Start Week 7- How's it going?
Hello comrades
How are you doing so far this week?
I just finished the brick prescribed for Tuesday this morning--the bike with 2 longer intervals and then the Zone 1 run with hill strides. The Zone 1 run was heaven sent but honestly I had a tough time with the bike in keeping the watts and heart rate up. Dang I know I dogged it a little. I feel like I'm getting slower but I know that all the accumulative work is taking it's toll. My body is used to getting real rest week every 3rd to 4th week but so far in EN we just work hard every week. I'm putting my faith in the EN philosophy again. Hope all of you are staying positive and committed. Knowing we're in this together keeps me going especially on the days my body wants to chill.
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Well, Steve, at least we get 3 days off this week! I think we all need the rest. After having trouble with this same workout last week I made sure to hit it extra hard this morning.
I am so excited, gang, because my powermeter finally arrived yesterday! My task this afternoon is to set it up and be ready for Thursday's ride. This power stuff is all new to me.
How is everyone else doing?
Steve, No way you're getting slower! We do work hard every week, and that's going to pay off on race day. Chill like you've never chilled before on that extra rest day this week. So you can crush your tests.
Yay on the PM Kristen! Getting up to speed on what all the lingo means and WKO+ can seem daunting, but with the support of the haus it comes together pretty quickly. I'm sure you'll get the hang of everything in no time. It will be good to be able to do your next test with it.
Soooooo...have you guys thought about the fact that our reward for improved numbers after testing is going to be more and HARDER work? It's the classic "thank you, sir, may I have another."
I purposely held back a little on my 2x15's (but still making sure I was above my target watts) so I could have some juice left for the 30' brick run. My body must be getting used to all these bricks because I kept feeling better as the run went on! I found myself extending my hill strides to the top of the hill because they were just too much fun! (I
hills)
Not really looking forward to testing next week, but I think I can shave a few seconds at least off my 5K time..my biking has been difficult lately, but my run is coming along nicely! I just have to remember to not go overboard like Coach P says with the OS running.
Good luck with week 7 everyone!
I like your last line Olivia. I’m excited for better numbers in the test next week, but not excited to pay for it over the proceeding eight weeks. I keep telling myself that all this work will some how help me survive Saint George.
Your thoughts made me laugh out loud, Tom, especially the "you people are whack jobs" bit.
My co-workers certainly think I am a little crazy for getting up before 5 every morning to work out, doing long rides and runs on the weekends, etc. I'll bet yours do, too!
Going extremely well. Perhaps too well?
I know I wasn't in bike shape when I took that first test, so I've been crushing the WATT numbers (and that is after raising them a little as it felt just ... to easy). Looking forward to the next test. Just a little. Maybe.
The run is moving along, but it got a lot harder to get in those after-work bricks with the change. It makes me sad.
AND, I've really been working on fixing my body composition. When I started getting ready for MCM I was at 215lb. Over the last 3+ months I've got that down to a steady 199-202 range. I'm stoked that by the end of the OS I can get down to a far more comfortable 190-195.... which is what I've done my previous IMs at. Really, really hoping to get closer to 180-185 by Utah, but that may be more of a pipe dream. At 6' 1" I don't think I have the right body type to be that light... but you got to have dreams!!
I think fixing the composition is doing as much if not more than running workout for helping the run. I mean, that old saying, "a pints a pound the world around...", those extra 10lbs are like leaving 10 water bottles at home when I run.
Feels good man.
Glad it seems to be going well for everyone else too!!
w00t!
Whack jobs?! Ha, I resemble that...
Off to a slow start this week. Did the Tuesday bike Monday morning because of work and it sucked!! My legs were dead from the Sat and Sunday workouts. Hopefully after a day of rest yesterday things will be better today and Thurs.... Just think next week is test and turkey week.... gobble, gobble!!
Mark
I had to pull the plug on my run this morning. During the warm up I started to feel a little lightheaded and almost a bit like I was going to get a migraine. Thinking it would pass, I hit the first interval. It was all I could do to hang on and finish that. I figured a rest interval would allow me to get the wheels back on so I stopped running and then started to ease the speed back up for the second one. No go. I was feeling too uneasy. A little shaky, a little unable to relax, a little like I might get sick. I’m hypersensitive to even the slightest feelings of disorientation, and I started to get a little freaked out about the “what ifs.” So I called it. I considered trying to fit in the rest of the intervals later today, but then talked sense into myself: “This is one run on one day, in the grand scheme this won’t matter. Your body is telling you something. Heed the warning; rest and start looking toward testing next week.”
I’m still a little off--notwithstanding being a whack job J--feel like I could crawl back in bed and snooze for an hour. Tomorrow I’m working from home in between another series of dental appointments, being able to lounge should help.
Dan, way to go on the weight loss! Carrying around "extra water bottles" is a good way to look at it.
Olivia, good call on pulling the plug this morning. I'm sorry you don't feel well - rest up and be ready for next week!
You guys kept me going this morning on my run. Midway through the third mile interval I was tired and really struggling to keep up the pace. I slowed for a walk, thought about quitting, and took off again, because the thought of telling everyone I quit halfway through the interval was not appealing. I still finished my mile faster than my goal pace. Thanks, guys!
Olivia, Sometimes the best workout is no workout. I think one of the hardest things we have to deal with is understanding when to not do a workout. Let's face it most IM triathletes have too much motivation. It isn't a lack of motivation that keeps us from doing the workout, but we are ALWAYS afraid that perhaps it is. You did the right thing and should be congratulated for stopping....
Dan: Congratulations! on the weight reduction, you've done great so far and your goals sound realistic. So, you're making the change from the Clydesdale division and the every extra water bottles you shed will pay off in the hilly course of IMSG.
Olivia: Just so you know, I had to cut back yesterday on my 1 mi repeats too. My legs are still zapped and my second interval was noticebly slower than the first and too far off the mark. Plus, I felt the tinge of pain in the shins that could mean shin splints if I don't listen to the body. I've been running too much pavement lately. So, I too decided to be wise and drop the rest of the work out. I appreciate Marc's reminder about using rest and recovery wisely. EN RnP have often encouraged us to listen to our bodies and implement rest days with prudence. Did you ever get a post from me replying to your Moab experience? I'm assuming the dental work is related. Dang! Way to plug through it
.
Kristin: You're our heroine this week, way to push through it. I'm way impressed!! You da woman!!!
Yep Stephen, you guessed correctly, dental work of all varieties is definitely a major part of my treatment at this point. The initial reconstructive surgery on the skull and the post-op care was done by a craniofacial surgeon (who walks on water in my book, BTW). Then started the dental saga...In July I started with a prosthodontist for a series of crowns and other repairs, had an oral surgeon extract the teeth that were too fractured to save, and I'm getting ready to start with an orthodontist to try to fix the alignment issues before going back to the oral surgeon to start the implant process. Today I went in for my first good ol' fashioned cleaning at a regular dentist. I am SOOOO happy to finally have some of the build up removed. After a month of not brushing at all and all the junk that accumulated under all the hardware i had for so long, and then the fact that I gave up flossing in protest for a while, meant htat I had a lot of nastines. It feels (and looks) much better!
I figure the missing teeth will just make me look that much more frightening to my competition in SG!!!
Here's to championship recovery in prep for those tests!
My week is not going all that well...My three year old woke up after everyone was in bed to go to the bathroom, clogged the toilet, did not realize it, and went back to bed. The next morning we woke up with standing water in two of the joining rooms. We have a two story house the water was also running down a chandelier onto a wood table and then onto the wood floor. The insurance company comes out and it has somehow turned into a $40,000 insurance claim. Which one of your houses can I bring my five kids to so we can celebrate Thanksgiving dinner (maybe Christmas as well) in a house rather then a hotel?
Don't everyone jump at once...
Oh, Tom, that sucks!
I'm so sorry that happened.
Unfortunately, I can say for sure that my 2 bedroom townhome would be mighty tight for a family of your size...otherwise, you could make a little vacation out of this.
Post your story in the broader forum...you need the support of the WHOLE HAUS on this one!
Unfortunately, I can say for sure that my 2 bedroom townhome would be mighty tight for a family of your size...otherwise, you could make a little vacation out of this.
Post your story in the broader forum...you need the support of the WHOLE HAUS on this one!
Oh Tom...that totally sucks! I've got a couple of spare bedrooms and some good SoCal training weather if you want to load up the fam and head west?! Good luck with the insurance co and getting everything repaired. Take care of your family and don't sweat the training for a few weeks!
Fred
great help from the forum on all my questions. ultimately, i want a PM for christmas!
Hi all, sounds like most everyone had a good week. I found myself struggling through the week while setting in a hotel room. Thanks to the mojo of the team I managed to get through the workouts. Maybe not at 100% but definitely better than I normally do while on the road. I will be on the road for the remainder of 2009, and probably well into 2010. So I will be sucking in all the mojo I can.
But for now all of the team mojo has to go out to Tom and his family. When I read your post, I thought no way that only happens in the movies. I am sure you wish that were true. Good luck with getting everything repaired. Water damage can be be a real pain.
Happy recovery to all and extra mojo for the upcoming test. Crush it!
Pete
Hope you all made it through this last hurdle to test week and that you recover well. Monday will be here before we know it....