Cycling Plan: Week 3 - Complete

Another hectic week with house stuff, helping out at my parent's house, and mother's day cooking. I only got in my spin class, but was able to get all three of runs in, but as the title of this post notes, this is "CYCLING" training, not running training. I actually did plan on riding, but I am trying to learn about bike maintenance and messed up a couple things this weekend. For starters, I bought new wheels, cassette, new tires, and a trainer tire. Unfortunately, I did not buy extra tubes, and for my 1st tire installation, I punctured the tube, so I cannot use the wheel yet. Also, I am having trouble installing the cassette. Basically, my new back wheel is a nightmare right now. Going to pick up some tubes and give it another go tonight hopefully. I am also nervous about swapping wheels, since I haven't done that before, but I am sure I'll get through this.

Swimming
No time as usual.

Cycling
Only got my insane spin class in. It was literally 90% intense hill work, with 80% of that being seated with higher RPM. It was insane, but I felt awesome the next day. Plus it's good to see some of my endurance creeping back, although it would be a lot better if I were doing my actual cycling training.

Running
I got all three runs in this week. It really is so much easier to get my runs in when all I need to do is put on shoes and go. My speed work went well as usual. The tempo run however, did not go as well as I would have liked. The added hills were just too much for me to try and speed up my pace. My long run was alright. I was running a slower pace and cadence initially because the first half was running with someone else. I felt completely fine after the first loop we ran. Then I continued on to do a second loop. I guess I didn't realize how tough the hills on the route was, because I was not able to increase my speed or cadence much on the second lap. Oh well, this just shows I have a long way to go.

Strength
I only got in one legit strength session, and it was pretty tough because it was right after my spin class. I still managed to get the full workout done though and it felt really good.

Nutrition
As you can see, I did alright with logging and macros, but I slipped up Friday night through Sunday. I will be using this new view to help keep myself more accountable.

Final Thoughts
A pretty tough week but still managed to find some extra time to workout. Depending on feedback from realtor, we might be starting to wrap up the sale of our home soon, so I am hoping to have a couple weeks where I can focus on workouts before I get hit with an insane week of moving EVERYTHING to storage and a friend's house.

Racing 2017

I haven't really done a race post in a long time, since I have been dealing with a multitude of injuries over the last 2 years. But with me healed and rebuilding, it's time to get back in the game!

I am definitely going super light on races this year though, as the main goal is to get a qualifying time for Disney so I am not in the last corral, and then a triathlon to get myself back in the mindset. With that said, this will total 2-3 races planned for this year, with my fourth race technically being next year, although it's right away in January.



Running Races

First off, Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon. As always, this is a fairly flat and uneventful race, which is perfect for me getting back. I am familiar with the course and hope to do well; goal is to run 8:00 min per mile, or a 1:44:00. This won't be my best time, but it will be in the right direction.

I might toss in a 5k somewhere along the line, but I am not as motivated for shorter races, as my ultimate goal is to lead up to an Ironman in 2018, which means marathon for the 3rd leg.

Triathlons

Triathlon is one of those sports that you can't do well if you don't practice AND race. Sure, you can pull off amazing times by just practicing everything; but nothing compares to the stress of race day and especially transition. I really don't want to do short course, but I do really want to get back into the feel of triathlon. Therefore, I am considering Escape Philly Sprint. I am not sure I will be doing another one this year, although I have considered one after my century ride.

Cycling Races

This isn't technically a race, although I will be using this to gauge how prepared I will be for my Ironman next year. The plan is Bike MS: City to Shore Century (100 miles). I completed the 80 last year, but did very little training and struggled a lot at the end. This won't be the case this year. I have already started my cycling training and will be doing lots of training all year.

Final Race

Alright, I know this is technically 2018, but all of my training is leading up to the Disney Dopey Challenge in January 2018. This will be followed by an Ironman mid to late summer.

Final Thoughts

Overall I am pretty excited about the races. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous and even a bit scared, given my injury history. But that's the kicker this time; I am working my butt off to get consistent with exercise, especially strength training. I am looking forward to a great and injury-free race season.

Cycling Plan: Week 2 - Complete

Started off the week motivated and ready to workout. Had an incredibly busy Monday and Tuesday at work, so I didn't have time during the day to workout; at night I just had no motivation or energy. I finally got myself going mid-week and sadly my doubles sessions was too much on my muscles and I was hurting bad for the rest of the week. It was a good eye-opener on how my strength declines so quickly when I lose consistency.

Swimming
I didn't get any swim sessions in this week.

Cycling
I got in one trainer ride for cadence. Since I had to use a stationary, I changed up my goal to keep at a higher-than-usual RPM. This was due to the fact that resistance and effort are so different than when on a regular bike. Overall I felt good, but man are those the most uncomfortable seats ever!

Running
I was only able to get in my interval run this week. However, my interval runs have been quite different than expected. My overall speed is much lower than I want, but I have not been able to run on a track or flat grade at all. Therefore, my interval runs have been with decent hills. I am really liking this type of speed work a lot. I still plan on using a track in the near future, but for now this is really helping my leg muscles.

Strength
I was able to get in two strength sessions. My first session, leg day, was a bit more intense than I expected. I felt tired after, but the following day I could barely walk. This was of course exacerbated by the fact that I did my ride the same night. I'll be hunting for a better workout plan.

Nutrition
I did awful again with nutrition. I may have lost some weight, but I am sure I gained it all back from how poorly I ate all week. I finally went out and bought everything I need to get back in my healthy routine. Now I just need to stay focused and motivated, and then everything will fall into place.

Final Thoughts
Overall another rough week with poor consistency in workouts and nutrition. However, I'll keep adjusting so I can succeed and progress.

Cycling Plan: Week 1 - Complete

Not a good week at all. Work had me pulling overtime and my cat got really sick again. On top of that I was traveling over the weekend. Needless to say, my first week of cycling training was mostly a failure due to lack of time for almost anything.

Swimming
I had no time to get to the pool, which is a shame, because that would have really relaxed me.

Cycling
I was only able to get an insane spin course in for my technical day. My bike is still in storage and needs a lot of work done before I can ride it, so I am going to hit up the same spin class again for Week 2, and make sure I get my bike out of storage and overhauled asap.

Running
I was able to get an interval session and a long run in this week, which was great. Even though my focus in cycling, part of the plan has me slowly building my running endurance and distance. The interval session was really tough and not as fast as I planned. This was because the track was closed because of lacrosse practice and I therefore had to do my intervals on rolling hills. The long run was terrible! 77° and 87% humidity almost did me in. I was having trouble breathing and am still not sure how I completed that. I won't be that bad in the future, but this is my first hot and humid run outdoors in about 2 years.

Strength
Aside from cleaning and moving boxes, I had no strength sessions at all.

Nutrition
I had good intentions, but failed to both log everything I ate and stick with healthier food choices. As a result, I feel awful and will be looking forward to correcting that awful week.

Final Thoughts
Since I am almost settled at my new location, I think I should finally start having a schedule that is a bit more consistent. As long as there is a good amount of consistency, I should be fine sticking with my plan.