Monday
I couldn't go to swim squad in the evening, so I decided to do my swim at lunchtime instead. I did 3km continuous at a steady pace. I felt pretty good but I faded significantly in the last 500 metres.
In the evening we went to see a really fantastic play as part of the Sydney Festival. It was called Small Metal Objects and it was one of the best things I have ever seen.
Tuesday
I managed to stuff up my alarm and woke up at about 6am so I could not go to SOP. I did about 25k on the Haberfield Canal loop on my way to work instead.
At lunch time I went to Pain In The Domain. It was warm but I felt pretty good and enjoyed the run. There was a post on Tuesday on CoolRunning complaining about PITD. Basically it was saying that its not safe and its annoying to other runners and users of the park and where is the public liability insurance etc. It made some valid points but the thing is, its really fun and enjoyable - that is why so many people turn up most weeks.
Wednesday
In the morning I ran for an hour. I wanted to do 6 km at race pace but my pace was not that flash, just managing 5 min ks. I did 2.5k warm up and cool down for 11k total.
In the evening I went to swim squad. The main set was 20x100 with fins on 1.40. I did the times with about 5 seconds rest and it was TOUGH! I have never really swum with fins before. Dani said it is good for strengthening your legs and my legs felt really tired and dead at the end of the session. But it was good fun to swim 'fast'.
Thursday
I made it to SOP and had a fun ride. It had been raining so there was only one bunch and they decided to just do it at "chat pace". So first I had a good chat to a guy who told me he did Ironman "before I was born" (1989 actually so I was 12). His IM tip was to have a proper meal and a sit down between the run and the bike. Then I chatted to a nice woman who told me she had been cycling for 2 years and made it to 17th in the national women's ranking. And she is 42. Wow! On the last lap she decided to go off the front for a fast one and so I went after her. For about 1k I could keep up alongside her, then she saw that I was flagging so she said to ride behind her. I lasted about another 1k there, then dropped off. But it was fun while it lasted. I limped home and went for a 2k easy run off the bike.
Friday - Australia Day
I had a 100k ride on my program but I decided to do nothing instead. I was tired and planning to run on Saturday and race on Sunday so I figured I should/could have a rest day.
We spent the morning at Parsley Bay in Vaucluse with some friends and it was absolutely lovely. It turned out to be a gorgeous morning. The water was beautiful and it was great seeing lots of families having BBQs and lots of Aussie flags. I couldn't help but feel patriotic. In the evening we went to a show celebrating Spunk Records 200th album - Holly Throsby, Andrew Bird, Bill Callahan and Joanna Newsom. It was brilliant. Bree made a special appearance on the keyboards with Holly which was cool. Andrew Bird was really interesting - the best whistler I have ever heard. I always love Bill Callahan - unfortunately his set was short because he was supporting. But Joanna Newsom was really amazing. I would not buy her records I don’t think, but live she was incredible.
Saturday
I got up early to go along to the monthly CoolRunning 5km Challenge. This was my first time so I was a bit nervous, but everyone was very friendly and I had fun. I was not sure how fast I would run and didn't want to go really really fast, so I headed off on 24 minutes. I felt great at first and was running quite quick for me. My splits were 8.44 (2k), 4.25, 4.34, 4.34. I slowed a bit in the end and I think I could have run maybe a bit faster, but I didn't want to go all out before the race on Sunday.
Then we jogged the 5km back to the start. I met a CR who is also doing IM for the first time and we had a great chat. I was a bit freaked when she told me she has already done 3x170k rides in the preparation but I know I have to have faith in my plan and not worry about what other people are doing.
After I got home we drove down to Canberra. Then in the evening we went up to the Pinnacle to check out the McNaught comet. It was not exactly spectacular but it was pretty cool, you could see the tail very clearly and it was way better than Haley's comet. I can remember getting up in the middle of night to see that and just seeing nothing but a fuzzy star. There was a guy up there taking photos and he showed us some really amazing shots he had taken during the past few weeks. I was feeling VERY tired and went to bed at about 9.30. During the evening my legs had felt really sore and I was a bit worried about how I would be the next day. So I slept in my Skins and the next day they were fine - no idea if these things are related or not.
Hmmm, that was supposed to be a QUICK recap. But it was just a really great week!
1 comment:
Ah ha. I've just worked out your handle on CR!
Wow - what a huge week you've had. One thing I constantly battle with is comparing my training with that of others. If there is one thing that training for Six Foot is teaching me is not to do that. That I just have to focus on what I'm doing & what I need to do. Easier said than done I'm afraid !
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