Last weekend was like a personal training camp for one ;o( How very sad...But I like it! I don't really train with groups, apart from swimming and some run/core training, so I had plenty of time to focus on...focussing over the weekend!
Saturday
Today's session was a S/B/R brick. I started with a 3km swim in the lake. I felt pretty average to be honest. Swimming east I was a bit battered by some head on swell and kept swallowing a ton of water! I took it easy though and tried to relax. My mind keeps telling me what a crap swimmer I am, so my body follows it. How frustrating...! Anyhow, onto the bike, I did 2.5hrs up to Broadfields and back and got a slow puncture in my rear wheel, and with the nasty side and headwinds it was tough on the way back! Following which I did an hour ten steady run. Overall I felt like I was just going through the motions. I wasn't particularly focussed at all. I was thinking that Imustn't push too hard, have 180km tomorrow on the same course! Still, I did it at IM pace, which makes me feel like I'm plodding, but to do it for 12 hours will truly leave me stuffed.
We stayed at the Waireki resort so Bede could play some golf. So wemet up afterwards, had a spa, had dinner there and met up with a work colleague for coffee, which was great fun.
Sunday
The biggie....the whole course 180km...I woke up with serious toilet trouble....nothing immodium didn't fix, but with me this is normally a sign of dehydration and too much sun from the day before, so I made sureI drank heaps of water and Enervit all day.
The first lap I took it nice and easy....the wind was better today, and I whizzed out to Reperoa, the return lag was hard work against the wind though. A few guys passed me drafting, nice race simulation eh...I can battle Mr Blowhard on my own thanks! Fisrt lap took me about 3hrs 10 mins.
The second lap I picked up the pace to steady IM pace for 50 mins, easy 10 x 3. After dosing up on caffeine tablets, coke and my current faves Cookies and Cream Powerbars I really enjoyed the second lap, with my focussed sections. Talking to the cows I passed though did start to get me slightly concerned....well there ain't much else there!
I ran off the bike for 20 mins, but felt like I could just keep on going. It felt great!
Nonetheless, I was pretty pooped. Spa shower, food, mini golf and more food followed! Fell asleep watching the Ozzie Open, damn it I wanted Tsonga to win!
Monday
I wanted to do one whole lap of the run course, and in 2hrs so that there are"no surprises" come race day. I like the course, I like undulations, I imagined everyone out there cheering us on. But coming into the lastcouple of kms, my lack of breakfast and nutrition ( I only had water and replace on the run) started to take its toll, plus it was really hot. However when I finished I had goose bumps and was cold. I had a migraine coming on, so enough was enough. My body's way of telling me it's your easier week now, enjoy it! Your last ease up before the big one....
I was tired, hungry, and morning long runs on an empty stomach and me don't mix!
So my easier week kind of tapers towards a BT half IM simulation number 2 on Saturday, so I'll treat this week like a race week!
Tuesday- Bike 2hrs including 5 x increasing intensity 10 mins
Wednesday - 40 min open water swim
Thursday- 75 min easy-steady run
Friday - Swim 75 mins, technique
Saturday- Half IM simulation - 3-4 km swim, 100km bike, 20km run (IM pace)
Sunday OFF!!!! Zilch, nada, nothing!
I'm in Wellington at the moment for work, so I can't bike, which is great for resting. What beautiful weather Wellington has put on. Gorgeous run this morning! Chance to catch up with my family, which I love.
Wednesday
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
A couple of shorties -Mission Bay People's Tri, Stroke n Stride
This week was a further endurance maintenance week, culminating with a triathlon race, The Panasonic People’s triathlon at Mission Bay, Auckland. The week’s training looked as follows:
Monday – 1hr technique swim with Parnell squad
Tuesday – AM - 75min steady run PM – 2.5hr bike including 4 x 10 min descending (working from steady to mod/hard) rest of ride steady with some hills, about 70km
Wednesday – AM – swim squad main set 40 x 120m (man that was tough, I think I only managed about 35, but it was an hour and a half session! PM – St Helier’s Go2Max running squad and 40min tempo run
Thursday – LSD run 2hrs 40 mins first half hills, 2nd flat with 4 x 1 min tempo intervals
Friday – Swim Squad – test speed set 1hr 15 mins
Saturday - 150km Orakei-Botany-Sandstone Hill-Whitford-Maraetai-Clevedon-Whitford-Sandstone Hill-Bucklands Beach-Mission Bay- Parnell-Orakei including 3 x 50min on IM pace (steady), 10 min easy
Sunday – Mission Bay Olympic distance race (1500m, 40km, 10km)
With the race on Sunday, following my long ride, this week tested my endurance and ability to focus on tempo/pacing and “flirting” with my anaerobic capacities! So I went into the race with no taper. Being an Olympic distance race, it wasn’t really necessary, but I rarely follow a long ride with a hard session the next day. I had no preconceptions or race plan going into the race, as I only considered it as a focussed training day and a “C” race. In a way I was looking forward to having my Sunday training finished by 10am!
Whilst setting up my gear in transition, I found out it was a drafting race! Having never been able to draft in a race before, I was looking forward to it, and also to the fact I wouldn’t have to push so hard on the bike, so I could recover quicker afterwards. The conditions were pretty calm, considering that the forecast was for wind and showers. Luckily the wind stayed away until later in the day.
The swim was typically testing for me, and got quite choppy out around the far buoys, but I tried to remain focussed on technique and being calm. My time was about 27-28 mins. I took it steadily through transition, so that my heart rate didn’t rocket. I got onto the bike and managed to get with a small bunch of guys. We worked ok throughout the race and caught a larger bunch ahead of us, which included a group of girls so I was pleased we passed them. Some of the guys did a bit of surging but only because they were all trying to beat one another- lots of testosterone flying around!
Unfortunately I left the speedometer sensor on my training wheels, so I had no idea how fast we were going, so I just focussed on keeping my cadence between 85 and 90 rpm. Having said that, I reckon the bike time was roughly 1hr 7 or 8 mins.
Going into the run, I felt strong and ran off the bike well. On the first lap I realised that if I held back a bit on the first lap and negative split the second, I would be looking at a time of 2hrs 20 mins. With so many different races going on, I wasn’t sure who was in my race, but no girls passed me on the run and I passed a couple. On my second lap, I picked up the pace and did the 10km in about 42 mins, and crossed the line in 2hrs 20 mins. At prizegiving, I found out I placed 2nd in my age group (25-29), and I got a plaque (!) and third female overall. I was pleased with my race considering I had a long ride the day before, and it showed me that my body is adapting to increased training loads, endurance and variations of pace and intensity.
Following the race, my coach advised me to take it easy for a few days to ensure I recovered properly. But in triathlon-speak, taking it easy does not mean doing nothing and putting my feet up too much! On the following Monday I swam with the squad in the morning. We focussed on backstroke for the main set. I absolutely suck at backstroke! I end up on the other side of the lane and have no catch whatsoever. All the same, it was a good recovery session and a bit of variety never hurt anyone! In the evening I had a 75 min steady undulating run. It was windy so I ran along the waterfront with the tailwind from the east, and even managed to get taken out by a freak wave over the wall on Tamaki Drive. It was refreshing, if not hilarious to watch…
On Tuesday, I had the morning off as I had Stroke n Stride in the evening. It was the windiest night and I woke up thinking that it was going to be a repeat of December’s race with the choppy surf! Throughout the day, a bit of fatigue started to set in from the weekend, and apprehension about the evening’s race. So I decided I would drive out to Mission Bay and see what the sea was offering…Well the weather gods had done their job and the sea was somewhat calmer than the morning indeed.
The swim was 1km and the run 3km. I found the swim quite hard, as there was a strong current pulling along the beach and I kept losing sight of the finishing buoys. I swam steadily, knowing I wanted to run well. The idea of doing these races was to build on my experience of swimming with large groups and to improve my confidence in the open water, and not necessarily to smash myself!
I ran well and managed to pass about ten girls. My race time was 32 mins, so I knew I could put in a good 12-13 minute 3km run without damaging my training too much. I finished 5th in my age group and beat my December time by over 2 minutes, so that was great. I warmed down with a 20 min steady run. It was a fun evening session, and as per usual, I felt frustrated with my swimming. On the flipside, my confidence is growing in open water (luckily no sharks have been spotted in Mission Bay!) and my times are improving.
Wednesday morning swim squad. I should have stayed in bed…I pulled out of the squad session and did my own main set, working on 120m for 40 mins with 15 secs rest. Somedays, it pays to knock it on the head. I wasn’t keeping pace and wasn’t there mentally.
On Thursday evening I was feeling tired, but managed my 2hr 40 min run. It was a hot evening, but it’s important to run in all sorts of conditions to train yourself to cope for whatever may come your way in Ironman. So, in order to keep my focus, I tried a different route around Herne Bay, Westmere, Western Springs Park and the Waterfront. When you really feel unmotivated to run long, especially if you have to run after a day at work, changing your route is one way of keeping the focus. For the first hour I also incorporated some hills, and in the second half I focussed on 1 min tempo every 10 mins, and on technique, especially cadence and running tall and strong. It was a long slog that night, but I felt good that I had stuck to my plan. I biked home for 20 mins, which was good recovery for my legs.
Following long runs, I don’t feel like eating a proper meal, normally because it’s quite late in the evening. When I feel like this I have a smoothie, normally containing Xtra milk, plain low fat sugar free natural yogurt, blueberries and banana. I’ll also have a bowl oats and fruit. In this way, I get my recovery carbs and protein into me quickly, with little effort in preparation and in eating. If I could eat breakfast three times I day, I would!
I was supposed to swim Friday morning, but I realised that I needed some rest. At this stage in my training listening to my body and recovery is as just as important as my training .So I skipped the session. If in doubt, leave it out....
I felt bad, so I have to justify it, here goes! I have always found swim squads challenging. Being naturally competitive in nature, I don’t like being held up, so I tend to push myself and put myself in the faster lane. I normally end up being the slowest, but sometimes I push myself too much just to keep up that I go too hard. My coach suggested that squads are fine so long as you have energy for your key bike/run workouts. Well, my swimming needs work, I know that. So does my sleep! Missing out on an hour’s sleep doesn’t out me in the best frame of mind for swimming. I used to swim at lunch in Christchurch, but it’s not really possible with my new job. I had a big Taupo training weekend coming up so I pulled back and had a day off.
Monday – 1hr technique swim with Parnell squad
Tuesday – AM - 75min steady run PM – 2.5hr bike including 4 x 10 min descending (working from steady to mod/hard) rest of ride steady with some hills, about 70km
Wednesday – AM – swim squad main set 40 x 120m (man that was tough, I think I only managed about 35, but it was an hour and a half session! PM – St Helier’s Go2Max running squad and 40min tempo run
Thursday – LSD run 2hrs 40 mins first half hills, 2nd flat with 4 x 1 min tempo intervals
Friday – Swim Squad – test speed set 1hr 15 mins
Saturday - 150km Orakei-Botany-Sandstone Hill-Whitford-Maraetai-Clevedon-Whitford-Sandstone Hill-Bucklands Beach-Mission Bay- Parnell-Orakei including 3 x 50min on IM pace (steady), 10 min easy
Sunday – Mission Bay Olympic distance race (1500m, 40km, 10km)
With the race on Sunday, following my long ride, this week tested my endurance and ability to focus on tempo/pacing and “flirting” with my anaerobic capacities! So I went into the race with no taper. Being an Olympic distance race, it wasn’t really necessary, but I rarely follow a long ride with a hard session the next day. I had no preconceptions or race plan going into the race, as I only considered it as a focussed training day and a “C” race. In a way I was looking forward to having my Sunday training finished by 10am!
Whilst setting up my gear in transition, I found out it was a drafting race! Having never been able to draft in a race before, I was looking forward to it, and also to the fact I wouldn’t have to push so hard on the bike, so I could recover quicker afterwards. The conditions were pretty calm, considering that the forecast was for wind and showers. Luckily the wind stayed away until later in the day.
The swim was typically testing for me, and got quite choppy out around the far buoys, but I tried to remain focussed on technique and being calm. My time was about 27-28 mins. I took it steadily through transition, so that my heart rate didn’t rocket. I got onto the bike and managed to get with a small bunch of guys. We worked ok throughout the race and caught a larger bunch ahead of us, which included a group of girls so I was pleased we passed them. Some of the guys did a bit of surging but only because they were all trying to beat one another- lots of testosterone flying around!
Unfortunately I left the speedometer sensor on my training wheels, so I had no idea how fast we were going, so I just focussed on keeping my cadence between 85 and 90 rpm. Having said that, I reckon the bike time was roughly 1hr 7 or 8 mins.
Going into the run, I felt strong and ran off the bike well. On the first lap I realised that if I held back a bit on the first lap and negative split the second, I would be looking at a time of 2hrs 20 mins. With so many different races going on, I wasn’t sure who was in my race, but no girls passed me on the run and I passed a couple. On my second lap, I picked up the pace and did the 10km in about 42 mins, and crossed the line in 2hrs 20 mins. At prizegiving, I found out I placed 2nd in my age group (25-29), and I got a plaque (!) and third female overall. I was pleased with my race considering I had a long ride the day before, and it showed me that my body is adapting to increased training loads, endurance and variations of pace and intensity.
Following the race, my coach advised me to take it easy for a few days to ensure I recovered properly. But in triathlon-speak, taking it easy does not mean doing nothing and putting my feet up too much! On the following Monday I swam with the squad in the morning. We focussed on backstroke for the main set. I absolutely suck at backstroke! I end up on the other side of the lane and have no catch whatsoever. All the same, it was a good recovery session and a bit of variety never hurt anyone! In the evening I had a 75 min steady undulating run. It was windy so I ran along the waterfront with the tailwind from the east, and even managed to get taken out by a freak wave over the wall on Tamaki Drive. It was refreshing, if not hilarious to watch…
On Tuesday, I had the morning off as I had Stroke n Stride in the evening. It was the windiest night and I woke up thinking that it was going to be a repeat of December’s race with the choppy surf! Throughout the day, a bit of fatigue started to set in from the weekend, and apprehension about the evening’s race. So I decided I would drive out to Mission Bay and see what the sea was offering…Well the weather gods had done their job and the sea was somewhat calmer than the morning indeed.
The swim was 1km and the run 3km. I found the swim quite hard, as there was a strong current pulling along the beach and I kept losing sight of the finishing buoys. I swam steadily, knowing I wanted to run well. The idea of doing these races was to build on my experience of swimming with large groups and to improve my confidence in the open water, and not necessarily to smash myself!
I ran well and managed to pass about ten girls. My race time was 32 mins, so I knew I could put in a good 12-13 minute 3km run without damaging my training too much. I finished 5th in my age group and beat my December time by over 2 minutes, so that was great. I warmed down with a 20 min steady run. It was a fun evening session, and as per usual, I felt frustrated with my swimming. On the flipside, my confidence is growing in open water (luckily no sharks have been spotted in Mission Bay!) and my times are improving.
Wednesday morning swim squad. I should have stayed in bed…I pulled out of the squad session and did my own main set, working on 120m for 40 mins with 15 secs rest. Somedays, it pays to knock it on the head. I wasn’t keeping pace and wasn’t there mentally.
On Thursday evening I was feeling tired, but managed my 2hr 40 min run. It was a hot evening, but it’s important to run in all sorts of conditions to train yourself to cope for whatever may come your way in Ironman. So, in order to keep my focus, I tried a different route around Herne Bay, Westmere, Western Springs Park and the Waterfront. When you really feel unmotivated to run long, especially if you have to run after a day at work, changing your route is one way of keeping the focus. For the first hour I also incorporated some hills, and in the second half I focussed on 1 min tempo every 10 mins, and on technique, especially cadence and running tall and strong. It was a long slog that night, but I felt good that I had stuck to my plan. I biked home for 20 mins, which was good recovery for my legs.
Following long runs, I don’t feel like eating a proper meal, normally because it’s quite late in the evening. When I feel like this I have a smoothie, normally containing Xtra milk, plain low fat sugar free natural yogurt, blueberries and banana. I’ll also have a bowl oats and fruit. In this way, I get my recovery carbs and protein into me quickly, with little effort in preparation and in eating. If I could eat breakfast three times I day, I would!
I was supposed to swim Friday morning, but I realised that I needed some rest. At this stage in my training listening to my body and recovery is as just as important as my training .So I skipped the session. If in doubt, leave it out....
I felt bad, so I have to justify it, here goes! I have always found swim squads challenging. Being naturally competitive in nature, I don’t like being held up, so I tend to push myself and put myself in the faster lane. I normally end up being the slowest, but sometimes I push myself too much just to keep up that I go too hard. My coach suggested that squads are fine so long as you have energy for your key bike/run workouts. Well, my swimming needs work, I know that. So does my sleep! Missing out on an hour’s sleep doesn’t out me in the best frame of mind for swimming. I used to swim at lunch in Christchurch, but it’s not really possible with my new job. I had a big Taupo training weekend coming up so I pulled back and had a day off.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
If you want a laugh...
Click on this...me post Taupo Half...lovely.....
http://www.smileclick.co.nz/gallery/index.cfm?obj_id=609996&dir=/content/gallery/Triathlons/Taupo%20Half%20Dec%2007&keyword=Hunter&all=1&item=6
http://www.smileclick.co.nz/gallery/index.cfm?obj_id=609996&dir=/content/gallery/Triathlons/Taupo%20Half%20Dec%2007&keyword=Hunter&all=1&item=6
Christmas/New Year Training
Christmas Eve I biked down to Hamilton via Whitford, Clevedon, Kawakawa Bay and the East Coast Bays (lonely!) route then towards Morrinsville, Gordonton and Hamilton. It ended up being 190km, and very warm. A good ride on terrain similar to the Ironman course with a few steeper hills.
Christmas morning I went for a run, but as we went to Midnight Mass I didn't get to bed until 1.30pm then up at 8 it was a bit of a mistake as the legs were still recovering!
Christmas was great, with a cool new digital camera I promise to make this site far more interesting! Plus I got two pairs of Mizuno Wave Nirvanas for the price of one pair in the sale at Smiths Shoes, so that was great. And the pavlova worked wonderfully...
Boxing Day saw me return to Auckland via the Hamilton to Auckland Express route to Pukekohe to Drury then back via the Great South Road. Apart from ending up on a gravel road with the song "We're on the Road to Nowhere" suspiciously appearing on the radio around Pukepuke it was a great 150km.
An easier day followed, then a swim bike run session then fast forwarding to the following Saturday a 3hr run and 1 hr bike needing LOTS of fluid it was so hot.
I'm just coming to the end of an easier week, but have still been running, a few 2hr rides, hill reps of One Tree Hill (the sheep think I'm nuts I'm sure!) and 75 min swims. Tomorrow sees my first Half IM simulation at IM pace which I'm heading out to Maretai for. Then a day off!!! Um...sorry what's that!
It's been hard over Christmas trying not to do too much and stick to my programme. I think a lot of people fall into the trap of going too hard in this silly season and ending up washed out at the end of Jan. The heat has also made training harder at times, but encourages you to drink more water which is always a good thing. My folks came up for New Year which was great fun. We went out to Long Bay on New Year's Day for a lovely picnic, and had some great meals at Soul and NSP. I took my Mum swimming at Parnell baths and felt guilty that I was in a wetsuit and she was braving the cold, so i took off my wetsuit and realised it wasn't that cold after all! Wimp that I am!
Tomorrow is the Tauranga Half IM and part of me really wishes I could do it again and challenge myself to beat last year's time. But this year Ironman is my goal and I need to keep my training at that nice steady pace, so smoking myself would not be good at this stage.
My programme has come through from my coach this week and I quote:
"Obviously training over the next few months is going to be more challenging with work starting. You need to use your common sense with recovery and life will need to become pretty simple for 2mths - there won’t be much time for anything other than training, eating working, recovery and that’s about it...."
So be warned...it's timeto really knuckle down!
My New Year's resolutions are to stretch more and look after myself more/recover properly/better, and a few up my sleeve which only I need to tell myself!
I start work on Monday which I am really looking forward to, so the next two months will be challenging.
Christmas morning I went for a run, but as we went to Midnight Mass I didn't get to bed until 1.30pm then up at 8 it was a bit of a mistake as the legs were still recovering!
Christmas was great, with a cool new digital camera I promise to make this site far more interesting! Plus I got two pairs of Mizuno Wave Nirvanas for the price of one pair in the sale at Smiths Shoes, so that was great. And the pavlova worked wonderfully...
Boxing Day saw me return to Auckland via the Hamilton to Auckland Express route to Pukekohe to Drury then back via the Great South Road. Apart from ending up on a gravel road with the song "We're on the Road to Nowhere" suspiciously appearing on the radio around Pukepuke it was a great 150km.
An easier day followed, then a swim bike run session then fast forwarding to the following Saturday a 3hr run and 1 hr bike needing LOTS of fluid it was so hot.
I'm just coming to the end of an easier week, but have still been running, a few 2hr rides, hill reps of One Tree Hill (the sheep think I'm nuts I'm sure!) and 75 min swims. Tomorrow sees my first Half IM simulation at IM pace which I'm heading out to Maretai for. Then a day off!!! Um...sorry what's that!
It's been hard over Christmas trying not to do too much and stick to my programme. I think a lot of people fall into the trap of going too hard in this silly season and ending up washed out at the end of Jan. The heat has also made training harder at times, but encourages you to drink more water which is always a good thing. My folks came up for New Year which was great fun. We went out to Long Bay on New Year's Day for a lovely picnic, and had some great meals at Soul and NSP. I took my Mum swimming at Parnell baths and felt guilty that I was in a wetsuit and she was braving the cold, so i took off my wetsuit and realised it wasn't that cold after all! Wimp that I am!
Tomorrow is the Tauranga Half IM and part of me really wishes I could do it again and challenge myself to beat last year's time. But this year Ironman is my goal and I need to keep my training at that nice steady pace, so smoking myself would not be good at this stage.
My programme has come through from my coach this week and I quote:
"Obviously training over the next few months is going to be more challenging with work starting. You need to use your common sense with recovery and life will need to become pretty simple for 2mths - there won’t be much time for anything other than training, eating working, recovery and that’s about it...."
So be warned...it's timeto really knuckle down!
My New Year's resolutions are to stretch more and look after myself more/recover properly/better, and a few up my sleeve which only I need to tell myself!
I start work on Monday which I am really looking forward to, so the next two months will be challenging.
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