Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Pounding the Pavement

Literally. This weekend I finally went out for my first outside run of the season (not counting London). I had, in my last post, discussed my nerves about forgetting something, but I decided that after the many rainy saturdays (and in general days) we have had, the gorgeous weather was not to be wasted. I am not really interested in running in the rain (I have done a half marathon and a triathlon in the rain- I do it when I have to, but for training, no way jose) and in the recent weeks, the track was a safer bet, in case my ankle started hurting and I needed to cut back my run time. But, I had utter confidence in my healing, and couldn't resist the gorgeous sunny almost 60 degree day!

I started from the Y so that I could have a quick transition to the pool run I had scheduled for after the run, and took off towards the lake. It was so absolutely beautiful and clear- I had a great view of downtown. Perhaps one day I will start taking pictures on my run. I ran up and down the lakefront path, through NU campus, and finally around the streets in town. I wanted to end as close to the Y as possible, so I did the last 15 min or so in just loops. By the end of my 10 mile run, my knees and ankles (both) were killing me. I think this was a result of pounding actual pavement, as opposed to the indoor track, for a long run, for the first time since November (!).  I got a bit worried about the half marathon, and even the rest of the weekend, after finishing up my achy run. Nevertheless, I rolled out my calves, and got ready for the pool, and hopped in. I did my requisite 35 min (with 10 mins of hard, 1 min rest) and hopped out, fully expecting to not be able to walk...but lo and behold, there is some truth to the pool run being a recovery- I felt like I had new (albeit tired) legs, and excitedly showered and got ready for the rest of the weekend. New plan- if I'm sore after the half marathon in 2 weeks, I'm hitting the pool for a short recovery run!

The rest of the week was fairly good as far as workouts go. I was deathly afraid of getting in the pool at tri clinic on Tuesday night, but my fear was for naught, because I was encouraged to work on breathing every fourth stroke, told that it made my stroke less awkward and more fluid, and that as time went on, I would slowly build up enough endurance to maintain that breathing cycle for longer and longer. Something to look forward to! In fact, I actually did my entire swim workout yesterday breathing every 4th stroke (I had 100 yd segments, which was about my limit of continuous 4th stroke breathing, but I am hoping to see that bump up!)

Biking also showed some improvements, though I got a flat tire on the computrainer on Wednesday. I had been pushing myself hard to maintain higher wattages (for me) and am really looking forward to getting out on the road towards the end of this week.

I skipped my pool run last week, because I was just too busy and just really did not want to do it. at all. I took a rest day which I needed mentally and physically and I think it was one of the best decisions I made all of last week. Normally I feel quite guilty skipping something on my schedule, but every once in a while, I think I know what I need better than the coach, and I think this was a wise decision. And, good news- no pool run in the plan for this week! Maybe I am finally leaving that stage of training behind (unless I need a good ache and pain reliever!).

This coming weekend is our spring training camp- heading out of town to warmer climates to get in some open water swimming, outdoor non-trainer biking, and running. I'm nervous about the hours and hours of workouts planned, but I think it'll be a great kickoff to the race season!

Easter post to follow, with pictures!

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