Train. Eat. Sleep. Repeat. (Steelhead Base: Week 4)

Week 4 of my training plan is billed as a recovery week.  Workout intensity and duration is reduced in order to give the body (and possibly the mind) a chance to recover a little.

Monday:
*Rest Day

I'm experimenting with taking Monday as a rest day since Saturday and Sunday both involve long workouts.  It was nice being able to come home from work and not have to rush right out the door to get to my training appointment.  I used the time to make dinner, fold a little laundry (because it's endless around here), and hang out with Walter and Spot.

Tuesday:
*AM: Bike: Haku (60min)
*PM: Warm Up Run and Training Session

I did not want to get on the bike this morning, but I did - and managed to flip between the big and small chain rings without dropping my chain or getting the chain stuck.

After that it, it was off to a full day at work, a stop at home to change into gym clothes, and then off to my training session.  I'm really grateful that my trainer is willing to work with me based on what body part is giving me trouble at the moment.  For example, my legs were super tight tonight, so she modified one of the moves she wanted me to do so that it helped to loosen them up.

Wednesday:
*AM: 35min Run (w/ 6x30 second speed intervals)
*PM: 1400yd Swim (speed intervals)

Now that was a good run.  I felt really relaxed and comfortable and the whole thing just flowed.  Oh, and I managed to count my intervals correctly - this is not normal at 5:30am!  The run may have been awesome, but I definitely had moments of wanting to crawl under my desk and take a nap - especially by late afternoon.  Coffee doesn't seem to have much of an effect on me anymore, but I've been enjoying my super-nerdy coffee anyway.

All kinds of nerdy

Wednesday night's swim was fantastic.  I actually swam 3 sub-2:00 100s.  Maybe the last one wasn't a fluke?

What if I want to do both?

Thursday:
Bike: Birch (60min)

Tonight's ride was only 45 minutes long and that was just fine by me.  I listened to a couple of podcasts, spun my legs, and called it a night.  I miss rides this short!

Friday:
*AM: 35min Run
*PM: 1600yd Swim

Not getting to sleep at a reasonable hour = not getting up at an unholy hour to run.  I wasn't too worried since it's a recovery week and the run was easily rescheduled to Saturday morning.

We got to the pool a little earlier on Friday night, knocked out our swims, and called it a night.  Real exciting, right?

Saturday:
*AM: 35min Run
*PM: Bike: Geiger (60min)

I was up earlier that I'd have liked to hitch a ride to the gym with Mr. R&R and make up the missed run from Friday.  I kept the effort low since it was supposed to be an easy run and the 35 minutes were up before I knew it.

After breakfast, coffee, and a little lounging around we hit The Cave for a pair of hour long rides.  I crawled off the bike drenched in sweat and seriously wondering if a manual power tweak was in order.  It seems as though my choices are to spin too slow in a bigger gear or too fast in a smaller gear.  I can't find the spot where my preferred cadence (spin speed) and gearing work together.

When Mr. R&R got home from his massage appointment we did the usual grocery run and then he made the most awesome dinner.  These fajitas were so good...I totally overate...and it was worth it!

Sunday:
*Brick: Pioneer (60min) + 15 minute Run

The odds of completing this brick workout did not look good when I got up this morning since it was pouring rain.  I had resigned myself to just doing the bike portion of the workout (with the previously mentioned power tweak), but peer pressure got the best of me.  Mr. R&R finished his workout a few minutes before me and went flying upstairs to add some layers over his bike clothes and headed out the door.  Dammit...if he was going to go for it, so was I!  I threw on sweatpants, jacket, ear band, and gloves and ran in the rain.  Oddly, it felt good because I was so overheated from the bike.

I got home with just enough time to shower and make it to my massage appointment.

As of this posting, I'm half way through the base phase of training and although there are days where I seriously question my life choices, I'm starting to see glimpses of what's possible - and it feels good.

Week 4 Stats:
Swim:    3000 yards (1.7 miles)
Bike:      42.97 miles
Run:       10.27 miles
Yoga:      0 sessions
Strength: 1 session (30min)

Total Time:       6 hours, 39 minutes
Total Distance: 54.94 miles

Cumulative Distance: 490.4 miles - approximately the distance between Milwaukee and Topeka, Kansas.