Lisa. I thought it was so neat that she recaps her son's favorites and happenings every month) How am I sleeping? Better than I was - but not as good as my peers. It also depends on if I'm teething. Last week, her 2nd tooth was poking through - so she was awake 3 times. No matter how much I let her cry it out, I cannot seem to cut down her feedings. When I go in there - she is literally pulling at my shirt with her mouth wide open. So clearly she's hungry. She eats 2 times/night and luckily goes right back to sleep. It is what it is. What am I eating? While we have had breastfeeding and bottle refusal struggles - I am so glad that taking to food as been relatively smooth. We are doing baby led weaning, and Maddy really enjoys most every food I've given her. Her favorite foods are scrambled eggs, apples, and c

Currently - May edition

I haven't blogged much - but the last time I did one of these, Maddy was 9 months old. It's really fun looking back on the things that were "stressors" to me at that time. Prior to that - my currently post was a pregnancy edition. So here goes May 2022. Maddy is almost a 15-month old and summer has set ablaze here in Tucson. Reading : I really wish I had a better answer for this one, but I have not been the best about reading lately. The only book I'm reading is "How to talk to your kids so they'll listen and listen so they'll talk". It is really good. Most of the book is geared more to school-aged kids, in my opinion. But it highlights some great communication skills with children to help them trust you as a parent to be open and honest. Eating: All the smoothies. It has been getting really hot here - and every day when we get home from our stroller run I make a smoothie for Maddy with whole milk, Fage, and fruit - and then a smoothie for

Unknown said…

I won't even move my bike across the garage without wearing bike pads. :)

Before I swim, I put Aveda "Dry Remedy" hair conditioner in my hair and then put on my swim cap. This was the recommendation of my hair person who could tell I had been swimming because my hair was coated from chlorine. She is done several tris and marathons. I use Aveda "Sun Care" shampoo then also. Use it in Florida, too. Makes a difference.

Wow! That is some training schedule!!!

July 22, 2014 at 2:49 PM

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said…

I would definitely be opting for the padded shorts as my tush could not handle that long in a bike!! That is great that you have friends to do these bike rides with, though. I am sure that makes the time pass by way faster!

I have to admit that I am a bit envious of your 4-10's schedule. I know that will never be possible in my industry because we are so tied to a market-driven schedule! I am glad you have a schedule that makes it doable to do all the training you are doing for this HIM though!!

July 22, 2014 at 3:52 PM

Marlys said…

I can only imagine that the days you work 10 hours plus train that much must leave you totally exhausted and sleep must not be an issue!

Barb's suggestion for hair care sounds great! I know that chlorine is really hard on the hair, so hope you give her suggestion a try!

I totally understand why you are hungry!

July 23, 2014 at 6:27 AM

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