Runners & Triathletes, Report! (HFHM Training - Week 1)

The off season is definitely over, and I can't say that I'm unhappy about that.  In the midst of my chaotic week at work, having key workouts to do was a welcome dose of structure.

On Monday evening, Mr. R&R and I set out to "run some miles".  Our overall plan was at least 3 miles, maybe more if we were feeling good.  We bundled up and set out super slow since we weren't sure how far we were going to go and didn't want to run out of energy.  We were doing okay until we decided to see if one of the wooded trails was runnable...dumb idea.  It was nothing but hard packed ice punctuated by random gooey mud patches.  It slowed us to an absolute crawl as we picked our way carefully out of the woods and back onto concrete.  The last 2/3 of a mile was a steep uphill and we decided to redeem ourselves by hauling ass.  I seriously thought I was going to puke in the last quarter mile when Mr. R&R pushed the pace down into the 7:10-7:15/mile range, but I hung on and finished (without puking).

I also rewarded myself for running outside with a couple of truffles for dessert!

Tuesday night involved 30 minutes in The Cave doing Pump and Burn.  For some reason, the squat track felt easy, but the chest track freakin' burned.  I sucked it up, got it done, and took to the couch for the remainder of the evening.

Wednesday involved the infamous "Groundhog Workout"...400 meter repeats at 5k pace.  It was pretty cold and crappy out, so I hauled it over to The Track.  After a 1/4 mile warm up I alternated 400 meter repeats at 5k goal pace (8:45-8:55/mile pace) with 1 minute of rest in between.  My hope was to keep running, just at a slower pace, after each 400, but that didn't quite happen. I managed to run after the first 3 400's, but by the last two I was walking for the first 30 seconds of each rest period before I resumed running.  On a positive note, all 5 of the 400's were right on target.

I was pretty happy about those splits, and I even felt good enough to run my friend A's warm up lap with her (my cool down lap) when I spotted her just as I was finishing up.  By the time I got home, I was starving.  I didn't even care that my pork chop got a little over cooked...as I was too busy shoveling it all in my mouth!

Thursday was a high stress day at work (as Thursday's always are), so I was pleasantly surprised that I got home just after 6pm.  I threw on my bike shorts, hit the trainer hard for 45 minutes, and had a great (and incredibly sweaty) ride.

Mr. R&R got home just as I was crawling up the stairs, so I threw together mac 'n cheese with tuna and peas since it was the quickest dinner I could think of.  It still felt like it took forever since I was ready to start gnawing the furniture!

On Friday I was supposed to swim, but I got sidetracked by office happy hour and an unexpected shopping trip.  I was still in search of dress pants and ended up with two more skirts, a top, and a dress!  After our little shopping adventure, Mr.R&R and I had an impromptu date night at our favorite bar.

I probably should have found time to make up Friday's missed swim on Saturday, but that didn't end up happening.  We were up early to take Walter and Spot to their annual check up with Dr. Beast.  I'm happy to report that Spot is healthy as can be and Walter's respiratory infection is under control.  As much as the boys don't like the car ride to see Dr. Beast, they really like her...and one of her techs.  I've never seen Walter so willing to cuddle with anyone.  He gets excited and practically jumps into that tech's arms!

After the vet appointment, we got the boys settled back at home and headed out to try a new-to-us restaurant: Bel Air Cantina.  This little Mexican restaurant serves up a la carte tacos with funky fusion twist.  We started off with cocktails and complimentary house-made tortilla chips with a trio of salsas.  I went for the red wine sangria while Mr. R&R tried their margarita of the month: cucumber mint.

Chips. Salsa. Sangria.

We also ordered guacamole to go with our chips and salsa...holy yum!  It was possibly one of the best guacamoles I've ever had.

We each ordered 3 different tacos for our main courses and were very excited when they arrived.  I opted for Soy Chorizo,  Habanero Pork, and Korean Beef while he ordered Barbacoa, Lobster Shrimp, and Ninja Pig. We dug into our plates and traded bites of each flavor back and forth.  We agreed that all of them were good, except for the Soy Chorizo which had a texture similar to wet cat food.  The Ninja Pig was the hands down winner though.  Neither of us could shut up about that one - and Korean Beef came in a close second!

From Back to Front: Soy Chorizo, Habanero Pork, Korean Beef

Sunday was long run day.  I should probably refer to it as a "long" run since it was only 5 miles, but none the less, it was my longest run of the week (and my longest run since Fox Cities last fall).  It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day, so Mr. R&R agreed to run with me.  I'm happy to say that there was only one "dog pile mile" in the mix and that was followed by the best mile of whole run (even though I thought it was never going to end).

We covered those five miles at an average pace of 9:48/mile, which is 2 seconds per mile faster than my half marathon PR pace, so it appears that I'm heading in the right direction.

2 weeks until my first "tune up" race of the year!



I closed out Week 1 with:

Swim: 0 yards
Bike: 13.58 miles (45 minutes)
Run: 10.00 miles (1 hour, 40 minutes)
Strength: 30 minutes
Total Miles: 23.58
Total Time: 2 hours, 55 minutes